Merry Christmas from the Waggoners!

This is how God showed his love among us:  He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him....

I JOHN 4:9

No place for a baby!

Monday morning we got the call. The road to Darshen was open after being snowed in for more than a week. David and I scrapped our plans and headed to this Albanian mountain village where Planters has ministered for more than a decade. This trip was a little different though. Instead of hosting a children's program or visiting and assisting the village school, we were there to meet a family that had somehow fallen through the cracks of even this rural society. Mondi, our colleague and translator, 'found' them a few weeks prior and was shocked by their living conditions. He shared his burden for this family and we talked together of the best way to help.

The 25-mile drive took more than an hour and a half through the slushy road. We stopped in front Darshen's pool hall/post office/bar/convenience store and warmed ourselves by the wood stove while Mondi picked out the food staples we would bring on our home visit. Buying the staples in Darshen helps keep the money in the local community. With bags in tow we began our hike up the mountain towards the edge of town. 

The further we got from our van, the more deserted houses we found. Water is hard to come by in the summer, and many families have abandoned their homes in the country for the concrete jungle of the city of Tirana. Many of these homes will be purchased and destroyed for the centuries-old stones they are made from.

As we reached the top of the hill and the end of the road I saw a house that had remained unchanged for a century or more. Unchanged that is except for the satellite-style TV antenna attached to the corner.

It is customary and practical to take your shoes off at the door as you enter a house, but this was different. Boots were needed inside the kitchen/living room as we dodged mud puddles in the dirt floor from a leaking roof. The walls were black from the smoke of a fire with no recessed fireplace. There was a pot of boiling water on the ground heated on a hotplate fed by a bare wire attached to the 220 voltage provided by the state.



Wind blew in windows that held no glass. The 13-inch TV was on, and chickens constantly wandered into the room only to be shooed away by the lady of the house. But most troubling of all was a tightly bound baby strapped into a tiny wooden box with rough rocking legs. This was no place for a baby! 

He cried as we entered and his mother rocked him with her foot as she talked with us. He was the youngest of three. His sisters were in school. One of them as a baby had been burned badly by the fire and the other had pins in her leg from a bad break. This was no place for a baby!

I took a picture of he and his mother and showed it to them on the back of the camera. His eyes brightened and he cracked a smile. A few more pictures, and bigger smiles! He won my heart and troubled my mind. What does the future hold for this precious boy? How will he live to adulthood? This was no place for a baby!

In a village 1000 miles away, 2000 years earlier, another mother wrapped her baby tightly and placed him in a wooden box to keep him safe. She probably shooed away the chickens and tried to avoid a draft. The shepherds kept their shoes on. It was no place for a baby. 

As we left the little house on the hillside in Darshen our hostess quipped, "I don't think heaven comes this far, this feels more like hell." But heaven DID come to a place just like this! It was no place for a baby, but the perfect place for a savior!

----  Nathan

Weekend Warriors

Nathan and Dad returned safely last night from Albania, but given that their photos are over at Mom and Dad's, and that our weary traveler is catching up on some z's, I thought I'd post a few pics from one of the activities that kept us busy while he was away.  For those of you interested in the Albania ministry, please check back in a few days because Nathan has lots to share -- it was a wonderfully productive trip with lots of affirmations along the way!

Wednesday night we got a phone call from my grandpa announcing that he and Grandma were moving on Saturday.  Yes, just about 48 hours' notice. After months and months of deliberation, they signed a contract and decided to move to assisted living in just a few days' time. The timing wasn't the greatest given that Dad and Nathan were in Albania, a number of local family members were under the weather or injured, not to mention the busy-ness of this general time of year, but Mom was able to find an empty trailer in one of Dad's sheds and Aunt Marcia assembled some packing materials and a motley crew to move my grandparents into their new digs.

Aunt Marcia has been recovering from knee surgery and was great entertaining the kids (here, she's allowing Ellie to accessorize her with some of Grandma's Christmas decorations).

My cousin, Emily, and her husband, Ike, pose like they're going to move this hutch (which they really couldn't given that Ike had injured his arm the day before at work).  I told you we were a motley crew!

Heidi saved the day sharing her new iPhone (which she had just gotten the day before for her birthday!) with the kids!

Yep!  Watch out!  I might just pop out of corners and ambush you with my camera!

Yeah, those two below worked really hard... 

Well, I think I hear Nathan... back to cleaning for Christmas company!

God's Provision | the Stroller

On December 12, Aletha Hinthorn published the following thought on her blog after sharing the miraculous story of God's provision for her in a particular situation:


God wants us to go forward believing He will not only see the need before we do, but will also have provided the answer. God's provisions are much like those of a mother who thinks ahead about what her child will need on a trip. She packs little surprises, toys, games, and foods that she knows he would enjoy. God promises to provide for us "superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think-infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams" (Ephesians 3:20 Amp.).

