HE has arrived!!

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them,

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

(Luke 2:8-15)

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.

There He is... the newborn King.

The Savior.

Jesus Christ our Lord.

(Shhhhh.... I think He's sleeping!)

...with the Shepherds...

...with the angels...

...with all of heaven and earth...

REJOICE!!

ttmms...

Today I was at work enjoying a snack of raspberries and almonds.

I was happily munching along when this little character showed up...

Who, on earth, was this?

A strange little "person" whom I could possibly call

Mr. Raspberry...

or, perhaps, Little Orphan Almondine?

What a silly, happy little face--

I couldn't help but giggle every time I looked at it...

and, yes, even laugh out loud!

Yes, I do realize I have yet to grow up...

and to stop playing with my food...

but, tell me, what fun would THAT be?!

I like to think it's just a bit of that

"created in God's image" piece called

CREATIVITY

and

DELIGHT.

...yes, this is one of those

Things That Make Me Smile...
(go ahead...you can laugh at it, too!)

let it rain!

Today it rained!!

In Southern California, that's not a common occurrence, but most times it is a very welcome one. It seems we are always in a drought anymore...never seeming to get quite enough rain...lakes and rivers and reservoirs growing ever lower.

We need the rain for drinking and for crops--for sustenance.

We need the rain for cleansing--for washing away the dirt and grime that builds up on everything.

We need the rain for growth-- for new life and renewed life.

Whenever we get a good cleansing, drenching, thirst-quenching rain, I think of how we need God in such a similar way...to pour out Himself upon us like the rain pours from the clouds. In much the same way that the land thirsts for the rain, our souls thirst for the rain of God... and for the same reasons-- for sustenance, for cleansing, for growth... for LIFE.

Lord, pour upon us this day...

Wash us clean.

Quench our thirst.

Help us to grow.

Give us LIFE...

We are grateful for Your rain...

to God be the glory...

For some reason this song keeps running through my mind today...

Truly, great things He has done...for us... and highest on the list is sending His Son... for us...because He loves us so very much. What better song to sing this Sabbath day?! As we begin to prepare ourselves for Christmas--for the very coming to earth of our Savior-- may we sing loudly and from the depths of our hearts in praise of Who He is and what He has done!

To God Be The Glory
by Fanny Crosby

To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.

O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Great things He has taught us, great things He has done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.

it's time...

it's time
to get back to this blogging about living a heart rock life.

it's time
to get back to living a heart rock life.

it's time
to remember why i started this in the first place...

...to share thoughts about everyday life--

with its joys and sorrows and oh, so many mysteries--

about opening our eyes

to see God's hand and HEART in the details of daily life

and about learning to hear His whispers of love

in the midst of a shouting world...

it's time...

i've missed you whom i've met and become friends with here in this little place in cyberspace.

i've missed me here --
who i am when i'm here: grateful, thinking, looking, searching...

it's time... for me to be here again...

i hope you'll join me...

(and, if you've never left...thank you...)

a slice of the pie...

A friend emailed me this little clip the other day, and I couldn't help but share it with you....



A very thought-provoking visual, isn't it....

Don't forget from Whom all things come to us...

ttmms... (things that make me smile)

(Ok. The next time I post someThing That Makes Me Smile, I shall just use the initials.)

I love to travel... to go to new places, see new things, eat new food! (oooh. mmm! eat new food!) I don't get to do it as much as I would like, but I probably am blessed to do it more than some folks. I am grateful for the times I get to go away from home, to stay in a hotel.

One of the things I love most about staying in a hotel is... (are you ready? you may think I'm weird after seeing this, if you don't already!)...


Yes, I'll admit it! I love toilet paper with the little points folded into it!! I do!! For some reason, I just love it when I am in the bathroom going about my business, and I discover the points on the toilet paper!! Oh, what joy!! :) I smile and smile!!

I'm not sure what it is about it, but I love it!

Maybe it's because it makes me feel so special-- I mean, someone actually took the time to fold my toilet paper into cute little triangles!! my toilet paper!! Just think about it for a minute and let the amazement sink in....

(And if one can be amazed and delighted by such as this, just THINK what it's like to ponder the fact that the Creator of the very UNIVERSE has chosen me-- ME!! -- to be His own treasure!! Wow!)

I am immensely grateful... for both!! :)

celebrate the Sabbath with joy...

Joy

is the echo

of God's life

within us.

~Joseph Marmion

heart on the pavement...

Yesterday I was having kind of a hard morning -- bad news at the dentist followed by a flare-up of a painful and frustrating eye problem. I needed to run an errand for work, so once my eye stopped watering enough so I could see to drive, I set out for the office supply store.

