Give Thanks to the Lord

Shelly and Shakinah, ready to eat and lookin' good in their autumn colors =)


The Thanksgiving spread ... we even had enough left over to let each staff member take a plateful of food for their lunch on Friday. God is good.


Lilly and Shelby, one of Jan Thompson's daughters, making their way through the abundance of food on the two tables we had set up. Right now they're dishing up some of Lindsay's homemade stuffing =) Good stuff...

When I was checking my email earlier that morning, the Thompsons arrived on the base and got started with the decorating, which was their contribution for the day. They did an awesome job! But before they got to work, the two girls (Amanda and Shelby) got online to check their facebook, myspace, and email accounts. As I chatted with them, I found out that they had not been on the internet for over two months! The city where they are currently living and working for YWAM, Gonaives, was the hardest hit from the hurricanes that ripped through Haiti this fall. They informed me that the electricity in the city had just come on TWO days before Thanksgiving, after a total of 9 months without it! Wow ... that put things into perspective for me on this day of giving thanks. I have been so easily frustrated in the past few weeks by the little things that are not going right or not working yet, ie. photocopiers without toner, electricity that is only on for 5 hours a day (the norm now), internet cables that haven't been wired to our apartments YET, even though it's been on the "To Do" list since the flood in early September... But when I think about those who have so much less than me, and realize that in the big scheme of things, I have SO much to be thankful for, it really puts me in my place. Amanda and Shelby were thrilled beyond belief just to be online, finally reconnecting with their friends around the world. And here I was, wishing I didn't have to walk down to the computer lab every day to be on the internet... God, teach us to count our blessings. Help us to remember that we have nothing 'coming to us' that doesn't come directly from your hand. You are Good.


Shakinah and me, with our stomachs full of good food. We saved the desserts for our movie, but boy, were they ever worth the wait! Pumpkin pie, pecan pie, flan, Oh's cereal bars ... I was very happy with how the pies turned out. Even Lindsay and Shakinah, who don't usually like pumpkin pie, enjoyed eating it! That made me feel good =) Mom, your recipe is awesome!


Now THIS brought back good memories... Our family always pulls out jigsaw puzzles after the Thanksgiving meal. They are the perfect thing for spawning good fellowship and conversation. Here I am working with Jacob, the youngest of the Thompson family. He's a real talker, but it was fun to chat with him and hear him talk about some of his dreams and hopes for the future.
We only got the edge pieces together before it was time for the movie, but it didn't really matter. I just enjoyed the process of piecing together a puzzle again ;)