The Elmericks in Berlin

Change

2011-10-14T02:28:00.005+02:00

Unfortunately I do not have the pictures from our first time out to Miller Farms, since I was still shooting on film at that time. It was 7 years ago and Grace was about 3 1/2 months old and was wearing the classic "My First Buckeye T-Shirt". As I look at these pictures I am amazed at not only how time flies, but how fast your first born becomes the oldest of three, how fast your baby boy becomes a big brother and how fast the baby of the family, the third, tries to run the family. Where did that

little baby that slept so quietly, so soundly on my chest go? I only know today of the three children that jump on my chest that are only trying to get me to wrestle with them, definitely not to cuddle, let alone fall asleep. For some reason autumn is always a sentimental time for me. It reminds me of my college days and Buckeye season, it is also the time of year when when I lost my sister, it is when I got married to the most amazing woman in my life and the time of

year when we find out that we were pregnant with our first and second children. It is the time of year when we left for Berlin and were able to experience Oktoberfest for the first time. Autumn is when we also welcomed our Hanna Faith into the world. It is a time of year that for me is filled with so much beauty so much change. Change that none of us can control, but through the majestic artwork of our creator He reminds us of the beauty that is change. It is a reminder how we are not in control and that the seasons of life will change, to our liking or not. It reminds me that change it is something to be embraced and cherished and not wished away. As I reminisce about the pictures and all the change that has taken place since then, of course I am saddened and cherish those times, but I look forward to the pictures of our family, of my children that I am going to be able to take and the memories that we have yet to create and the beauty of the change that is yet to come!

Encountering Another World

2011-09-28T22:45:00.008+02:00

A strange new world, there was something so familiar, yet something so exotic and foreign. When I heard that Istanbul was where east met the west, I was pretty skeptical. However upon arriving at the airport to trying to figure out where my lost luggage was, Istanbul said that it was in Izmir and Izmir said that it was in Istanbul?!?!? Actually I was quite impressed that we were able to make it so far in our conversation with one another. It was not till I was walking the streets in Istanbul did I begin to see how these two distinct cultures from two continents, connected by a few bridges, united by being part of one city. It was amazing to take it all in.

In Berlin I am use to two people transporting a mattress down the sidewalk, it did catch my eye to see two people in Istanbul carrying a mattress on a very busy street taking up a lane of traffic. In Europe we are use to seeing the old cathedrals towering over the skyline being ever more dominated by skyscrapers of course, in Istanbul there are the Mosques and Minarets that dominate (which are also being dwarfed by the skyscrapers). There is something that it so intriguing, as you stand in amazement at the size and quantity of them. Part of me felt that they were unapproachable, distant, foreign, yet I was so drawn to learn more, to know what occurs inside, to know what does it look like?

A big part of my time in Istanbul was learning about this culture, about a religion that in many ways is quite foreign to me although in Berlin it definitely is not that foreign. It is the world's second largest religion and is the world's fastest growing. I had the privilege to sit down with an Imam who was good friends with a pastor we were visiting. Although I had heard a bit and read a a bit about Islam, there is something distinctly different sitting there in a mosque being in conversationand hearing from him about his beliefs. It was a joy to see the relationship between this Imam and the Pastor, especially as we live in a world of such division and strife. Although I was saddened to hear of all the works and no assurance of salvation and the desperate need of the Gospel and of Christ.

As I walked through the spice market, trying to take in all the exotic smells, sites and sounds I felt at many times overwhelmed. Overwhelmed at the beauty that was there, the beauty that is God's creation. I tried to take it all in, tried to capture it on film, and definitely tried to taste it all, but left with a feeling that it was impossible. There was such a mixture of people, of dress code (especially for women) and of cultures, that left more questions then answers. I left there wanting to know more.

Any opportunity that I had to interact with the locals I took, either it be in restaurants, on the street bargaining for gifts for my family or at the Turkish bath. Although there was definite language barriers, there was incredible hospitality and a service. This was not only in the touristy areas, but also in the back streets and outside areas. There was much more of the attitude of "how can I serve you" that has become somewhat foreign in Berlin. And although this attitude can be found in the US, it can feel superficial, there I felt a genuineness that was quite refreshing and something that I hope to take with me. Although I have had the opportunity to visit several cultures, this trip was again such a reminder to me that I have so much to learn from other cultures, that there is so much more to be discovered. What does God want to show me about Himself, His creativity, His love, His beauty through another culture? How can I experience God through that culture? Not, what does that culture need to learn from me, but what can I learn from that culture?

One day of the conference we also headed Ephesus, which behind Rome was the second largest city of the Roman Empire. And for those of you who do not know, Paul also wrote a letter to the people of Ephesus, which later became a book of the New Testament. To walk around the ruins (which were in excellent condition compared to Corinth) was quite humbling, knowing that Paul walked these streets, knowing this was the second largest city in the world in the first century BC with 250,000 people, knowing that this once bustling city no longer exists and is such a reminder that civilizations and kingdoms come and go and only one will remain forever.

I truly do thank God for privileges such as these, for the doors that He has opened up for me to experience such incredible things, to learn more about Him and the people, the cultures and the world that He has created. I am incredibly humbled and amazed.

Settled in Ohio

2011-09-11T21:48:00.003+02:00

We are finally settled! We have been in ‘our’ house for just over a month now and have begun to get a routine going since the kids are back in school. Grace has made an incredible transition to second grade and is doing a great job reading in English. She’s just now learning how to write in English and finding it to be a bit challenging to keep the German sounds out of her head. Caleb is in kindergarten and loves that the big yellow bus takes him to school. He is also ecstatic that he met a new friend and that he gets to learn how to read “like Grace.” After the first day of school, one of the parents at the bus stop invited us to a neighborhood ice cream social to celebrate the start of school. There were around 8-10 families of young children there and we were warmly welcomed by those in the neighborhood. Hanna is a little lost without her brother and sister around, but she will be starting preschool this week at our church which should help out with that. Christopher started his Greek class to continue on with his seminary work and enjoys his professor and classmates. It will definitely will be a challenge for him to keep up with the school work along with support raising. We feel really blessed by all those that have helped us to make our transition smoother by giving their time, money, and belongings (house, car, etc.). We are fortunate to have a "home" for the entire year that we are back in the US until our planned return to Berlin in August 2012.

2011-09-11T21:40:00.002+02:00

Well, it has been way to long, but the blog is going to be resurrected! Please keep posted as more updates are coming soon.

One Busy.......Life (August)

2010-10-10T19:09:00.018+02:00

August:

Berlin XEE 10 Day Short Term Team: During the first week of August one of our supporting churches came to Berlin for a short term trip. In total there was a group of 20 high schoolers and four adults. When the trip was being planned, it was not being thought of that Stephanie would not only be really sick, but that she would also be in the hospital. During this time of which our kids would be at home on summer break from school. Fortunately God had his plan. An old intern of our team here from a few years ago decided this year to come back to help with English Camp. For some reason (aka God) she decided to book her return ticket for 3 weeks later, wanting to serve our team while she was here. Neither she nor us knew just how needed she would be. During her time she helped with the kids/family, the short term team and our household. Between Elisa and Bekah, they were our two angels that God sent us to help us through this time. We are so thankful for them both and how they helped us out in so many ways. Although I was exhausted at the end of a long strenuous summer, God continued to show that He had plans for this group. It was amazing to see and hear the experiences that the students had. It was great to see how the church, no matter how far apart, can work together, encourage one another, learn from one another, and help one another to see God's Kingdom advance. (picture of one of the groups projects that they did while they were here which was called The Hand Project)

Hospital Visit: Out of everything that happened this summer, I would say that this was probably one of the most unexpected. Due to the doctor's mistake of prescribing the wrong medication, the spinal tap that was suppose to occur the week before the August short term team, ended up happening right smack in the middle of their time here. Due to the doctor's mistake of not sealing up the hole from the spinal tap, her 2 1/2 day stay in the clinic ended up being a 5 day stay and she was then sent home only to stay another 7 days flat in bed. Day one and two were a lot and were exhausting, but days three through 12 were just one day too many. What was incredibly humbling and encouraging was all of our friends that surrounded us, loved on us, provided meals for us and helped with the kids. Honestly without them I am not sure how we would have made it though that time. I am so thankful to God for each person that stepped in and served us so selflessly. God again reminded me that He wants us to be in community (just as He is) not only to serve others, but also He puts us in situations where we sometimes need to be served and we need to remove our pride to allow ourselves to be served by others.

Hanna Starts Kita (Pre-School): It was pretty hard to believe that our baby was going to be starting pre-school. There was part of us that was sad, but another part that was quite excited. It would be the first time that we would have all kids in pre-school/school, which means that Stephanie and I could go on lunch dates or breakfast dates together with NO babysitter fee. Here in Germany the process of a child entering pre-school can take up to 2-4 weeks till they are there the full day. On Hanna's first day I knew that there was not going to be a problem. The first day parents stay in the room with the child, the whole time that I was there Hanna ignored me. At one point I thought she was running toward me for me to hug her, but no, she grabbed a toy beside me and ran away as if I was not there. With that being said, after 4 days Hanna was there through afternoon nap time. This was a huge help since Stephanie was still sick and I was trying to manage work, kids/family, household etc. Hanna also started this month sleeping in a big girl bed! Picture is of Hanna and her teacher at school.

Intern leaves: With the departure of our intern, that meant that our summer madness came to an end. We were sad to see her go and are still incredibly thankful for all that she did for us this summer. I am sure that this summer looked a heck of a lot different then what she imagined coming in. It was a privilege for Stephanie and I not only to work with her, but to become part of her life. Berlin impacts all that come and it was amazing to see how Berlin impacted Bekah and the young women that she became through her experience here. We are proud of her! Bekah promised the kids to bake Ampelman cookies with them before she left, this is a picture of them baking together.

Vacation: With the summer madness behind us and all interns gone we were finally able to head on the vacation that we planned before the craziness even began. Since we were able to book in advance we were able to get a great deal on our lodging and transportation. Since we did not have much time or money we only went 3 hours outside of Berlin and city life. We headed to Dresden for a day and then to the Saechsische Schweiz and area on the Czech border along the Elbe river. We hiked and spent a lot of time outside in nature relaxing as a family. One of my favorite moments was when we woke Grace and Caleb at 11pm to watch the shooting stars as we laid outside under the blankets. This was an incredibly refreshing time without any technology.

Grace's Einschulung (starts first grade): This is a huge ordeal in Germany, almost as big as graduation. A huge party is thrown and friends and family are invited for the ordeal. The day starts off with a program in the school for all the parents and children, which is put on by the second graders. They the first graders go to their classrooms alone for their first time. Grace's pre-school teacher surprised her at the school, and Grace was ecstatic. We then headed back to the house to have a little champagne to celebrate and to finish preparations for the big party. For the Einschulung the children get a Schultuete (see pic) which is full of school supplies, candy and small gifts. While we drank our champagne Grace unpacked her Schultuete. The house was full and Grace had a smile on her face from ear to ear. Grace and Caleb both said it was the best party we had ever thrown! Grace is loving school and has made of course a ton of friends. It is so hard to believe that we now have a "Schulkind" (child in school). Picture is of Grace in front of her school with her Schultuete.

One Busy.......Life (July)

2010-10-10T19:08:00.011+02:00

July:

4th of July Picnic: With a group of Americans here doing a 2 month short term project, they could not go a year without celebrating the 4th of July. So what did we do, pulled off the largest German/American July 4th Picnic that I have ever participated in. We had Burgers, Brats, Noodle Salad, desserts out the wazuu and even Sparklers! It was a lot of fun to see our American and German friends interacting and engaging with one another. One German friend even made little American flags to put on top of their dessert, it was way cool! To me the day had less to do with the independence of American and instead the new relationships being built between America and Germany.

Caleb's Birthday: Our little Buddy Boo turned 4! Which meant his first birthday party that he could invite his friends to. As oppose to Grace's party when she turned 4 and invited 10, we decided to decrease that number to 4 for Caleb. We were a little inexperienced when we did Grace's first party and ended up being overwhelmed with 11 total 4 year olds. Anyways, Caleb had a blast inviting his friends and having a special day that completely revolved around HIM. It was a day that he deserved and was a long time coming. We went to the playground and had another round of water gun wars (Caleb's request). It was a true joy for Stephanie and I to see the joy on our little mans face as he interacted with his friends (and this time Grace was on the sidelines). We are so blessed by this little guy and his sweet soft heart, thank you God for Caleb James!

English Camp: This was the 5th camp that we have participated in and the 4th one that we have been on the planning team. The theme this year was Christmas in July, which created plenty of easy creative ideas. Unfortunately due to Stephanie's illness she was unable to participate (which I think might have been on purpose due to her problem of listening to Christmas music before the day after Thanksgiving). In all honesty it was wierd for our family not to be as involved as much with English Camp as previous years. I was also partly taken out of English Camp due to Stephanie's illness and because of the RUF group and most importantly trying to do a better job of not burning out and overdoing myself. All in all English Camp again was a success and the kids learned English and were loved on by the tutors that came from the US. I was blessed to see what God was doing/did in each of the tutors lives while here and how He was drawing each one of them closer to Him! (picture of church where Luther preached and where he is buried. It is a day trip during English Camp)

Caleb's Surgery: After Caleb getting his 1,000th ear infection (perhaps an exaggeration) we decided finally to have tubes put into his ears. Upon consultation the doctor also recommended having his Adenoids removed. Since Stephanie was still sick, I went with him to the outpatient clinic for the operation. I felt so helpless there as my Buddy Boo was put out with anesthesia. This was the first operation on one of our children. He pulled through just fine and we were amazed at the difference in his hearing. Soon after he kept pushing a button on his Buzz Lightyear and we asked him why, and instead he asked us "did you know that this button made noise?" We then asked him if he has never heard it before and he said no, amazing, Praise God! (pic is not from his operation...it is from his birthday)

Bekah's Birthday: Need to give a shout out to our intern Bekah who also celebrated her birthday during her stay here. We surprised her by inviting the whole RUF Team come for dessert at our place, so that she would be able to have a "surprise" birthday party. She even got to wear the family birthday crown!

Farewell to the RUF Team: Before the RUF group headed out we decided to head to the beach to spend some time together chillin' before their departure. Although it was not Tropical Islands (Sorry Carrie), there still was a pretty large slide that made up for having to go with plan B. It was a great day of just being able to be together. Although in the beginning 2 months seemed like a heck of a long time, it was amazing how fast the time actually went. It was a blessing to have each one of them here not only to help with ministry, but to be part of our life for the summer. God did some pretty amazing things in and through this group, which was a blessing for me to be a part of. (picture of the Dirks family)

One Busy......Life (June)

2010-10-10T15:19:00.015+02:00

June:

At the beginning of the month Stephanie headed to the US with Grace and Hanna to help her sister with preparations for the wedding while Caleb and I stayed back for a week.

RUF Vision Trip: In between the Family Festival in the Arts weekend I thought it would be fun to squeeze in an extra activity...well no not really. This summer the director of RUF, several RUF pastors and some MTW employees were doing a Vision Trip through a couple European locations to see what university work looked like. With several prospective opportunities in Berlin, they thought it would be a good idea to come check it out, in which I also agreed, so therefore headed up the organization of their 2-3 day stay in Berlin. It was a very eye opening experience for us all. (Picture is NOT of vision trip, but of time while Stephanie was in Ohio)

Music & Arts Festival:What started off as an idea of my photo group to do a small exhibit in the Family Center grew to an event where 33 artists participated in 26 locations around our neighborhood. Our small exhibit in the Family Center turned into five photographers displaying 30 photos of our neighborhood, and around 100 people came to see it. The artists, galleries, and business owners kept expressing their gratitude to us for coordinating it, saying that something special happened in the neighborhood that weekend and they felt incredibly encouraged. They also said they no longer felt alone as artists, but part of a supportive community by those around them. To see the diversity of all that took place was such a true testament to how creative our God is and how He desires for us to be in community with one another just as He is in community within the Trinity. This newly formed art community in our neighborhood desires to meet once a month to support one another, grow together, and begin planning the next festival!

Trip to US for Stephanie's sisters wedding: As mentioned above Stephanie headed back earlier then me due to my work obligations with the Vision Trip and the Arts Weekend. For me it was a fly in, fly out situation. I was honored by Lindsey and Ryan when they asked if I would marry them, however since I am not ordained, it sort of complicated the matter. However I did have the privilege to preach at their wedding, which was still a first for me. I only messed up once, which granted was a pretty big mistake of calling Lindsey, Casey (the name of her twin) but everyone got a good laugh. Not to excuse myself but they both married Ryan's, not my fault. The wedding was a true joy to be a part of, of we are so happy for the both of them. Shortly after the wedding we had to fly back to Berlin, so for me and Caleb, we were there only a week. We were also able to visit our "home church" NPC, it was great to see so many of our friends while there, although it was quite short.

Grace Finishes Kindergarten: Although this might not be a big deal for those of you who do not have any children, for those of you who do I am sure you understand. It is just unbelievable having the graduation ceremony for your little one who will be entering school. Time just goes so fast and this was just another reminder of how our precious time with our first born is continuing to slip faster and faster away.(Picture is of Grace and her teacher looking at the gift the class gave her. We love her teacher and she will always have a very special place in our hearts!)

Summer Intern arrives to assist us with English Camp and August Group: This is the 4th year that we welcomed an intern into our household for the summer and this summer she would have an extended stay of 2 months, our longest staying intern yet. We even decided to go cross-cultural to welcome a gal from the deep south of Alabama :) into our household, in which we had some fun with. Bekah was a true joy to have in our house and she is definitely missed by all. She was an incredible help with all of my administrative/organizational stuff as well as with the kids. With Stephanie's unexpected illness, she jumped in whenever we needed her. THANKS BEKAH we love you!

Church Plant Day Trip: At the end of the month we headed to do some team building as a small church plant, in which around 40 or so were in attendance. We started off by having a Worship Service outside in an amphitheater. After the service we divided into four different teams in order to build rafts and then race them, assuming that they would float?!!? It was a great time in which were were able to see new personalities of those in our church, especially those that have competitive spirits. After the competition we had a cookout while watching Germany play in the World Cup.......Germany won the game!

Grace's Birthday: Our little girl moved from one hand of fingers to two...she turned 6! This year Grace decided to invite boys back to her party which meant that princess tea party was then ruled out and instead we had a big water gun battle on the playground, with daddy included, fun was had by all! For her birthday one of her gifts was her first school backpack, which here in Germany is a big ordeal and she loved it. It is amazing to see the our little baby turn into a little girl, God has truly gifted us with such a sweet loving heart! (Picture is some of the kids having fun during the water gun war)

Stephanie gets sick again: That is right, after going through about 8 weeks of sickness with the first round of GBS she fell into the 30% of patients who ended up with a relapse after only being well for about 2 weeks. It was about to get pretty rough......

One Busy.......Life (May)

2010-10-10T14:45:00.014+02:00

I thought about titling this post One Busy Summer, but then realized the busyness started in Spring and has gone on through Fall. So it is a little hard to title something One Busy Spring, Summer and Fall, so thought that I would just go with One Busy Life. As things have slowed down I have decided that I wanted to get back on hereand update everyone one what has happened since. I was going to do the entire update in one blog post, but after writing it all out, I think I am going to divide it up and do a separate post for each month. Although I am going to do my best to keep it as short of an update as possible.