When I was leaving the store and walking back to my car, I was looking down at the ground (due to the sun irritating my sore eye) and I noticed something shiny..... (oooh! shiny object!!)... and this is what I saw at my feet:

a shiny piece of foil pressed into the pavement in the shape of a heart!!

God is so good!! I love it when He addresses the weariness of my heart...or just a frustrating day... with a special bit of love just for me!!

God's amazing creative talent in us...

We, as humans, are created in the very image of God. (Genesis 1:27) I believe a very special part of being created in His image is that we, too, carry the creative spark of the Master Creator! What an amazing concept! We see this demonstrated in so many ways around us from artists to musicians to writers to inventors to problem solvers to cooks... to each and every person's unique abilities to create, build, fashion! Within us is that piece that makes us want to make something with our hands or our minds.

I discovered an incredible creative artistry recently that I just had to share with you. A woman who won the 2009 Ukraine "Who's Got Talent" show does this amazing work called Sand Painting. The videos are a bit long, but if you have a few minutes, it is well worth it to watch one of them! I found it absolutely spell-binding and fascinating....

"Kseniya Simonova is a Ukrainian artist who just won Ukraine's version of "America's Got Talent." She uses a giant light box, dramatic music, imagination and "sand painting" skills to interpret Germany's invasion and occupation of Ukraine during WWII." (1st video below)





God, You truly are amazing!! Thank You for placing within us Your creative spark that we may share the joy of creating!

ttmms (you know--"things that make me smile")...

This past weekend two of my young friends were in town visiting their grandparents. On Saturday I went over to spend the day with them all at Mimi and Poppa's house. The younger of the two, B (age 7), loves to help with whatever we may be doing in the kitchen, so Mimi, B, and I made lunch together.

We sat out on their balcony in the lovely Southern CA fall air to eat our lunch. After his older brother said grace, B asked if he could pray, too. Mimi and Poppa said 'of course!' The following was his prayer...

"God, thank you for this day and for our lunch and thank you that I got to help my two best friends, Mimi and Sharilyn, make it. Amen."

Talk about things that warm one's heart and make one smile! Who could ask for more??

...for this I am grateful!...

the delightful heart of a friend...

My friend Sean (age 9) sent the following photos to me today. I was so delighted by his heart and his eyes-to-see...
God's amazing love is everywhere if we will just open our eyes and let Him show it to us...

Thank You, Father, for Your incredible love for us...

Thank you, Sean, for being able to see a glimpse of it in your daily life!

precious in His sight...

God gave me this passage this morning for myself, and I thought I would pass it along to you. It brings encouragement to my spirit and my mind, and I hope it does for you as well... just insert your name into the brackets, as I'm sure God already has!

Isaiah 43:1-5
But now, this is what the LORD says—

he who created you, O [your name here!],

he who formed you, O [your name here!]:

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD, your God,

the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…
you are precious and honored in my sight,

and I love you…
Do not be afraid, for I am with you...

things that make me smile...

I have always loved abbreviations and acronyms. Long before there was texting, I was using "bcs" for "because" and "thx" for "thanks." I have always been an avid note-taker, with as much detail included as possible, and perhaps, that is the reason I've always loved abbreviations.

Well, I have a new post abbreviation: TTMMS!. It stands for "Thing That Make Me Smile!" I have decided to do some posting of random things that make me smile...bcs, after all, that's what living a Heart Rock Life (HRL??) is all about, right?--finding joy in the little things, in the daily discoveries, in the many ways God shows us His presence and His love in our daily lives... if we will have eyes to see and hearts to understand...and mouths with which to show our delight!

And so, today is the first TTMMS! posting because this totally made me smile!

This was a chocolate cupcake from The Sweet and Saucy Shop--chocolate with kahlua frosting!--and it originally looked like this:

But, after I had taken a bunch of bites out of the bottom, I was left with a bit of the top and some frosting... and this delightful little smile!! :) (no, I did NOT make it into this! it really was all of its own accord!)

Definitely TTMMS!

here am i....

So, a few of you may have noticed that I have been away... at least from my blog... for a few weeks. I did not intend it to be so many days, but for the suddenly undisciplined, each day passed into another and another, and well, here it is, three weeks since my last post.

Since I don't have a giant readership, I felt that I probably wasn't all that missed from the blogosphere and didn't push myself to be here. Over the past two days, however, three of my readers emailed or checked in via Facebook to ask if everything is ok in my world. I sheepishly say, 'yes.'

