Weeping and Rejoicing on the Journey

Encouraged by today's daily devotional

We are all on a journey that leads us to live beyond this world. We have all faced or will face affliction as we live out the life God has entrusted us. Rejoicing is definitely my favorite part of the journey. Weeping is usually the hard side, the one we would like to avoid.

This morning I read these thoughts in, Streams in the Desert, daily devotional. There is a limit to our affliction. God sends it and then removes it. . . After a long ordeal, the threshing tool is on its hook, and the wheat has been gathered into the barn. Before much time has passed, we may be just as happy as we are sorrowful now (Feb 16th, page 77).

This is very promising and should be an encouragement but not always easy to practice. When live gets tough, it seems that it will always be that way, and thinking beyond the momentary pain is definitely an act of surrender and commitment to a larger plan, under the leadership of someone so much bigger than "us" little creatures.

I have tried to come to God daily. I believe we all grow and embrace certain biblical principles slower-quicker than others. Giving up control has probably been the greatest challenge to my faith. We seem to have life all nicely planned, until something beyond yourself, beyond our abilities to change, redo or avoid happens. Death is so final and so foreign when you never have experienced it close by. I have a new respect for life and the time we are given each day.

God continues to be the Alpha and the Omega, even though we think we will determine the Omega with our reason, abilities or sense self righteousness or by what we do. God is still in control and has plans far greater than our best goals for this year. I admit, I am not there yet, its a long road, but I want to live out this kind of faith.

I thank each one of you again and again for praying and loving from the distance. I also want to continue holding on to this truth, that Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning (Ps 30:5)

On the journey of life
Norberto and Anahi Kurrle

Comments

Christmas in Paraguay!

If you're wondering what Paraguayans do at Christmastime, they have some great traditions , including the " noche buena " meal on Christmas Eve at midnight. They eat lots chipa guasu (a type of corn casserole, stay tuned for a recipe), asado or grilled meat (some eat it cold), salads, especially fruit salad, watermelon and drink mucho terere . Families travel from all over the country, many even return from working in other countries like Brazil, Argentina, and Spain, to celebrate with loved ones. This is us at last year's Kurrle celebration in Asuncion. Festivities are anything but a silent night with fireworks, loud music and drinking cidra (hard cider). Most Paraguayans do not decorate Christmas trees (we decorate ours in shorts!) or emphasize Santa Claus. Instead, they put beautiful nativities " pesebres " in their yards and in store fronts. Kind of novel to focus on Christ at Christmas, isn't it! To beat the heat, many Paraguayans g...

Paraguayan Weddings

On Valentine’s Day, we had the joy of attending the wedding of Sandra and Anastacio, young leaders in the church. Sandra is my assistant with Children of Promise and Anastacio, apart from his carpentry job, has a popular youth-focused radio program every night at 8:00 on our station. We’ve been to quite a few weddings, and these are some of the uniquenesses of southern Paraguayan wedding celebrations from our North American culture: 1. Nothing is fancy. Emphasis is placed on the act of marriage and not on the decorations or food. 2. It is not an expectation that parents help pay for expenses. Most families just make it each month with regular expenses and cannot afford to pay for eleborate feasts. Most couples have to spend months saving for their own wedding. 3. Borrow as much as possible. Many times wedding dresses are borrowed 5-10 times, because few women can afford their own. Flowers, decorations, shoes and ties (Norb loans out his ties often...since he never wears them!...

How to make Rosella (Roselle) Juice and Tea

This is rosella (not to be confused with grosella, which is gooseberry). Rosella is from the hibiscus family. It's harvest time here, and we use the rosella to make juice and tea. It's properties are absolutely tremendous. It helps sooth colds, coughs, helps digestion, promotes healthy kidney function, is a treatment for cancer, and reduces a fever and that's just a few of its benefits! To make rosella juice, first de-pit the fruit and wash the skin thoroughly. Put the fruit into boiling water until the water is bright red (about 15 minutes). The color is so vibrant, Roselle is sold to make dyes. Strain the fruit (which can be used to make a delicious jam) and refrigerate the juice. Add a few squirts of Stevia for a healthy drink. The finished product looks exactly like red Kool-aid, but is entirely full of nutrients. We can't get enough of it. We dehydrated the petals for hot tea. All you need is two dried flowers to infus...

Passion for Paraguay

Search This Blog