Angelika, Kim, & Inés-- cute elves!

Cuz we've "got mooooves....you've never seen". (julia roberts quote)
~Inés

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1415294055

Salaam alaykum- peace unto you....

I think it's amazing that in the Sermon of the Mount (Matthew 5), "blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God...." is the only "blessing" where you are identified with the most High as His child. In every other one you get something in return (for yourself), e.g., "blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted". Being identified with God brings consequences. Peacemakers are right in the middle of the conflicts making peace, and sometimes, that comes with struggle. Peacemakers are not peacekeepers, you can't keep something that's not there! like the blue U.N. helmets during the Rwanda genocide who had guns, but couldn't shoot the enemy who was shooting women & children--these are called "peacekeepers" in that realm. Making peace is a whole other animal, and spiritually, how do you *make* peace where there is none? That only comes if you bring in the Prince.

*

I was bothered with the news this morning that a man boarded a subway in New York, exclaimed "happy hannukah everyone!", and another passenger yelled something along the lines of, "you killed Jesus you *bad word* Jew!", followed by about 10 other people who beat him up. Why do crazy people do stupid things like this?

A: the violent passenger is nowhere near being a follower of Christ with that kind of attitude.

B: IF he thinks he is, check the Matthew verse AGAIN.

C. Can some Christians from New York please call that Jewish family & show them some love, support, & respect?

No Christ, no peace.
Know Christ, know peace. (bumper sticker I saw a few years ago).

So I add:
Know Christ, make peace, child.

Kim's making me answer these introspective questions

1) What did you accomplish this past week?
I hung the Austrian & Swaziland flags in our missions corner, finally (oops, sorry, I meant to say Rob hung them becuz I don't climb scaffolding); I advanced planning on the missions conference, I babysat my five (5) siblings, I brought my lunch to work and lost 3 lbs doing so, I translated documents, I babysat the 5 again, I cleaned my inbox down to 3 emails from 50 something, I had meetings & survived them, I cleaned house, did laundry, cooked some, I made my bed almost every day (which I hate), I ran errands, we celebrated my dad's 59th b-day at Cracker Barrel...

2) Did anything not go as expected?
I missed my Arabic class because my day got busy, how in the world will I ever learn to read those squiggly lines if I don't make it to class?

3) What was the highlight of your week?
I made it to worship rehearsal & had a rehearsal full of worship, it was SO refreshing! I haven't had time to sing with the team in like a whole year. Some say it's because *i sound flat* (inside joke). :-)

4) Did anything exciting happen that you did not expect?
I had to drive to Conway to meet with Kristi, a woman I'm trying to get to know better. I didn't expect to make it from Alexander to Conway in 30 minutes in the rain. I didn't expect to have such a relaxing drive listening to Classical music. You must really love God to drive 30+ minutes to go to church every Sunday! (in my personal opinion, and that's not a judgement if you drive less than 30 min. to go to church).

It's Angelika's turn now ;-)

Life without sugar...Day 3

The negative:
My head hurts.
Coffee doesn't taste nearly as good.
No more Cookies 'n Cream milkshakes from Chik-fil-A. :(
No Shakeys. :(

The positive:
I've overcome the temptation of a couple different cake offers.
My hands aren't sticky.
My teeth are healthier.
Other than a slight headache (probably due to low calorie intake today), I feel significantly better physically and emotionally.

The deal is that I woke up Sunday morning (Dec. 2) with the strange feeling that God was telling me to put down sweets for the month of December. Great timing, God! :) I have an insatiable affinity for all things sweet especially ice cream (anytime of year), homemade cakes, pies and cookies...oh yeah...and anything with the combination of chocolate and peanut butter. Seeing as how there will be LOTS of said food available this holiday season, I must put the brakes on before I get rolling. And by rolling, I mean a huge (huger) spare tire around my waist as well as a diminished self-image. Yes, guys struggle with that, too!

My fast guidelines
Not allowed: adding sugar to anything
(I'm a couple-of-teaspoons-in-my-

cup-of-coffee kind of guy),
sweets such as cookies, candy, cake, pie, ice cream, etc.
What is allowed: adding honey to my cup of tea, cereal and instant oatmeal that already contains sugar (because this is a self-control issue, not an oatmeal or cereal issue) :)

So here I am 3 days into my sugar/sweets fast, and everything seems ok, especially emotionally. I haven't felt any guilt that I normally associate with my somewhat regular impulsive splurges, and my energy level is good.

Ask me how I feel on Sunday. :)

In His grip,

Rob <><