I have been 'away' for a few reasons... a couple of good ones, and (the reason for the sheepishness) a couple of not-so-good ones. The good reasons are that I have been helping a sick friend with her kids the past few weekends, and I have been away from the computer and/or not really able to blog on those days. Another ok reason was that, once I passed my one-blog-post-every-day-for-one-year mark, I decided to allow myself some leeway to not necessarily post every day.

The not-so-good reasons are that I have become very undisciplined--and, as I said, as one day turned into another, it became easy to skip it for a night...and another...and another... This was also a sign of the lack of discipline in seeking those "heart rock life" moments and encounters, and I found myself not really looking for those little, but meaningful, God-moments in my day. I've allowed myself to be "busy" with less important things in the evening, such as too much Facebook time or game-playing time on the computer--rather than sharing God-encounters.

And, so, with my confessions... and with my heart of gratitude toward those of you who sought me out... I say, as Samuel did, "Here am I, Lord."

"Each day holds a surprise. But only if we expect it can we see, hear, or feel it when it comes to us. Let's not be afraid to receive each day's surprise, whether it comes to us as sorrow or as joy. It will open a new place in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity." ~Henri Nouwen, Bread for the Journey

they're heeeerrrre...

Last week they were budding....
this week they have arrived!!

The crepe myrtle trees are bloomin' all over the bloomin' city right now!
These are shots of the tree right out in front of my office window...

pretty in pink...

...and still more buds waiting to burst forth into
glorious pinkness!

I love the frilly edges of the dainty petals!

* * * * *

Thanks, God, for such beauty this day!

love, sweet love....

I was munching on some blueberries today, enjoying my day's supply of vitamins and antioxidants.... and look what I found!!!!

I do LOVE blueberries...
...and I think they LOVE me, too!!

(and tell me, how can that NOT make you smile?!)

celebrate the Sabbath...with baptism...

What a great way to spend the Sabbath! I was honored to spend today with friends and to join with them in the celebration of baptism! My friends' two oldest boys --ages 9 and 7-- and their two cousins from back east, and one adult friend of my friends all were baptized today!


There were about 30 or so friends and family members who gathered at the beach for the baptisms.... we started it off with an explanation of what baptism is-- symbolically joining Christ in His death and resurrection and bublically proclaiming to the world (and all those near us at the beach!) of one's decision to follow Christ, prayer, and then each of those being baptized waded into the water.

Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. ~Romans 6:3-4

Each one proclaimed his or her decision for Christ and was baptised there in the ocean... buried with Christ and risen to a new life.

(no, the bird was not baptised!)

After the baptisms, we all played at the beach for an hour or so and then went to a friend's house for bbq'd ribs and chocolate cake! What joy to celebrate life in Christ on the Sabbath!

You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ~Galatians 3:26-27

a lizard's big heart...

Yesterday, a friend found me on Facebook, and we became "friends" once again. She had recently taken a little photo journey to a botanical gardens in Quail Canyon near Encinitas, CA and had posted some of her photos on her profile.

As I looked through her beautiful floral photos, I came across the one below and just had to share it with you...

That's one big-hearted lizard!!!

(Isn't this the BEST photo?!?!)

**big thanks to Diane for letting me use her photo!!

here they come...

If you were one of my readers one year (and one day) ago, you would have read my post about the glorious view out my office window. Gorgeous pink blossoms on the tree right in front of my office.

This year the tree is a little behind schedule, but.... here... they... come...

...anticipation....
...anticipa-a-tion...
(think of the old Heinz ketchup commercial tune!)
They're making me wait...
They're keeping me wa-a-a-iting!
...but they're coming!!

What says "CALIFORNIA" better than a blue sky and a palm-tree-lined street?!

Here's to a California evening yesterday... (yes, that IS the hood of my car, and yes, I took this on my cell phone camera while driving!)

And this was the sun setting as I arrived at my Bible study group...
Lovely, don't you think?

Thank You, God, for yellows and blues...

and crazy Dr. Seuss-looking trees!

Thank You, God, for another day of life in You...

cell phone vs Bible...

One thing you should all know about me is that I AM that most-dreaded of emailers-- the "chain email breaker"!! Yes, I admit it. If you send me a forwarded email, I WILL delete it without passing it along. (especially if the sender included all of the previous forwarded emails in the body and all of the addresses to whom it had been sent --shame on you!! help protect your friends and their friends --use the BCC, folks!)

No, I'm not terrified--or even nervous, for that matter--about the 'bad luck' I may receive as a result.

And no, I don't believe I will be tremendously blessed or lucky within a certain number of minutes/days/weeks/months/years if I forward it.

Nor do I believe I am "ashamed of Jesus" if I don't pass a God-oriented email along to all of my address book.