May:

Stephanie's Sickness: In the middle of April Stephanie started getting sick so she went to various doctors, but non were able to diagnose her with anything. Each doctor had their own ideas, but all said that they were unsure. It got really frustrating and hard on her and the family since we knew that something was wrong, but no one was able to diagnose her. It was not till her trip to the US the beginning of June when she visited a US Neurologist when she finally got a diagnosis for Guillain-Barre Syndrom. By that point she was in the healing phase and there was no more treatment for it. (Picture from Mother's Day 2010)

3rd Annual Mother's Day Cookout with Andre & Ulrike: We had an incredible time with our close friends. It was great to finally have kids old enough that could walk and play on their own. However Hanna still found ways of wondering away to go explore on her own. We only cookout once, maybe twice a year and this is one of the times, so I personally always look forward to it.

Stephanie's 31st Birthday: Not too much pomp and circumstance was had for this birthday, due to sickness and schedule, but we did take time out to celebrate the wonderful blessing that God has given our family as well as so many others because she was born! I did surprise her by making her favorite chocolate cake.

Arrival of our RUF 2 Month Summer Short Term Team: With the perspective of College Student Work in the future we had a group of 3 college students and a family who does campus ministry come to Berlin to research what College Student Work could look like. With such a busy summer it was great to have a team look at what was already in place in Berlin and what options there are for the future. They were also able to ask several survey questions and have discussions in regards to the residence hall and what students were interested in. We are incredibly thankful for the Dirks, Andrew, Seth and Joseph for their work it truly was a joy and pleasure to not only work with each one of them, but to get to know each one of them as well. They are missed.(picture is taken actually on the day that they left and Tyler's wife Carrie and their two children are not pictured).

Our 6th Family Festival: Hard to believe that we have now had six festivals. This year there were two families from our church plant who volunteered (after I asked them) to help me out with the planning. This way we are in the process of transitioning leadership etc. to the church plant. I was skeptical (me of little faith) if we were going to have enough funding for the festival this year because of the financial problems many of the businesses are having, but of course as always God did his miracle and provided exactly enough funding. This was the first year that the festival actually broke even! WOOHOO!

Easter 2010

2010-04-05T12:02:00.000+02:00

This year we were ecstatic to celebrate Easter again in Berlin. It was our fourth time that we were able to celebrate Easter living in the same apartment, which is a record for us to celebrate the same holiday for so many years in a row without being in the US or moving. Not only was it great because of that, but it was really a glorious day when we were able to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour with so many that have come so near and dear to our hearts.

It was a blast trying to watch Stephanie try to color eggs with three kids, in particularly with Hanna while I took pictures. She did not find it nearly as much fun as I did.

Although in the end all kids survived, the coloring actually stayed in the cups and our kids were the same color and the only things that changed color were the egss.

Our little Rascals, that we love so much!

While Stephanie was preparing dinner Hanna climbed up again to the table to explore, so daddy let her while he took pictures. Maybe was not the brightest idea, however I got some cute pictures out of it. And amazingly enough she only tried putting the spoon in her mouth once and nothing spilled. We will not talk about how close we were a couple of times though.

Before Brunch/Worship at the Family Center we gave the kids their baskets and had a small Easter Egg hunt.

Caleb actually did a great job of keeping up with Grace finding the eggs, Hanna however did not find it nearly as cool.

I will not begin to share with you all how many pictures I had to take to get this one picture, which is the best out of all of them. Not so easy getting a 1, 3, and 5 year old to sit still, look in the same direction and smiling as the same time. I have not come that far in my photography skills yet.

Our Easter Brunch and Family Worship was a wonderful experience. Our German Pastor and his wife lead a memory search game with the kids using all symbols of Easter. Afterward he described the meanings of the symbols and then shared the Easter story. It was wonderful to see so many of our friends from the Parent Child Cafe there, as well as neighbors and other acquantences who had never been to a worship service before. What a perfect time to come, to hear the story of our risen Saviour! It was a full house!

After the time inside we all went outside for a huge Easter Egg hunt. In total over 60 eggs were hidden for the children. Don't worry we had a separate basket of goodies for the parents! While outside we got our Family Easter Picture, which I think came out pretty well. It was so encouraging to see so many people who had only met for the first time, fellowshipping together and truly enjoying one anothers company. I think we were out there for at least an hour after the egg hunt was over just hanging out with one another.

After the Easter Egg Hunt we went home to prepare for Easter dinner. We were blessed to have some close friends join us for a fabulous feast. As we look around us and see all how God has blessed us we are humbled and thankful for all that he has done and is doing.

My Problem with Facebook...

2010-03-02T13:17:00.008+01:00

Ok, here it goes...I (Christopher Elmerick) have finally decided to join Facebook...BUT, that said, here is my first public statement against these online social networking sites. In many ways I do not have a problem with Facebook, what I do have a problem with is with users of Facebook who do not use it for proper intentions. You see it was a year ago that my wife decided that she was going to cave and join Facebook. It was after returning to Berlin after an almost 8 month stint in the US that she thought it would be a good way of keeping in contact with those in the US. I told her that if she wanted her own page with her own name, that would be fine, as long as I would not be associated with it. I also had her agree that if it became an addiction and that her being on Facebook would distract her from work that she says that she can never get caught up on, then it would need to go. She agreed, and so far so good.

So what is my beef anyways? My problem is that I struggle to "support" a system that has totally wrecked the younger generations perspective on what it means to be social. They have no concept of it any more. There have been studies done showing that the generation that has grown up with Facebook no longer know how to effectively communicate on the phone (also due to texting) let alone in person. They no longer know how to confront one another and "fights" occur on Facebook and people are "defriended". The concept of even what it means to be a "friend" has gone completely out the window. Social interaction in the real world has declined and time on the computer has increased. The sad thing is that the younger generation is "socializing" on Facebook with the kid down the block. As opposed to having to really get together with someone and having to truly show the person who they really are. Again, Facebook is ideal for people like us, who are living overseas but would like to keep in more regular contact with our friends and family who are separated from us with a large ocean. Where it is really not possible to ride our bike, drive our car, let alone walk next door to talk to our neighbor.

Which is my second point, identity. On Facebook you can create any identity you want, without having to really live that identity out. I think that the youth have to deal much more with identity issues because of having an online identity and then reality. How do the two mix, and sometimes the struggle of wanting the identity and friends in Facebook to be the persons 'real' friends. Plus there is the struggle of identity with privacy and the youth not realizing the openness of the internet and the life they are really living online is not a private life. It incredibly sad to hear of kids taking their life because of something being exposed on these online social networking sites, either pictures or rumors. The youth are having a harder time differentiating what should be private, what should I share and what should I keep to myself.

Facebook can be a very dangerous thing if used improperly, in which it is by far too many youth (and by adults as well). I will admit and confess though that I think the idea and concept of Facebook is good and that when used properly and in moderation can be incredibly useful and beneficial. Like I mentioned, what I have always struggled with was more supporting something that I know brings so much destruction to peoples lives. However that is the reality of this world, i.e. wine (alcohol), sex, food. All things that God created for good, for our enjoyment, but things that man has taken advantage of and can be destructive and lead to death.

Why do I write this now? Because I have decided to join Facebook. I realized that I was just being stubborn by holding out and not joining, even though there are many people who would like to communicate with me and have tried but have been unsuccessful because of me not being on Facebook. However I still stand strong saying that Facebook should NOT be the only form of communication. I also believe that we as parents, as role models, have a responsibility to our kids, to the younger generation to get them away from their computer and get them interacting with one another (any maybe even to some of our own friends).

All By Myself....(well not really)

2010-02-20T09:10:00.003+01:00

This past week Stephanie went on to Women's Conference that is put on by our organization only every three years. She left really early on Monday to return late on Friday, which meant a good five full days as a single parent with three kids. To be honest, there was a side of me thinking, "can I do this without loosing it?" There were a couple of things that were going against me that brought that thought on. First off, SNOW & ICE, which meant all kids needed the fully loaded outfit in order to go to school, including snow pants to boots and scarf. It also meant packing up Hanna to take her with me to take the kids to school, despite me not being able to leave her there with the other kids. It was also accepting the reality that I would have a one year old at home with me constantly, which would prove difficult for this struggling workaholic to get any work done. Which actually proved to be a good thing for me.

Day 1: Stephanie left the house at 4am in order to catch her flight on time. I fell back to sleep for two hours in order to wake up for my morning devotions at 6am. I was so amazed at how obedient Grace & Caleb were. They both got themselves completely dressed from head to toe with their clothes as well as their winter outfits, without fighting. Which is not so much of a big deal for Grace, but for Caleb is was definitely progress since I did not have to keep encouraging him. I was so thankful that I ended up getting them a special treat at the grocery store. We were off to a great start...

I went into this experience with no expectations, not thinking that I would be able to get anything done this week. This proved beneficial because I was truly able to focus just on the kids and running a household of three small children with my wife not being here. I was not always thinking of all the millions of things that I should, could or would have been doing if Stephanie was here. And I did not try to maintain the same lifestyle/workload as if she was. Again it was not easy for me, given the struggle that I have with always needing to feel productive and show something for my work/time.

To my amazement though, it did show something. By being able to focus on the kids, 100%, they were not as needy, not as whiney, not as attention seeking and most importantly since my mind was not always distracted by wanting to do other things, I was TRULY able to enjoy every moment with them. It was not always trying to get done with a conversation or a game with them to move to the "next thing" I was able to sit there and enjoy the time because there was no "next thing".

What did I learn? I learned that I really can not only do it but also enjoy it. By the time Friday came I was not exhausted and not sick of the kids, quite the opposite I felt actually closer to them. Of course I was excited for Stephanie to come home, but more because I wanted to truly see her, NOT because I just wanted to hand the kids over to her. I sadly learned that I do not have to just make more "time" for our kids, because our kids have a lot of "time" with us. But what they need is my attention and one on one time. The impact that has on their life and their obedience is amazing. Also, structure! In order to maintain a household of three small kids alone one needs structure. The week was very structured and all kids knew what to expect when, therefore there was no whining because they just expected it. Grace and Caleb also recognized I needed help in different ways and seeing my little 5 and 3 year old step up to help daddy was just precious to me.

I am so thankful for the time that I had with them alone and feel even more blessed by what a gift my children are to me. I am also thankful to God for how he shows me gently how I need to change in order to be a better parent. Sometimes that means taking my wife away for a week so that I am presented with a challenge, but God uses that challenge to make me aware of things so that I can be a better father.

Picture Description:

Hauptbahnhof Berlin (Main Train Station Berlin)- How is it that sometimes we can have people around us, yet feel so alone?

Fun in the Snow!

2010-02-15T12:49:00.014+01:00

Volkspark Friedrichshain in Winter

It is not too often that we decide to unplug ourselves from the world while we are in Berlin, it is REALLY hard to do. Most often we have to leave Berlin in order to do it. On this past Sunday an opportunity arose for us to do so. With Stephanie leaving for a couple days to go to a conference and us not having much time together alone as a family, we decided to take advantage of our now "free day". It seems either we have a day off and the kids are in school, we have a day off and are running a thousand errands with the kids, or we have the day off and are checking email and getting a thousand phone calls and not giving the kids the amount of personal attention they need and deserve. Since it had been awhile since we had gone sled riding, I decided I would take Grace and Caleb while Stephanie stayed home with Hanna to pack. Granted Hanna would not allow that which is understood, so instead they spent some quality time reading books and dancing and singing together. The sledding group headed out early to hit the slopes at Volkspark Friedrichshain before they got crowded and so we would be able to be back in time for lunch and of course HOT CHOCOLATE! Grace, Caleb and I had such a blast together, the pictures cannot really capture the joy that we had. It was great not being in a rush, to just enjoy time together, as a family and to focus on those that matter most to me. UNPLUG, go ahead and try it some time!

Starting Off...

...catching some speed...

..."should we do it again?"...

..."so how can we go faster?"...

"Can you catch me?"

"I really am Superman!"

"Yummy Goodness!"

"Do mommy and daddy know what I am drinking?"

Not Pictured is Grace, Caleb and Daddy on the sled together.

Grace's World (10th entry)

2010-02-11T09:38:00.006+01:00

There are milestones that you come to in a childs life, that to others might seem trivial or small. But as a parent, they bring emotions that you did not know you had in yourself. Grace has been saying for the past couple months that she had "wackel Zaehne" (loose teeth). However we would always check and they would be as solid as Gibraltar. About a week ago she came to us and said that there was something silver behind her tooth. I took a look and it was her adult tooth coming in behind her baby tooth. The baby tooth was a little loose, but not nearly enough for how far the new tooth had come in. Finally we took her to the dentist only to find out that the tooth needed to come out. I decided that it would be best for me to go with Grace to the dentist instead of Stephanie, since I would not show nearly as much panic on my face as Stephanie. Grace was such a big girl, she sat in the chair as if she was a 15 year old instead of a 5 year old. As they pricked her with the shot of novocain, she did not flinch an inch, I think that I probably show more pain on my face then what she did. As they showed her the tool that they would use to take the tooth out, she smiled. With a short yank, the tooth was out and there was a grin on our little girls face that went from ear to ear. On daddy's face you probably could have seen a little watering in the eyes. Grace's expression was one of "I am officially growing up, I am a big girl" she was so ecstatic and proud. Daddy had the exact same thoughts as Grace, only with different emotions behind them, realizing she really is growing up and I can do nothing to stop it. I too had the feeling of pride of my little girl, at how she handled herself.

There are times that I know look at Grace and then look at Hanna and wonder where the heck the years have gone. It is hard to see that baby girl that I held in my arms five years ago, but as she crawls up on my lap and snuggles in my arms (although it is a tight fit) I look into her eyes and remember those times of not so long ago. Yes there is the sense of sadness there, but on the other hand I love the conversations that I am now able to have with her, the thought provoking questions that she has, and how she tries so hard to learn how to read and write. I love the jokes that she makes and how she knows exactly how to make me laugh "I am a R-O-B-O-T". The way she helps her brother out and the way she takes care of her baby sister as if she was her mother. There is so much love in this little girl it overflows to others. She is beautiful in every way that God has made and formed her. I am so thankful to God for the gift that He has given me in her and how He shows me His love through her.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Grace the morning after "Papa Tooth Fairy" came to visit

2) Grace showing daddy (Papa) what she has learned during her ballet classes

Gemeinde Freizeit Blankensee

2010-01-11T14:36:00.005+01:00

Well the weekend was booked a couple of weeks in advance, non of us knowing what would lie ahead. It was a group of 65 (adults and children) coming together to spend a weekend together, despite many of us not ever spending time together, let alone an entire weekend. To throw a curveball in there, there was the forecast for a huge winter storm to come in while we were there. Which could mean that our weekend church retreat could turn into a week long nightmare. From the time we set off till long after we arrived the snow continued to come down which meant it continued to pile up higher and higher.

At first of course there was the slight awkwardness there. That awkwardness of getting to know new people, trying to figure out how everyone fits together and of course trying to figure out where we fit into the whole picture. There was of course the introvert side of me which wanted to go into a corner and only talk to the people I new, however I knew that was definitely not a positive thing and would not assist this "coming together" weekend. It was also slightly awkward being on a Church Retreat for 'our' Church Plant that we had absolutely nothing to do with the planning. On one side it was amazing to sit there and not have to lead or organize anything. But then on the other side was the struggle of, what do I do then?

On the second day, there was a beautiful scene outside that had everything blanketed in a soft covering of white. During our free time in the afternoon we headed to the small towns 'castle' gardens. The castle was definitely not much to write home about, however the gardens provided a perfect backdrop for some winter pictures. As we continued to walk more and more gathered with our group. As we entered the amphitheater on the premises, a small snowball fight broke out, in which all had a blast.

Michael the pastor of our church plant explained why we as a church exist and gave a presentation on how we can come together as very different individuals to learn from one another and to grow together as one body. Over the weekend some hard conversations took place and different challenges came to light, reminding us that the church planting work here is not yet finished; however we are definitely moving forward. The weekend concluded on Sunday with a church service including communion. It was humbling to see all of these different people in different phases of life and faith putting their differences aside and coming to focus on one thing--the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. This is why we are here. It was one of the most beautiful things we have seen while in Berlin. The beautiful snowstorm outside made everything white. While the work of the resurrection was making everyone, despite our faults and sins, just as white.

2010-A New Phase

2010-01-01T19:39:00.007+01:00

The common saying in Berlin in the days between Christmas and New Years Eve (Silvester) is "einen guten Rutsch!" which means literally a good slide. As I think about our personal family transition into 2010 I think of it not only beginning a new year or for that matter a new decade, it is also entering a new phase of life.

As I reflect back on the "naughties" (2000-2009) it is amazing to think about the changes that I have seen in my life in a short ten year period. Starting as a single college student, graduating, marrying Stephanie, buying a house, Grace being born, selling our house, moving to Berlin, Caleb being born, moving to another area in Berlin, relocation to US for furlough, Hanna being born, living for 7.5 months in the US, and moving back to Berlin. It is insane! That was the decade of establishing our family, establishing who we are as a family and establishing in what direction we are headed as a family. There were many many ups, with of course plenty of challenges in between. I must admit, I hope not to see that many serious changes in my life again all within one decade.

As we slide into the next phase of life from establishing a family to raising a family, I get really excited about what lies ahead. Now I know that there will be changes that lie ahead, but there is a lot of comfort in knowing also what is already there, wife and three kids (there are no more being added). It is funny to think in reality I have no idea what this next decade has in store for us, I guess that is part of what this career choice brings. Ironically there will already be another move in the beginning of 2011, which reminds us, that it is the five of us being together that makes us feel at "home".

It is crazy to think of the challenges that are going to lie ahead raising three kids in the city who at the end of the decade will be 15, 13 and 11. So although we are putting behind us the sleepless nights due to breast feeding, bottles, teething, and nightmares a new set of reasons arise for sleepless nights. The struggle on figuring out what is proper discipline will continue especially as the kids get older. One thing that this past decade really taught us and continued to remind us, is to seek not our own will or our own direction, but His alone and then there will at least be peace knowing that we are at least following His will, even when we do not always understand it. Here some verses that give us comfort entering this new phase of life.

Matthew 6:31-34 (New International Version)

So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Jeremiah 29:11-14 (New International Version)
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity.
Picture Descriptions:
1) Fuzzy view from Balcony of Berlin Fireworks. New Years Eve is the one time when people can buy fireworks and shoot them off and not just the small puny ones.
2) This was the first year that we allowed Grace and Caleb to stay up to celebrate with us. We were invited to our neighbors apartment who live on the top floor and have a great view of Berlin to see all the fireworks across this city.

Weihnachten 2009

2009-12-27T15:01:00.001+01:00

There were definitely mixed feelings this year about Christmas. On one side, last year we were really excited that the grandparents were able to celebrate Christmas with the grandkids and that we could have a "big" Christmas with all of our family. However on the other side, it was really nice this year to be home for Christmas. Out of the past 5 Christmas' we have celebrated all of them here in Berlin except in 2008. Christmas time in Berlin is what we enjoy the most with the Advent season celebrations and Christmas markets adding to the excitement and atmosphere. Going out to the street corner to buy a Christmas tree and carrying it two city blocks home is something that one cannot experience in Columbus, Ohio. Although it sounds crazy, it is something that has become special to our family.

This year we experienced something really special when we had our first Christmas Eve Program in the Family Center. In previous years we had to go somewhere that felt uncomfortable, foreign and with a service that lasted forever (not good with small kids!). This year we really wanted to offer a Christmas Eve service at the Family Center that was relaxed for families with small kids and where unbelievers would also feel comfortable. Stephanie led everyone in singing german Christmas carols (while playing the piano), we read the Christmas story while the children acted it out (Grace was Mary, Caleb was Joseph, and the other kids who were there filled in the rest of the parts) and then our pastor said a few words to the Christmas story. To our surprise, we had about 30 people, including kids, with some stepping foot into the Family Center for the very first time. The best comment of the evening was "it felt like celebrating Christmas in our family room"...which is exactly what we wanted! After hanging around for a bit, drinking coffee and eating cookies, we headed to home for dinner.

