our missions blog

“If the first father of the human race was lost for an apple, what would he not have done for a plate of tortellini” - old Bolognese saying

Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:37:05 +0200

After class last Friday the hannah 3 went up to Bologna for the weekend, partially to hear our friend, Mark Brucato (www.insideitaly.org), preach at the church there and partially to begin the long, exciting and nerve-racking process of deciding where to live in a big city.

While we were there I began to read a little more on the history of Bologna and Emilia-Romagna (essentially the state of which Bologna is the capital). The political and artistic history is beyond fascinating, but what truly held my attention (not surprisingly) was the culinary history - a taste of which I’d like to share with you.

Did you know:

- Tortellini, invented in Bologna, is considered by the Bolognese to be their most important contribution to society. Keep in mind this city is home to the first university in the western world and to the man that invented radio. A bowl of “tortellini in brodo” (the special meat-stuffed pasta in a bowl of broth) at Christmas dinner is more traditional to the Bolognese than Thanksgiving turkey is to Americans.

- Tagliatelle, also from the region, must be precisely 1/1270th the height of the Torre Asinelli. No more, no less. It takes about 15 years of practice to perfect.

- True parmesan cheese can only come from a strictly defined area around Parma, Reggio-Emilia and Modena and must be aged a minimum of 7 months. The world famous Parma ham is made from pigs fed on a special diet of the whey left over from the cheese making process. The hams are then hung to age in the hills of the Magra Valley, where the acquire the scent of pine and olives, before they are moved to the Cisa Pass where they are flavored by the chestnut breezes of the Apennines.

- Mortadella, the “original bologna” which bears no resemblance to its processed, super-market counterpart, was once so prized it was used as currency.

- Finally, open your pantry and look at your bottle of balsalmic vinegar. Somewhere on the bottle you will find the word “Modena,” the name of a town just outside of Bologna. The bottle says Modena because that is where balsalmic vinegar was invented and, if it’s any good, its where it was made. When the Allies bombed Modena in 1944 the people had a brief opportunity to save a few valuables. Many saved only small kegs of vinegar. (Worth noting: Modena is also the home of Ferrari, Lamborghini, Masserati and Ducati - but that’s the topic of another blog).

There is no doubt that that leaving friends, family, careers, houses and whatnot to bring the gospel to the forgotten land of Italy isn’t the easiest thing we’ve ever done, but at least we know we’ll be well fed.

that thing!!!

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 09:09:02 +0200

i was talking to my friend back in the States the other day about how things were going with her 6 month old son since she returned to work, how she was feeling, and just about life in general, because i miss out on all of that being 3000 miles away. we covered all topics, but one in particular keeps making me smile. this is not a life changing spiritual lesson- but it’s a beautiful realization none the less.

we talked about how exhausted we were at the end of the day and how ready we were on most days to put the babies to bed. but then- overnight something happens. every single day. both of of shared how eagerly we waited the next day to get them out of the bed and do it all over again.

and i thought to myself. THAT’S IT!! THAT’S the amazing thing about being a mom. THAT’S how you know it’s one of the MOST special things in the whole world.

because no matter how exhausted, frustrated, or angry i am with ruby at the end of the day. no matter how READY i am to put her to bed at the end of the day, WITHOUT fail- come 9:00 the next morning, i have peeped into her room 3 times to see if she is awake yet. it’s crazy- and FABULOUS!!! i can NOT wait to see her again. to kiss her cheek and to smell her once again. to hear her say “mommy- i love you” one more time. to spend countless hours on the floor putting together the SAME puzzle or read the SAME book for the thousanth time all over again.

i love being her mom. it makes me happy. it is a gift from MY heavenly Father, and i am grateful to the point of bursting.

grieving

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 09:34:14 +0200

i received an email from a dear friend asking for prayer as her cousin is missing since a boating trip, which was preceded by another prayer request involving a sweet couple from our sunday school class back at brentwood battling cancer. at the end of the email was the caringbridge site where their journey is being chronicled.

so i read it- all 30 entries. and i wept!!!

this led me to another caringbridge site that i needed to catch up on where the 3 year old daughter of an old high school friend of mine has just received a diagnosis of one of the rarest types of cancer in world. she has been in and out of the hospital for almost 9 months. did i mention that she is 3???!!!

and as i caught up on these journal entries- and i wept, again- i was completely blown away by the words these families were choosing to write as they chronicled their devastating journeys. words like, “may others be drawn to the Lord because of the life of this precious child, and may God be glorified in this, and thanks be to God for this GOOD day, and Praise be to God, and to God be the glory”- and the list goes on and on. i am not kidding!!!

over 50 journal entries in one story and 30 in the other, and in both of these excruciatingly painful journeys- the resounding message is “To God be the glory!! and He IS faithful!”

o God- thank you for the example of these faithful children. for their strength, and their courage, and their ability to trust the Author of life. the one who gives AND takes away. thank you for their ability to CHOOSE to say- Blessed be the name of the Lord!

i have been drawn to the Father because of their stories. i am boldly praying for miracles for these 2 families, and asking the Lord to reveal Himself in a MIGHTY way to them as they walk every painful, broken step. and want to say to these 2 families- “thank you” for CHOOSING to say “blessed be the name of the Lord”. He is being glorified in every single word you write!!!

the journey

Mon, 9 Aug 2010 15:44:35 +0200

are there days when you ache for YOUR journey to be different?

there are for me.

as i was praying in the shower this morning for a dear friend of mine, the conversation tarried for some time on what her journey looked like in this season of life, and the pain involved. as i was working through this conversation, i was reminded of WHO the author of her journey was, and as a fellow believer how much MORE He loves her than i can even imagine! so then- my prayer changed from one of “why does it need to be this way?” to “God grant her the supernatural ability to have an incomprehensible trust in You- no matter the outcome of the journey.”

this is my prayer for all of us as believers. God is perfectly and beautifully glorified when the world watches us walk through painful seasons of our lives and CHOOSE to trust Him. outside of the love of Christ, that kind of trust doesn’t make sense.

to God be the glory- on the ENTIRE journey!!!!