God is not safe - What?

Hello All,
We have had an amazing week - both with the weather and work and school.  Timothy turned 13 a week ago Thurs.  What kid would be happy with Nutella and Olives for a gift?

Timothy with Nutella and Olives!

I also had a birthday this past week.  It was the big "5-0"!  Monday did not feel any different than Tuesday but it sure is weird to say that I am in my 50's.  Jim had a surprise gathering that evening with 6 cakes, 3 tubs of ice cream and lots of friends.  It was so nice to have everybody here and celebrate this momentous occasion with me!

4 of the 6 cakes

Lots of people!

Rose who made the cakes.

I also went to a lady's retreat last week end.  It was great to get away for just a bit and hear the struggles of other missionaries and just be out of the normal routine.  The speaker at one point talked about God's rule book.  We have rules in life, that is a given.  Sometimes these rules weigh you down and are a burden.  Remember back to when you were in High School?  The rules that your parents put on you felt so heavy.  Sometimes we think of the Bible as a rule book.  Some think that God just wants us to follow the rules and is standing there to clunk us on the head when we break them!  Not so.  The Bible is a love letter.  God gives us boundaries because he wants the best for us.  He is our father that catches us in the deep end of the pool when we jump in for the first time.  God is safe?  Not at all.  Here is a quote from C.S. Lewis in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe when Susan asks if Aslan is safe.  "Safe?" said Mr. Beaver; don't you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you?  Who said anything about safe?  'Course he isn't safe.  But he's good.  He's the King I tell you.   
― C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

We live in safe houses, in pretty quiet neighborhoods with good families (for the most part)!  But the world is not safe.  It is made clear when you see evil in the world and you live in a place like this.  In the world there is evil everywhere.  We are in danger.  But, God is with us and He will carry us. 1 Cor 16:14 says, "Everything you do should be done in love."  We can only control ourselves; our response to situations and our own actions.  It is good to know that the God of the universe is with us always and we can show his love in the world filled with evil.

The project at Upendo village is going well.  We have a meeting there next week and we think they are just a bit a head of schedule!  This means that they should finish sometime in May.  Wow!  That would be a first for us - having a project finish before the deadline!

This is the front portico with a mahogany slat ceiling and colored stones

The Bethany Kids project is also going well.  Their new timeline has them finishing up in May.  That is probably going to slip, but maybe June??

Picture of the top floor going in

The TB clinic is finally moving along too.  It is a metal structure.  We don't have much to do with this one now except I had a hand in designing it.  What fun!

Trevor did his Banquet asking this week. This is a big deal here on campus!  All the boys pre-determine who they will ask and then have a few weeks to come up with something unique and totally special for the girl in the way of asking.  Banquet will be on Feb 21st, but he was so glad to have it over and she said "Yes!"  He wrote a jazz score, sang a song and had chocolate, raspberry lime-aid and flowers - How could she not say "Yes?"  I was specifically not invited (hence no pictures), but another teacher said that it was the best he has ever seen!  That means a lot because he has been here a long time.  So proud of that boy!  He has an interview for Princeton next week in Nairobi with 4 other RVA students.  You can pray for that one!

Not sure if I posted this picture, but this is the meat market where I go just before every store to buy chicken.  My friend who came with me says this is a very clean market compared to those in Burundi!

City Market

Jim took this picture of a pretty moth

 Hope you all have a great week.  The weather is amazing here right now.  We got a bit of rain about 2 weeks ago so everything is green and the sun is shining and about 80 every afternoon.  Love you all and for those in the cold places, keep warm and read a good book!

In His Hands,

Jullie T.