As you can imagine, Reni is growing and getting stronger and heavier -- such that we dare not leave the house without double checking that we have the stroller with us.  It's an adequate little stroller.  We bought it 6 years ago in anticipation of bringing Ellie home.  Since we were adopting her as a toddler, we didn't think it made sense to invest in one of those higher-end strollers with the infant carrier and all.  Though we found the handle bar on our economy version a bit narrow and low in relation to our height,  it did the job... most of the time.

This fall when we visited the bee hives at the Allen Farm, we had to walk a ways down a long dirt lane.  At one point the ruts and rocks were just too much for our little stroller's small, wobbly wheels.  The carriage was obviously built for the smooth tile floors of the mall and not "off-roading it."  On the steepest part of the lane, it was easier for one of us to carry Reni and another carry the stroller, than to push.    We were reminded anew that our stroller was lacking.

hiking to the bee hives

Travel with me in your mind's eye to the city of Tirana.  Thankfully the streets around our apartment are now paved, but many of the sidewalks are uneven and occasionally broken, many paved with cobblestone or bricks.  The curbs are high (none of those ADA dips for wheelchair access) and because the traffic is SO bad, we will walk to do most every kind of errand we can.  Then imagine the village... with gravel roads on a hillside, and many a path just like the farm lane at the Allen farm.  We've known for sometime that we would need to invest in a good, off-road stroller that would hold Reni for a few more years until he gets good legs, but those are not cheap.

You can imagine our joy when a church in Kentucky expressed a desire to bless us with something to help with Reni's needs.  We proposed the stroller and they thought that was a great idea. After consulting my friends on the Yahoo limb difference group, a particular brand was recommended to me which I investigated further. Upon reading the reviews for this stroller, I knew it would suit our needs perfectly.  Thanks to the generosity of God's people (and one-click shopping), we came home from Ohio last week to this,  Reni's new chariot:  

Isn't that a sporty color, like the race cars he admires?  The seat is padded, the shocks on this buggy are truly impressive, the wheels are sturdy (the front wheel is fixed) and the handlebar (with hand break) is at the perfect height for Reni's taller parents!  You can feel the quality construction through and through.  It holds up to 70 lbs so given that he barely scratches 30 lbs today, he should be able to use this for years to come.  It apparently also comes with an optional rain screen which we may just have to get... and in that case I may just ask Nathan to push ME down the street in it!  Oh wait... what was that weight limit?  

But really, the greatest blessing is less tangible than shocks and wheels and handbreaks... the greatest blessing is that Reni will be included in so much more of what we do and where we go (in the mundane, the fun, and in ministry).  And if you've ever met our Reni boy, you know that his mere presence touches and blesses those he meets.  He's a valuable part of our ministry team. That's a blessing that extends beyond our family's convenience.  Thank you, friends!  You know who you are!  Thank you for being an instrument of God's provision!

This whole faith journey in raising our support to go to Albania has been an indescribable experience of seeing God's provision through His people, sometimes like this, in many unexpected ways.  It's faith-growing and call-confirming.  If our adoption experience is any indication, God's miraculous provision today will be a signpost at which we can reference in times of doubt and hardship to reassure us that He is indeed with us, and that we are on the right path.

Aletha's closing echoes our prayers:

Thank You, Jesus, that You will provide in the future as You have in the past. Some day in heaven I'll be amazed to see how carefully You planned ahead for every detail of my life. 

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (2 Corinthians 9:8).

Read the entire devotional message here.

Nathan in Albania...

The day we returned from a month on the road in Ohio and Indiana you could find us packing suitcases again... this time, with items to take and leave in Albania!  I'll tell you, I got a little panicky when I saw how quickly those bags filled up! It hit me how little we'll be able to take over when we go 'for real' in August!  As we neared the limits in each bag, Nathan would holler out, "I have room for something the size of ... a deck of cards!"  And I'd go searching around the house to fill that space with something random like sauce packets from the pantry, post-it notes, or a pair of socks. 

When it came down to it, I was glad that in our move we had already culled our belongings down to the most important and sentimental of our possessions. Our primary goal for Nathan's suitcases was to take over winter clothes for the kids in next years' sizes, but we still had room for a few favorite Christmas ornaments, a couple of board games for long winter nights, my absolute must-have kitchen utensils (I could so do an ad for Pampered Chef), some framed photos, shoes, and who knows what else... I probably should have photographed the contents, but why spoil the surprise for myself when we arrive in 8 months? 

Dad and Nathan found a new itinerary for flying to Albania this time... leaving Peoria at 6PM for a 10PM flight from O'Hare to Istanbul.  It meant for a late arrival into Tirana, but lots of time the day of leaving for a few stops to get last-minute items on the way to the airport. It also meant more time for sleeping during their bodies' regular sleeping hours. 

