Sickness and all that comes of it...

Well, I have just spent the last several days in bed with a nasty chest cold that seems to be sweeping the area. Lots of our students have fallen to it as well as a good many others on the base. 'Tis the season, I guess :)

But as I spent my days on our couch, I immersed myself in things that didn't take too much brain power since I was all fuzzy - sleeping, watching kid movies, sleeping some more, and reading the Chronicles of Narnia.

When I was little, every school night consisted of the same ritual. 9 o'clock would come around and you could find all five of us girls in our pj's with freshly brushed teeth, gathered in the living room to hear my dad read a chapter from a book. We were regaled with stories from books like, The Singer, Perelandra, Tales of the Restoration, Tales of the Resistance, and favorite of all...Chronicles of Narnia. We must have gone through those books five or six times and I loved them more each time. I have many wonderful memories of leaning on my dad's shoulder as he read through the stories, trying my best to read along and stay awake until the end of the chapter, then begging for another chapter.

Well, I read back through all seven books this past week (being sick doesn't slow down my speed reading habits, I guess) and I was amazed at how much I love them still. They are so innocent and fun, with such clever humor, but more than that, they are thought provoking and inspiring. I found myself praising God as I read the stories about Aslan and his sacrifice and unending love, his gentleness and power combined. It stirs me. And I am sure that is because it is calling me to know God more in his gentleness and power, in his sacrifice and unending love for me. As I read through The Last Battle and it came to the end of Narnia and the beginning of the New Narnia, I found myself crying, longing for the day when I will be with Jesus.

So I guess, however icky sickness can be, the fact of it making me just stop and realign my heart and desires to God's was well worth it.

Oh, whiteness...

After a lovely fall of beautiful colors and pleasant temperatures, we finally faced reality yesterday that winter has come to Kiev. A blanket of snow settled itself over the streets and soon it will be time to foam and tape up the windows. Yep, soon I'll make my way to the market and buy thick foam to tuck around the edges of the windows to make our apartment just a little bit warmer (already an icebox). Yep, winter has come!

On the upside, the DTS is in full swing and going very well. This is a great group of students. Each school is different and faced with different challenges and so far, I can see that this group has a real heart for God and serving Him in ministry. That's wonderful, but the downside is that with many of them, the relationship with God is just a side thing while ministry is the main focus. We're trying our best to get through to them that if their relationship with God is not the main thing in their lives and it's not active and alive, then their ministry will end up being dead as well.

I really care about these students and want to see each one come to a place of deeper intimacy with their Father and to get all He wants for them out of this DTS. This group of students have really shown me why it is I am doing this. And it has reminded me that I love discipleship. It is exciting and the possibilities of what God will do in the lives of these students is endless. It is so exciting to be even a small part of what He is doing. I am so entirely blessed that I am doing something that I love.