The Hendersons ~ On a Journey 4 Him Weblog...

One of the Roughest Weeks of My Life!

Ok, obviously, I haven't been blogging lately.  Life has been a whirl, or maybe one could even consider it to be similar to a hurricane. 

Let's catch you up. We ended the moving sale one day earlier than it was supposed to because most of our stuff had been bought by Fri. afternoon (the 13th). We gave what was left to B.'s grandma for her yard sale. It was supposed to rain on Sat., so we ended it early. B.'s family (grandma, mom) and my cousin helped him with the sale. They all were worn out. Plus, they finished cleaning out the attic.  UGH! 

We continued working the weekend trying to sift through the junk and clean out and pack what we wanted to keep. Late Sat. evening we headed to Hattiesburg to buy a few items for us to wear to our commissioning service. The stores closed at 9, so we didn't accomplish very much.

On Mon., we closed with the buyers. WOO HOO!  After a few humps and some extra money out of our pockets to help with costs, it was done. Directly after, we ran to Walmart to grab Sk. a shirt for Wed. night. We had to hurry home because his school basketball game was Monday night.

On Tues., we received an unexpected blow that the buyers wanted us to lease their house per day while we continued to move. We had planned to be out by this coming Wed., so this was a little ahead of schedule. With basketball games being all week and commissioning service being held on Wed., this put a damper on us.

Bless ABC's hearts!!!!!  Dr. Tommy rounded up MANY willing packers, cleaners, fencers, a 24 ft. trailer, and smiling faces to help. Yes, this time was VERY stressful. We had 24 hours to get out and have it ready to hand the keys over. B. and I were in WalMart in the middle of the night buying cleaning supplies. It was a crazy, crazy moment in our lives. God knows exactly how to overcome obstacles that are placed in front of us. He sent in an army of angels to save us.  Praise Him!....and thanks to ALL of YOU who played a part in being an angel!!

Directly after finishing up on Wed., we flew over to his mom and dad's, showered, and headed to meet Bro. Ken, Director of Missions Mobilization, for dinner.

The commissioning service was absolutely precious. The association and ABC did a fabulous job. So many friends, family, and acquaintances came to share in this memorable moment in time.  

When we got to our new "home," B. had to set up our water and sewage.  FUN, FUN, FUN. Even with all this drama and exhaustion, I do have one good thing to say about this hurricane. We didn't have time to say goodbye to our home. I know it would have really been a sad moment, so maybe this all happened for a reason.  

Now, it's bedtime. B. and I have 3 books and 3 huge articles to read before FPO. 

Not Enough Time to Be Exhausted!

On Tuesday, we prayed in our ladies' prayer group at school specifically for God to sell our big items, if it is His will for us to make the Mar. 20 deadline for field orientation training in Virginia.  In the office, people were asking about our moving sale. I casually mentioned the larger items. Several hours later, our janitor bought BOTH the lawnmower AND the tractor. He'd been praying for a blessing to come his way too!  Isn't God so great!  He wants us to depend on HIM for everything, absolutely everything, so that we will give Him the glory for it. He sold the stuff.  Now, we are waiting on His will and timing to sell the Ford Freestyle.  The days are ticking down, but we know He is more than capable to send just the right person along to buy it!

We are so very tired. The Moving Sale has been a hit. Brian said that people were lined up to the road with their vehicles today, all shopping!  We've been digging and pulling stuff out from the attic. It's a shame we are such packrats. God is teaching us so many lessons!  We have to continue to pull more stuff out. We just don't have enough time. The sale will continue on tomorrow and Saturday, from 7:30 until 4 PM, if you are interested in coming to look. We are putting out new as we dig out more stuff!

Don't forget to mark it on your calendar--our commissioning service is next Wed., March 18, at 7 PM, at Agricola Baptist Church. Bro. Ken Rhodes will be speaking. He is the MS Baptist Convention's Missions Mobilization Director. They also want us to speak.

We love you all! Thanks so much for your prayers. We can feel them!!!  Continue to lift us and our families up during this busy time!

An Hour Lost

Thinking about the lack of time, I really HATE that we lost an hour.  There's too much to be done.

Sk. was sick all weekend with the fever and drainage. He missed school today, and he and I missed church yesterday morning & last night.

Landrum's Homestead came today and picked up our beloved rocks/gemstones that B.'s great, great uncle had given to us when he passed away. Uncle Pat belonged to Mobile Rock and Gem Club, and he and his wife, Aunt Ione (who I never got to meet) had collected rocks from all over the world. They were BEAUTIFUL, to say the least! B. and I used to spend the weekend with him and admire his rocks. Well, when he died, we received several cases that they'd collected over the years. We really hated to part with these beautiful finds, but after B. talked to family, they all agreed to donate them to Landrum's in Laurel. Uncle Pat & Aunt Ione will not be forgotten. Many people will get to share in the joy of their gems.

We've worked all evening. I'm beat. Thanks to Mom, I didn't have to cook supper. I just unloaded most of my clothes in my closet, which is a pile. I was in hopes to lose lots of weight and fit back into them, but that's out the window.

