Gordon John- Child of God

So our newest Grandson-#4- 

Gordon John Schumacher.

He might have a nickname brewing.

Yea- that flash man.

 claimed by Jesus

a child loved

Preparations for a special day.

With water and the Word

baptized by Grandpa John.

Sponsors:

Sarah and (Thad- absent) Sankey

Emily and (Stephen- absent) Blank 

Thanking God for the surrounding

 of faithful friends and family.

Love the Rose window at

 University Lutheran Chapel

 Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Grandma Decker 

was a part of the special day.

Wonderful to have so many of the Decker family

 joining us for the baptism.

Papa and Gigi 

with the Schumacher family

Daddy Joshua's sister- Emily

 joined us from Las Vegas Nevada

Family friend- Sarah Sankey 

has been second mom

 to Griffin as his caregiver.

great to have the Meiers

 join the celebration-

Sister Jessica, Dan and Jack

The new little Schumacher family

Laura and Joshua 

Griffin and Gordon

The Sankey brothers,

big brother Griffin and 

cousin Jack-

looks like this will be a

 force to be reckoned with in the future.

Sister Jessica 

Cousin Jack and 

Papa

We give thanks for the 

blessing of faith-

one generation to the next.

And give thanks that 

Gordon John has been granted

 the gift of faith 
through the waters of Baptism.

VRSLY update

Sometimes the words just change

 how you see things-

when it feels like you are wandering

in the Judean wilderness.

Or they may add to the miracle

 that you are currently seeing.

 Or perhaps suggest

 a different perspective,

applaud a new beginning,

or remind me of a daily challenge.

Sometimes it is a combined effort 

that brings comfort 

in a season of gray skies.

Thankful today for the gift of words

 and image that

bring such delight.

Israel Visual Faith

 Visual Faith- Israel

On our last trip we found a bit of time to

try and process at the end of the day-

 where we had been, 

what we had seen, 

and just how it all fit together.

Whether that was in a Journaling bible, 

faith planner, deconstructed travel guide, 

or other journal- it was time to document.

Knowing full well that unless we got it written down,

 we would have trouble remembering all the details.

 We were also blessed to meet with a group

 in Jerusalem

 that our friend Hadassah 

had invited to be encouraged in 

Visual Faith practices.

I had met Hadassah 

in the Illustrated Faith Bible Journaling community

 on Facebook and met with her 

on the last two trips to the Holy Land.

 Hadassah shares prayer calendars

 that become visual prayer Stories.

 A Young mom brings her little to join the group.

Pat Maier gets a moment to snuggle.

We all struggle with the prayer roadblocks of:

slowing down,

paying attention, and

dealing with distractions.

Melinda Ransdell brings youthful exuberance

 to our time of sharing.

Visual Faith tools really do cross generations.

And some found out that they were right at home- 

and maybe have been doing this all along.

It just didn't have a "legitimate" name.

What fun to learn together about 

forging faith communities

around the globe,

connected by the internet,

to collaborate in sharing tools and resources-

for the sake of the Gospel.

Because He is good and gracious,

we have a story to tell.

 May the Lord grace all of these endeavors 

with His wisdom and favor.

How We Say It

Yossi and daughter

Been home about a week 

from latest travels in Israel.

Always takes me a bit of downtime
 to process and contemplate the experience.

We were blessed to have Dr. Yossi Paz, 

archeologist, as our guide for the third time.

 We were blessed to have the opportunity

 to met his gifted and talented daughter.

(am choosing to not share her name here)

Israel is always in the news.

Today it is again-Amona.

In the past I have shared blog posts

 during Lent from the places

 we have visited in the Holy Land.

Pilgrimages surely, thoughtful connections.

I will do that again this year.

But in between conversations and gatherings,

 I will have these phrases that connected-
 in and out of teaching times, devotions,
 moving folks on and off the bus,

 and once in awhile motivating us 

to see just "one more" thing.

For a man passionate about sharing 

his love of land and history to meet our faith,

I share the collected list of

 "Yossisms".

Israel is boringly safe.
We need you here.

