A Missionary’s Life :: Japanese, Swahili, & Chick-Fil-A
It’s that time again…. read our weekly “Friday Update” below!
Roll out the red carpet. This Wednesday Rusty and I were asked to emcee the Volunteer Banquet for our church. The theme was RED CARPET,
and it was set up as an Awards Show. We spent the night telling jokes,
laughing at ourselves, and giving out funny awards. It was a BLAST! We
have such a wonderful church full of fun people! (and any excuse for me
to wear an old pageant dress is GREAT! 😉
and it was set up as an Awards Show. We spent the night telling jokes,
laughing at ourselves, and giving out funny awards. It was a BLAST! We
have such a wonderful church full of fun people! (and any excuse for me
to wear an old pageant dress is GREAT! 😉
Happy Birthday in Swahili. “Heri ya siku kuu!” (okay, actually
that says
“Have a Special Day” in Swahili…there’s no direct
translation for Happy Birthday). This past monday was the 10th birthday
of one of the children we sponsor in Kenya. Sweet little Erick is
growing up! I’ve been sponsoring him for almost 3 years, and I have
loved every moment. If you have time, please say a little prayer for
him today! He comes for a Muslim family, but through Compassion International he is
getting Christian discipleship. It is such a blessing to get his
letters with Bible verses in them! Praise God!
that says
“Have a Special Day” in Swahili…there’s no directtranslation for Happy Birthday). This past monday was the 10th birthday
of one of the children we sponsor in Kenya. Sweet little Erick is
growing up! I’ve been sponsoring him for almost 3 years, and I have
loved every moment. If you have time, please say a little prayer for
him today! He comes for a Muslim family, but through Compassion International he is
getting Christian discipleship. It is such a blessing to get his
letters with Bible verses in them! Praise God!
Drain-O FAIL. Yup, there’s a much less glamorous side to our daily lives (it’s not all red carpets and award shows! haha)
All week we’ve been struggling with a badly clogged kitchen
sink…YUCK! We tried 3 different bottles of Drain-O and Liquid
Plumber, all to no avail. After having to wash the dishes in the
bathtub, we had just about had it! Thankfully, some friends on facebook
suggested trying a plunger. Lucky for us it WORKED! (well that, coupled
with some prayers!) We’re sad we wasted $15 on drain-o, but very thankful we didn’t have to call a plumber!
All week we’ve been struggling with a badly clogged kitchen
sink…YUCK! We tried 3 different bottles of Drain-O and Liquid
Plumber, all to no avail. After having to wash the dishes in the
bathtub, we had just about had it! Thankfully, some friends on facebook
suggested trying a plunger. Lucky for us it WORKED! (well that, coupled
with some prayers!) We’re sad we wasted $15 on drain-o, but very thankful we didn’t have to call a plumber!
The Chick-Fil-A Fairy. Those of you who know me know that I LOVE Chick-Fil-A. I could eat it every day – those tasty nuggets,
honey mustard, and sweet tea…mmm… Okay, now my mouth is watering!
Anyway… the tragic thing about living in Michigan is, there is only
ONE Chick-Fil-A. ONE! And it isn’t even a REAL Chick-Fil-A… it’s just
part of a food court on a college campus AN HOUR AWAY! UGH! So so sad.
Well, yesterday afternoon I got a knock on the door. When I looked
outside I saw our friend Shawn from church. “That’s odd”, I thought, “I
wonder what Shawn wants?” And then… I opened the door. In Shawn’s
hands were one of the most beautiful little red and white boxes I’d
ever seen! HE BROUGHT ME CHICK-FIL-A!!!!!! 12 whole tasty little
nuggets, and a slice of pie! AND IT WAS MINE! ALLL MINE!!!! First I
hugged him, then made him pinch me to be sure I wasn’t dreaming. After
he left I did a little dance in our kitchen and chowed down… OH HOW I
LOVE CHICK-FIL-A!!!
honey mustard, and sweet tea…mmm… Okay, now my mouth is watering!
Anyway… the tragic thing about living in Michigan is, there is only
ONE Chick-Fil-A. ONE! And it isn’t even a REAL Chick-Fil-A… it’s just
part of a food court on a college campus AN HOUR AWAY! UGH! So so sad.