B. set up the travel trailer for us today for our future aboad. I am about ready to be there, kicking my feet up, reading the many book assignments that we have. :)

We still have some things to sell--GET THE WORD OUT--32 hp 2007 Kubota tractor, 2 wd, 160 hours,  5 ft. disk, 5 ft. boxblade, 5 ft. bushhog, 6 ft. grooming mower, $13,000; , 2008 Kubota T1770 lawnmower, 44 "cut, hydrostat, $2,000; 2006 Ford Freestyle, 39,000 mi, brand new tires, V6, 3rd row seat, dual air, cloth interior, all power, luggage rack, $15,000 OBO.

A LITTLE OVERWHELMED??!!

This week was a little much.  Instead of having almost the entire month to move out, we were told that the sooner we could get out, the better!!  AEEEEEEIIIIIII.  We have tons to move!  B. has been working on the outside, but we have the whole inside to deal with. Too much is going on. We are trying to get all of our paperwork in order for the IMB, our bills, changing addresses, and you name it!  In addition to doing all this, I am trying to prepare my students for state tests. Also, we have homework to complete for the IMB before FPO.

On Thurs., reality hit. I was feeling a little STRESSED about everything mentioned above, and then the thought of leaving everyone SMACKED me across the face. One of my friends read our devotional at work, and it was for me. It was about being a transient, and how Abraham and his wife must have felt. I started crying, and I just couldn't stop. The poor kids could tell I was mopey, with my tears flying throughout the day, and so they were mopey too. They are sad with me. I had an old-fashioned pity party for myself. B. seemed to be feeling it too. He was mopey as well. Thank God for praying friends and for a special touch from God, because we both began to feel better before we hit the sack.

We CANNOT do this without Him. He's going out ahead of us. We have to trust Him and what He's doing. He knows best. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. We must depend entirely on Him. We must not let the devil sneak in and steal our joy in Him.

Friday was much better!!!  Today, we loaded furniture and hauled a load to our storage unit.  The house looks like someone has turned it up on its side and shaken everything out of its place. 

Mark these events into your calendar and stay tuned for more information--

Mar. 12-14  MOVING SALE at our house! 

Mar. 18      7 PM  Commissioning Service at ABC for us with Bro. Ken Rhodes from the MS Baptist Convention (Mission Mobilization Director) as special speaker

Hmmm....let me recall our week.  WHAT did we do??  Where did the time go!? 

On Monday and Tuesday, we just "hung out." We were out on holiday for "Winter Break."  I did dig through all of Sk.'s clothes and weed out all those that he's outgrown. B. had an associational VBS meeting Tues. night for pastors and VBS leadership. He says there was an outstanding turnout.  He met a pastor, Rev. Jim Slowey, who invited us to come speak at FB McLain.

On Wed., it was back to the grind for the kids and me. We had an eventful week celebrating Dr. Seuss's birthday. On Wed., we wore crazy socks; on Thurs., Whoville hair; and on Fri., we wore our Dr. Seuss hats. I think I had more fun participating than the kids did.  They couldn't even look at me straight without smiling.  Sk. didn't like his new hairstyle at first, but he "grew" to like it. In addition, we invited Melanie Williams to be our special guest reader. It's interesting that she chose "Oh the Places You'll Go," since that is what we choose to be our theme for our door. On Friday, Sk. won 2nd place (2 books behind winning 1st place!) for reading and taking the most Accelerated Reader books in 2nd and 3rd grades!  I was very proud of him. My homeroom won 2nd place for reading/testing on the most books out 4th & 5th grade classes. YEAHHHHHHH!

     

Wed. night B. helped Chris out with R.A.'s. The kids had their Spanish lesson Wed. before church, and we had ours Thurs. evening. I felt productive on my part of the lesson.  :) 

B. took me to Gulf Shores for his surprise that he'd planned for the weekend of Dixie National, but we didn't go because of his mom getting sick. Thank God she's doing much better, but her pulse rate is still a little higher than normal. Continue to lift her up in your prayers.

The place was very nice. I'll have to get some pictures in. It was supposed to storm, but we just got a lot of wind instead. I actually got to walk a little on the beach, although it was VERY breezy. I love the beach!! 

Today, B. had to work. I filled in for Sk.'s Sunday School class. I enjoyed it! The lesson was about God bringing out the good in things, even when things don't seem to be going so well at first. We also talked about God taking all the pieces of a puzzle. Sometimes, the pieces don't seem to fit together at first, but He works it all out to fit together perfectly in His timing. He knows the WHOLE picture of our lives. He knows best for us.   THIS IS AMAZING TO ME BECAUSE I also had gotten something very similar out of a friend's book on the way to the Pacific Rim, and I recently reread what I had jotted into my journal and have been using this in my testimony!!! 

This evening, at 3, I prayed at ABC. We are praying 24/7. I had a fantastic hour of prayer, as my mom and dad kept Sk. & Sy. at the house as Sy. finished up her nap. Afterward, we spoke at FB McLain, about our testimony. Rev. Slowey said that some of the things we said had also been in the lesson he taught this morning. Last week, a scripture that I gave was also the heading on the bulletin at Antioch. Isn't it amazing how God connects all the pieces together!!?

Please lift up a prayer for a teacher friend whose young husband had a massive heart attack and passed away yesterday. Please pray for the Erkhart family; there are 3 children.

Other specific prayer requests--we have to be out of the house SOON. Pray for productivess in packing. Also, we still have to sell my Ford Freestyle SOON.  Are there any takers out there!!??  :)