The above disclaimer aside, I did receive one that made me pause and consider. Even though I did not forward it, I thought it was worth sharing with my blog readers...

Cell phone vs Bible
Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone? What if....

• we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
• we flipped through it several times a day?
• we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
• we used it to receive messages from the text?
• we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
• we gave it to kids as gifts?
• we used it when we traveled?
• we used it in case of emergency?

This is something to make you go....hmm...where is my Bible? Oh, and one more thing--unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill! [Praise God!!] ...And no dropped calls!

Though these are all simple little comparisons, they did make me pause and consider... and to also pose the question: Which would I miss more? ...something to think about...

fitting in...

I ran across this photo one day, and for some reason I was struck by it...
Yes, it's definitely cute. And fun.

But, it also reminds me what I feel like sometimes... like I'm trying to fit in, trying to find a place where I belong.

No matter how I hard I try to be like the others, I'm still a cat...not a raccoon. I can put on a mask... but it doesn't change who I am.

This applies to our Christian life-- we are not of this world. We will never completely fit in here. We will never be completely at home here.

It also applies to my own life and how I see myself. Sometimes I feel so out of place, so not-belonging... and I want to wear a mask to fit in. I want to belong. I want to be a raccoon and fit in nicely with the other raccoons. But, I'm not a raccoon. God has made me unique...in just the way He wants me to be. He has made me just as it pleased Him... and I must remember and delight in who He has made me to be!

"For You created my inmost being;

You knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Your works are wonderful,

I know that full well. "
~Psalm 139:13-14

I will praise Him... for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. I know that full well. Thank You, Father, for creating me as I am and for loving me as You have made me!

celebrate the Sabbath...with a little humor...

This may be a bit unorthodox, as we don't normally think of the Sabbath being a humorous day or concept. But, I do believe our amazing God has a good sense of humor (let's remember the platypus and the anglerfish!), so I couldn't resist sharing this little "funny" today...

Sabbath -

a weekly festival having its origin

in the fact that God made the world in six days

and was arrested on the seventh.

~Ambrose Bierce

take a walk in the woods...

...something to think about today...

If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day,
he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer.
But if he spends his days as a speculator,
shearing off those woods

and making the earth bald before her time,
he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen.
~Henry David Thoreau

...and while you're taking that walk in the woods,

don't forget to give praises to the One Who made them...

the green leafy boughs above your head

the brown earth beneath your feet...

the clean earthy smell of nature...

the sounds of birds in the trees...

mmmmm... Creation!

Thank You, God! You are good to us!

Oooooooooh!!

Aaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!

Wooooooooooooowwww!!

No, your calendar is not wrong. It's not the 4th of July.

Nor is it Chinese New Year.

But, it IS a special day for me today...

It's the ONE YEAR anniversary of my blog!!

My blog's 1 year birthday!!

I am celebrating today, a year of (& 365 posts celebrating!) ...

• God's amazing grace
• opening our eyes to see God's hand and HEART in the details of daily life
• learning to hear His whispers of love in the midst of a shouting world
• encouraging words and heart-felt comments left on my blog
• amazing people who have visited me here
• new friendships with cool people from around the world
• God's incredible faithfulness
• His unbelievable unrelenting inexplicable love for you and me!
• finding things in daily life for which to be grateful!

For all of this, and for all of you who have been here with me...

I am incredibly GRATEFUL!!

Thanks for joining me in this HEART ROCK LIFE!!

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. ~Ephesians 3:20-21

a fun way to end a year...

Can you believe it? This is my 365th consecutive post! For those of you who have persevered and plodded along this journey with me, I am grateful!. For those of you who have dropped in along the way, I am so glad!

I thought I would wrap up the year of blogging with a fun "God has such a great sense of humor" post starring a few delightful food items which have crossed my path...

There's a great line in the movie "The Matrix" where they're all sitting at the table eating some highly nutritious runny grey glop that is their staple meal. One of the characters complains about it, and another character says something like "...vitamins, nutrients, everything a body needs." And yet, it's so very unappetizing in its greyness and goopy texture. It definitely doesn't look like something I'd want to eat every meal, day after day!

Isn't it wonderful that God has given us such a variety of foods to eat?! I mean, it could all just look the color and feel the texture of cooked oatmeal! Sort of blah and uninspiring! But, no! He gave us colors and shapes and textures... and even a few silly ones, too...

I present to you --for your enjoyment and entertainment and for God's glory--four of my favorite (non-heart-shaped) food discoveries...

a blue potato chip!!!

(courtesy of Jet Blue Airlines,

made from blue potatoes)

...on the table, next to and inside the 3rd box from the front--

SWAN GOURDS!!

