Quote on suffering

I ran across this quote in the book I'm reading right now and thought it was excellent.

"Suffering- especially in the forms of potentially ominous pain or significant longer-term suffering-tends to produce clear benefits. So how does it do this? It does it in part by challenging our shallow confidences. As long as things seem to be going well for us, we tend to harbor a number of false beliefs. One of them is that our lives are largely in our own control." Mark R. Talbot (from "For the Fame of God's name")

I tend on the optimistic side of personality (it will all work out okay...) and I needed this reminder to "challenge our shallow confidences". Putting our hope in Christ is always far better than trusting in some circumstance that is fleeting in the moment.

Proverbs 31:30

Livvie puts a whole new spin on the "beauty is vain" part of the verse with her nutella covered mouth and little "frohawk".

We work on some verse memory and some catechisms every morning (such as "who is the FIRST and BEST of beings"? : God!) Its amazing what the kiddos retain and hopefully this will help them to be able to discern whether something is truth or not as they get older.

Yahoo...78%!

Livvie says "hi-five, ya'll!"

Most of you know that Daniel and I don't have traditional "jobs" right now (although that husband of mine works as hard or harder than most people I know!) but are full time missionaries with Wycliffe Bible Translators. What that means for us right now is that our assignment is partnership development and we are building a team of people who are behind us financially and prayerfully. They are essentially part of our "sending" team bring the Bible to people who don't have it Africa.

Since some of you don't get our updates (but if you'd like to please email me your info at beansnrice at live dot com) I thought I would share that we are currently at 78% of our total needed monthly support quota! At around 80% we will be starting the process of securing our visas and such to head overseas to do our language study. Thank you to our wonderful support team! Even when we don't know who or how, the Lord provides!

John Piper and Shane and Shane Video

">John Piper and Shane and Shane. Thanks Alyssa!

Burn-out on home ownership

Daniel and I are both close to total burn-out on this homeownership business-and we haven't even moved in yet!:) After lots of delays and setbacks it again looks like we can't move in when we planned. For once though, I am trying to surrender our plans to the Lord and trust that His plan is best.

It has been easy for me to give into discouragement and anxiety at times. But more than ever I need to put aside those thoughts and words and encourage Daniel since I think he feels the weight of the world on his shoulders in getting a place ready for our family to live. The last thing he needs is for me to be putting extra pressure or trying to ease my fears along with his own.

Most of all we miss being together as a family. This morning I was encouraged by these words in Romans 12: "Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality."

And a reminder to cry out to Him when I don't know what to do in Psalm 22 "But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid!'

Also I must remember that this is only a season and will soon pass.

Psalm 100- Praise

This psalm has come back to me several times the past few days in different forms.

Psalm 100


100:1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the Lord, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his; [4]
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Seeking His Wisdom

From ESV Bible: Psalm 40 "but may all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation say continually, "Great is the Lord!"

In preparing for future missions work it is easy to lose sight of the fact that our end goal is not mission work per se, but rather to glorify God and honor Him in all that we do. Even so, we find it easy to lose sight of the every day seeking Him and His will. Even though we will never find a passage in His word that says "Daniel and Rachael, I want you to go to ______ on this date and do ______ kind of mission work, we can know His will as He reveals it.

In October when we travel to North Carolina we will know if working with the JAARS division of Wycliffe is God's next step for us in missions. If it is not with JAARS, we know His plan is good and that He does have a plan for us, even if all we know is that He desires us to worship and glorify Him (Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28-29).

When He speaks, we desire to be servants who stop long enough to hear. "Speak Lord, for Your servant hears" (1 Samuel 3:9)

Nothing Good, but in God

“...if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place." 2nd Chronicles 7

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Romans 7

Pro Choice VS. Life Article

An excellent article regarding a woman's recent journey from a pro-choice atheist to a pro-life Catholic is here. It helped me to understand both sides of the issue better and reinforce my own (thanks to Amy for the article).

"For You Formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me when as yet there were none of them." Psalm 139:13-16

Scary Moments in Mothering

Baby M was playing a few feet away from me in the nursery/office (we were in the same room). She's doing her usual "inspection" of the furniture legs, carpet etc. I look over (after maybe 1 minute of looking another direction and she is chewing. This happens quite frequently as she is always picking up microscopic pieces of lint/dirt off the floor and into the mouth. I still rush to her and start to fish the unknown object out. At first try I find nothing. I change positions because it is obvious that there is something there. Another try with her on my lap (and she is making a sour face at this point and I am getting nervous. I find a shard of glass in her cheek! It was several centimeters long in a triangle shape! I have no idea what it is from or where she could have found it hiding because we clean frequently and haven't broken anything in that room...so scary! Mere seconds of looking away while she was playing in a "safe" place and this happens! Its these moments when I have to remind myself that God is in control and that I must trust Him to protect my baby.

"Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord and Trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." Psalm 37:3-5

We Work With You for Your Joy: John Piper

Evangelical "Rock Star" John Piper

ESV Daily Bible Reading

I have talked about this before, but I am able to have extended time in the word almost every day because of a wonderful tool called the ESV daily Bible reading. I periodically post something that has stuck out to me that day see here, here and here. It is an excellent tool because I can turn it on and listen while playing with my baby girl, or tending to other things. It doesn't substitute for other Bible study, but it helps me to stay on track when my little person needs more attention than usual. This was an especially helpful tool when she was a newborn. ESV daily Bible reading works for me!

My Soul Thirst for You (ESV)

Psalm 63
63:1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.


Courtesy of the The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

For the weary

Luke 3
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
and the rough places shall become level ways,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”


Psalm 37
Hear my cry, O God,
listen to my prayer;
from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I,for you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.

Courtest of Crossway Bible, Good News Publishers, ESV daily Bible reading

Don't Waste Your Life

Word for the day...

I haven't posted about this yet, but last year I tried to read through the Bible. I have read through the Bible before, but not in one calendar year. I signed up for the ESV daily Bible reading plan online, and a chunk of OT, NT, and a bit of Psalms and Proverbs were sent to me each day. Well...a little while later I found out I was expecting and was also doing two Bible studies at the time, so I fell off the wagon. This year, I am at home, not "working" (for the time being at least) and have started again. It is working great for me because I can listen to the Word while nursing or doing housework, so even if my time to sit down and really STUDY is short with my munchkin needing attention etc., I can still be exposed to a good portion of God's word Daily.

So. Today's OT portion was Genesis 50- Exodus 1-2:10. Here is one of my favorite passages dealing with the Sovereignty of God and grace.

When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.” So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this command before he died, ‘Say to Joseph, Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.’ And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, “Behold, we are your servants.” But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people [2] should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

This is from the English Standard Version and came from: newsletters@gnpsbs.org in case you were wondering!