Heiligabend (Christmas Eve), is what Germans really consider Christmas. It is when they have their big dinner and open their Christmas gifts. We have incorporated part of this German tradition into our family. We go to church then come home for our nice dinner (Christmas day is a simpler dinner). Before I begin to cook the kids get to open their first gift, so that they can play with it while I prepare dinner. After dinner we finish reading our Advent book and open the last door to their Advent Calendar. It is a really nice evening and probably ranks now higher then Christmas day for us.

Christmas day is a really relaxed day. Or should I say it started off pretty relaxed until Hanna wanted to open all Christmas gifts. She thought it was so cool that there we so many gifts that had wrapping paper on them that she could open. Unfortunately she didn't realize that most were not hers. We ended up having to move all gifts to a location high enough were she couldn't reach them. In the afternoon we did the webcam thing with the grandparents, only to finish just in time for dinner.

As I have mentioned in previous blogs, a great thing about Germany is that they have the 2nd Christmas Day, which is an official holiday. For the second time we were invited to our good friends to have dinner with them as well as coffee and cake. It was a really relaxing afternoon in which we ate Gruenkohl und Kassler (green cabbage and ham), it was sooooo good.

As always with our "two lives", one is not better than the other. I cannot say that this Christmas was better than the last year when we were in the US, it is just different. There are things that I really like about each and somethings that I would like to change in each (for example having grandparents here instead of having to webcam) but some are things that I cannot. What I am most thankful though is that no matter what I have my three little ones and my incredible wife no matter where I am, they are the ones that make me always feel "at home."

Picture Descriptions:

1) Family Christmas Picture 2009

2) Nativity Play at Family Center

3) Caleb Hanna & Grace opening stockings

4) Caleb & Grace and their new bikes on Christmas day

5) Hanna opening one of her gifts

Light in the Darkness

2009-12-18T19:59:00.008+01:00

Well, the day is coming up that I dread here in Berlin. Don't worry it is not Christmas, or even Christmas Eve, or even the day after Christmas. Some might even be thinking New Years Eve or New Years Day, but you are all wrong! The day is December 21st. The question is, does anyone have a clue as to why that might be? Winter Solstice, the longest, darkest day of the year in Berlin. Sunrise on the 21st will be at 8:15 and sunset at 15:54 (3:54 pm) and when you are in a city that is cloudy most of the time that means that it is still dark at 8:30 am and is dark outside at 15:30pm. It is pretty depressing. How depressing? let me tell you about it.

It was really noticeable when we changed the clocks and it was suddenly dark at 16:00 (4pm for you americans). I could tell that my attitude was negative and that I was slightly depressed. I mean how could you not be when you are traveling back from your language tutor at 15:30, it is raining and it feels like it is 18:00 (6pm). What happens then, is that you eat dinner earlier because you think that it is later than what it actually is. After dinner you get the kids ready for bed because you are so tired since it has been dark out for what seems like six hours. Only to realize once you have the kids ready for bed, that they still have an hour and a half before it is actually bedtime (7pm). What is even sadder is when you decide yourself to go to bed after putting the kids to bed because your body thinks that it is a lot later since it has been dark for so long. This takes awhile to get use to and is something that I was not prepared for whatsoever before coming to Berlin. (Side Comment: the good thing is that in the summer the opposite occurs and the day is forever long.)

One does not recognize the need for light until one recognizes that they are surrounded by darkness. That was the struggle that we had making the move here, not only in the sense of there being less actual light. Walking around Berlin in the winter when everything is dead, dark and cold, is when I think the reality of Berlin comes out the most, which can be quite depressing which does not help things out at all.

So then the question comes, where is the part about the light in the darkness? What I find ironic in this city of darkness that there is a craving for light. In the winter you see Christmas markets lit up almost as bright as the Las Vegas Strip. You see Christmas Stars in most apartment windows or at least some kind of decorative light. People purchase advent wreaths with candles on them to create light in the darkness and obviously purchase Christmas trees which too are decorated with lights. However the lights and candles will eventually die out without fulfilling the cravings.

John 8:12

¹²When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

John 1:3-5

³Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴In him was life, and that life was the light of men. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood^{a]" style="font-size: 0.75em; line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]} it.

Personally, I am so glad that through the dark winter months, I have the light of Christ that gives me light, strength and hope. Christ is the light that satisfies that craving and will never die out. I am thankful that this light of Christ will give me hope not only through these dark winter months but also through the dark and challenging times through my entire life.

24

2009-12-05T21:07:00.000+01:00

So for our anniversary back on 27th October (8 years) I was trying to figure out what would be a really good surprise for Stephanie. Usually every year we follow the traditional gift recommendation and creatively come up with something together and spend around 20 Euros. This year I decided to take matters into my own hands and do something a little out of the box. As most of you know our life with three small kids and work is always a little hectic, which means that we have not had much time together, alone; besides after 7pm when the kids are in bed, but even then we either have meetings, work, or are just to exhausted and go to bed sadly shortly after. After checking with some good friends, I decided to surprise Stephanie with a 24 hour date.

24 hours, no kids, no schedule, no tasks, no morning wake up from a 14 month old, and 3 & 5 year old at 7 am. What would life be like? Stephanie had no idea where we were headed, just that we were not sleeping in our apartment. I really wanted to head to Dresden for one of the most beautiful and largest Christmas Markets, however the train tickets were a little too much and we would have spent more time on a train (almost 3 hours each way) then I would have liked. So instead we headed to Potsdam, a small little town where the kings had their palaces outside of Berlin (Berlin's equivalent of Versaille), which also had a very nice Weihnachtsmarkt. (Palaces are not pictures)

We headed out around 2pm and on the way we got our traditional Double D (Dunkin' Donuts) and coffee. Which is a very special treat for us! Our only objectives (so I guess there were some) were to walk around the Christmas Market, have a nice dinner, hit up the sauna and sleep in. All 'objectives' were accomplished. But something even more important was accomplished. On our way, as we drank our coffee and ate our donuts, I set aside one rule, no discussions about kids or about work. As we live a life where all of our worlds intertwine into one small one, where our family life mixes with our personal life which mixes with our work life, especially since Stephanie and I work together. However the rule would stay set. This was probably one of the biggest blessings and surprisingly not as big of a challenge as I expected.

I cannot begin to describe what an amazing time we had together. As Stephanie put it, "it is as if we are teenagers and we are disobeying our parents!" It was more then just not having the kids with us, it was also being able to put aside a big part of our world (work and kids) that consumes us, our conversations, our time together, and our thoughts and energy, to put all that on hold in order to focus on something that we have not been able to focus on in awhile, us, Stephanie & I. Not that we sat down and discussed our relationship and where we were as a couple, but we were able to just talk about life, like we were dating again, but not having ask the what do you like and not like questions. For me it was like getting back at our first year of marriage, or for that matter even our days dating in college.

The setting was perfect, as you can see by the pictures. We were were able to do things we love to do together, that we usually are not able to do. To be able to explore the Christmas Market, to enjoy the atmosphere there and to hold each others hand as we strolled along the street listening to Christmas music. To be up as late as we wanted knowing that there was nothing that was forcing us out of bed the next morning. To sit in a cafe drinking a cup of coffee looking out the window as the people passed by under the street lamps decorated for the season. Stephanie and I just looked at each other and smiled. That smile to one another said so much. We truly are so blessed; our marriage, our children, our friends and family, and a 'work' that is just part of our lives and who we are.

I am reminded this Advent Season about how every blessing is truly a gift, and that every gift comes from God, which includes His son whose birth we celebrate this season.

James 1:16-18

¹⁶Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. ¹⁷Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ¹⁸He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Looking toward the Naurner Tor in the Hollaendisches Viertel in Potsdam.

2) Brandenburger Strasse looking toward Brandenburger Tor in Potsdam

3) A Sweettooths heaven, A sweet stand at the Potsdam Weihnachtsmarkt

4) Nauener Tor in Potsdam

5) B & W Nauener Tor, taken outside or our hotel

6) Brandenburger Strasse in Potsdam looking towards St. Peter & Paul Kirche

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-27T22:42:00.000+01:00

I think that our Thanksgiving Family Picture pretty much accurately depicts our Thanksgiving this past year, madness. One thing about living overseas is that our organization allows us to take off work for the holidays in the country we live in, but we don't get American holidays off. This means that Thanksgiving Day is a normal work day for us. My day started off early making a Green Bean Casserole before our normal work day began. From then on it pretty much went non stop till set up at 4:30 for our 6pm dinner. This year we celebrated Thanksgiving with the two small groups from our small church plant. Also invited was the English Conversation course from the Family Center. In total we had 28 people who celebrated with us.

It is always really strange celebrating an American holiday in a foreign country and even stranger celebrating it with a group that is mostly not American. Not only is there no day off, no Macy's Thanksgiving Parade or American Football, but the culture that goes with the celebration of Thanksgiving is also just not there. It was a joy to be able to share some of our traditions with our german friends here but after celebrating Thanksgiving last year with family in the US, it just was not the same. It made me realize there are just some things that you cannot duplicate. You can make the Turkey, mashed potatoes and even the green bean casserole, however you cannot make a culture or create one that is basically only understood in the US. I am one not to get too sentimental about things that I miss in the US, but this year I realized that Thanksgiving is one of them. Next year I think we just need to figure out what does Thanksgiving mean to us overseas. We have been able to figure that out for Christmas, however Christmas is a holiday that is recognized in Germany which makes it a little easier. We will keep you posted, check back next year!

The Wall Came Down...

2009-11-18T11:20:00.012+01:00

...and another wall went up. On November 9th 1989 the wall that once surrounded west Berlin, which created a divided city, began to be torn down. Piece by piece people began to chip away at a wall that for some created fear, pain, suffering and separation. Each piece that fell and each gate that was opened was a piece of their world that they knew (East Berlin) being taken away. In the evening of 9. November what was shown on TV was much celebration and jubilation and tears of joy. What was often not shown were the tears of fear. Fear of what this would mean for those who have come to know and accept the country that they had been living in for forty years. A country, although only separated by a 3.6 meter (8.1 ft.) high wall, was as different as what the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. were in the 80's. The news reporters did not show or interview the people in the east who went to the check point only to stand there and not cross to the other side. As time passed, especially a year later when the country was officially unified, it became more apparent what the fall of the wall meant. It meant unemployment soaring in the old east due to factories being closed because of not being needed by western industrialization. It meant homelessness soaring due to no social housing and people starving and freezing. It really meant a country that once existed would never exist anymore and the citizens of the old German Democratic Republic would never be able to go "home" again. They were now in a foreign land and by some, not welcomed. Since living here I have had conversations with people who have expressed the emotions above.

Although the wall came down there are walls that are continuing to go up all around the city. There is the wall of frustration that some in the west have with the amount of money that has been spent investing in the east and therefore taken away from the west. I just saw an interview with someone on TV who said they would never celebrate the falling of the wall do to the 'problems' that it has caused. There are trust walls that have been built, not trusting in the government (at a completely higher level then in the US), not trusting in acquaintances and sometimes even family members or friends, due to the spying that took place during communist reign. The wall that has affected us the most is the wall that has been built between this city and God. Construction of this wall was started in the DDR (German Democratic Republic) by basically removing the church and religion, instead making government the religion. As one wall came down the other only got higher. It amazes me how I can stand in this open free city yet feel so imprisoned. How so many people can answer my questions to them about God by saying "What God? There is no God."

The jubilation that I saw on the TV as I watched the celebration and old clips from '89 caused me to have a range of emotions. Tears of joy because due to the wall coming down our family is allowed to now live in the old eastern section of Berlin, a city we have come to love and call home. It has allowed us to be able to work in a small church plant in its infant stages. It has allowed me to build relationships with so many Germans that we hold dear to our hearts and now call family. We also see first hand the restoration that has been brought to this city because of the wall coming down. After twenty years, we see a city that is still coming together, that is still being rebuilt. But also of sadness, knowing what destruction was done to the church here in Berlin not only during the communist years but also during the Hitler years (which could be a whole other post). That although many of the churches still stand, many stand as museums. There are bookstores who do not sell the Bible because the owner doesn't believe it is true, yet they are ok selling fiction books. We live in a city where we sometimes feel that we are not accepted and seriously outcasted because we are Christians. It is a sad truth.

There is a lack of hope here. Most often we hear that people see a hope in us that they have not seen before. Many thought that the fall of the wall would bring new hope to people, but that has not entirely held true. It is our desire that the hope we have in Jesus Christ, would also be the hope for the hopeless in this city. That this hope would bring full restoration and unity to this once war-torn, divided city of Berlin.

Picture Descriptions:

1) 1989 at the Brandenburg Gate

2) Brandenburg Gate with Domino Blocks to re-do the falling of the Wall on the 20th Anniversary of the fall

3) Another view of the Domino's looking from Reichstag (Capital Building) to the Brandenburg Gate.

...and Baby turns 1

2009-09-25T21:10:00.006+02:00

So I think I now know what they mean when they say the youngest will always be the baby. That is because our baby Hanna just turned one. Which means in reality she is no longer a baby but now a toddler. However there is something inside that holds on to that baby, something that breaks the heart as you see her getting bigger. It is kind of wierd to think that there will no longer be any more babies in our household (at least not that we are planning on). Which will make Hanna always be our baby.

Not much has really been written on the blog about this crazy kid. Stephanie and I were thinking with having such an extrovert of a daughter with Grace and the spunk of Caleb that our third would be more reserved and sort of just quietly observe her older siblings. That is not the case whatsoever. Hanna is just as rambunctious as her siblings and she is the trouble maker at night trying to get Caleb and Grace to play with her, instigating them on.

She is the one who pounces on Caleb as he quietly tries to play cars by himself on the floor and also the one who tries to add her own creative genius to the pieces of artwork that Grace works so hard to create for us. Hanna is the one who thinks that the world is a stage and also simultaneously one big playground for her to explore. Yet allows Grace to pick her up and carry her where ever she pleases and looks at her big brother with such love it melts your heart. As she get ready to take off walking any day now, alls I have to say is watch out world!

If I had to give one adjective to describe her it would be joy, for that is what she brings into the lives of all she meets. We thank you Lord for our baby, the blessing that she is to us and to so many!

To see more pictures from her birthday, click here.

4 Years On.....

2009-09-06T11:48:00.006+02:00

I have been thinking about this blog for some time now, and I keep on ending up empty handed. I think that I am wanting to be too philosophical, too deep or perhaps even too spiritual about this blog. So instead of doing any of that and over processing, I am just going to write my thoughts as they go through me head.

4 years on.....two more kids, a new apartment, a new ministry and a life I would have never imagined. If you would have told me four years ago that I would be sitting here doing what I am doing I would have never have believed you. It is pretty much insane how much God has blessed us over the past four years. So much so it truly moves Stephanie and I every time we begin to talk about it. Words of thanks cannot begin to do justice to Him for what He has done and is doing. Instead we just offer our bodies as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1). This however does not mean that there has not been any struggles.

To be honest with you, it was just about three weeks ago when I had some pretty serious questions go through my head. The typical human questions, why am I here? Am I really doing what God wants me to be doing? Or am I just doing ministry because I want to, instead of being called to it. Of course it is always not easy to ask these questions let alone to answer them. One thing that Stephanie and I promised to each other is that we would not just stay in Berlin because we like it here, or because we were scared to go back to the US, or because we did not know what else we would do. Instead we only want to be here in Berlin if the passion was still alive if the calling was still strong. And the only way you can really know that is true is by seriously asking yourself and of course God those questions above. We have come to realize that routine or settling is not an option, because when we do it is then that we begin to rely more on ourselves and less on God.

What came out of me asking those questions? A realization of how much I still struggle with identity. As much as I want to see my complete identity in Christ instead of the things I do, the things that I have accomplished, it is a struggle I continue to have. God continues to bring me to places in my life to show me that I have grown in this area and that I do not seek approval as much as I have before. But that I still have a lot more to grow in order to be comfortable with the fact that I do not need to prove anything to God, He loves me no matter what I accomplish, or for that matter, what I do not accomplish (Ephesians 2:8-10, Romans 5:7-9). If it be 4 years that we are here or 40. The one thing that I am still certain is, is that God wants us to be here in Berlin, our love for this city and the people/friends here has not lessened in 4 years, but only has grown stronger. And it is through being here that God is revealing these things to me.

That is what the past four years is about, God's revelation to Stephanie and I about His goodness, His provision, but most importantly about His love. His love to "discipline" us, to grow us closer to Him (Hebrews 12). On one side I would love to write to say that the past four years has not been with out tears, without pain, without struggle. But I know if that was the case I would not have been able to have the joys, the experience of the realness of our God and Saviour who hears our cries and answers our prayers. I am learning to truly be able to "Rejoice Always" (Philippians 4:4) for I know that He has good things in store for those He loves even when I do not fully understand it (Romans 8:28-29).

This is just a small short blog of what God has shown me about myself the past four years and has worked in me. I could write several more pages about how I have seen God work in and through Stephanie, my children, our friends here in Berlin and in the US, our team, our church plant here in Berlin, and our neighborhood here in Berlin. I could go on and on......God is so good all the time. I thank God for all those who have enabled us to be here the past four years and who enable us to stay here!

Picture Descriptions:

1) August 2005: right before moving to Berlin (who is this couple?)

2) October 2006: beginning of year 2 in Berlin with 2 children

3) August 2007: first visit back to US after 2 years in Berlin

4) August 2008: first HMA, beginning of year 3 with three children (see belly)

5) August 2009: 4 years on......just a couple of changes.

God's Creation: The Mountains

2009-08-17T11:21:00.019+02:00

So for the past year I have had this s
trong desire to go to the mountains, really really tall mountains and I had no idea where this feeling was coming from. After reading Psalm 23-25, 134-139 during my morning devotions while sitting in our rental apartment in Bayern (german alps), this is what came to mind.

You see most of my life these days is in the big city (third largest city in Europe) with tall buildings (man's creation). One can have the feeling that these buildings are overpowering you. Like I mentioned above man made these buildings so in reality sometimes it really feels like man is overpowering me, especially when one takes into account the culture of city life and of Berlin. Don't get me wrong I know that God has ultimate control in power, I am just speaking of feelings that I have had recently coming back to the city after being in the US for 8 months (which is distinctively different).

I think I wanted tall mountains (God's creation) to remind me and to give me the feeling of smallness, of God creation overpowering me, so in essence God overpowering me in a physical way. Especially since man has never built a taller building (Dubai 818 meters) taller then the highest mountain (Everest 8,848 meters), there is no comparison of the strength of man to the strength of God. It is an overwhelming overpowering feeling to be under God's control instead of man, it is a feeling of comfort instead of fear. That is a feeling that I love to have! I am so thankful that God granted us the opportunity to go experience this, to see His beauty in His creation and be cuddled up next to Him inside His amazing creation.

Psalm 24:1-2

¹ The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; ²for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.

Psalm 136:1-9

¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever. ² Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.⁴ to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.⁵ who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.⁶ who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.⁷ who made the great lights— His love endures forever.⁸ the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever. ⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.

Bayern Vacation

2009-08-17T07:00:00.017+02:00

We were originally thinking about taking vacation in the middle of September, but after a busy (to put it lightly) couple of months since being back, Stephanie decided that she would like to go sooner then later. After searching for hours online for a vacation rental apartment, they are often cheaper then hotels (and you get a kitchen, family room and two bedrooms!) we finally found one that was available in our price range. We had part of the first floor of this house.

