first world girl

A couple friends and I recently found amusement in labeling inconveniences as “third world problems” or “first world problems”.

(For example“Ugh, there is no clean water to drink!“. ..third world problem…Uggggggh, there is no Diet Coke to drink!!”….first world problem).

In the beginning, although we would dish out a fair number of “FWP’s”, there would still be a few “TWP’s” sprinkled in there.

But now that I grabbed onto that joke and ran with it in my head for awhile, I have discovered that most of my so called ‘third-world problems’ are really not third world problems.  The real problem is that I am a first world girl complaining about my first worldliness not working out for me as well in a third world country.

Here are some examples (in case you’re having trouble recognizing my many luxuries, I capitalized and bolded them for you):

Man, the power is out so all my LIGHTS and my FANS and THE MANY APPLIANCES I want to use won’t work…!!!

Darn, my FILTERED WATER tap is at a drip!

Sweet baby Moses, where is a DISHWASHER when you need one?!

You mean I have to wash, cut, and peel all of these veggies?? But I BOUGHT SO MANY!

Dang, my FRIDGE isn’t cold anymore, so I had to move everything to my FREEZER!

My well SCREENED AND ROOFED HOME isn’t keeping all the insects I don’t like out??!

I had to move to the floor because MY BED and/or MY COUCH and/or MY MATTRESS are too hot!!

The AIR CONDITIONING is on in the schoolhouse and I’m still sweating?!?!

What, THE INTERNET isn’t working?!

Ugh, MY COMPUTER is overheating and nothing will play!!

I have to grind  my own MEAT tonight?!!? 

My GAS OVEN is gonna  freakin’ kill me……(unlike my loved ‘375?-Beep-boop-beep-then-press-start’ oven)?!?

Bummer, both my flip flops are broken from the rocks (okay, from me tripping on rocks) , guess I have to move to my OTHER PAIR or BUY MORE (cuz I can).

I‘m not saying that these are things I shouldn’t be used to after growing up for 22 years in the west …I’m just saying…maybe it’s not Africa that’s the problem, ya know?

(Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, Philippians 2:14...I have an NIV Bible but if anyone has a translation with an “unless” in that verse…especially an “unless it’s 110 degrees"…I would absolutely LOVE to read it...)

A dependable Anchor.

Sorry I’ve haven’t blogged in three weeks or something like that…


My family said goodbye to Charlie a few weeks ago and it left me feeling like quite the bottled up little creature. Sometimes I struggle with the lines between 'healthily-internally-processing' and 'bottling-it-up', and since it kind of is one of those events that becomes over for everyone else but not over for you, I struggled with processing it.


I felt like if I couldn’t say something about Charlie then I couldn’t say anything at all. 


But after the court date, someone here let me read a couple chapters from her ‘Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World” book…(I don‘t think she knew it was going to be such a God-send or that I was not only going to read it, but write the whole chapter down, and then reread it 78 times)... 


Here is a portion of it:


“Because we live in this world, trapped in the old order of things, tragedy will touch our lives. That’s simply a fact for Christians and non-Christians alike. We will all lose loved ones. We will all eventually die. Romans 8:28 is often distorted to “only good things will happen to those who love God”. But Paul meant just the opposite. Romans 8:35-38...”Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?”


Trials are real. Bad things happen to good people and bad people alike. And we who are Christians don’t escape life. Pauls says, we overcome life….”No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”


This promise anchors our all too shaky world to His unshakeable Kingdom. 


For while life may shake, rattle, roll, this rock-solid truth from John 11:5 remains:
Jesus LOVED Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 


Love. That’s a dependable anchor.


The love of Christ has for you is a love you can cling to, for it will hold you. Though we may not understand God’s methods, that doesn’t change the fact of God’s love.


God’s plan is released when we believe and obey.”


I entered our names into that verse...Jesus LOVED the Stringers and their little boy, Charlie.
...So like Abraham, who “against all hope, in hope believed” Romans 4:18...(which is a lot how it feels), we choose to believe God. That He has heard our hearts and this is the BEGINNING of His radical plan of using this little boy's life to glorify Himself, not the end.


Please keep praying.
For God’s continued protection on Charlie’s heart and mind in an unstable and worldly home.
For our family and that we will be allowed the opportunity to see Charlie.
That the eyes and heart of Charlie's dad will be opened to encounter our Savior.

happy birfday, Chel!

Happy sweet sixteen to my little taste of heaven!!! Rachel had a birthday!!

I’m a little late because I tried uploading this video to everything and its mother before resorting to youtube.

In case you don’t know Rachel, I think at one point, God was thinking of making another really crazy, swirly, fun, insane planet that everyone would want to live on and never got old, but instead He made her personality.

The other day I was reading about how Paul and Silas were in prison, with their feet fastened, singing hymns to God. And I was like “who the freak does that?!” It’s not like they knew an earthquake was going to come and shake the foundations of the prison and all their chains were going to come loose. Who decided to start singing at midnight instead of thinking of a game plan or asking NOW WHAT, WHATS NEXT or looking for more perfect settings…as in not in a cell. 

And then God was like…”well…Chel is more than capable of doing that".  Chel would go with the 'no plan' plan, the 'sing hymns at midnight no matter how bad things are' plan.  The 'show people a heavenly time without asking what’s next or moaning' plan. And she’d be the first one to think of the jailer.

She is very much a live for today and surrender tomorrow type girl...(okay, but sometimes it affects your homework, let's just be honest, Chel, it does)....But the world still has a lot to learn from her.