Coffee in, coffee out.
The weather is on our side.
For the highly motivated among you.
It's not over until it's over....but almost.
Lack of proof cannot become proof of the lack.
It's "Trump-style".....you have rules,
  and then there are rules for us!
Navigate space and time to get you there.
I know I talk too much,
  but I need to bombard you with this information.
Next time you come, I promise to take you there.
My problem is now your problem.
(When a question was asked)-
  Now you will all be punished because I must answer.
Touristic trap
Ibex and her "cub"
Ritual "bathes"
I give you 3 1/2 minutes of peace.
Let me tell you this....
Ladies and gentlemen- Follow me.
Pray for us- we need your prayers.
Now I will filibuster for awhile.
We'll do this the Jewish way.
Ladies and gentlemen- the best is yet to come!
After consulting with upper management......
Any further questions? (when no question has been asked)
Shopping? 15 minutes to a quarter of an hour, not a minute more
I know you all know the answer, but you are too humble to say it
Collective punishment for.....
Your Hebrew is horrible.
Your rest or "Peace" has turned to beauty sleep
"normal people can stay here and the highly problematic people 

come with me."

Your response tells me that you have a mediocre teacher.

I hope that you will not be developing angers.

The brightest minds are working on a solution.

In my feminine intuition I think...

We are going to do it...I think you can do it. We will do it.

Some others added by tour leaders with Yossi--

• How's your Hebrew?  You'll have to work at it.
• Welcome home!
• I communicate with you not through my ridiculous English, but through the Bible.
• We make enough noise, but we are a tiny place!
• You have a name for my country - "Holy Land" - Israel means "struggle with God." This is a country of struggle with God.
• [Israel is] one of the most secular countries in the world4
• Coast to coast
• Your presence and prayers are needed here!
• Don't look at me like that - it hurts me more than it hurts you!
• The best is yet to come
• You have our country built into your heart
• I don't want to hurt the feelings of the French among you... wherever you have French colonies, you have a mess
• Three and a half minutes break  
• You caught me at a good time. I give you 10 minutes free time.
• Lack of the proof is not proof of the lack.
• I have the microphone - you have nowhere to run
• I have some criminal intentions... 
• We are pretentious!
• What did we do in the two days that were yesterday?
• This will appear on your final exam
• Israel was born as a secular country. In the land of Jesus, God is less followed than anywhere
• Jerusalem is like a math problem in which the answer is too big to figure out
• All pathways lead to Jesus here
• Let me tell you about
• My problems in life are about to become automatically yours

So it really is about what connects 

all the dots in our conversations,

 the JOY of our job that perhaps lifts others up,

 and the blessing (or not) of our words.

At a time when opinions fly fast and furious, 

and words can be cutting and hurtful,

may we pray about our "go-to"

phrases that tie it all together.

May the common ground be- LOVE.

White Grace Stillness

It caught me by surprise this morning-

the while blanket sifting over branch and lawn.

Normally I have watched all forecasts

 for snow for days and see 

the approaching weather systems.

Not today.

The stunning contrast of chair,

 bench and birdbath,

with hardlines.

 And then the edges rounded

 and slipping off gently.

And the reminder that yes today-

my sins have been made-

as white as snow.

Oh- a good day indeed.

Isaiah 1:18 

“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord.

 “Though your sins are like scarlet, 

I will make them as white as snow.

 Though they are red like crimson, 

I will make them as white as wool.

Vintage Storage- Bible Journaling

Found this old, sort of beat up shelf 

with lots of little drawers in

North Carolina.

Needed a really good cleaning up.

Decided to just soak the plastic drawers.

Ah-  maybe add in some baking soda.

Used the one from the refrigerator.

Ya- time to replace that one anyhow.

The cardboard labels were pretty well gone.

Time to redo those.

So- new labels and clean.

Ready for my Bible Journaling corner.

A place to organize some

 of the "smalls" for

 labeling and illustrating projects.

Time to find out about the

Old Hickory Shoelace Company-

"Hickory Brands is a leading manufacturer

and supplier of foot care 
and athletic-related products. 
The company is unique because

 it is the only manufacturer in North America

 that produces both shoe laces
 and shoe polish. 

It also makes insoles, shoe cleaners 

and deodorizers, spikes for cleats, lanyards

 and sport socks. 
Hickory markets its products

 to all 50 states, 
as well as certain markets in Asia, 
Australia, Europe, the Middle East

 and South America. 

Founded in 1923 as 

Old Hickory Shoelace Company,

 Hickory Brands and its 10-Seconds 
division are headquartered in Hickory, N.C.

Found this same one on eBay for $75-
(and one for $120)
so mine was a deal for $20.
I kinda like the faded lettering on mine-
it fits the more muted colors when it hangs out.
Don't be afraid to give a good cleaning
 to an old vintage piece.
It just might be the storage piece
 that brings organization to your craft center.
And yes- for those of you that know me-
it's vertical space.

(photo of one found on eBay)