(discovered at a farmer's market in Northern California)


RAINBOW CHARD!!

...and last, but most certainly NOT least--
what I like to call...

CUCUMBERS GONE WILD!!
(these crazy curly worm-looking cukes were grown
here in a front yard garden in southern CA!)

God truly is good at filling our days with delighful and fun things

if we can open our eyes to see...

Perhaps you remember that I love dandelions...

For some reason, these partial fluffs struck me as very artistic and beautiful...

...so perfectly designed...

...so intricately detailed...

...so lovely in form and design...

I give thanks to the Designer and Creator of such magnificence!

accentuate the positive...

I don't know about you, but I seem to be in a constant battle to keep my thoughts on positive rather than negative things. God's Word tells me I need to be keep my thoughts focused on good things, on His perspective, on truth.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. ~Philippians 4:8

And it also instructs us to "take every thought captive to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:5)

I don't think it's about being a Pollyanna but I do believe we are to be obedient in these things in order to develop hearts and lives of gratitude...and lives that bring joy to others and glory to God.

I was reminded of this song the other day, and I thought I'd share the words with you for fun...

Accentuate the Positive
Words and Music by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer

Gather 'round me, everybody
Gather 'round me while I'm preachin
'Feel a sermon comin' on me
The topic will be sin and that's what I'm ag'in'
If you wanna hear my story
The settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewin'
The attitude of doin' right

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium's
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do just when everything looked so dark?

(Man, they said "We'd better accentuate the positive")
("Eliminate the negative")
("And latch on to the affirmative")
Don't mess with Mister In-Between (No!)
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

(Ya got to spread joy up to the maximum)
(Bring gloom down to the minimum)
(Have faith or pandemonium's)
(Liable to walk upon the scene)

You got to ac (yes, yes) -cent-tchu-ate the positive
Eliminate (yes, yes) the negative
And latch (yes, yes) on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between

That's it... accentuate the positive... eliminate the negative... and LATCH ONTO the affirmative! What wise words for living a grateful life!

from a foundation to a house to a home...

A bit about our Mexico house-build trip... and you can see the transformation from a cement foundation to a house...to a home!

When we arrived on the site, this was what greeted us: two small pieces of property each with a reinforced poured concrete foundation, and all of the framing and wall lumber, dry wall, and other materials needed to build two houses, and two eager and ready building project managers. (oh, and a wonderful view of all of Rojo Gomez, a border town "home" to thousands of poor families in shacks with no running water) Just add our two teams of eager builders (about 50 total)...and ...the building begins!

...10:45 am Friday...

(yes, that's me...not very flattering, I know!)
It was amazing to watch these two houses being built from the ground up and a privilege to be a part of it!

I helped build the frame of our house and then spent much of the rest of the day hammering on the outside wall boards... then hanging dry wall inside!
(all new skills for me!)

Windows and a door had to be cut and the roof put on.

This is Pablo, the project manager for House #1 (our house!).

He and Hector (HM for House #2) were AMAZING!

They knew how to do every needed task and how to teach us

unskilled labor how to do them as well....

all with cheerful attitudes and smiling faces!

Me hanging dry wall...

POWER TOOLS!!! COOL!!

The inside of the house looking into the "loft" from the largest of the three rooms.

(Oops. This came before the drywall photo!)

Me demonstrating my awesome and well-honed hammering skills!

(Please pardon the lovely look...it was HOT!)

"Charlie's Angels" pose

Two of my life group buddies (Kristen and Anita) and me.
Powerful girls with tools (and toolbelts!!)!

* * * * * *

...And this is what our house looked like 6 1/2 hrs later at quitting time...

I couldn't believe it.

House #2 was just as finished right behind our house.

* * * * * *

Day 2

full of dry wall hanging, mudding, putting in the windows and doors, trim on the outside, building a ladder for the loft, tar papering and shingling the roofs, sanding the inside walls to prep for painting, gathering tires and building a stairway into the hillside out of the tires, entertaining the neighborhood kids with games and fun, wiring the houses for electricity, working together with one another and with the families as they joined in the building of their houses

* * * * * *

Day 3

Because we had large teams, we were able to finish our houses mostly on Day 2. That allowed us some extra time to paint the interior of the houses as well.

This was the happy peach color in House #1 and the ladder to the loft:

And these are the finished products,

all ready for the dedication ceremony:

We dedicated each house to its family...

and prayed over the family...

There were tears of joy and excitement...

And very very big smiles!!

This was the family of House #1--

Flavio, Luz Maria, and their two little children...

a "mural" was created for each house, and this one says:

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"

~Joshua 29:15b

...and the house becomes a home...

To God be the Glory!!