Best part is…she’s contagious. I know God is obsessed with me because I got her as a built in to life best friend.

And since one of her love languages is a good dance party, I composed  A LITTLE VIDEO!!! with dancers here, to one of our favorite songs.

Miss you, Chelster!! Can’t wait to road trip the heck out of reverse culture shock with you and your NEW DRIVER'S LICENSE (eeeeeee!!! congratulationssss!!)

Whining and Dining

I waitressed the summer before I came here and LOVED it. But now having lived in Galmi, I don’t think I could rock it as well as I did the first time. Because the customer is always right, and the waitress has to plaster a smile on her face no matter what type of ridiculously whiny, needy, psycho person sits down.

Like…

I’m sorry that us being out of  jack cheese has really ruined your day…but may I remind you there are five other types of cheese to choose from…


I'm sorry, I don't know why the steak is taking longer...oh wait, yes...it's because you ordered a STEAK.


Sure, you can make your own salad even though there are twelve different salads on the menu…let me just pull up a chair so I can write down the exact ingredients you want…


So sorry, sir, that the music was too loud and the service wasn't fast enough and the food wasn’t perfect and the bill was too high...(stay home next time?).


As much as I’ve enjoyed this five minute conversation about how spicy the Spicy Salsa is (on a scale of 1-10, and then going through the thoughts of every customer who has ever tried it), I think the anticipation of spice may be too stressful for you and you should just order something else…


No problem, let me just spend the next hour bringing you more lemons for your water...


Oh, really, the fries were too crunchy for you,…too soft?…too cold?…you want them warmed up?…taken off the bill?


I apologize that your drink refill interrupted your table's intense gossiping…


Ummm…low fat items, let’s see…you could eat just the lettuce and tomato off the BLT…or you could not come to a bar and grille if you're dieting…


Yes, even though cheese fries or curly fries or regular fries or tater tots or onion rings or a side salad or fruit were the choices, I can go ask if you can get something else as a side instead.


No, sir, the tip was not included, you ACTUALLY spent that much money on ONE meal…and now the idea of tipping is what’s haunting you?


Seriously...Galmi restaurant: give the woman your coins…for me, it’s usually 200 cfa…aka 40 cents (makes you think more about how much money we spend restauranting, huh?)…receive your bowl of rice…sit down on a bench outside next to your fellow Galmians and eat your bowl of rice….hand back the bowl.

I‘d waitress here any day.

(And tip your waiters!!)

Walked along thinkin' weird that this is normal now. 

(can you tell that I have just recently discovered a lil thang on here called "add video"?)

No, you may not have the last brownie..because I want it. Love, Mom.

So when do moms decide to NOT sit down their child every night for some solid eye contact to say "mommy wants to sleep in tomorrow so you MUST sleep in too or time out ALL day, I'm SERIOUS"? Or decide to raise them and not just let them play movies and eat popcorn all day? These are the deep questions I ponder after living with three boys for five days when both their parents were away. (That being said it was still fun being the "I-think-I'm-cool-but-really-I'm-weird" mom for a week).

And where do teachers find that stern yet still loving voice instead of shunning students to their death with a shriek? Or think of these things called 'lesson plans' that include creative ideas that make kids want to learn? These are the questions I ponder after 'la one room schoolhouse master/teacher of all teachers' was sick this week. (That being said...um no, always more fun when the other teacher is there).

And when did the women here decide that they can pound millet with their babies on their backs so enthusiastically day after day without complaining or saying the world is unfair? (And when did they decide it was a good idea for me to try?!) These are the questions I ponder after I musta pulled somethin' from doing it wrong after like...56 seconds...

But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice .... I am glad and rejoice with all of you.    Philippians 2:17

all I'm sayin' is...moms and teachers got this verse down.^^^^

family prayer request!

So two and a half years ago, my family received a baby boy that we were planning to adopt. And in a mix of events and his can’t-blog-about family member, he is now being taken from our home.

This is no ordinary boy. We were supposed to adopt an older child…and God gave us a baby. This baby was supposed to have a mental disorder…and he is a right-on-track toddler. And this toddler was supposed to have a speech problem…and he is officially talking up a perfect storm.

And when I pray for him, I know he has a revival starting, heart piercing, unceasingly praying, puts-his-feet-on-the-ground-and-Satan-shudders type call on his life.

I know I don‘t serve a God of mistakes. That when He placed lil C and lil C‘s fro into our family, He wasn’t joking around or messing with our hearts.

And I want him to grow up in our family . Not because my family is perfect…we all hate each other after the shortest of road trips and have had tragically embarrassing restaurant experiences and between the ten of us, quite the assortment of contrasting personalities…but because I was raised knowing Grace.

I have a dad who has the patience and goodness of all the saints in the Bible combined (…put up with my charming teen years of ending everything with “-uh!”…as in Dad-uh!!! Why-uh!?!) and who gave me the inner security that only a Heavenly Father could supply his daughter. And I have a 8-kid-raisin, doctor-workin mom whose faith moves my mountains for me. Who taught me that life is not supposed to be easy but that God is supposed to be glorified.

My parents love their children in a way that I don’t understand yet. And C. is their child.

I believe in the Power of prayer and Hosanna in the Highest and that God will move on behalf of His saints.

…So what I’m really trying to say is pray for a miracle, pray for my parents, pray for my siblings, and pray, pray, pray for this little boy. Because we have just a few weeks until his final court date.


Let us hold unswervingly to the HOPE we profess, for He who promised is FAITHFUL.    Hebrews 10:23