Toys, Noah and Faith

After having to re-start our day this morning (I spanked every child after breakfast and sent them back to bed after spending the two previous hours telling them to be quiet, listen to their aunties and uncles, stop hitting/beating/pinching/tattling, etc, I was already done). So we restarted our day, I hugged each one of them as they exited their rooms and set up wood blocks for the girls and legos for the boys to play with, and after half an hour they switched toys. They've had these toys in the living room, but they are in big black bins so I think they are often forgotten, well what better to do on a rainy morning than play with legos and blocks, my personal favorite toys! They looked so All-American, check them out (I also went through the girls' closet on Thursday and made them all cute little outfits that actually match, they pull whatever they feel like out ordinarily!)

They had so much fun, and actually the day got better from there, it wasn't perfect, but they were better behaved than before. Then I finally told the other missionaries (ok, and now you) that I've been frustrated with their level of commitment to serve and am exhausted from being the only one to get up with them for bathing, breakfast and school every morning, and constantly feeling like I'm the only one downstairs all the time; Joanna was only disappointed that I hadn't told her sooner. The administrator had tried a discrete way, and then so did I with my devotions, but sometimes direct and to the point is what is needed. I am personally a fan of direct and to the point, but often times people can be so sensitive that it's hard to share, so I was trying the other approach, but really, it's just not me. I'm going back to direct and when timed appropriately; i.e. before your oil well overflows (thanks Dad!). So you're thinking really her day got better by having this happen, but really it did, I felt so much relief. I know you know what I'm talking about!

After rest time I played so hard with the kids, chasing them, playing soccer, holding their feet while they walk on their hands, etc. My body is exhausted. But I managed to finish our week on Noah and the Bible verse: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Gen 9:13, and all but the youngest child, Emma, memorized it! I made supper tonight and all the kids ate it happily, which means none of them cried (see previous posts if this doesn't make sense!): spaghetti, ground beef and homemade sauce, with buttered dinner rolls warmed in the oven!!

Tonight is typically game night but the boys had misbehaved during naptime so no games was their punishment, since the girls got to stay up a bit longer I gave them each lip gloss to put on, painted their finger nails with clear (their nails get inspected at school so no chipped nail polish) and read them the story of Snow White. Girl time!

This evening I led devotions on faith, Hebrews 11, its amazing the amount of faith people like Noah, Moses, and Abraham had and what they did for their faith, it is actually very humbling and makes me think it should be easier for me to have faith if they did amidst all their strife. Read it and you'll feel similarly. Yesterday the kids watched Evan Almighty, its a movie based loosely on the story of Noah, and helped reinforce the incredible faith Noah had in building an ark in the middle of dry land. Hebrews 11 starts off with such a great definition of faith: Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see.

My middle name is Faith, you'd think that it would make it easier for me to have all the time, you'd think just because I took a leave of absence from work, put my life on hold for three months and went to mission in Africa that my faith must be immense. Well, I guess the day I said 'yes' to God about coming here it was, but it waivers all the time, just like what happens in most of you, we're human, but you should keep on striving to have more of it; where might He take you?!