God's timing

The weekly Sunday bouquet from my Tennessee-cousin is made up of blooms that have not yet arrived in our region.

However, I do believe we had a weather event they did not experience--a heavy snowfall this late in April. Did I hear it was a 100-year record? I think Mike measured a 5" accumulation by Tuesday night

Friends with blossoming fruit trees, fear a total loss, like last year.

The tree I see from my writing loft, Tuesday and Friday

The Winter-in-Spring Wonderland was wondrously beautiful. The heavy-laden branches bent over our lane created a Narnia-like effect. Each of us commented on the snowy-branch tunnel we drove through, but none of us managed to get a photo.

Later, in the car with Rebecca, as we were listening to the song "He's got the whole world in his hands," she added "And the snow!" So true. Job referred to God's control over nature, “For to the snow He says, ‘Fall on the earth,’" And the Psalmist wrote "He gives snow like wool; He scatters the frost like ashes."

Snow is referenced often as the ultimate white, representing flawless purity. God's amazing gift of forgiveness through Christ's sacrifice in our place, also mentions snow: 

Though your sins are as scarlet,

They will be as white as snow;

Though they are red like crimson,

They will be like wool.

Top: Tuesday night (can you see the zip line?) Bottom: Wednesday morning 

The weather delayed the cement pour on Stephan's house from Monday to Thursday. Karen tells more in her post (Un)cooperative Weather. 

Michael helped at various stages of the process. The most physically draining was to shovel snow off the protective tarps, lest moisture be trapped in the network of tubing.

The least strenuous and most fascinating was to watch the pumper truck and the crew of ten men pour the cement.

This week, Abuelo tried to teach us to play chess. Rebecca picked up the roles and rules quite well. And, of course, she is very good with certain cell-phone features as the following pics attest.

Kendra made a meal for us on Wednesday--gyro wrapped chicken marinated in tzatziki sauce.

Wednesday, April 21, was Uncle Dan's 103rd birthday. He is my only living uncle on Mother's side.

Top: Hirschy siblings and spouses in birth order from L to R.

Lower: Siblings in birth order from R to L: Joyce, Harlan, Daniel, Lois, Kathryn, Philip

Four of them became missionaries, two in Africa and two in South America.

Uncle Dan and Aunt Eleanor were approved to go to French Equatorial Africa (now Chad) in 1945 and left in May 1946.

Four daughters and several terms of service later, they left the girls in the US and returned to Chad a seventh and final time. Here I quote from his biographical sketch:

What was to have been a four year term turned out to be four months. The government, endeavored to go back to the old ways, to wipe out all traces of years of foreign domination. All who had never gone through their idolatrous initiation rites were ordered to do so. Government spies were in the church services to see if the pastors were complying with their orders. I believe the Lord took us back to Chad to encourage the Christians to stand true to God. In the face of great persecution, they did just that. I remember messages being preached from Daniel about the three men who were cast into the furnace and Daniel who was cast to the lions. Rather than destroying the church, the persecution cleansed and strengthened it.

Eleanor and I were placed under house arrest and given 24 hours to pack our bags for eviction from Chad. But a few hours later a government car came to get us. We were taken 75 miles to Ft. Archambault where we were detained at the Bureau of the Police. . . At midnight we were loaded with our baggage on a truck. Two guards with machine guns rode on the back of the truck with us. We men sat on top of the 55 gallon drums and the women on a pile of suitcases. Following a 400 mile trip over unpaved road we arrived at the capital tired and filthy. That night we had devotions, reading Psalm 40 and tried to get some sleep on a cement slab in front of the Bureau of Immigration. We were accused of being subversive because our teaching kept the people from obeying the government demand to submit to the initiation rites.

Monday we were sent to Paris. . . We flew to NY the week of Thanksgiving. . . and traveled by bus to Pittsburgh. . . extremely tired, but rejoicing in the Lord's tender care.

They were willing to die, if necessary, to spread the message of the Gospel. 

This week the gifts I planned to give each of our families on Resurrection Sunday finally arrived, though ordered long ago.