I included the photo below to show Reni's new photo 'face' -- ugh!  Let's be SILLY seems to be his constant state of mind.

As much as we thought we had prepared the kids, they both begged and pleaded to go too.  That begging (and whining) lasted for TWO WHOLE DAYS! (I think it was probably more than just disappointment, it was a lot of transition all at once). According to my recollection from February's trip, the mystique of trans-atlantic travel wore off within minutes of arriving at the airport.  I can't wait until I get to go somewhere and it's Nathan's turn! :-)

Great goodbye hugs for the kids... but not so much for me.  Yeah, he must have not seen me behind the camera (sniff, sniff).

Every day brings a wonderful assortment of new photos from Nathan and Dad...

Nathan has reported that this trip has been SOOO valuable. At one point he said he's had several moments near tears (the good kind) when he thought about next year. Yeah, we're amazed to see how everything is coming together.

PHOTO BELOW
(top row, left) Here Nathan's successfully testing out our ATM card.  I think you could say we're not big ATM users, we can never remember our PIN and we hardly ever carry cash. Shocker, I know, but we're happy to adapt to living in a cash-based society.  I can hear all you Mr. Ramsay fans telling us it will be better for us in the long run. ;-) ... though I'll  miss the paper trail from using plastic (and at the same time I hear Nathan telling me he's found an app for that).

(top middle):  Nathan's showing someone how to run a tech gadget -- some things never change
(all the other photos) -- reconnecting with friends has been the icing on the cake
(not pictured) -- Nathan's gotten the relative schedule for our Albanian language classes and costs,  as well as the cost of our visas and the process for acquiring a residency permit. Tomorrow he'll check out registering WGM with a couple of different evangelical associations in the country which will give us a number of benefits.

The photo below was from this evening at the men's coffee and game fellowship in Vlashaj.  Nathan said the lights went out and without missing a beat, cell phones were whipped out to provide enough light to continue the game.

Some of the patriotic symbols on display in honor of the centennial...

This afternoon Nathan visited with our friend Perparim, director of the teen orphan group home in neighboring Marikaj.  He asked us to consider teaching some classes to the students there -- the idea thrilled us as a great means for getting to know the kids better while also imparting some useful information that might help them develop some skills.  The kids are in a beautiful new facility, but their library is woefully lacking ... Nathan snapped this photo for his mom, who has a masters in library science.

And finally, I think I mentioned that much is happening to prepare our first home in Albania for our arrival.  Below, some iron grating to keep little munchkins from having any accidental falls from a second story window.

And, I think you've heard that everything is smaller in Europe?  Case in point... our beautiful (but compact) new interior staircase pictured below.  While we're not in Africa, you may want to bring that pith helmet when you visit us...

Thanks for your prayers for our family!  In case you're wondering, Nathan and Dad return to the States next week.

The Questions Behind the Question

The flags in front of WGM's home office yesterday in Marion, IN

"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished" (Luke 1:45).  (Memory verse for the month of December).

Many have asked "how it's going" in relation to this time of preparation for Albania.  Actually, we get this question almost daily, sometimes in a cautious, "I'm prepared for an honest-but-probably-not-optimistic answer" tone of voice. 

It's a question pregnant with many unspokens.  The first is a question about how our support is coming in.  We get it -- it's like watching a football game.  What's the score?  How much time is left in the half?  How do we define 'winning'? We are pleased to report that by God's grace and through His people we are meeting our goals for monthly support -- praise His name!  I admit that as we approach the end of each month I find myself starting to doubt, then confessing and closing with "Lord, I trust you!" The answer for today is that we are at 32% -- that feels huge to me and we rejoice in his provision.  

The second unspoken relates to the family: how are the children handling the meetings, the schedule, life on the road, etc.? That's going extremely well too!  They generally approach each visit with anticipation, especially if that place has pets or children!  If you are praying for us and the children in this respect, thank you!  We believe that God has really prepared their hearts. Where I think we need to work harder is in preparing them for what this is all about.  They know it's so we can "go to Albania," but I don't believe in their limited understanding that they have grasped the greater Purpose.  We are almost daily asked by them when we get to go. And as I write this, I think it's rooted in the fact that  'home' is a nebulous concept for us right now and they sense that perhaps upon reaching Albania, life will be 'settled'.  And after all, don't we ALL want that?

Back "home" today after 4 weeks in Ohio and Indiana

Case in point:
Last night we pulled up to the white farm house (after four weeks away) and Reni said, "No! Not this house!  I want to go HOME!"  

Ellie told us (as if we didn't understand her brother), "He wants to go to our old house in Kentucky!"

I told Reni I knew what he was feeling but that we didn't live there anymore, to which he responded in a tone of acceptance (and in his 3-year-old way of pronunciations), "Yeah, it's Jon and Faif's house now."