We really wanted this vacation to be relaxing without a ton of sightseeing so that we could unwind, so we found a place away from it all, but easy access if we wanted to see some 'sights'. Our home for the week would be outside of Reit im Winkl which is a small town right on the border with Austria in the southeastern side in the German Alps. It is about 800km away which took about 8 hours in the car to get there (with breaks). The town is incredibly kid friendly, they have free stroller rental for guests and a children's program two days of the week.

Day One: It was a beautiful day upon arrival (around 11:30 am after leaving Berlin at 3:30 am) so we decided to head to a lake for some swimming. We packed a lunch and headed out. It was incredibly beautiful and relaxing just being in nature and playing with the kids. Hanna is definitely a water baby!

Day Two: Weather was touch and go for the week and it was actually sunny in the morning so we decided to head to the top of a mountain (Kampenwand 1,669 meter). We took the cable car to the top, in which I was more nervous then the kids. Up top it was partly overcast, but we still had an amazing view of the alps and of Chiemsee. The nice thing was there were some great hiking paths that we are able to hike with the kids, they did an amazing job! After hiking from one side to the other we took a break and had a beer. Although I could have been disappointed by the clouds God gave me the grace to be overjoyed by the time with the kids and Stephanie.

Day 3: Since it was rainy where we were, we decided to head out to another part of the country. We had promised Grace that we would go to Cinderella's Castle, or what is better known as Schloss Neuschwanstein. As our 2 1/2 drive turned into 3 and then 4 and then 5 hours I was really questioning my judgement in going there. Between the rain and construction, delays were all over. However upon arrival, the sky cleared and the gray clouds made way from beautiful blue skies. As we turned the corner and saw the castle, the giggles and joy that were on both Grace and Caleb's faces made the long drive well worth it. The castle was absolutely phenominal, it is hard to believe it is only 1/3 the way finished. Fortunately it was only a 2 3/4 hour drive on the way back.

Day 4: After being in the car for so long the day before, we stayed inside and had a relaxing morning just being together. During naptime for Caleb and Hanna, I took Grace out to do some exploring with daddy. We found a brook that we were able to hike around in in our boots and build a 'bridge' out of the rocks. She got a kick of throwing rocks into the water that splashed daddy. Unfortunately after throwing a rather large rock she slipped and fell in and got completely soaked. We headed back to the house to get the rest of the fam to head out to the park and for a small hike.

Day 5: After a day of relaxation we decided to do another short car trip, this time to Salzburg. The trip was an hour long drive along the B305 which is the Germany's Alps Street (bad translation but you get the idea). It was a gorgeous drive! Salzburg is an amazingly small old town. We spent the day mostly just wandering around the old streets, checking out the old buildings and visiting the local bakery and butcher for lunch. Of course finding a nice cafe in the afternoon for coffee and applestrudel. Some of our favorites there were the buildings from the 1200's, the catacombs in the side of a mountain and the musicians that seemed to be around every corner. As you can see in the picture, Caleb particularly enjoyed them with ice cream.

Day 6: Since it would be our last full day, we decided to head out for another hike while the sky was still clear. Unfortunately this hike was not as 'successful' as the first two. I think the week had finally gotten to the kids and they were pretty exhausted. Although it was quite short, the scenery was definitely incredible. After everyone took a nap we headed to the local indoor pool, which was free to guests, and had huge glass windows with views of the mountains that allowed us to feel like we were outside. Everyone had a blast. Grace particularly enjoyed the song I taught her for dandelions, "momma had a baby and its head popped off", as she sings in the picture above while hiking.

Day 7: In the morning we decided to walk around Reit im Winkl a short bit before heading back to Berlin.

This is one place that I probably could have stayed at least another week. It was so relaxing and beautiful. There were plently of options to hike, to do things with the kids, go on short daytrips, or just hang around our apartment. So much so that we definitely were not able to see/do it all. Although there was a free child care program two days of the week we did not take advantage of it because we truly had such an amazing time with the kids and they were so incredibly well behaved. We truly are blessed!

To see more pictures of our time there, click here, then select Bayern Vacation to view pictures in that folder.

English Camp 2009

2009-07-28T08:41:00.003+02:00

We have English Camp every year. It is almost as normal for English Camp to occur as it is for the flowers to bud in the springtime or seeing the first snow of winter (at least in Ohio). There is something beautiful to the natural order of things, but it can also be somewhat unsettling. The unsettling part of camp is that it is becoming routine and it’s taking longer to recognize the amazing gift that it truly is. I had my “i’’s dotted and “t”s crossed (thanks mostly to my intern) and everything seemed pretty much in order.

I always remind my returning tutors to come expecting something different because is never the same, since that has definitely been the case for me over the past couple years. I think I try to lower their expectations (as well as mine) so they don’t end up disappointed. That’s when I am reminded that we worship a huge God in whom we could never have high enough expectations for. God is most likely disappointed in the “low” expectations we have of Him.

This year God surpassed my expectations in the amount of peace and grace that He gave me to deal with the challenges that came to pass. Nine members of the US team were told that they may have been infected with swine flu on their flight, Berlin teammates got sick, half of Berlin’s public transportation shut down, and rain wiped out the games during the parent day. Sometimes I really wanted to just laugh, especially the night of the demonstrations in front of the Brandenburg Gate and Reichstag.

Through these "challenges" that at least appear so to man, are really not for the God we worship. The group that might have been infected with swine flu were let through to their next flight as the worker at the airport said that he was amazed that they could go on. However again this is not to big or to amazing for our God. Despite some Berlin teammates being sick others stepped up took on more responsibility and it went almost unnoticed (although we missed them) that they were not there. Unfortunately the public transportation never did start working, however God showed me that He not only gives me patience but to others as well, and I was able to see that patience in so many those that I was with. Although rain wiped the games out, God showed me that "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails" Proverbs 19:21, which is a good thing. Because of the rain it forced us indoors into tight quarter to eat, which is where intimate conversation took place. It was such a blessing that is rained. And lastly, the demonstrations really just showed me that God does have a sense of humor and sometimes we just need to laugh.

However, through it all God always gave me the peace and grace I needed. The struggles were worth it just to hear the stories of individuals on the US team about how their lives had been affected by their experience here in Berlin, the opportunities they had to share the love of Christ with their students and how through it all they had been drawn closer to God. This is one of the things that I love about English Camp, He draws those closer to Him so that they may draw others also to Him. Also, to see one of the students who on the first day of camp had no interest in being there and then on the last day laughing and giggling with her new friends, was truly a gift from God. These are only a few of the many examples of our great and awesome God who was at work during English Camp 2009.

Picture Descriptions:

# 1: Students and Staff of English Camp 2009

#2: Team dinner at home home and a time of worship afterwards

#3: Stephanie and the Space Cadets (Music team for camp including Stephanie's sister and our intern)

#4: Stephanie as room captain on Family Day

Hochzeit beim Standesamt (German Wedding)

2009-07-09T19:37:00.001+02:00

About a month and a half ago I was talking to my best friend here in Berlin, he asked me if I had plans for July 3rd. Thinking he wanted to have a July 4th picnic or something I told him that it was a long way off so I did not know for sure, but at this point it was open. He then asked if I would be his Trauzeuge (best man )at his wedding. I then quickly responded by telling him that I am definitely free and that I would be definitely there. When I was asked I was truly truly honored and humbled. To think that the guy that I had met on the playground just two years prior would ask me to be his best man. And to be in a country, where to get married is against the norm and to have two close friends make the decision to get married I could not have been more excited.

Shortly after my phone call I realized that I was going to be a best man at a wedding in a culture that I do not know. A short panic came over me and I thought to myself, what do I do now? Did it mean that I had to have a bachelor party? Give a wedding speech, in German? What do I wear? Too many thoughts. I continued to ask how I could help, but was always told he had it under control. Until the night before the wedding. He called me up to ask one favor, if we could use our camcorder since he was having trouble with his. I responded with a quick yes, unknowing the affects that it would have. That night I had a nightmare that I forgot the camera and then got kicked out of the wedding and was told that the friendship was over and that he never wanted to see me again, it was quick tragic.

The wedding was a Hochzeit beim Standesamt (Wedding at City Hall), which I think are more common then Church weddings here in Germany. Of Which also I had never experienced in the US. Stephanie and I were to meet them at their apartment and we would drive together to the Amt to meet some of the other family there. In total there was only 17, which included them, Hanna and their 3 children. It was a very close intimate affair that Stephanie and I had the honor to be part of. His family, which I had only met his mother and father once, treated my family like we part of theirs. We are so thankful for their openess and the love they showed us.

I must admit that I thought the four of us (the couple and the two Trauzeugen) would go in a room, we would all sign a piece of paper and then it would be over after 5 minutes or so. That was not the case. Although we did first go into a small office (the four of us) in which there we papers filled out and signed and took about ten minutes or so. At first I did think after that session it was over, however the amt women then did say we were to go into the next room. It was here that the ceremony would take place. The room was a nicer room then what one would expect at an "Amt", somewhat like a small chapel. The ceremony, which was done by a city official was quit nice which included a small thought by her, giving of the rings and the signing of the marriage certificate. It was a lot nicer then what I would have expected. The emotion and love that the couple showed was beautiful and the tears of happiness that flowed from their eyes were shared by many. As we headed outside we were surprised to see a log between two sawhorses. It is tradition in Germany that the couple saw through the log together, to see how well they work together as a couple. The couple was surprised by his uncle who set it up for them, however did an incredible job working together to saw through it quickly, which you should be expected after six years of being together and three kids.

After the wedding we headed to a restaurant for a buffet. Spontaneously outside the restaurant the Oma (grandma) pulled out a boombox and played music for the couple to dance with. It was amazing to see the absolute joy in their faces as they danced on the sidewalk to the music. It was a time to hang out, eat and just enjoy being together. The restaurant had a bavarian style and the food was quite delicious. We were there for five hours just hanging out, eating, and enjoying conversatoin with one another. Throughout that time gifts were opened and I finally got the nerve to do my speech. That is right I gave a speech. I must be honest though, I did write it out (in German), just because I know that my nerves would probably get the best of me. The couple was much appreciative and I was able to make it through it without any tears.

The day was filled with many wonderful memories for Stephanie and I, memories that we will carry on for us for many years to come. God has truly blessed me with an incredible friend here in Berlin, for whom I am incredibly thankful for. Not only did God bless me with a friend but God also blessed us all by bringing his whole family in relationship with ours.

Caleb's 3rd Birthday

2009-07-08T21:05:00.000+02:00

Well since Caleb has just begun Kita he really has no friends yet in school, so we were wondering what we could do for him for his birthday. We tried to think of what he would really enjoy doing. Then I remembered that this past winter Caleb saw his first model train and he LOVED it and probably could have stared at it for hours. It just so happens that down the street from us in the mall is a huge model train exhibit of the city of Berlin and birthday boys get in for free. I asked my teammate if he would be interested in going with his twin son's (of which are Caleb's age) and make a boy's day out of it.

I picked up Caleb early from school so that we could have our boy's day together. I made sure that it was after the time that they celebrated his birthday at school. He was really excited about his big special birthday day with daddy. All us boy's went to McDonalds together and Caleb got his favorite, Chicky nuggets and fries, I even let him have sprite to drink.

Afterward we headed to LOXX which is where the train exhibit was. Of course, you need to go through the gift shop to enter and to exit. As soon as we entered I really think that Caleb's jaw drop, he ran up and started staring at the trains and pointing out each one that went by. He kept informing me of how fast they went. I kept on having to encourage him to go check out other places in the exhibit, or I think he would have stayed in one place the whole time. The boys kept hearing a plane take off so they wanted to check that out. Across the way they had an airport where a plane would take off into the clouds and then land, they thought is was the coolest thing.

It was a really special time for me because I honestly do not spend as much one on one time with Caleb as I should. For some reason when we do one on one time Stephanie takes Caleb and I take Grace, it is just the way that it has been done. However with this trip to the train exhibit I have realized how much I miss just spending time with Caleb alone. It is so funny how different kids act when their younger or older siblings are not around. He truly is an absolute joy and gift from God. I am blessed for the three years that God has gifted me with him and I look forward to seeing him grow up to be a man of God.

A Princess's 5th Birthday

2009-06-30T20:51:00.008+02:00

Who would have thought that five years would go so quickly? As a parent of small children you hear often, enjoy these years they grow up quickly. With the whining, the diapers, the sleepless nights and the fighting it is sometimes really hard to enjoy these years, especially as the bags under my eyes get bigger. However as I now look at my baby girl who is not so much my baby girl anymore, I begin to understand more and more the advice that was given to me.

The spilled juice, the stains in the carpet, the clothes that are ruined, the neighbors who have been disturbed beyond what they deserve, and of course the battle marks that have scared everyone.

All of the above is well worth every second as I look on my daughter who is turning into an amazing young girl of whom I am so proud. Although it has taken me awhile to learn, and in some ways still learning, is to actually enjoy all those things above, as much as they bother and frustrate me. There will come a day that I will be begging my kids to jump on me, to hang on me and of course to pull my arm out of socket, but they won't because they will be too old, it will be too uncool. There will be the day that I will ask them, can I please put you in bed like a rocket ship and they will respond that they are no longer 5 years old. Or I will beg them to cuddle beside me for me to read a book to them before bed and instead they will be begging for 10 more minutes on the internet instead to keep up with their friends on facebook. I must continue to challenge myself to cherish these times, no matter how exhausted I am. I am truly blessed, not only for my five year old princess, but for every one of my blessings from God!

Psalm 127:3 (New International Version)

³ Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from Him.

Here is a quick review of Grace's Birthday:

We woke up to a little girl who informed us whose birthday it was, as if we forgot "Today is my Birthday! I am FIVE!" Next she opened up her gifts, which were of the theme Ballerina. She got ballet lessons from mom and dad, a tutu and tights from Nannie and Opa, and ballet shoes from Mammaw and Grandpa. I really think she was about to explode out of happiness. At Kita she got to celebrate with her class and eat ice cream. We picked her and five other girls up from school for her birthday party.

This year she decided she wanted a Princess Tea Party, no boys allowed, but of course Caleb who was the one prince and fortunately daddy who was THE KING! We got back to our house for the girls to change into their princess dresses for the tea party and cake time. After cake time we had craft time in which they made their own princes rings and princess crowns. Of course they had to try on each others princess dresses. We then headed to the park, so that some of the energy could be let out. Let me tell you it was quite a sight Stephanie and I walking six five year olds, a two year old and a 9 month old to the park. We were asked at one point if they were all ours. Afterward we came back to our place for another change of princess gowns and for dinner. It was an exhausting day but our little girl was in her own little kingdom. She went to bed exhausted and happy and began looking forward to next year.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Grace finding out that she will be going to ballet lessons

2) Coming back from the park with way too many kids, out of control!

3) Our Lil' Princess

4) The Tea Party....

Hamburg Fahrradtour (part I)

2009-05-31T21:32:00.000+02:00

A couple of months ago I got together with one of the guys from my guys group to spend some time with him after returning to Berlin. At the end of our time together he asked me if I would be interested in doing a bike trip with him at the end of May. I asked him the two most important questions, where to and when. When he responded "Hamburg" I about fell on the ground only later to find out that we would actually be going to Neumuenster, which is even farther north. The reason for the trip was to watch his mom play in a the German Blind Soccer League tournament (see part II). I asked him if I were not to go who would go with him, and he said he would go by himself. For me that was not an option, since the parent side of me came out and I knew it was important for me to go with him. Plus I had been wanting to do a bike trip and wanting to see his mom play soccer for some time now.

Since I was in language school I told him that I could not miss more then three days of school, so we made a deal that we would take the train part of the way and then would bike the rest. Also since we would be biking through Hamburg, I wanted to check it out since I had never been there. The other deal was that we could only speak german the entire time and that he would have to correct my mistakes. Lastly, since I was pretty busy at the time I told him he had to organize everything and that I would trust him and go along for the ride. My wife was more then understanding and was even supportive of my decision to go with him (I have an amazing wife).

We left after my class on a Wednesday afternoon and took the train a bit of the ways there. That evening we spent 3+ hours on our bikes. The bike paths and bike maps that they have here are amazing and greatly helped us out. Plus, he did a great job organizing the trip. The path took us along the Elbe River, which used to be the border between East and West Germany. Along the way we passed multiple watchtowers that the Stasi used to guard the Elbe from those who tried to cross to "freedom". It was humbling and amazing to see, especially since it seemed at times that there was nothing around besides these watchtowers. We were able to climb up one that is now used as a lookout point. It was crazy to think about what it was used for as I stood up there. Although it was windy (really windy), I was greatful that it did not rain. We passed through small quaint towns that we thought sometimes really had not one living creature in them since they were so quiet.

I had heard nothing but good things about Hamburg and was excited to experience it first hand. It was a nice, clean, pretty city (from what I experienced) and had a ton of water and canals (it's a port city). We went to the Hamburg port and all along the bank one could see nothing but cranes for the cargo. It was amazing to think that our stuff had gone through that maze twice and somehow arrived at our door. We did not have much time there, but would definitely recommend it as a visit. One surprise was that it was a lot hillier then I would have expected. One definitely notices it after several days on a bike.

Our last day was our longest on the bikes at one time. All the way from Hamburg to Neumuenster in one day, a total of 90+KM (about 56 miles). My legs could definitely feel it at the end of this trip. In total, we traveled 212 Km (131 miles). The forceful headwind did not help my legs either. We arrived in Neumuenster and tried to find the zoo, where the camping area (cabins) for the tournament was.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Along the Elbe, watchtower in center right of picture

2) The Pension where we stayed the night (our bikes are in the front of the building)

3) Believe it or not this is a trains stop we found along the way

4) The old main shipping center of Hamburg (can you count all the cranes in the background?)

Hamburg Fahrradtour (Part II)

2009-05-31T16:30:00.005+02:00

(continued from part 1) Once we arrived at the camping grounds after three days of riding our bikes I was asked if I wanted a beer and at that point I could not have been more ready for one. This first night was the arrival of all the teams. It was really cool to see the community that they had with one another, although they are all on different teams (the next day paying against one another). There was a neat sense of family that was there.

I think it is good every once in awhile to feel a part of the minority. Although our family is in the minority in Berlin, 1) since we are Americans 2) since we are not native german speakers and 3) since we are Christians. However that has just become a way of life for us. At the camp I definitely felt in the minority and I say that not in a negative way. My first real encounter with blindness has been with the guy in my guys group and his family (his mom is completely blind). Being at the tournament, participating in the community and seeing how they cared and helped one another out was humbling. I personally played soccer with two blind teenage boys and let me tell you, I did not have to take it easy on them, instead I kept asking them to take it easy on me!

At the tournament there were people of all ages playing together, encouraging one another. One could sense that although they all had the desire to win, that was not what the tournament was all about. That could be shown by the excitement to get to the evening activities. Unfortunately I had to leave to get back to my wife and kids so I missed out on the evening. The focus of the evening was celebrating being together not just the winning team but everyone grilling out and eating and enjoying each others presence. I feel truly honored that I was able to participate in this weekend with this guy and his family. I was able to enter into a culture that I had not ever experienced and have been changed because of it.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Hamburg

2) Blind Football (soccer) Tournament

First Family Bike Ride

2009-05-23T20:23:00.002+02:00

We will call it an adventure is what we will title it! We had planned on doing it two days prior, however rain postponed our big day out. When the weather is nice we like to get outside and get out of our neighborhood. Since we all now have bikes that we can ride (well Hanna can now officially go in the bike seat) we decided to to go for small trip together.

