Owsleys in Brazil Blog

Words Matter

Recently Dan and I heard a WWII veteran talk about his experiences in a Japanese POW camp where he was allowed to write home once a month.  Since his parents had moved while he was being shipped overseas, he sent his letters marked “general delivery”.  His captors, with their limited grasp of English, assumed he was writing to a military general and tossed all of his letters in the wastebasket.  It was years before his family knew  he was still alive.  One little word led to one major misunderstanding.

The Bible tells us that Jesus was the “Word made flesh”.  He must have seemed like a harmless little word when he arrived as a baby, but as he grew and began to fulfill his Father’s purposes, He became downright dangerous to the Jewish leadership.  They couldn’t understand God’s definition of a humbling, suffering Messiah.   Even today we have trouble wrapping our minds around the mystery of God “veiled in flesh”.   One of the joys of the Christmas season is singing hymns that grapple with this truth. 

 In 1639 Thomas Pestel wrote:

Hark, hark, the wise eternal Word,

Like a weak infant cries! 

In form of servant is the Lord

And God in cradle lies.

 

(Amazing words!  Merry Christmas to our wonderful prayer partners!)

Advice to Newlyweds

We spent Thanksgiving with my parents in Kentucky.  My newly married nephew was there with his wife and we enjoyed getting to know her.  When I asked them what kind of advice they’d received before the wedding, Cameron told me he had been frustrated by all the people who told him to enjoy single life before becoming “attached to a ball and chain”.  It didn’t reflect a godly view of marriage, to say the least!

It reminded me of the two pieces of advice that were given to Dan and me twenty-five years ago during our own engagement.  Half the folks told us, “Enjoy the honeymoon stage, because it will never be as fun again.” The other half told us, “Don’t worry about the initial struggles; marriage just gets better and better. 

As starry-eyed romantics we preferred to listen to the advice of the latter group.  But after all these years which group would we say was really right?  To tell the truth, they were BOTH right.  We discovered that the honeymoon didn’t last long BUT that God helped us through each adjustment and struggle.  And as we learned to love each other and forgive each other in spite of differences, our marriage became stronger and better.  Nowadays when I meet young couples heading into marriage I give them both nuggets of wisdom, but with a Christian twist. “Marriage takes a lot of work, but the harder you work at it, the better it gets.” 

Gardening Bloopers

Although I bragged about my garden in an earlier post, I really haven’t got much of a green thumb.  You may remember that the previously mentioned flowers were chosen and planted by someone else and only required occasional watering and weeding. 

Our present rental house also has a low-maintenance garden.  We moved in at the end of the summer and the owner assured me that I wouldn’t have to do much after the flowers were done blooming.  In fact, I could just let the flowers die right there in their beds, allowing the dead plants to nourish the soil in the fall and winter.  In the spring I could clean out the brush and let the perennials pop up on their own.  That sounded easy enough!

The last few frosts have killed off the remaining flowers, but I was anxious about some green leaves that kept appearing throughout the soil.  I was sure they were weeds and that I should do something about them.  Still unsure of myself I asked a friend with a lovely garden if she’d give me some advice.  When I showed her the suspicious leaves, she said, “No, that’s Columbine”.  Another suspected culprit turned out to be “Barb’s prized hollyhocks”.  Whew!  I’m glad I asked before I started pulling.

It reminds me of the warning Jesus gave - that the Church would have both wheat and tares (Christians and hypocrites).  “Don’t pull out the tares, “Jesus said.  “It will all get sorted out on Judgment Day.”  I’m glad He knows who belongs in the church and who doesn’t.  In my limited wisdom I might exclude someone who looks like a weed but who is becoming one of his “prized” servants.  

 

Collection Connection

Who would have thought that a stamp collection could bring comfort in times of need? 

When Steven was a little boy we mentioned his growing passion for stamps in one of our prayer letters.  Several of our supporters were kind enough to contribute to his expanding collection over a period of many years.  Now Steven is in college and those albums are gathering dust in the attic, but the Lord continues to use those friendships to strengthen our hearts.

A couple in New York (who we barely knew at the time) sent stamps for many years.  But even when Steven’s enthusiasm for stamps subsided, they continued to send us many reminders that we were in their prayers.  In recent months we’ve had many stressful changes in our lives.  One of the most heartfelt and uplifting letters we received was from a friend in Iowa.  If you guessed that he’s someone we met during Steven’s stamp collecting days, you’d be right!

After a recent lunch with a friend, I was sharing with Dan about how encouraging it had been.  It dawned on me that I had become acquainted with her through Steven’s interest in stamps.

We thought Steven was collecting stamps for a personal hobby, but the Lord used it to bring a greater good to our whole family.  Praise Him for His mysterious ways!

 

Extravagant Worship

It is a huge pleasure to be able to participate in the life of the student body at SAU through my class and small group Bible study.  Another inroad has been via the university’s chapel services.  Every Monday I rush over to the church after class so I can find a seat before all the students begin packing the place out.  I enjoy the enthusiasm of the students as they enter and the anticipation o f a dynamic service.

The chapel band is composed of an extremely talented group of students who are a joy to observe.  The drummer plays with a look of glory on his face.  The violinist is so at one with his instrument that it seems to be an additional appendage to his body.  The guitarist, in his exuberance, often jumps a foot in the air as he plays. (I’m not sure how he does this!)   Some-times I get such delight out of watching the band that I forget I’m there to worship Jesus.  Then I close my eyes and change my focus. 

While I don’t want to give glory to the band that is due to the Lord, I imagine He is pleased to receive their gift of uninhibited worship.  This is one instance when a teacher can learn from her students.  May I worship Him with reckless abandon.