This morning he's happy as a clam, rediscovering old toys and reacquainting himself with a place where he knows the boundaries.

I think a final, unspoken question within the question is: how are YOU (Cydil) doing?  Or, is this what you signed up for? In our previous job we hosted missionaries on a weekly basis.  I got to see them at various places in their journey, whether that be as green appointees figuring out how to articulate their call to veteran missionaries preparing for their last term abroad. From that perspective, I think we got a pretty realistic insight as to what this year would be like for us.  We prepared ourselves for the possibility of stress, discouragement, tiredness, rejection, lack of privacy, family tension, etc. I have to say the Lord has been so GOOD to us.  We sense his blessing on us.  He sends us encouragement through fellow believers, through unexpected provision, through new insights from the Word... through a special sense of closeness we feel with our family unlike any we've ever experienced before. 

Thank you for asking!  Thank you for caring!  Thank you for praying!

"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished" (Luke 1:45)

NEWS UPDATE:  Nathan and my father are flying to Albania tomorrow afternoon.  They will be carrying over items for our family and checking on the status of construction projects at our future home, like the completion of the stairway project, window grill installation and other modifications to keep little monkeys safe, as well as legal matters like ministry registration and residency visas.  While they are away, the kids and I will get in lots of time with Gigi and Aunt Hannah, send our Christmas cards, and do a lot of cooking and preparing for Christmas!

Adoption and Advent?

God has taught me so much about His Father's heart and my spiritual adoption as His son through the miracles of my children's physical adoption, but this Christmas season I realized afresh that His entire redemptive plan hinged on it.

The Gospels start with "This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:"  Matthew starts his writings about Jesus with a listing of his heritage. He does this because at least seven distinct prophecies about the Messiah speak of his royal bloodline. If Jesus was not of the tribe of Judah and more specifically in the line of King David, the rest of Matthew's story would be about a great man and teacher but not the Messiah. So Matthew sets the table for the whole story of redemption in a genealogy. There is only one problem...Jesus wasn't genetically related to Joseph!

Both Luke and Matthew trace Jesus' linage through Joseph, yet both authors tell of the virgin birth of Jesus through Mary. How then could Jesus be the Messiah? Only through adoption! According to the Jewish Talmud, "whoever brings up an orphan in his home, scripture ascribes it to him as though he had begotten him. (Talmud Mas. Sanhedrin 19b)

Eight days after his birth, Joseph gave him the name Jesus and presented him to the temple to be circumcised.  By bringing up Jesus in his home as his son, that is exactly what Jesus became, his adopted son! "Isn't this the carpenter's son?" (Matt 13:55)

Joseph didn't plan on being so entwined in the salvation of the world. In fact Scripture shares of his reservations before his obedience (a very early example of 'ReluctantHusband Syndrome'?). But aren't you glad that he became Jesus' earth father so that God could become our heavenly father?

CS Lewis said, "The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God."

If I can presume to edit CS Lewis I would write, "The Son of God became the son of Joseph to enable men to become sons of God."

What a beautiful picture... the miracle of adoption at both ends of God's redemptive story!! 

-- Nathan

Friends, Family and Football!!!

Playing catch up on photos from our Ohio visits!

LEFT, ABOVE: It was a treat to visit my Aunt Miriam, Uncle Don, and cousins Derek and Luke (who was up from Alabama for Thanksgiving).
RIGHT, ABOVE:  Reni acting goofy with Nancy Landerholm

Below:  We were blessed to share at Faith Memorial Church in Lancaster a week ago Sunday!  This is Mom and Dad Waggoner's home church and where we worship whenever we are in town.  We received a very kind endorsement from Pastor Morgan and met some lovely new people.  It's wonderful to be at a church that values missions!

The Wednesday night before Thanksgiving Day, Steve, Rachel and the kids arrived from Delavan...  Ellie and Reni were thrilled that "The Cousins" had arrived!

 A beautiful table decorated by Mom...

I hope this becomes our new tradition... FOOTBALL after lunch.  So. Much. Fun.  For "touch" football, I fell down A LOT!  Maybe it had something to do with Nathan and I playing on opposite sides.

Relaxing in the basement, watching something (Funniest Home Videos? I can't remember)

Then brunch and 'goodbye' on Friday...

After The Cousins left, Reni was looking at a photo of all the grandkids together and asked, "Which one is that?"  Ha!  Someday he'll get their names all down. :-)  After all, we did have ten kids here under the age of 12!

Ever heard of geo-caching? This may be a new family activity while we travel on homeland ministry... Nathan had the brilliant idea to leave Albanian lek coins as our contribution at each spot.

Once you locate the cache, you can swap out items in the container and sign and date your name that you've been there.  Nathan also found a place online to document our discoveries.  We like cheap/free fun whenever it can be found!