To not overdue it too much, we rode our bikes to the train station and then took the train to the park we wanted to ride our bikes around. For awhile we had been wanting to visit Treptower Park which was laid out in the 1860's, however due to miscellaneous reasons we had not been able to get there. Before going to the park we decided to head to what they say is the last standing watchtower in Berlin. I had seen pictures of it, but since we were going to be in the area, thought we could swing by it. Not realizing it was quite a way out of our ways, especially when our little buddy boo was on a laufrad (walking bike). It was pretty cool to see, but still felt a little bad for Caleb. As we headed to the park the kids were starving, so we kept on telling them it was only a little further to where we wanted to picnic. Their legs held strug and they persevered.

We picnicked at the memorial in the park. The (very large) memorial is to commemorate the 20,000 Soviet soldiers that died during the taking of Berlin from April to May in 1945, 5,000 which lie on the grounds. The memorial opened only four short years after the war ended, they used marble from Hitlers chancellory. On top mausoleum that is on the hill has a 11 meter statue of a soldier rescuing a child with his sword on a smashed swastika. The kids really enjoyed rolling down the large hill. Upon exiting the memorial area we found out that we were not suppose to be sitting on the grass or eating in the area, woops.

After leaving the memorial we headed to Archenhold Sternwarte, which is an old observatory dating back to 1896. This is still the longest refracting telescope in the world! It was here also that Einstein gave his first presentation on the Theory of Relativity on 2. June 1915. At this point Stephanie had to really pee and Caleb needed a break, so we headed across the street to the beer garden, because daddy could really use a beer and Grace really needed ice cream. And what did Hanna need? A NAP! And to top it all off there was even a slide for the kids to play on. Here at this beer garden is a dance hall that was built in 1822 in classic Schinkel style. From here you can see the first bridge built in Germany out of steel in 1916.

After our break, we started to head back to the train station to head home. The kids (and Stephanie) did a great job. It was a beautiful day and was a heck of a lot of fun. It was sort of a test run, and I would say it is something that we will definitely continue to do in the future. To see more pictures you can go to our May album on shutterfly by clicking here.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Family at the watchtower

2) Soviet Memorial

3) Archenhold Sternwarte

4) Kids eating ice cream in front of slide

5) Stephanie reading book while drinking her beer (nope that beer is mine), she has the coffee while Hanna takes her nap while still in her bike seat.

Spring Family Festival

2009-05-17T21:58:00.009+02:00

It is pretty hard to believe that we just put on our 5th Family Festival and even harder to believe that two years has passed since we dove into this endeavor with our first one. Often times our expectations continue to build on one another, often forgetting where we even started from. The other day I was watching a family movie with the fam, which included clips and pictures of the first festival. I was shocked to see how "small" the festival was. As I quickly reflected back it was funny how at that time I thought that there were so many people who attended. And that we would not have been able to handle anymore if more people showed up. We were so excited about the "success" of the festival. As each preceeding festival occurred more and more people attended.

As I look at pictures it is amazing to see what God has done with the festival. At the high point we usually have at least 250 people there at one time with at least 500 people passing through the festival within the 3 hours it takes place in a day (just imagine how many come through the 3 days it occurs). To give you a little perspective we had about 50-75 at a high point during the first festival. Yes we should always increase our expectations and desires for the next festival, but sometimes we really need to rejoice at all that has already taken place and what a joy it is to see the community coming together and experiencing a piece of the kingdom.

Through this festival we were able to build new relationships with new businesses who sponsored the festival, we were able to be more in conversation with those in attendance because of the large team we had from YWAM, and we were able to build some new relationships with people from the community, one who is really wanting to help out in any way at the Family Center. It was also incredible to see the community having fun together. As I was passing out flyers in the park prior to the festival, it was encouraging that several people positively commented on knowing the festival fromt he past ones and that they definitely looked forward to attending again. The Festival has now become a pretty well established identity in the neighborhood. God is so good all the time.

I must admit I did have doubts about this festival, that is if everything would be pulled off in time. My team leader was organizing things prior to my arrival back in Berlin (while I was in the US) and while I was in language school full time. However he needed to go back to the US for his sons graduation and then handed everything over to me. He was to return two days before the festival. At this time I did feel a little overwhelmed, with language school, festival, English Camp preparations and a family still adjusting to being back in Berlin and kids adjusting to being in German Pre-school. However God gave me a team that helped pull everything together, it was amazing. I always need to remember that God does have everything in His hands and that He brings everything to completion in His will and most importantly in His timing.

2 Corinthians 8:11-12 (New International Version)

¹¹Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. ¹²For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

First Day of Kita

2009-05-04T19:54:00.012+02:00

Caleb finally entered the big world of Kita. The really neat thing is that his class is directly above his big sisters class, so he has comfort knowing that she is close by. The transitioning process of a kid into the Kita is a lengthy process. Parents actually get time off of work in order to transition their kids properly into Kita, which can take up to two weeks or longer.

Caleb's process was a little bit on the longer end, however he is also dealing with language acquisition. His teachers are really understanding and are incredibly patient. One of his teachers actually use to be Grace's teacher for a little while, so it is nice that we already had an established relationship with her. The first week he only attended 2 hours and then made it up to three by the weeks end. Starting the second week he started by staying through lunch and then finally through nap time. His teacher was concerned because he was not eating lunch there, which was really no surprise to us, he has become our picky eater, which was just like Grace at that age. His teacher came to learn that he loved cereal, so now there is ample supply of that there for him to eat to give him energy for the rest of the day.

Personally I think he has done an incredible job transitioning there. For a boy who struggles with change, it has been encouraging seeing him playing, interacting with the other kids and answering questions (in broken German) during story time. Although he cries for a minute or two upon drop off, he is always excited to ride his bike to school. I must also comment briefly on his big sister Grace. Often they are out in the garden at the same time, and Caleb tells us on the way home often that Grace played with him. We are so proud of our little girl for taking time away from her friends to play with her little brother.

Thoughts on Spain

2009-04-30T16:11:00.000+02:00

Upon arriving at the Portugal airport I thought, never in my life would I have imagine visiting Portugal. Granted it was just the airport however I did have an hour drive to our hotel through Portugal to where our conference was located in Islantilla, Spain. The countryside was very pretty, reminded me a lot of Greece. The closer we got to our destination the pretty hills became flatter and the pretty countryside turned into a flat wasteland. As we pulled up to what seem like an oasis of large hotel conference centers, of which I believe makes up Islantilla, I had a feeling that I would not be really experiencing "Spain" at its fullest or best.

Our time in Islantilla which is where the conference pretty much consisted of either being in the hotel for sessions or our time on the beach. The beach was definitely far from spectacular, honestly it could have reminded me of almost any beach anywhere. I had to keep telling myself that I was in Spain, it was kind of funny. There were amazing seashells along the beach, of which we now have a decent collection of in Berlin thanks to Grace. The weather did allow us for the first 3 days go in the water, the temp averaged probably around upper 70's. Needless to say I would definitely not recommend going there for a beach vacation if you are looking for an awe inspiring beach.

Our fourth day of the conference was an off day, in which there was a day trip planned for Seville. It was about an hour an a half bus trip there, of which we passed by several olive and orange orchards. The weather was gorgeous not too hot and beautiful blue skies. Upon arrival we had a one hour bus tour of the city, in which we sat on the top of an open double decker bus. The kids loved it, as did daddy! It was nice having the tour, then we could relax the rest of the day without feeling we had to run around to see everything. Afterward we headed with our friends to find a place to get some Tapas, we were all grateful for Stephanie who remembered some of her high school Spanish (who knows what we would have ordered). Afterward we headed to walk around the old area of the city to find a square where the kids could play and where we could drink some sangria!

After awhile Stephanie and I headed to a section of town that is known for tile. We really wanted to get some pieces to take home with us. After about a 15 minute walk there we realized everyone was on siesta, everything was completely closed. It was such a bummer. Now I would have expected the smaller towns to close down for siesta time, however Seville is a pretty big tourist town and the section were were going to probably does pretty good business from tourists. I guess nap time outweighs business there, perhaps we have something to learn!?!?!

It was great to experience a little more of Spain then Islantilla, however I am not completely sold on Spain yet, although their sangia is quite nice. I think I might need to head back sometime to visit Madrid, Cordoba and Alhambra, perhaps that might give me another perspective. Until then there are a lot of other places in the world to visit and would probably encourage you to visit them instead.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Boardwalk from our hotel to beach

2) Balconies in Seville, Spain

3) Seville, Spain

4) Seville's Cathedral built in 1401

Retreating in Spain

2009-04-30T14:09:00.002+02:00

What kind of job takes you to Spain for a retreat? A job where you work in Europe, or for that matter Africa. This was the MTW European/African Retreat, which occurs only every four years. It is at this retreat that all the missionaries that are with MTW serving in Africa or Europe get together, the total attendance was over 500. The retreat is a time to connect, refresh and be encouraged. Every morning there would be a time of worship then Ray Cortese would speak ( I will talk more about him later). After the main session there would be several break out sessions till lunch time. Afternoon was free for about 4 hours and then there was evening session till about 7, after which was dinner. It was a long day and the kids were exhausted, for that matter so were Stephanie and I.

A little bit on Ray Cortese, pastor of Seven Rivers Pres. Church, you see it was about 3 years ago that friends of our who are missionaries in Slovakia recommended him as a good preacher to listen to on iTunes. We downloaded one sermon (all of his sermons are free as opposed to some other well known pastors we know). From the first one we were hooked and have been listening to him ever since. It is his raw straightforward honest approach to the gospel, he is willing to call a spade a spade or for that matter a pharisee a pharisee. There were times in matter of fact we were astonished that he was still at the same church and that had not got rid of him for his direct approach. It is not Ray that puts us in our place, however it is him that reminds us of our place according to the Bible; fallen, sinful, and trying to get our act together and failing most miserably. He reminds us of our ongoing need for God's grace and forgiveness and God's desire to give it. Ray challenges us in a way that is encouraging yet does not sugarcoat it, and for that matter the Bible does not do that either. Talk about Gospel-Centered!

Although one of the ideas for the retreat is rest, with three small children under 5 (all five of which are sharing one hotel room) it is a little hard. However we tried to find other ways of finding rest through the week. Such as skipping out on some sessions through the week while child care was provided so that Stephanie and I could actually have some time together, and rest. We would go to a cafe along the boardwalk and have a drink with our friends. This was one of the highlights of our time, besides Ray. You see we had no idea that some close friends were also going to be at the retreat. They are missionaries in an undisclosed location and unfortunately I cannot say their names which might hinder their ministry (kind of CIAish). But we were able to catch up with them and were able to able just talk open and honestly about how we were doing, our ups and downs, highs and struggles. It was an amazing blessing to be with them.

A retreat is what you make of it. Of course you do not have to go to Spain to do so, unless you are gather two continents of missionaries. I would define a retreat of several days of Sabbath together. Being in God's word, worship, feeling encouraged, strengthened and of course enjoying the time, either with yourself, family and or friends. I definitely got pieces of that while there and for that I am thankful. I do look forward to the next one in four years, in which our kids will be 4 years older and all participating in the kids program!

Picture Descriptions:

1) Family Picture in Seville, Spain

2) Grace in front of fountain in Seville, Spain

3) Caleb on beach in Islantilla

4) Hanna experiencing the ocean for the first time

Easter 2009

2009-04-12T21:38:00.006+02:00

There was something particularly special about this Easter for our family. This is not to steal Christ's thunder, since one can not really beat the significance of the resurrection at all. However this was the first time since we have been married (7 1/2 years) that we have actually celebrated a holiday in the same location for three years in a row. In some ways it is pretty shocking, are we actually settling? Granted we did live in the US for 7 of the months in between the two Easters, but the fact of the matter still stays the same.

To some of you this might not seem like a big deal, to others of you who have moved a lot either do to a military lifestyle, missionary lifestyle or just a parent who moved a lot, you all know it is a big deal. As a couple (and now a family) we have been at peace with this lifestyle of change and moving, but there is something to really say about how nice it is to have just a little taste of what stability feels like. Now this is not something that I have counted down to, as far as a goal in my life, that is to celebrate a holiday more then twice in a row in the same location. It was actually really surprising to find out as Stephanie and I were looking at pictures from the previous Easters. Unfortunately I also found out that I have worn the same shirt on Easter for the past three years and probably will again next year.

As I reflect on Easter and this so called "stability" that we are somewhat experiencing, I come to realize that I have really become ok with change. As a person who has serious struggled with change, it is as if God put me in a life where there is generally nothing but change. All though we have celebrated Easter in the same location for the past three years, not one of the Easters have looked the same. We have worshipped in three separate locations, we have been with different people each of the three years, and we ourselves are also different (including this year having a new daughter).

This Easter we celebrated by going to another church plant down on the other side of our district, which ironically enough is meeting in a theater called Babylon. It was encouraging to see what was going on in another part of Berlin. In the afternoon our friends came over, the pastor and his wife from the youth church plant we use to attend when we first arrived in Berlin. We had a very relaxing and enjoyable afternoon with them. Stephanie made a fabulous german dish that I would highly recommend.

As I have been reading through Jesus' prayer to God in John 17 this Easter, I have been reminded of some important truths for those who have Christ living in them (those who believe in Jesus as their Lord & Savior):

1) We are given eternal life: ³Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

2) We are given the same joy that Christ has:¹³"I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.

3) We are given the same glory as Christ: ²²I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: ²³I in them and you in me.

4) We are given the love that God has for His own son Jesus Christ: ²⁶I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Our Family Easter Picture

2) Grace and Caleb coloring eggs

3) Hanna's first Easter

4) Easter dinner with the Steger's

Favorite Time in Berlin, SPRING!

2009-04-09T13:32:00.002+02:00

So I have been meaning to write this post for some time now, however life back in Berlin has been incredibly busy. Obviously there are many many reasons that we wanted to get back to Berlin as soon as we could, there is one reason though that most people do not know... SPRING. Spring in Berlin really is my absolute favorite time of year here! Granted we were able to experience one week upon our arrival of a lot of rain and gray skies and cold weather, but for the past two weeks it has been just gorgeous! There are many reasons why spring is my favorite time here and why I look forward to it each year, I am going to attempt to list just a few of them. Side-note, my favorite time in Ohio is fall, which was a blessing to be able to experience this past year and then to be able to return in time to Berlin to experience my favorite time here.

Reason #1: LIFE!

One four letter word that has so many meanings at this particular time of year. I love all the plants that are coming alive, the trees growing new leaves, flowers blossoming, everything turning green or another brilliant color. It is a time of re-birth, or rejuvenation, a coming alive again. And this is not just for the plants. This is also for the neighborhood. The parks and playgrounds have more people in them, there is life again there. Same thing with the cafe's and restaurants, tables are back out on the sidewalks, they too have come alive.

At this time when I see so much coming alive I am reminded that God is not only the creator of Heaven and Earth and all the plants and people that reside here, but He is also the giver of life. That plants and people that once seemed dead He can bring back to life again! And that is my desire, that myself as well as neighborhood would really come alive this spring!

Nehemiah 9:5-7 "Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

Reason #2: Light!

I think one area that I did not know was going to affect me as much as it does is the lack of light in the winter here in Berlin. Most people do not know actually how far north Berlin is, which means during the winter it gets significantly less sun then for example in Ohio. The sun rises around eight and begins to set around three. Most days are also overcast which means even less light. It is depressing. But with the arrival of spring it means longer and brighter days!

What I struggle with in this one is that where ever there is light, in another place is darkness. So although we are now getting more light here in Berlin, there is less light then in the southern hemisphere. And even in the streets here in our neighborhood, I have observed that as some places get bathed in light other areas are covered in darkness. As the sun moves, new areas get exposed of light but then others get exposed to the darkness of shadows. It is so my desire, especially after the long dark winter months to be always in the light during the spring. I am again reminded of scripture, that I do not have to walk/live in darkness at all.

John 8:12-13 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

Reason #3: Growth, A Fresh Start!

In particularly this year around. It is great to be here this spring as things begin to take off. There are a lot of things happening in a lot of different places. With having Michael being our national pastor of the church plant, there has been a lot of growth in the church body since we were in the US. For us it is a fresh, exciting start with those that are new here. There has been growth in relationships both with old and new. It always amazes me how they can take off and grow so quickly during the spring. Then there is the growth that we are even noticing in ourselves and the opportunity that this spring is presenting itself for even us to have a fresh start with ministry. To really seek the Lord to further clarify for a clear direction over the next couple months and how God has been answering that prayer.

I am so relieved to remember that I do not have to wait for spring for a fresh start, but I have been given that opportunity to have a new heart, to be a whole new creation with a fresh start in Christ. What a relief and a blessing that is, knowing that I will continue to grow as well.

2 Corinthians 5:16-18 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ

Ephesians 4:14-16 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Back in Berlin

2009-03-20T13:12:00.015+01:00

It is now day three of being back in Berlin and I think we are at the beginning stages of being back in a routine, whatever that means. It is amazing how one's definition of routine changes after 7 1/2 months of pretty much never being in a routine. In some ways it is a blessing and in other ways a real challenge.

Goodbyes, another difficult and challenging thing that comes with the territory of this life. Seems like you are always saying goodbye to one group and hearing welcome back from another. Again it is such a blessing to be loved and have two lives where we are loved on in such wonderful ways in the US and in Berlin, but a real challenge in always making these transitions between the two worlds. We are so thankful for all the friends and family that loved on us while we were in the US, you helped make the transition much easier. It seems that as soon as you get content in one world, God takes you back to the other. It is almost as if God is saying "Christopher, you do not belong here or there (the US or Berlin), but you belong with Me in My kingdom, so do not get to settled anywhere."

As we were saying our goodbyes in the airport to our family in front of the security line, Grace and Caleb kept saying "Come on, let's go!", they were so excited to get on the plane. The time was bittersweet, but was a lot easier this time around, having a better idea of what to expect. The flight back was pretty uneventful compared to our experience in August 2007, in which we are incredibly thankful for. Caleb and Grace were incredibly well behaved, even during the six hour layover in JFK. They both slept a good 3-4 hours on the plane, Caleb tossed and turned but always went back to sleep. Stephanie handled Hanna while I managed the older two. She was a little fussy and ate frequently, but there were no real complainers on the plane about her. Thanks for all you who prayed, your prayers were definitely heard.

As we were landing in Berlin and I could see the city in the distance, an overwhelming emotion of peace and happiness came over me, we were home. As we were greeted and hugged by our teammates here when we left the gate, again I was reminded a hug of welcome somewhere means a hug of goodbye somewhere else. That in one place people are excited to see you and in the other they are saddened by your departure and here we are in between experiencing both.

To those in the US we love and miss you and are so thankful for the time we had there, to those in Berlin we are ecstatic to be back and have missed you and cannot wait for the time we are going to spend with you.

All in all we are doing well and are glad to be back. We have enjoyed baked goods from the bakery down the street, some thai and asian food from the bistro below us, and I even went to a movie with Andre the first night back. In some ways it feels as if we have never left.....

Picture Descriptions:

1) The Stephanie's sisters and brother in law helping with the final pack our last night in Ohio

2) The JFK waiting area

3) Sandra meeting Hanna for the first time

Read the entry below to hear how the kids are transitioning.

Kids Transition back to Berlin

2009-03-20T13:00:00.002+01:00

I thought that I would do a specific entry just for the kids and their transition.

Hanna: She has had probably the hardest transition out of everyone. The first night she was easily up almost every hour, which meant of course little to no sleep for mamma and papa. Finally around 5 am she fell asleep for several hours. It

was around 10 am that she and the other kids woke up. I think it was the first time ever that all three slept in till 10am. Maybe we should make this flight more often, just kidding, it really is not worth it. The second night was a little better, she probably only woke four times. We are praying that tonight will be the night she starts sleeping through again. One bit of exciting news in regards to Hanna is that she started sitting up today and she is doing a really good job at it. It is amazing how strong her back is! Picture is from Hanna sitting up for the first time.

