Stockpiles of Love

Lamentations 3:31-33

Why? Because the Master won't ever
walk out and fail to return.
If he works severely, he also works tenderly.
His stockpiles of loyal love are immense.
He takes no pleasure in making life hard,
in throwing roadblocks in the way:

I love this picture I had as I read this passage...of God sitting in front of this mound of love and gifts that he could give his children that would be examples of his love for them. I picture him with a huge smile on his face, stretching from ear to ear, turning to this pile and hand-picking a gift to present his daughter or son, knowing that it will bring great joy. What an amazing thought...that God turns to his never-ending stockpiles of loyal love to shower us with gifts of love.

And how I've sometimes responded...choosing not to accept a gift, ignoring it because I feel there are better things that demand my attention at the moment. I've sometimes allowed it to sit gathering dust in the corner until it's become ancient history and forgotten. Or I've opened the gift and marveled over it in amazement, studying the intricacies and wondering at the originality all the while forgetting to turn back to the One who carefully chose that gift for me.

How that must pain God when I fail to recognize his vast gifts of loyal love, when I find other things to occupy my mind and time. Ouch. Father, please forgive me.

Seussical at ICSB

After an outstanding performance at the Children's Palace Theater in Bucharest, our students were given the opportunity to perform a few songs from the musical at an international fair at the American School. It was a blast! They did a great job!

Military Museum Revisted

Last year, I took my 5th and 6th grade class to the military museum. We endured a 2+ hour tour (on our feet the entire time). My class did a great job! I was feeling completely overwhelmed with the amount of information but they kept asking questions and listening well.
When it came to planning this year's field trip, I knew that neither my 4th or 5th graders had been to the military museum so I thought it would be a great idea to go again. I asked our secretary to call and make the appointment and to please clarify that we were hoping our tour would be no longer than an hour. I also checked with the history teacher to get an idea of what time periods my students were studying so that the tour guide would be able to focus on that period. The idea was great, but didn't so much work out in reality. 1 hours into the trek through the museum, the guide informed me that the only way out was through the rest of the museum but that she'd try to hurry. 30 min later, feet sore and minds exhausted, we exited the museum and found ourselves in the courtyard filled with tanks and other military vehicles. My students enjoyed running around the fresh air and then sitting to give their feet a break before trekking back to school.