quick reflection

i have been longing to begin "my project" for a while. i technically have it started but not in any order. it has been a working process for over a year now and i am excited to have a study area to begin. when we move into our new house here in belgium i will begin hastily on getting things started. i imagine not being in the waterloo house with everyone will give me plenty of time to myself to begin this thing. i am seeing myself working quite a bit when the kids are in bed and when i have some time to myself. these are the available slots for me in this season.

i can't describe the feeling i have. it's like when you know you need to be working on something but there are things that are holding you back. or maybe it isn't hurdles as much as it is not the right timing to begin something like this. i am not writing a book...yet. but i do want to tackle this discipleship curriculum that i have had on my mind for a long time. this is the time to implement what works and trash what doesn't. i have plenty of test tubes, so to speak.

i have this burning in my heart to do it and it won't go away. prayer is what i need from you now.

my soul longs for routine

adjusting to this new role as mr. mom is becoming easier. i just hope that those excellent qualities my wife taught my children while she remained at home can also be consistently taught by me as well. it is something i have had to make a priority. i am able to make time for them but i am tempted to just resort to this idea that taking care of them is the same thing as me spending time with them. it is not the same thing. i think they are always looking forward to the moment i lay on the floor and allow myself to be a landing pad for their aerial attack. over and over again dutch will do the same technique and my only job is to protect my most intimate of areas. i know that finding our own place will provide a better opportunity for a steady routine. that is what i am wanting more than ever right now. dutch will be starting school in a few weeks so another change is on the horizon. the schedule lends itself to being early mornings. i am not opposed to this at all. continue to pray that liz and i are able to locate a home and a vehicle quickly. we have been beyond blessed to be able to live in a community of generosity but i do not wish to wear out our welcome.

Simeon's and Anna's

The holiday season does something to you doesn't it? Specifically Christmas. I notice back in the United States most of what is now happening is that as soon as Halloween is over the Christmas decor is in full effect. I was able to reflect on this to the youth of The Christian Center during my message and reveal a frustration with how another holiday known as "Thanksgiving" is overlooked in the states. I was introduced to the pulpit as one with a Masters in Psychology. I thought nothing of it, however, many of the youth seemed intrigued and desired to question how psychology was possible. One of the students named Benjamin asked "what about the authority of the Holy Scriptures?" I knew I would fit in with this certain bunch of youth who are looking for truth amongst their studies. These young adults are in a place of wanting to know how to process truth and how to determine what to take in as God breathed. I felt strongly that through their questions they were not so much as trying to test me about what I felt as truth but rather to reveal that they too are hungry to know God on a very very deep level. Not this surface level "go to church on Sunday, read the Bible as a history book," mentality. They really want to go deep. I saw it and I feel even more challenged to correctly present the word of God as the best source for truth. So my adventure just began and already I have found some whom need discipleship of a different kind.

monday for barcelona

what liz and i have come to realize is that our kids are not necessarily used to many people all at once. that is what you have to expect in the ninth hour base at avenue des gemeaux 4. dutch has acclimated pretty quickly however titus hinrik has been quite the challenge. i shall return to this subject in a moment.

we were very shocked however, to find that a week out from our move liz was to change positions in her place of employment. it was highly recommended that she interview for this position that became available the week before our move. liz and i were excited for this opportunity because it was a change of pace for her. it would require her to go to the office five days a week and allow me to be mr. mom. i would gladly give her this opportunity due to her tremendous sacrifice for our family by raising our kids, working from home, and allowing me to pursue my education as a counselor and then a career. i was excited to be able to do this in belgium but as the lord has clearly shown us, it will have to wait for the now. upon her confirming interview the thursday after we landed we found out that she was required to leave the following monday for barcelona for a business trip. this was not what she nor i were expecting as soon as we land.

i was gearing up for the 3 day excursion with my kids who were NOT completely adjusted to this time zone and community living...

first moments

god is good...

this has been the most trying statement the last week. my heart and mind want to follow this statement and believe every aspect to the littlest part. sometimes i am so consumed by the last 168 hrs (7 days) that i lose focus even for a second on what the whole reason i moved here to begin with was. both excitement and fear gripped me for this endeavor. so at any one time my emotions were either on a high or in the valley of despair.

the travel was perfect. liz and i have both traveled quite a bit alone and with our kids and i know if there is an opportunity to travel without kids we will take it. however, there was no option this time. we boarded the flight on british airways and were very excited about the opportunity to be entertained by tv without having to pay. the only thought was if the kids were not doing well then it would require us to forget about salt, or robin hood and put our full attention on dutch or titus. the trip across the pond was fantastic. we made it without any "screaming incidents." they both fell asleep 5 minutes into the flight for nearly an hour and a half. granted it took me nearly 4 hours to watch robin hood i was glad that it was not because i had a screaming kid who needed me every few seconds. we arrived in london and quickly boarded the flight to brussels without missing a beat. upon our arrival in brussels national airport we were greeted with the reality that not all of our luggage made it on the our flight from heathrow. we had no way of getting in touch with anyone outside the airport to let them know and i couldn't leave my wife with our two kids and nearly 10 pieces of heavy luggage. so by the time i found out about where our luggage was it was nearly time for them to arrive on the next flight from heathrow. naturally we decided to wait for it. well, all of a sudden, nearly 1 hour and 30 minutes after landing jon vandeput comes with a security agent looking for us because he was worried about us. we kindly explained the situation to him and he was escorted back out of the baggage area. the first moments in the car on the way home from the airport were absolutely amazing. the thoughts of us doing this were real and at that moment it did not seem to be all that challenging. as my family would soon find out, our opposition was about to become greater...