Caleb: The one who we thought would have the hardest transition is actually doing the best. It is amazing to see how well he is doing, we are praying that it stays this way. He is sleeping through the night and doing great on the potty. The poopy issue that we were having before leaving has also decreased. He is going around the house like he never left the place, is obeying wonderfully and seems so at peace. His diet on the other hand still consists of pretty much cereal, PBJ, and yogurt. Picture is of Caleb with his truck and Grace's plane that he missed playing with.

Grace: Although she is not doing poorly, she is definitely having some transition difficulties. I believe she is struggling with communicating them so therefore instead is acting out emotionally and is struggling to obey. I should disclaim, that she is struggling more then normal with obeying. Last night she really struggled with going to sleep, she was still awake at midnight so I pulled her in bed with Stephanie and I and cuddled with her and asked her what was the matter. We asked if she was sad and she said yes. She said she missed her grandparents and her friends at school. She also said that she was really excited about being in her bed, her home, her pink bike and about seeing her friends at Kita. I think she is just struggling with all the emotions she is currently experiencing and unable to communicate them. Stephanie and I loved on her and I put her back in bed only for her to fall asleep quickly thereafter. Picture is of Grace in her high bed that she missed so much.

Resting in God's Peace

2009-03-02T12:38:00.018+01:00

This story begins back last April 2008, when Stephanie and I realized it was coming time to buy our tickets to go back to the US for HMA (home ministry assignment) aka support raising. This was something as you all know something very difficult for Stephanie and I to deal with after three years in Berlin. So upon our first couple discussions we thought that we would leave Berlin the beginning of August 2008, right after English Camp and two months before Hanna was due (which was the time allotted by the airlines for a pregnant women to fly internationally). Then the plan was at first for us to return in January, which would mean 5 months in the US. At that time that seemed like a very generous amount of time and was even hard for us to imagine being gone 5 months.

Then we hit a snag. One of the main things besides support raising that we had to do while back was meet before the committee to MTW. Although we have had approval at MTW to support raise, we still needed the final ok by committee. The problem with committee is that they meet twice a year; which meant the options for us were either going to be September 2008 the week that Hanna was due or the second week in March 2009. For us at first March 2009 was not an option, because that meant being in the US for WAY to long. So we were trying to figure out any option to do September, thoughts were that either I would go alone and chance the miss of the birth of my daughter (which I did not want to do) or perhaps even a phone call or webcam. We did not know what to do, except to pray. We prayed for wisdom as for what decision God wanted us to make and when He wanted us to return to Berlin.

After much prayer we felt led that we were suppose to head back to Berlin in March 2009 right after committee. Although this was not the plan that I would have liked, although I struggled with accepting this, we felt at peace that this is what God wanted. We felt that our support would definitely be raised by this point (economy was stronger at this point). However my thinking in this 'new' plan (not so new to God of course) was that we would support raise the first 5 months of our time in the US and then rest the remaining two. So as the story goes we booked our tickets to return to Berlin March 17th, yes St. Patrick's Day!

As we continue this adventure most of you know that the economy from June 2008 to August continued to downfall and did so even more during the first three months we were back. I was trying to make arrangements for visits with churches and not getting many return calls and those I did get back most all of them said that their church budgets were maxed and that there was no way they could support us since they were in the process of cutting things. It was quite discouraging. This is when God reminded me that it was not by chance that He brought me back during a time of economic recession to raise a pretty hefty chunk of money. That His economy is thriving and that He could do amazing things. I wanted to trust in this but of course still had doubt.

Time passed and the churches that God wanted me to visit opened their doors. It was in these churches that I can see that God prepared them for my visit, I cannot begin to describe how welcomed I felt and how at peace I felt that God wanted me their for some reason. That He was doing something bigger then me, bigger then support raising. All the individuals I met were so encouraging which strengthened me when at times I felt discouraged.

Five months pass and we were no where close to being at 100%. My plan failed, I had worked my butt off the past five months to get to 100% to be able to rest the final two months. Unfortunately this is when I sought my counsel and not God's counsel, however He was quick to bring me into His plan. He made me realize that it is not about working really really hard and then storing up rest time for the future, because we know not what the future holds. Instead it is about resting along the way, trusting in Him that what does not get done He will accomplish. Starting in January I changed my work pattern to make sure that I was taking times of rest, taking my sabbath as it should be taken by the commandments He has given us. It was also at this point that God had me realize that He had me right where He wanted me to be and I felt like He was asking me "are you ok with that?". Honestly I had to answer no, despite me knowing the best place for me to be was where He wanted me. This also changed my perspective on being back in the US and from that point was at peace about it.

Well as the story wraps itself up we head into February after 23 days on the road in Florida with still needing a large chunk of support to raise. We had no idea when it was going to come in or for that matter where from. We were even at this point talking about possibly needing to change our plan tickets. It was actually back in January that after prayer we set a date of March 1 as the decision date for all of our support to be in and for us to change plane tickets if need be. The week before March 1, still needing a large chunk, we go to serious prayer and have others around the world praying for us. What happens at this point, the money starts pouring in, I mean pouring. The first day passes, Stephanie and I are amazed (at which we really

shouldn't be since it is God) and this continues for days two and three. By the fourth day we are blown away at what God was doing, others were blown away too. We had faith that He could continue it, but just with any sinful person I had my doubt. I prayed that God would take away that doubt and give me the faith to trust that He could do it. Day five, Day six He continued to His Will and brought in the all the support on March 1. This is what He demonstrated to me, He is a God that gives wisdom when we ask for wisdom, He is a God that hears and answers prayer in His timing, He is a God that performs miracles, He is a God whose economy is thriving and will provide for His children, He is a God that gives peace that far surpasses understanding, and He is a God that will do things so that He is glorified and not us humans. And because of all these things He is a God that deserves praise! So please praise God for all that He has done for us!

Side Story: One interesting side story is that when we were leaving a new family was joining our team. We offered them our apartment to live in during their apartment search so they could do it with ease, since it normally takes awhile to find one in our neighborhood. We left at the beginning of August and they moved in the beginning of October which really helped us with our rent and for someone to take care of our apartment, THANK YOU. As time passed we joked that we would all be living together when we returned since it was so hard to find an apartment. But as God's timing has it, they found an apartment at the end of January and moved in February only to have our apartment ready for us in March. Is not God's timing amazing?

Life of Uncertainty

2009-02-19T15:36:00.004+01:00

I am continually reminded just how much I am NOT in control and how I still struggle with this. It is 9 days away away and I still do not know if we will be leaving March 17th or not. We are completely at the mercy of God and waiting on others to take a step of faith to give during these times of economic uncertainty. Do we say our goodbyes and begin to shed the tears that go along with that process? Or do we inform our team and our friends in Berlin that we will not be coming back on our scheduled date and then cope with the sadness and disappointment that encompasses? God has brought us to a place of complete and utter dependence on Him. Nothing I can do can change anything. I can only rest peacefully in His will knowing that this place of uncertainty is exactly where He wants us. We all need to go on faith alone trusting in Him and not in ourselves. For that, we will be commended. Please join us in this journey of faith by giving.

On March 1st we need to make a decision as to whether or not we need to change our return tickets to Berlin. We still have approximately $1,500 per month in pledges to raise. Please, if you have not prayerfully considered ﬁnancially supporting us, will you please do so? We can not say this enough: it is because of individuals, just like you, supporting us from anywhere from $10 to $500 or more a month that we are able to do the work that God has called us to in Berlin. We want to go home March 17th and we need your help to do so. Yes, prayer is VERY important and we appreciate your prayers, however MTW does not allow us to go on prayer alone, we need money. Please contact us by email elmericks@hotmail.com ASAP if interested in supporting us. Thank you so much for your consideration.

Florida Trip

2009-02-12T21:11:00.024+01:00

We were on the road for 23 days straight, however at times seemed a lot longer.

Our first stop was in TN. where we stayed with some good friends that we met going through the MTW process, the Lancasters, Bo and Brynne. You might remember them from our Prague trip or New Years Eve 2007. They introduced us to their small group so that we could present our missions work to them. The biggest blessing was being able to spend some time with them and going to the children's discovery museum, which I think might have been more fun for the adults! While in Chattanooga we were also able to visit some friends who attend Covenant College.

Next was Tallahassee. Our connection with the church in Tallahassee is an interesting one. You see we have never visited the church before, yet we have a pretty good connection with the people there. This is because they send groups to help out with English Camp almost every year. An amazing thing that happened is that prior to my visit they had only two people signed up to help with English Camp for this year, so they had me do a big push during the service to get people to attend the meeting after church,

not sure if anything would come out of it. After the service we were amazed to see a room filled who came to the info meeting, and there are now 13 people signed up to come to help out this summer, praise God! Lastly, we were treated by a previous English Camp Staffer to have a real experience of Florida, not Disney, but alligators! We went on a boat tour and saw about 13 alligators and 7 manatee, the kids loved it.

Onward to the Orlando area, we actually stayed in The Villages with our previous associate pastor from NPC and his wife. It was at this point that the sickness began to take over. I felt horrible for those we were staying with. Caleb's sickness had started the week before, but by this point we were pretty much all infected and were pretty miserable. We had ear infections, colds, sinus infections, exhaustion and lack of stability. The church we visited here actually was where our pastor was interim for a couple months, so it was really cool to see how God connected us there. We were also able to visit with some of my side of the family which was a blessing. A fun thing we did was take the kids to Downtown Disney, the free Disney experience (GREAT for young children instead of paying the price of admission for Disney World). As we walked around Downtown Disney, Grace and Caleb had the biggest smiles on their faces. At then end of our time they both gave us huge Thank You's.

It was at this time that all the change was beginning to take a real toll on Grace. One evening she just broke down when we had to leave someone's house. She said that she did not want to leave, that she hated having to always say goodbye. As she continued to cry she asked Stephanie "why is it so hard mommy?, it is just so hard!" At that point Stephanie broke down as well. For a 4 year old to process the difficulty of this life style is humbling and difficult as a parent. The fact that she is asking the question that Stephanie and I continually also ask God. We are confident that this lifestyle is also part of our calling and that God loves our children more then we do and since He called us into this lifestyle He will provide, care and comfort them (and us) in ways that we cannot. Stephanie explained to her the blessing it is to be able to meet so many wonderful people. That although it is sad to say goodbye, we should also be happy with the time that we are able to spend with our new friends and family. Please continue to pray for her comfort. We are thankful that we worship the God of all comfort (II Corinthians 1:3-5.)

Lastly we ended up in Ft. Lauderdale after a short stay over with my aunt in Stuart and a trip to the beach. (Although we all still had colds and sinus infections we were going to take advantage of the one nice, sunny, 85 degree day and head to the beach.) We actually visited the church in Ft. Lauderdale prior to heading to Berlin the first time. After two years on the field and when our support account was hurting, we got an email from the missions chair stating that they wanted to support us. I cannot begin to tell you what an answer to prayer that was, God always provides and knows our needs before we even do. There was a superbowl party for 30+ people at the house we were staying at and they gave Stephanie and I the floor to share our work in Berlin before kickoff. The event was catered by a guy in the church who has catered 3+ dinners for P. Diddy on his yacht in Ft. Lauderdale (he does this for free for the church). The food was amazing and so was the fellowship with all that were there.

It is always easy when going through situations to see the negative, the whiny kids on long trips in the car, sick kids with runny noses and ear pain. A wife with a perforated ear drum and myself not being able to sleep at night because of not being able to breathe. Exhaustion from a busy schedule and emotional kids because of lack of stability. All this while living with other people. It could be made out to be a nightmare, and at times I did cry and wanted to go back to Berlin. God is in every situation, you see, even through our trials God was still blessing us. Through our sickness God provided us with loving people to care and love on us. Through seeking new partners in our ministry at churches God blessed us with new relationships and strengthened others in ways we could have only dreamed. We were loved on by all we came in contact with, even those we had never met, which was truly humbling. Thanks to all those who encouraged us, strengthened us, and helped us to see how our God was loving and caring for us through each person we came into contact with. Sometimes on this earth we see the blessing through the suffering however other times we do not. However we need to still rest assured those who believe in Christ will receive their blessing in heaven (Romans 8:16-19).

Picture Descriptions:

1) Playing at the Children's Museum in Chattanooga with the Lancaster's

2) On our alligator hunt at Wakulla Springs in Tallahassee

3) One of the alligators that we saw

4) Downtown Disney, Grace with Princess Minnie and Caleb with Cowboy Mickey

5) Sunset in Orlando at my aunts house

6) On the beach in Stuart, daddy getting some lovin'

7) A canal by the house we were staying at in Ft. Lauderdale

Turning 30....

2009-01-07T20:18:00.006+01:00

I have mixed feelings about writing this blog, but I am going to go ahead and do it. You see, there have been so many comments that I have received about turning 30, many of them saying that 30 is not that old and that I should not have a problem with it. The funny thing about it is, is that I never said that I had a problem with turning 30, and never have I said that I thought 30 was old. So then you might ask, what then is the big deal about writing this blog. The big deal is still the fact that I am 30. What others do not understand is not that I have a problem thinking that it is old, it is more the fact that I really cannot believe that Christopher Elmerick is 30 years old.

The problem might lie in the fact that I stopped really processing birthdays at age 27, which is how old my sister was when she passed away (in 1999). It is amazing how I still process her as being older then me, when in reality that is not true. Every passing year it makes me realize how young she really was. Plus I never have been one to make a deal out of my birthday, I find it as a special day that I celebrate with my family. I am never one to throw a big party or anything. Just a low key time thanking God for the past year He has blessed me with and praying for another year of health and happiness.

I think one of the big struggles that some tend to have with turning 30 is realizing the fact, you are no longer a kid, you really are an adult. With that realization comes the time of reflection on where you are in your life and asking oneself if you are successful. I must admit that I too participated in this reflection time upon my 30th birthday. This is what I have come to realize. Am I successful by the ways of the world, heck no. Do I have a huge paycheck, nope. Do I own a home and two cars, nope. Do I have a huge saving account of money stashed away for later, nope. Are my kids in the best school district, nope. Do I have kids that always obey me, nope. Do I have a resume reads that any company would die to have me work for them, nope. Could reading all this be depressing on one's 30th birthday, yes. Is it depressing for me? NO. I remember being in college and having the desire to be married and have 3 kids by the time I was 30. Have I accomplished that goal (with my wife's help), yes. However it does not stop there.

This is what I have "accomplished" in my 30 years on this

earth. I have married the most amazing wife who I love so much for her love and passion for God. I have three gorgeous heal

thy children that I love and love me and their mother and who

love spending family time together and praying. I do something for a living that most people would call a job but I call a blessing. Everyday I am humbled because the food that goes on our table, the roof that covers our head and the transportation that gets us places is because of others who give so generously to us. Our every need is provided for by God. We have friends and family all around the world who pray for us daily, which gives us the strength and perseverance to live the life that God has called us to. There is nothing that I lack and nothing more that I desire. I am thankful, so thankful for how much I have already been blessed in my short 30 years on this Earth and humbly look forward to every coming year that God blesses me with.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Stephanie threw a surprise birthday party for me during the Fiesta Bowl

2) Me and my little ones after opening and reading their birthday cards to me

3) Birthday dinner with close friends the Cripe's and Scherner's

4) Birthday weekend visit with the parents during a snowstorm, made for great birthday sledding!

Hanna's World (1st Entry)

2008-12-30T19:38:00.002+01:00

Well, I thought it was time to give Hanna her first blog entry. There has been a lot going on which is why I have not been able to do an update on every one of Hanna's changes and growth. The word that we think describes Hanna the best is content. As first we were not quite positive what type of baby she was going to be, but as time went on she continued to be more and more peaceful and easy. This is a huge blessing, considering we did not know what life with three kids was going to look like. Can she poop out like no other, YES. Does she cry when she is hungry, definitely. But outside of those times, she smiles, laughs, talks and looks just absolutely adorable.

Before Christmas she hit some pretty big milestones in her life, one of them is her rolling over. She did this shortly before her three month birthday which is pretty impressive. Let me tell you, she is not too happy about it when she is in her crib and can't get back over. She has also began to coo and talk. She recognizes our voices and turns to us and gives us a huge smile only then to begin to talk to us, it is absolutely precious. It is hard not to be just infatuated with her with the way she looks at you with her huge cheeks. It makes you just want to eat them up.

Also before Christmas she was baptized at our home church in Dublin, Ohio. We kept going back and forth if we should have her baptized in the US at our home church or in Berlin with our team. With all the support that the church has given us since we have been here, it has been an incredible reminder that this is our church family no matter how long we are gone and that they always are there to welcome us back with huge arms. For those of you who do not know why we believe in infant baptism, you can read about it in Caleb's World by clicking here.

One of the things that has been more complicated is her distaste for her car seat, especially of our need to be on the road support raising. For a short time in the car it is not too bad, but for the length of time that we are currently on the road it makes it a little more complicated. However having her brother and sister back there with her helps. She LOVES her brother and sister, especially when they come down to play with her on her playmate.

Hanna is such a blessing and there is not a day that goes by that we aren't incredibly thankful for the gift that she is to our family.

Picture Descriptions

1) Her cute elf outfit for Christmas

2) Bathtime!

3) Hanna's Infant Baptism

4) Caleb spending some time with his sister

Christmas 2008

2008-12-26T15:37:00.005+01:00

Christmas in the United States of America is definitely not Weihnachten in Deutschland! I say that in a non negative way. It has just been really interesting to observe the differences after living in another country for the past three years. Obviously one of the differences I already spoke about in regards to the amount of commercialism that has overtaken the holiday, however one of the other differences for us is the busyness. It was amazing how how we forgot how busy the holidays are here in the US. It seemed like in Berlin that was our down time, a time to relax and a time that we really were not frantic. We were usually most frantic in summer and fall with programs and ministry (our busiest time). However Christmas time was a time of relaxation a time to catch our breath.

This year in the US we were very busy, however with very good things. So this is not a complaint about what we did or that it was negative, more of an awareness of how different our lifestyles are between our two

different lives. This year we were very blessed to be able to celebrate Christmas with family. This was the first time in four years that we were able to do so. We have been incredibly blessed to be able to stay in a house large enough that both of our families were able to stay with us. God is so good and He provides in ways that just amaze us. At first we thought we wouldn't be in this house till January which meant traveling for the holidays, but then the family offered for us to move in December, which then meant no traveling and everyone could come to us. Which is great since we traveled from Berlin I figured they could travel from Dayton and Canton to Columbus :).

Our families arrived in the afternoon on Christmas Eve in time to go to the Christmas Eve service with us. It was such a blessing for us to be in a church on Christmas Eve that was Bible believing and the people were there really to rejoice at the good news of Jesus' birth, not just because of tradition or to just see a nativity play. Stephanie was able to sing in the choir which is something that she misses most living in Berlin. We came back to the house and continued on with our own family traditions. One which is every year I buy Stephanie a new Christmas book, this year's selection was Merry Christmas Curious George, this holds a special place in our hearts since we borrowed frequently from the library in

Marysville Curious George books, which the kids loved. We read the book and then opened up a gift that some of our good friends sent us from Germany. In Germany they traditionally open up gifts on Christmas Eve. After the kids went to bed Stephanie and I made a nice dinner for our family and we were able to sit and relax and enjoy a nice dinner and conversation together.

