Trying out her gifts

Amy got a set of roller skates, a new helmet and elbow and knee pads for her birthday and she decided to try them out today. She did much better than her daddy ever did at roller skating! In just a few years we might tackle going from Olten to Solothurn togther – Brent on the bike and Amy on her skates. For now, Holderbank will do nicely!

Amy turns five!

We can hardly believe our little girl turned five this past week! It feels like we were bringing her home yesterday from the hospital. Amy delayed her celebration, having her very first party at school on Friday. She was the student of the day and got a chance to choose which order the children could go to sit at their seats. The boys and girls sang several birthday songs to her, each one made a special wish for her (one boy wished her a star) and she was the center of several games. We brought in cake for all the children and Christopher had a blast too.

God has blessed us with such a beautiful and healthy little girl, and we give all glory to Him!

December happenings

It's been a wild and crazy December, and there's still several more weeks to go! We said a sad farewell to the Van Eck family, who flew back to South Africa on December 3. Brent drove them to the airport and with tears in his eyes said goodbye. The Van Ecks became good friends over the past five years and we will sorely miss them.

We got our Christmas tree that next weekend and the kids had fun decorating it. Of course mommy and daddy had to fine-tune the placement of them, but it's a nice little tree.

A few days later we hosted a Christmas Club at our house. The local CEF® worker, Trudy Heininger, came to give the gospel story. Unfortunately, no children from our village of Holderbank came, but we did have two children from our church. We discussed it, and even though the results were disappointing, we're going to try again next year. It was certainly a learning experience for us. God isn't interested in our performance. He's interested in our obedience. All we can do is to keep on trying and praying.

Brent chaired his first meeting ever the next day at the Kilchzimmer workers' meeting. It was certainly harder than he thought and wasn't sure how well he did until he was unanimously chosen to lead the next one. (He still thinks it was because no one else wanted the job!)

Jen's been very busy too, baking Christmas cookies, sending out cards, wrapping presents and preparing for our Christmas open house, which is on the 22nd. Please pray for us as we have a chance to share the true meaning of Christmas with those who come. Merry Christmas!

Wanting to give

Since starting Kindergarten this year, we've decided to make a daily goal chart for Amy. It includes some simple goals like waking up on time, eating breakfast (ok, some days that's not so simple) and getting dressed. Other goals are more difficult, like not talking back and making her bed. There are a total of 19 items she can get credit for each day, and she gets to stamp her chart. For every five goals she accomplishes, she gets a 5 rappen coin. (Equivalent to a nickel). If she gets all 19, she gets an extra coin for the day.

We're glad for her wanting to achieve her goals, but there's something extra special.

We told Amy in the beginning that she could save her coins and buy a treat each week, or she could put them away in her bank. We also said she could give them for the missionary offering at church.

Her eyes got big, and she loudly proclaimed her intention to give all her earnings to missions!

How humbling for us, and how grateful we are for her enthusiasm toward giving to Jesus!

So close…

A couple of evenings ago Amy was being very disobedient. She went to bed screaming and kicking and making all of us miserable. I calmed her down (it took quite a while) and then shared with her how she was making God sad by disobeying mommy and daddy. She got this big frown, and I realized I had a teachable moment, so I quietly and gently shared the Gospel with her. She said she wanted God to help her be a good girl, but when I asked if she wanted Jesus to forgive her sins, she shook her head no. I just smiled at knowing His timing, not mine will prevail. I just wanted to ask you to pray for us as we see spiritual development in her life.

-Brent

Finishing the race!

Can you believe it! I ran in a 5.5 km race – the Basler Stadtlauf! (Basel city run) I have been training off and on for nearly three months. While my time wasn't a record-breaker, this is a huge event in my life. The story starts last year after my brother Jay died and Christopher was born. I was very depressed and ate my feelings away. I realized I needed to do something and in October, got an exercise bike and now bike 4-5 times a week, going anywhere from 30-50km. I completely changed my eating habits (not a diet, but a lifestyle change) and have lost 76 lbs (34 kilos)! I still have 6 more pounds to go, but Lord-willing, He'll help me finish the race!

God provides

As has happened around the globe, food prices have gone up in Switzerland in recent months. But God has been providing for us! We've had the opportunity to pick red currants at Kilchzimmer and red and black raspberries around Holderbank. Our neighbors have some huge raspberry bushes around their yard, but they haven't been picked for several years. They told us we could pick all we want! We were able to pick several quarts of berries and Amy's had fun cleaning them, too. It may sound like small potatoes, but we estimate to have picked more than $100 worth of berries this summer. God provides!