Beyond Our Wildest Dreams - Part Two

After our fourth son was born, I breathed a little prayer of thanks and said, “Lord, you must know I needed boys.”   Believing that the Lord gives us the desires of our heart, I assumed that I’d get my girls someday as daughters-in-law or granddaughters.  But the Lord so sweetly fulfilled those desires long before my boys were old enough to marry and become fathers.

When Andrew turned three I felt the Lord nudging me to start a ministry for young girls out of our home in Petrolina (NE Brazil).  Although I felt overwhelmed with the responsibilities of caring for my own four young children, I obeyed His prompting and invited pre-teen girls over for “Girls’ Club”.  What a joy to share  with them about our potential to be women after God’s own heart.  The rewards reaped from those classes can’t be calculated by earthly standards.

Now the Lord has given me the desire of my heart once again as I lead a small group Bible study at the university.  Fifteen darling girls meet with me each week.  What a thrill to work with young women who are hungry for God.  Once again I’m humbled that He would give me the desire of my heart long before I expected to receive it.  Praise Him for His loving-kindness!

Beyond Our Wildest Dreams - Part One

I learned early that God sometimes “ruins” my plans to give me something much better than I could have planned for myself.  A prime example happened years ago when He closed the door for me to be a missionary in China and then opened the door for me to go to Brazil.   Marrying the wonderful Dan Owsley was much better than my original plan to be a spinster missionary!  And after I reached Brazil I saw how the Lord had uniquely prepared me to live and work there.

When we left Brazil recently it was with heavy hearts.  Leaving our ministry, our friends, our home, and the boys’ wonderful school were all challenges.  I had been offered a job tutoring 1^st graders at the American school and I felt heartsick about giving it up since teaching is what I love to do most of all.  Little did I know that the Lord has something bigger for me. 

As we searched for possible places to live in the U.S., the Spring Arbor community seemed like a natural choice.  We were familiar with the town and had many friends there.  I hardly expected to be given the privilege of teaching a class at Spring Arbor University.   But here I am in the middle of my first semester feeling blessed that I can work with a handful of students and help them to improve their writing skills.  I laugh when I think of how much I thought I was giving up!  Truly the Lord knows what’s best for us.

Life Margins

I’ve written before about our busy ministry schedule and how the Lord slows us down at times.   Ironically, now that we are in the U.S. for rest, I am having a harder time than ever saying no to many wonderful opportunities.  The Spring Arbor community offers a plethora of prayer meetings, bible studies and fellowship groups.   Not only do I want to “take in” and grow, I want to “give out” and minister to others.   How do I balance that with teaching a class and caring for my family’s needs?

While sorting out various options my son Steven sent an e-mail asking if I’d be “floor mom” in one of the men’s’ dorms.  “You wouldn’t have to do much,” he said. “Just pray and bake cookies.  And besides, these guys are all my best friends and will probably stand up with me at my wedding”.  Talk about an offer that was hard to refuse! (But refuse it, I did.)

Joyce Meyers says that our relationships are nurtured in the margin of our lives.  If we are too busy our relationships begin to unravel (or they never happen in the first place!).   That nugget of wisdom has helped me to say no to requests like Steven’s because time is precious and I want to save it for interacting with loved ones, especially my MOST loved one, the Lord Himself.

Libraries and Grace

During our recent transitions I’ve had the opportunity to become acquainted with several libraries.  In California they didn’t want to give me a library card until they had seen my references.  But after that I was given access to an unlimited number of books for a three week period.   Late fees were a mere 25 cents a day.  Later, in Ohio, they reluctantly gave me a card, but only on the condition that I not check out more than two items at a time.  There was a hefty five dollar fine for anyone who, heaven forbid, returned a DVD in the book slot.   I could hardly wait to get to my Michigan library where I would not be viewed with suspicion AND most importantly, where I wouldn’t have to convince anybody I deserved a library card since I already had one.

It was an interesting opportunity to see various levels of grace at work.  The library in Fresno was gracious and friendly once I proved myself worthy of their trust.   The restrictions placed on me in Ohio made me feel unwanted.  (Aren’t libraries supposed to encourage people to read and read and come back for more?)  Later when I arrived in Spring Arbor I breathed a sigh of relief when the desk clerk recognized me and didn’t ask me to prove anything. 

Obvious parallels to the Church come to mind.  Are we warm and friendly only after we find out if someone is a “card carrying” Christian?  Do we hold people at arm’s length until they prove themselves?  I hope that those who walk into our churches feel that they’ve found a place to belong even before they believe in Jesus.   The truth is that none of us deserves a place in the Church. Only by trusting in the gracious blood of Jesus do we “get in”.  May we be generous and gracious to all who come through our doors so that they’ll want to become members of this great fellowship we call the body of Christ.

Lost and Found

Now I know how the woman felt in Luke 15 when she swept her house in search of a lost coin and danced for joy when it was found.  In our various transitions this summer we misplaced some crucial documents.  We suspected they were at Dan's parents' home in Ohio where we'd spent several weeks cleaning out their house after they moved to Illinois.  I had gone through thousands of Mom and Dad's papers, culling out the letters that were important to family history, and throwing the rest away.  Actually, I burned most of the papers in the ash pit at the back of the house.  I only stopped when the pit became too full and Dan's brother, Paul, told us he'd take the rest of the paper to the recycling center.

When Dan told me that some or our personal papers were missing, I had little hope that they had survived my house-cleaning frenzy.  Still, we called Paul and asked him not to remove any boxes of trash from the house until we had a chance to go through them.  Saturday we drove down to Van Wert with only a faint hope that the documents would turn up.

When we entered the house, one lone box of papers was sitting on his parents' bed.  I dumped it out and our documents were in the bottom!  If it hadn't been for the overflowing ash heap, Paul's advice, AND THE LORD'S GRACE we never would have found those papers.