On Christmas morning the kids woke with great excitement and anticipation, as did the grandparents. On Christmas day we had a total of 14 in the house which meant a Christmas tree flooded with presents. After the reading of the Christmas story the kids opened up their stockings and then their gifts. Was it at time madness, yes, but with that madness came smiles, tears, and joy that we as a family have not experienced in four years. Grace enjoyed her job of giving out of gifts as opposed to always receiving gifts, Caleb joined in to help as well and Hanna was just

enjoyed all the attention on her first Christmas experience and her 3 month birthday. As with most things that we are experiencing while being back in the US is always being reminded of the paradox of our lives. This life of two lives, where one is put on hold while we pick up the other. When we are gone from our Berlin life, those in our life there miss us and are longing for our return and the same is for our life in the US. When we are gone from here, they too miss and long for our return. Which leaves us in the middle torn between two lives, an amazing blessing and a challenge beyond words.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Christmas Eve Family Picture

2) Christmas Eve Dinner

3) Christmas morning three kids

4) Christmas morning Hanna opening her first Christmas gift with Grace and Caleb watching

5) Christmas morning, parents looking through the scrapbooks we made them

6) Christmas Family shot

Tis' the Season

2008-12-24T14:35:00.001+01:00

In the beginning of December there was Marysville's Christmas Celebration which included the lighting of the tree as well as a live nativity scene and horse drawn carriages. It was cool to have the live nativity scene in front of the jewelry shop right where we lived. The kids loved it.

The kids cleaning their boots/shoes for St. Nikolaus Tag in hopes they might get special treats in them when they wake up. Although it is a German Holiday and tradition we decided to celebrate it here as well.

This is the first year that daddy let Grace and Caleb go at decorating the tree alone. As you can imagine most of the decorations were at the bottom third of the tree.

Grace's Pre-School Christmas Pagent. Can you pick out our little angel amongst all the other ones. I must admit she was the loudest singer with the biggest motions, who would have thought?

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-12-24T01:09:00.004+01:00

Reason #5

5) CHRISTMAS (Birth of the Savior and reminder that He is coming again)

Luke 1:68-79
68"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come and has redeemed his people.
69He has raised up a horn[a] of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
70(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
71salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
72to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
73the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
74to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
75in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
77to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
78because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
79to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace."

Luke 2:1-20 Also read the story of the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior

If the four reasons in the previous posts don't give you enough reasons to have HOPE, this last one has to. The fact that our Savior has been born into this world gives me hope and I have expectation for His coming again, which gives me not only Hope, but Love, Joy and Peace. I have hope because I know that I have a Savior who was born into the same broken world that I was born into, lived in the same broken world I live in now and then He died to save me of my sins and of the brokenness of this world. Jesus then rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven so that I too then can have the expectation of going to Heaven some day. You too can have the same hope that I have by accepting that Christ is the one and only Savior. Do you desire to have this? If so I would love to talk to you more about it. This is what Christmas is all about! How AWESOME is that?

A Prayer for Christmas:
We praise you, Lord God, because on this day, your Word became flesh in our Savior Jesus Christ, was born of a woman, and walked among us as a man. Help us to imitate your incarnation, by manifesting our faith in our conduct as well as in our speech. To you, O Lord, we give our honor, praise, worship, and love, in the most holy and precious name of the One who is born today; because He lives and reigns with you in your glory, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

*some of the above information was taken from Ken Collins, check out his website and learn how to make your own advent wreath.

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-12-21T01:53:00.005+01:00

Reason #4

4) Peace of the Savior:

Isaiah 9:6-7
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, [a] Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.

We get frustrated about how unjust the world is, how there is constant war not only between nations but between friends, family and co-workers. Injustice at loosing jobs or loved ones. How we long just to be at peace with one another, and for that matter at peace with ourselves in order to decrease the amount of stress in our lives. To know that there is truly a just King, Jesus Christ, that will one day put to judgement all the injustices of this world. That I personally do not have to (and cannot) carry around on my shoulders the judgement of others, since there is a King who will make a righteous judgment, something that I am unable to do. This Christ the King will bring peace with Him, something we all should have an eager expectation for, the lion laying next to the lamb! This is what the fourth Sunday of Advent is about.

A Prayer for Peace:
Lord God, we thank you for your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who is the Prince of Peace. We who live in discord and strife have found peace in the promise of eternal life, through Jesus Christ. We give you thanks and praise in Jesus' name, because he lives and reigns with you in your glory, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

*some of the above information was taken from Ken Collins, check out his website and learn how to make your own advent wreath.

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-12-15T17:00:00.000+01:00

Reason #3

3) JOY of the Savior:

Isaiah 35:10

10 and the ransomed of the LORD will return.

They will enter Zion (Heaven) with singing;

everlasting joy will crown their heads.

Gladness and joy will overtake them,

and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Don't we all want this type of joy, especially where sorrow will flee away. Even if we do not have it now, even when times are tough, we can still have an eager expectation with joy and singing knowing that it is coming. That there is something better that lies ahead, that there is a place called Heaven that is waiting for God's children, the place that He has prepared. A joy in Jesus Christ, who gives us access to Heaven. This is what the third Sunday of Advent is about.

A Prayer for Joy:

Lord God, we thank you for your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who brings us great joy. We who have walked in the shadow of the valley of death have found life in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We give you thanks and praise in Jesus' name, because he lives and reigns with you in your glory, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

*some of the above information was taken from Ken Collins, check out his website and learn how to make your own advent wreath.

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-12-07T19:47:00.006+01:00

Reason #2

2) LOVE of the Savior:

Read John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life"

Who can understand a love so pure and so huge that God would give His son to die for us, and that the son Jesus would offer up His life because He too loves us so much. Isn't true love something that we all long after, something that we all desire? It says in the Bible in I John 4:16 "God is Love", what purer form of love exists? There is none! It gives me hope knowing that I am loved so much by a God who defined what love is. This is what the second Sunday of Advent is about.

A Prayer for Love:
Lord God, we thank you for your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who is the way. We who like sheep have gone astray have found the way to you through Jesus Christ. We give you thanks and praise in Jesus' name, because he lives and reigns with you in your glory, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

*some of the above information was taken from Ken Collins, check out his website and learn how to make your own advent wreath.

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-11-30T15:58:00.006+01:00

Reason #1

1) HOPE in the Savior:

Isaiah 60:2-3

"2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the LORD rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn."

What better of a reason to have hope? But to know that the darkness we experience here on earth, even now is going to pass and the light has come, and Christ is coming again and happy/glorius days are ahead. That Heaven is waiting for us. This is what the first Sunday of Advent is about.

A Prayer For Hope:
Lord God, we thank you for your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world. We who have sat in darkness have seen a great light, the light of Jesus Christ, our salvation. We give you thanks and praise in Jesus' name, because he lives and reigns with you in your glory, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

*some of the above information was taken from Ken Collins, check out his website and learn how to make your own advent wreath.

Advent Season (A Season of Hope and Expectation)

2008-11-30T12:00:00.001+01:00

I believe that there is something missing from the Christmas culture in America and for that matter around the world. Not only are we every year seeing commercialism come in and take away from the real meaning of Christmas, not only are we seeing Happy Holidays replace Merry Christmas (although this one does not get as much under my skin considering Holidays comes from Holy Days, which is what Christmas is all about). However back in the day there was the Advent Season that lead up to Christmas. Some of you might be asking what is Advent Season, or some might remember last year when I wrote about how we have an Advent Wreath before Christmas (but I doubt that one). So why is Advent so important, in particularly this year?

HOPE! It seems at a time when so many feel hopeless, stressed not knowing what is going to happen with the economy, not knowing if one is going to lose their job or perhaps if they are ever going to find a job, and some wondering where their support that they are raising to go back home to Berlin is going to come from (that would be me). Or perhaps it is sickness, loss of a loved one, or feeling lonely the list goes on and on as far as reasons one could feel hopeless.

How can one have Hope at a time such as this? Over the next 4 weeks I am going to give 5 reasons why you should have hope and why you too should have an eager expectation not only this Christmas but every Christmas and everyday of the year of our coming Savior. I would encourage ALL to read to the end, it is a reminder that we ALL need, especially me!

The Tale of Two Pictures (Thanksgiving 2008 by Stephanie)

2008-11-28T18:24:00.013+01:00

I think the best part of being in the US on Home Ministry Assignment (HMA) is that we get to spend the holidays with family. We were able to spend Thanksgiving with both sets of parents and all of the aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mom’s side of the family (and with Christopher...I’m sooooooo thankful that he’s back from Wisconsin). We took a family picture and realized that the last time all of my mom’s family was together for a holiday family picture was 14 years ago! It was absolutely wonderful to spend the day hanging out with them and introducing them to Hanna. Grace and Caleb were able to play with everyone and took turns asking all my cousins to throw them up in the air. The love and laughter filled the house and brought so much joy to my heart. It made me realize even more how much I miss being at our family gatherings for the holidays.

The following day, I was sitting at my parents’ table checking email and read the new quarterly newsletter for the Family Center (our ministry project in Berlin). The front page had a picture of the Family Center staff with their

names listed below it and we weren’t in the picture. I stared at the picture looking for my face amongst those of my teammates and kept re-reading the names hoping that I had just skipped over our names the first time, but we weren’t there. We aren’t in Berlin. There is no way we could have been in that picture. We’re in Ohio. As I mentioned it to Christopher, I started to cry. I wanted to be in the picture...I should have been in that picture...what if the Berliners think we’re not coming back? That’s when my mom jumped in. “Stephanie, if you were in that picture, then you couldn’t have been in our family picture yesterday.” Oh, yeah...she’s right.

Caught between two worlds ... that’s our life. Our family and friends are surrounding us here in Ohio, yet our Team Berlin family, friends and the ministry our hearts long for are across the Atlantic in Berlin. No matter where I am, God is always with me and I need to remember that God has me right where he wants me, whether it’s Ohio, Berlin or somewhere else in the world. If I continue to occupy my thoughts with the sadness of not being back home in Berlin, then I can’t fully enjoy the time with the people I’m actually with. It’s taken me four months to finally see that, but maybe now, in the time remaining in the US I’ll be able to look at things a little differently and more fully enjoy where I am.

Pic Descriptions:

1) Family Pic Thanksgiving 2008

2) Kids table

3) The parent/adult table

4) Those who do not belong at either of the above tables table

5) Stephanie's family pic (moms side)

Wisconsin Trip

2008-11-25T16:25:00.014+01:00

It is really hard to know where to even begin with this topic. How do I summarize what has transpired in the past 2 1/2 weeks to a blog without loosing the interest of those reading? I guess if you are still checking our blogs up to this point I have not lost your interest so far. You see, there are so many facets to cover that I am not sure where to begin, this is going to be a long one, but please bear with me to the end.

Let’s start with the biggie, leaving family. There has never been a time that I have been away from not only my kids for this amount of time, but also from my wife. Not only was I not going to be with her, I was leaving her to care for our three children, 2 months, 2 years and 4 years old by herself. It amazes me how much your heart aches for those you love when you are away from them and how incredibly sweet their voices sound over the phone separated by a couple hundred miles. And then to hear “Daddy, I miss you sooo much” it broke my heart. You also realize the dependency that you grow to have toward your wife after 7 years of marriage, she is a much more gifted packer than I am.

Although I missed my family greatly, I know that God knew it was impossible to teach me the things that I needed to be taught with them in tow. And for that matter also stretch my wife in ways she did not know she could be stretched. I think what we have learned is that there really “is pain in the offering”. You see there has been no other time in my life that I have felt more like Paul, the apostle in the New Testament. Now do not get me wrong, I am not by in any means calling myself Paul or that it was an equal experience to his life, just making a comparison that is all.

How is it you may ask that my experience was like Paul’s? Although I had some of the details planned out for my journey most of them were still left up in the air (to God that is). I had weekends planned out as far as what church I would be at and one to two small groups planned for the week, but that still left a lot of time and I wasn’t sure what to do with it. I had no transportation planned from one location to the next and was never quite certain where or with whom I would be eating. For my third weekend in Wisconsin I did not even have a plan as to who I would be staying with, shelter. Those are just the physical logistics.

Throughout my time I had no idea as to who God would be bringing me into contact with to minister to and what that ministry was even going to look like. It ended up playing out that I was pretty much packed from morning to evening each of my nights for the 2 1/2 weeks I was there. Our God provided in ways I could have never have dreamed. I feel so blessed because of all those that I have come to call friends who didn’t know me yet accepted me into their family as if I were a part of it.

Although I would like to say that all went well without a hitch, I cannot. You see I crashed, I mean I crashed big time. Halfway into my trip, I noticed that I was absolutely exhausted, physically, mentally and spiritually. I had not taken any time to myself and as an introvert I had not had a break. I remember it clearly, it was a Tuesday and it seemed that I just kept crying, in which I am not an emotional person. Tears would fall and I would have no idea why. Then I realized I had not obeyed God with taking a sabbath and I realized how much I was trying to do all this in my own strength. As I got into the car that evening to head to a dinner meeting I called my wife and just fell apart. I was sitting in a car, it was cold and dark and I could not read the instructions to the house that I was going to. I had nothing to offer these people whose house I was headed to. I called and asked Stephanie to pray A LOT! The whole way there I too was in prayer and recognized that I really did have nothing to offer this family except Christ, which is exactly what I myself needed at that time.

It was humbling to walk in that house that evening with nothing to offer except for the exact thing that I myself needed the most, the love of Christ. There truly was “pain in that offering” that night. Honestly I did not want to walk in the house out of embarrassment of my brokenness, out of exhaustion, but Christ continued to push me forward. Not because Christ wanted me to have dinner with this family but because Christ wanted to have dinner with me that evening. Christ wanted to show me again, which I often need multiple reminders of, that Christ meets us where we need to be met and uses us when we are in the most desperate need of Him. When we give we receive, even when we feel that we have nothing to give. You see, that night Christ did show up at that dinner table and He met not only my needs but that family’s needs as well. We all felt the Spirit’s presence in every sense. Oh how I was humbled and at that same time incredibly blessed by seeing our Lord and Savior work and love the way only He can do. We are but vessels.

I look back with fond memories on my trip. As much as I tried to minister and serve those who I came into contact with and share all that God has done and is doing in Berlin. I was ministered to in return for the same amount or if not more then what I was able to give. God also demonstrated that He will provide. He will provide shelter, food, transportation, and love, even when you have no idea yourself where those things are going to come from. He is the great provider and knows your needs better then you know them yourself.

2 Corinthians 1:4-6 (New International Version)
4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. 6If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Map of Wisconsin

2) Downtown Waukesha, I visited the cafe on the left a couple times (where I was the first week)

3) Downtown Madison, Sate Street. This is where I was the second part of my trip. Spent some time on this street walking back in forth from UW Madison and in some of the cafes.

4 & 5) I have learned that they really do not mess around with beer and cheese in Wisconsin, they do know what they are doing when it comes to both of these. There are a ton of microbreweries which are really good.

The Beauty of Autumn

2008-10-31T22:00:00.000+01:00

After 3 months of a ton of changes and a ton of stress we were able to meet some friends at a farm house in Pennsylvania. Prior to arriving in the States we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off between festival, English Camp, Support Raising, handing over of ministry and packing up our house to prepare for 7 months in the US. Upon returning it was an intense time of lining up churches for visits for the next 7 months, making LOTS of phone calls, settling our family in a country that in some ways has become foreign and then preparing our family for the arrival of our third child and adjusting to her arrival. With all that being said we were pretty much at wits end.

We escaped the hectiveness of life to enjoy our most favorite season of all, AUTUMN! There

is just something about being in Ohio/Pennsylvania, the smell seems fresher, the leaves brighter, the air crisper and most importantly a feeling of college football in the air! Every year prior to going to Berlin Stephanie and I use to go to Hocking Hills to hike and take pictures in the fall, it is something we missed and were looking forward to doing. However when we found out that we could meet our good friends who had just moved to New Jersey in the middle of Pennsylvania.

The last time we saw the Assante's they had 2 children and we had one (who was only 1). Thi

s time when we got together there would be TEN of us! Which meant no hotel or renting of a small cabin, we needed a HOUSE! Which is exactly what we got. Located on an active farm in the middle of the Appalachians and amish country and during peak foliage, it was perfect. Our kids got to see tractors, hike, fish, and have a campfire complete with smores; they even got to go through a cave on a boat. Most importantly we got to hang out with dear friends and relax, without the normal pace of life. The kids played so well together that they were no worry whatsoever.

One of the things that I noticed as I stood on top of a hill and looked at the gorgeous colors around me is how beautiful death can be. Now hear me out for a second, you have to remember that the whole process of the of the leaves

changing color, which created the beautiful mosaic of colors, are the leaves dying. Too often we see the end result of death, the crumbled brown ugly leaves on the grown and the bare trees and see it as awful. I am not saying that it is always beautiful on the outside as it is with the leaves, cancer and horrible accidents often times do not give us the picture of beauty that we would like to see. But we have to remember the

life that comes because of death and the beauty in that. That it is because of the leaves dying theygive nutrients to the soil in order to give life to the plants of the spring and the new leaves of the trees. The death of a human is tragic and painful but we have to cling on to the new life that comes after death to those who believe in Christ and the beauty that they are now in Heaven seeing beauty in its fullness, how awesome of a God that we serve

Von Gottes Gnaden Vol. 3 Issue 4

2008-10-30T23:44:00.000+01:00

Click on Image to enlarge and read

The Birth of Hanna Faith (by Stephanie)

2008-10-08T16:35:00.013+02:00

Absolutely amazing! That’s how I’d describe every aspect of bringing Hanna into the world. My entire pregnancy was bathed in prayer and although I still had issues with my lower back and pelvic bones, they were not nearly as severe as with Caleb and I can definitely say it was my best pregnancy ever. With Christopher traveling most weekends, I was a bit nervous about him being gone when I finally went into labor and not being there for the birth (I did have false labor one of those weekends…I really thought I was going to have to have him drive the 3 hours back from West Virginia and meet me at the hospital in the middle of the night). My other fear was that since this was my third pregnancy and we live 30 minutes from the hospital, we wouldn’t make it to the hospital in time. To add to all of that, we had to daily figure out where Grace and Caleb would go if I actually did go into labor that day. We had different people lined up for if it was a school day, if it was at night, if it was a morning vs. afternoon, etc. Again, we asked for prayers in regards to all of those things and God provided. My doctor ended up scheduling a date to have me induced and we were able to line up child care for the entire hospital stay and Christopher was able to be with me from beginning to end! We dropped off the kids at a friend’s house at 7am and we arrived calmly at the hospital at 7:45 to start the process of inducing labor. That was my next concern. When Caleb was born in Germany, I had to endure 2 full days of lying in a hospital bed with medicine being pumped into me trying to induce labor, and he was already 10 days past his due date when we started the process! I was not looking forward to that again. My wonderful doctor promised me that wouldn’t happen here, but you just never know. Within minutes of receiving the pitocin my contractions had begun…no more concerns there! My last hurdle was the epidural. I had a horrible experience with the epidural I received during labor with Grace. They had to do it three times before it was right and even then it only worked on one side. The first time the doctor hit a nerve that sent pain shooting down my leg which ranked up there with the pain during delivery. Second time they hit a blood vessel and the third time they finally got it in with only minor pains shooting down my leg while it was going in! So, as you can imagine, I wasn’t jumping up and down to get one again, but I also know what labor is like after having a pitocin drip all day so I decided to go for the epidural. I explained to the anesthesiologist my previous experience and waited for the searing pain to hit. To my delight, it went so smoothly and I had absolutely none of the pain like before! Another answer to prayer! From that point on, I was able to completely enjoy the birthing process and was amazed by the ease of the delivery. Once Hanna was out, I kept saying “I can’t believe how easy that was!” Recovery has also been amazingly quick and we are celebrating the health of Hanna and me. One of the best things about all of it was that our families were able to experience it all with us (well, from the waiting room). They missed out on all of that with Caleb since we were in Germany so they are all quite grateful that we are in Ohio this time around. I love seeing all of them “ooohh” and “ahhh” over our beautiful little gift from God! I must admit, I can actually say that I’m glad to be in Ohio to share this time with our family. It has been such a special experience being loved on so much by family, friends and our church family.