Well, yesterday afternoon I got a knock on the door. When I looked
outside I saw our friend Shawn from church. “That’s odd”, I thought, “I
wonder what Shawn wants?” And then… I opened the door. In Shawn’s
hands were one of the most beautiful little red and white boxes I’d
ever seen! HE BROUGHT ME CHICK-FIL-A!!!!!! 12 whole tasty little
nuggets, and a slice of pie! AND IT WAS MINE! ALLL MINE!!!! First I
hugged him, then made him pinch me to be sure I wasn’t dreaming. After
he left I did a little dance in our kitchen and chowed down… OH HOW I
LOVE CHICK-FIL-A!!!
Japanese Evangelism. No, we’re not going to
Japan…but we are helping out Japanese students! Our friend Kim has
been hired to make videos by a Christian guy in Japan who’s teaching students English.
Today we were interviewed in conversational English (on video) to help them learn.
The really COOL part is, we were asked questions about our faith; how
we got saved, what our relationship with Christ is like, and how we
feel about the gospel. It’s so neat to know that just by sharing from
the heart on a 5 minute video, we might be helping lead a Japanese
student to the Lord!
Japan…but we are helping out Japanese students! Our friend Kim has
been hired to make videos by a Christian guy in Japan who’s teaching students English.
Today we were interviewed in conversational English (on video) to help them learn.
The really COOL part is, we were asked questions about our faith; how
we got saved, what our relationship with Christ is like, and how we
feel about the gospel. It’s so neat to know that just by sharing from
the heart on a 5 minute video, we might be helping lead a Japanese
student to the Lord!
Happy 1 Year Anniversary.
No, not for us (though we did make the 7 month mark this week! WHOO
HOO!) It’s Rusty’s 1 year anniversary of finishing the World Race.
That’s right, exactly a year ago today he was on a plane home. We can’t
believe how quickly the past year has FLOWN by!
No, not for us (though we did make the 7 month mark this week! WHOO
HOO!) It’s Rusty’s 1 year anniversary of finishing the World Race.
That’s right, exactly a year ago today he was on a plane home. We can’t
believe how quickly the past year has FLOWN by!
Picasso in training. Well, they aren’t THAT good, but this week I
finished 7 paintings I’ve been working on. I’ve only painted one other
time in my life, but we were looking for some cheap Christmas
decoration ideas. I decided to paint some canvases to hang on all our
doors because they were really inexpensive (only about $2 a piece,
ribbon included). The experience was a lot of fun, and I’m really
pleased with the end result! They may not be perfect but they’re mine. I tried to take pictures but the flash messed with the way they looked…still they give you an idea 🙂
finished 7 paintings I’ve been working on. I’ve only painted one other
time in my life, but we were looking for some cheap Christmas
decoration ideas. I decided to paint some canvases to hang on all our
doors because they were really inexpensive (only about $2 a piece,
ribbon included). The experience was a lot of fun, and I’m really
pleased with the end result! They may not be perfect but they’re mine. I tried to take pictures but the flash messed with the way they looked…still they give you an idea 🙂
That’s all we have friends – consider yourself caught up.
Enjoy the pictures below, and have a great weekend! 🙂
This painting is for the bookcase (where our stockings will hang).
It’s gold & silver (you can’t really tell it’s metallic in the picture).
This painting is for our bedroom…. (gold, silver, & brown)
This painting is for our guestroom (it’s done in a jungle-theme”)…
For the office (again, the metallic gold & silver look much better in person)…
For the bathroom…
For the hallway….
For the entry-way (I was really proud of my holly in the corners!)
The painting look really great. Good job Ericka. I didn’t know you painted.
Your Christmas paintings are great!
Great Job, Ericka! You could really sell those and make a little support money! I really like the last one and the first one. I’m proud of you for stepping out there!
Not gonna lie… I like those. I’d pay money for them…
Great idea for decorating…you could make them and sell them for support!! You are such an amazing and talented person…so glad that I know you! Have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!! =)
Great Pictures…I KNEW they’d be good! My favorite is the last one…but they’re all really neat (I like the palm tree too!)…Great Inexpensive ideas! Fits very well with that “Dollar Tree” theme you told me about. 🙂 Love you BUNCHES, Mom