Picture Descriptions:

1) Hanna at 1 week old

2) "The Girls" as Grace affectionately calls this picture. Although the boys are outnumbered we are still stronger!

3) This is the first 'kids' shot shortly after arriving at "home" for the first time.

4) Hanna at two days old, right before leaving hospital

5) Daddy and his babies (my personal favorite picture with Caleb's pride of his new sister)

6) Play Time (it is amazing how much Grace and Caleb love playing with their sister and the lack of jealousy that is there, we are truly blessed!)

September '08 Prayer Update Letter

2008-09-30T16:56:00.001+02:00

Elmerick Family Update and Prayer Letter
September 2008

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

It has taken almost two months, but it seems that we are pretty much adjusted to being back in the US. Might sound strange, however we have never been a family of 4 (now 5) in the US, and have never been missionaries in the US. Figuring out a schedule was somewhat challenging, especially with quite a few unknowns throughout the weeks. Life for us pretty much consists of Christopher working in the church through the week trying to arrange future visits to churches and our family meeting in the evenings with friends that we have not seen in three years. On the weekends he is travelling to visit churches and build new relationships. The kids are participating in our church’s preschool program three days a week and are both loving it! If you are interested in getting together with us, just let us know, we would love to get caught up with you as well while we are in the US!

One thing that God has really brought to attention to Stephanie and I over the past two months is how big of whiners we can be. Sometimes I embarrassingly compare myself to “Gods people” wandering the dessert. We are where God wants us to be right now, in the US raising support in “the desert”, and He does have a “promised land” for us, Berlin. Along the way He has provided in ways that are humbling, truly humbling, yet we still find ourselves complaining and wanting more. We act like two year olds and cry out “We just want to go home to Berlin” the “Promised Land”. God gently nudges us and we are reminded just how blessed we are with God’s provision and how merciful He is. God is so good to us, all the time. We are reminded that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” James 17:7. God’s mercies are anew everyday and we are so thankful for how many gifts He has given us, including our new little one, Hanna.

Prayers and Praises:
• Praise for the birth of our new little girl, Hanna Faith Elmerick. That she and mom are healthy and doing well.
• Praise that we have heard nothing but stellar reports about the Fall Festival in Berlin that took place last week. We are so proud of Sandra who led it! God used her in mighty ways.
• Prayer that the $4,200 a month that we need to raise will be pledged before March 16th 2009.
• Praise for the all those who have poured out so much love, support since we have been back. THANK YOU!
• Prayer that churches would open their doors so we can share with them the exciting things God is doing in Berlin and what He is doing through us.
• Prayer for travel safeties and wisdom for if and when we should travel as a whole family.

In Him,

Christopher, Stephanie, Grace, Caleb & Hanna Elmerick

Meet Hanna Faith

2008-09-26T14:17:00.007+02:00

Our chubby little pumpkin with her fat little cheeks

The paparazzi arrive

The big sister being a little mommy

The big brother saying a precious goodbye to his little sister

Daddy finally gets some alone time with his new baby girl

Happy momma admiring her bundle of joy

Hanna Faith has Arrived!

2008-09-25T14:52:00.007+02:00

We rejoice at announcing the birth of our newest little one, Hanna (pronounced with a short “a”) Faith Elmerick. She was born on September 25^th 2008 at 14:52 am at Riverside Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. She weighs in at 8 lbs. 15 ounces and is 21 inches long. Mom and baby are doing well. Grace and Caleb are very excited to finally meet their new baby sister. Thanks so much for all of your prayers and support! Please continue to pray for recovery for Stephanie, health of Hanna and for us all (especially the kids) as we transition from a family of 4 to a family of 5. We feel incredibly blessed to have this new little precious gift from God, please praise Him with us! Keep checking back here on the blog, I will be posting more details and more pics later.

Caleb's World (6th Entry)

2008-09-20T15:30:00.003+02:00

Since arriving in this land that many call Ohio, I have been amazed there is only one language that is spoken. It is so nice! You would never imagine how much easier it is to learn one language at a time as opposed to two. Since being here now for a month and a half I can now speak and have people understand me. Do you know nice that is? I do not need to throw huge fits and scream in order to get my way. Makes life easier for not only me but my parents as well, they seem so much happier.

As you can see in this first picture I got to go swimming in this huge oversized bathtub. It was awesome. Normally my parents take me out of the bathtub after only a couple minutes and I wish that I could stay in there forever. In this tub I got to stay in there for a lot longer. Not sure how long it was, since I still struggle with being able to tell time, but it seemed like forever. I jumped off the side and my daddy would catch me, or course only after my head went under water. I would come up and it was a little hard to catch my breath, it was so exilerating, I wanted to do it again and again. Afterwards I was so tired that I almost fell asleep in my daddy's arms.

I must confess there is something that I am still confused about. You see every once and awhile my mommy points to her belly and says baby, which is all well and good, however I then point to my belly and say baby and she says no. I am kind of confused about this. I understand that that her belly is a lot bigger then mine but besides that it looks the exact same. So I point to my daddys belly and say baby and they both tell me know. Maybe I am struglling more with the English language then I thought. Oh well, sooner or later I might get it.

Lastly, I am now a big boy. Why is that you may ask? Well because I now go to school. How cool am I? As you can see in the picture I think personally that I am pretty darn cool! I even have my own backpack that I put my very own lunchbag into, it even has my diapers in it. I go three days a week to the same place as my sister, however she is in another class and I am in my very own class. I get to learn and play and draw, it really is the coolest.

Grace's World (9th Entry)

2008-09-13T14:46:00.006+02:00

It is about time that my daddy allows me to write on here. I think that he is afraid that my entries will become more popular then his. A lot has happened since my last entry. We are now living in Ohio. It is fun here and really neat that I get to see Opa, Nannie, Grandpa and Mammaw as well as my aunts and cousins more often. However I do miss my friends in Germany and I really miss sleeping in my high bed. I keep asking mommy and daddy if it will still be there when we get back. They tell me it is ok that I am sad that I miss Germany, because they miss it too. They explain that we will be going back. Oh and I love keeping in touch with either family or friends by talking on the phone, it is just the greatest!

Being Ohio does have some advantages, I have been able to do some really cool things. For example there are these stands on the side of the road where you can get corn on the cob. It is amazing as we drive we pass fields and fields of corn, so much for me to eat! I think that it is my favorite food, of course only second to ice cream. Another real fun thing that I got to do was play in this thing that squirts water out up into the air. It moves back and forth, which makes it a lot of fun. My daddy calls it a sprinkler and that the people here in Ohio use it to water the grass. Not sure why people would water the grass, I thought that is why it rained and God watered the grass?!?!!?

Lastly, probably the coolest thing that has happened since being in Ohio is the red stuff that Aunt Casey put on my toenails. They were so pretty I could have stared at them for hours. One night some of the paint came off and it looked horrible, I wanted it to be fixed right then and there. However my daddy said that we had to wait on Aunt Casey to come back to fix it since she had the paint. Well for those who do not know, my little sister is not here yet. I keep asking when she is going to come, I really really want to hold her and play with her. But my mommy keeps telling me to be patient just like she is. Although I would disagree a little with how patient she has been. She keeps saying how much she wants the baby out of her belly.

I think that is about all for now. Hope you all enjoyed reading!

Livin' in Marysville, Ohio

2008-08-31T20:34:00.008+02:00

Well I would have never thought that I would ever live in Marysville, Ohio. But then again I never thought that I would ever live in Berlin, Germany. Before we moved to Berlin we read up as much as we could to understand where we would be living and we toured as much as we could to see what was there. We probably did not do as much research or touring but we did do a little internet searching and here is what we found through our exploration of Marysville.

First off to get your bearings we live pretty much in downtown Marysville (20 miles NW of Columbus, OH) in an old Victorian house above a business. There is one bedroom, which is where the kids sleep, a common area with the kitchen, dining area, a couch and TV and lastly the loft, which is where our bedroom is as well as the bathroom. Small yet comfortable, we feel incredibly blessed to have this place. Out of our kitchen windows we can see uptown, which is what they refer to their downtown area. This area is basically the intersection of 5^th street and Main Street. It is a quant area where they have supposedly invested over $1 million. There definitely has been some culture shock going from a city of 5 million people to a “city” of 16,000. Life has been a little different.

Although we are able to walk to downtown, there is not much shopping we can do there since it is mostly restaurants and cute little shops instead of businesses we need for survival. So our normal every other day walking trips to the grocery store in Berlin has returned to the weekly trip to Wal-Mart. Although we have found out recently there is an Aldi here, which gives us a small taste of home back in Berlin. We are back in the world of commuting with a car instead of public transportation and paying for good old gasoline. It is almost exactly a 15 minute commute from our front door to our churches front door, which is where my office is currently located since we do not have any internet at home. Our normally active life is still active but active on our bottoms instead of on our feet. Instead of gaining the Freshman 15 we are worried about gaining the HMA 15 (home ministry assignment 15). (It is a joke that freshman gain 15 pounds their first year at university.)

Some Factual Info:

“Marysville was founded in 1816 by Samuel W. Cuthbertson, who named the town after his daughter Mary, along the small waterway of Mill Creek. According to Ohio History Central, the town “grew slowly, having 360 residents in 1843” and included “two churches, one private school, one newspaper office, and three stores” by 1846. Over the next forty years, Marysville grew dramatically, having a population of 2,832 residents in 1890. In 2006, Marysville was named one of the best five hometowns in Ohio by Ohio Magazine. Union county is currently the third fastest growing county in the state of Ohio

Marysville is the headquarters for Scotts Miracle-Gro Company and is also the location of the first production facilities opened by Honda in the United States, located about six miles (10 km) northwest of the city. It is also home to a major Nestle research and development facility, and a regional Parker Hannifin (formerly Denison Hydraulics) manufacturing facility. Marysville is also the home of Lamborghini Ohio, the United States' largest Lamborghini dealership.” (taken from Wikepedia)

Picture Descriptions:
1) Downtown Marysville
2) Eating our first dinner of Mac and Cheese and hotdogs in our Dining Room/Kitchen/Family Room area
3) Our current house of residence, we are located on the second floor and loft.

Getting Re-Adjusted

2008-08-15T18:53:00.013+02:00

Two weeks have passed since our arrival in the US and it has been great spending time with friends and family. The first week was spent with my parents at their house in Canton, Ohio and the second week with Stephanie's parents in Beavercreek (Dayton, Ohio). What is always encouraging to Stephanie and I is how natural the relationships between the grandparents and our kids are no matter how much time has passed. It was over a year ago since they had physically interacted with one another, however with the amazing technology we have today, they are able to see one another either every week or two via webcam. Our kids ran up to all the grandparents upon seeing them for the first time and gave them a big hug.

During the first week at my parents the kids did have a little difficulty adjusting to the new schedule and time change. The first morning they woke up at 4:30am, fortunately every proceeding day they woke up at least a half hour later. They are now back on schedule and waking up around 7am. Grace did have difficulty missing her home and friends in Berlin after a few days of being in the US. She began to cry which of course led Stephanie and I to cry as well. It was hard to see our little girl having such a hard time. Since then she has been doing much better and has not cried.

We have really been trying to spend these first two weeks just relaxing and trying to get resettled. Basically we are just hanging out with friends and family and enjoy just being together and catching up from the year since we were in the US last. Included in that time is also really readjusting and trying to figure out what our "family" looks like here in the US since that really has never been the case for us. Not only the physical readjustments , like the time change and less walking and driving, but also the psychological adjustments of readjusting to a culture that we have not been part of for the past 3 years and trying to figure out what our life looks like here.

One thing that we are incredibly thankful for is how much God has provided for us in order for us to be set while here. Here is just a small list of the major things:

When we were picked up from the airport, we were picked up with a Jeep that had car seats already in it that we could use for the first few months!
That there were so many who offered to open their home to us and did open their home for the first two weeks while we were traveling around.
That a family moved up renovations on the apartment in Marysville a whole year so we could live there. And that we will be living there till December and it is only 15 minutes from our home church.
That there is a family who is allowing us to stay in their home January and February while they are in Florida. Therefore we only need to change housing once during the almost 7 months we are here.
That there is a family that is allowing us to use their vehicle after we are done using the jeep.
That Grace has a pre-school place at our home church and that Caleb will be able to attend a play group during the same time.
That there are churches who have expressed interest in having us visit.

These are just a few of the examples of God's provision for us, we are so thankful that He always provides all that we need!

Picture Desriptions:
Pic #1: We went to a small pond with my niece and nephews, my parents, and with Jeffries and her kids. We then had a cook out afterwards, fun time was had by all.
Pic #2: Steph's dad was kept in shape by having our kids stay with them. We all enjoyed looking on.
Pic#3: Dinner out with Stephanie's Sisters and brother-in-law (Lindsey Miller and Casey and Ryan Azuogu)

End of Our First Term

2008-08-08T16:34:00.003+02:00

Words cannot describe the emotional roller coaster that Stephanie and I have been on for the past couple weeks. As our time drew to an end on our first term of three years and as we arrived in the US, reality began to sink in. That we would be in the US for the next seven months support raising, until our return to Berlin, God willing on March 17th 2009 for our next term. It seriously feels like only a year ago that we were leaving the US to head to Berlin.

What I think makes it so hard to comprehend is how much we have experienced growth and change in the past three years. We left the US as a couple who had been married just under four years, a working professional couple, with a daughter who was one year old and spent most of the the work week in daycare. We had our five and ten year plan set. Then all of a sudden after a short term missions trip with our church to Berlin we knew that we were suppose to move to there to be missionaries, to share the love of Christ to a culture that had little knowledge of Him. Little did we know that God took us to Berlin to break us, humble us, challenge us, grow us together as a married couple and as a family, but most importantly for Him to to truly reveal Himself to us and for us to be drawn more into dependence upon Him and less on ourselves.

It is so hard for me to look back and see where I came from and where I am today and most importantly, where I still need to get to. I think the most most insane part about it is, that through breaking us and drawing us closer to Him, He used us broken people to reveal Himself to others and His love to those who have never known or experienced the love of Christ before. That is the type of God we worship, who truly uses every situation not only for His glory but also for the good of His children. It was only through others seeing our brokenness that they were then open to hearing the message of Christ. It was this that Christ used to spread His love, mercy and His word.

Would I have imagined ever that it would be so hard leaving Berlin for 7 months? Never! The city that our family truly calls home, leaving friends that we love so dearly. God truly has given us a heart for the lost of Berlin and our hearts ache daily for those who do not know Christ and even so much more for those that we have grown so close to. As I reflect, I have been married for almost 7 years (October 27th), have a 4 year old daughter, a 2 year old son, soon a second daughter to be born at the end of September. I now have a completely new perspective on God, on marriage, on family, and most importantly on love. It is as if God "the potter" took the clay pot, looked at it carefully, examined all the fine details He put into the 26 years of making it and He decided He wanted to make it better. So, He took the clay pot and shattered it completely. Picked up a small piece of what was left and began to make a new pot that resembled more of what He wanted the clay pot to look like (like Him). It is humbling that a God as big as what I serve (creator of heaven and earth) would spend so much time and effort on me. But I know I can thank Christ, for I know I can call Him, Abba, Father and He hears my cries just as a father knows the individual cry of his son. I thank you Lord for the past three years. I can truly thank you with every cell of my body for all that You have done, are doing, and are going to do; not only in and through us but all that You are doing in the lives of those who we come into contact with in Berlin and in other places of the world. And I look to You , God, to amaze me the same way not only in the next seven months while we are in the US, but as we look to returning to Berlin. Continue to draw us close to You, so that through that others may also be drawn closer to You.

One thing that God graciously reminded us in Psalm 138:8 “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever– do not abandon the works of your hands.” Just as God has called our family to serve in Berlin, part of that call is also serving in the US and therefore we need to rejoice about being back in the US. We know that He will fulfill His purpose for us both in Berlin and our time here in the US for the next 7 months. His hand is over our family, His works in Berlin will not be abandoned while we are here, and He will bring in the support we need by mid March. We are excited to have the ability to meet with our ministry supporters and others to share the amazing stories of the miracles God is performing in Berlin and how we have grown closer to Him because of it!

English Camp 2008

2008-07-29T20:11:00.004+02:00

What do you get when you double the amount of participants (43), double the amount of American staff (31), add a day to camp (7), add a brand new component of 5 afternoon clubs to English Camp, and over 110 participants for our Family Weekend? The best English Camp we’ve ever had! It was not about the increase in numbers as to why this past camp was successful, but how God visibly moved in every single aspect of the camp and how He was at the center of everything. This year’s camp theme was Narnia, which created opportunities everyday for the US staff to easily share the message of the Gospel. Never before have we heard as many stories of how the staff was able to share with the kids about Christ. One of the tutors from our home church was having a discussion with her students in regards to cancer and death. The conversation then led into the differences between heaven and hell and how one needs Jesus in order to get to Heaven. It was also amazing to see one kid, who the previous year was totally disengaged, not only come back to camp this year, but also began to engage. It was because of the relationship that he had with his tutor and the love of Christ that his tutor showed him. We rest securely that through the week that there were seeds planted within him and we pray that God will bring those to harvest! These are just two examples of the many discussions that took place. We are thankful that the Holy Spirit opened so many doors of opportunity. During camp Stephanie was again responsible for the music, which consisted of the camp theme song "Lion Sleeps Tonight" as well as both christian and non christian songs. It was amazing her to see her up there working with the team that came from over from the states. I never thought she would have been able to move like she did, especially at 7 months pregnant!

God was also at work in the lives of the camp staff. I was in charge of caring for the US staff (31) and this year had the challenge of bringing a team together from different churches, denominations and from all over the US. It was a huge task, however I learned quickly to trust in the Holy Spirit to bring the group together as opposed to anything that I could do through my own abilities. The beauty of English Camp is that God uses it not only to bring his message to the kids who attend English Camp, but he also draws the members of the US staff closer into relationship with Him. One of the US staff members said that he has never experienced covenant relationships like he had on this trip. Several mentioned that they were amazed at how clearly and quickly that they saw prayer answered throughout the week. Praise God for what He has done and what He continues to do through all the seeds that were planted during this year’s camp!

One of the most amazing things that occured actually did not happen at camp, instead it happened at our house. One of Stephanie and I's favorite thing to do is to host the entire team at our home for dinner, as a thank you for their service to our team. One thing different about this year is that there would be about 40 at our place for dinner. Amazingly enough everyone fit and it did not feel crowded, we are so blessed by God for the apartment we have. After the dinner we were planning on having a worship service at the Family Center in order to prepare our hearts for the upcoming week of English Camp. What happened instead was a spontaneous singing of worship songs in our apartment by a few people in one room. More and more continued to join in until all were gathered in our two main rooms sitting and singing together. This time of worship was one of the most powerful times that not only I have experienced, but also that also of all those that were there. The Holy Spirit came and truly wrapped us all with His presence.

Please praise God with me for all the AMAZING things HE did at English Camp, as well as thank Him for what He is going to do with the seeds that were planted. Let us also praise Him for the lives that were changed both German and American, either by experiencing His love for he first time or by being drawn closer in relationship to Him.

Picture Descriptions:
1) English Camp group picture, staff and students
2) Stephanie leading music time at camp
3) American Staff sightseeing, they are making a bridge over where the wall use to stand
4) Group dinner at our house