Let the Parties Begin!

IGSL Graduation is just two weeks away. That means the next two weeks will be filled with all kinds of parties and celebrations as we say goodbye to our graduates. We had our first party a few days ago--a special luncheon for the 12 women who completed the Partners in Ministry program this year. It was so encouraging to hear them give their testimonies of how they have grown and changed in the past three years. This is a photo of all the students and all the teachers who have been involved in PIM this year. It was a great celebration with lots of tears and lots of laughing, and hearts full of thanksgiving!

Loyal Yokefellows

This is a photo from my trip last year to Bangladesh. Gerri and I were standing on the street in Khulna City, and we saw these two men passing by. They were pulling a heavy load, but they had obviously learned to work together and to match their pace and strength to each other. We smiled and said, "Hey, they are loyal yokefellows, just like Paul talks about in Philippians 4:3!" In our modern world, we don't see yokefellows much! But there they were, plodding through their day, unknowingly illustrating a biblical truth for us.

Empty Desk

I came to my office this morning and saw this:

An empty desk. This is my first day of "no Shelby". Shelby has been my assistant for almost 10 years. She has really been my right hand, and today I am feeling like an amputee. Ouch!

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When Shelby was recommended to me 10 years ago by one of our graduates, my first response was "She is too young and inexperienced!" And she was! She was fresh out of college and only 20 years old. But she plunged into the work with her whole heart, learning as she went along.

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She learned a lot of geographical information, like why Northeast India is different from the rest of India, and where to find the island of Vanuatu on a map. She learned a lot of medical information, like what to give for an allergic reaction and where to send a kidney patient for emergency care. She learned a lot of skills, like making scholarship profiles and speaking "international English." But she learned a lot of things that are deeper than facts and skills. She learned how to respond with wisdom in a variety of situations. She learned to answer the questions of a millionaire businessman who wants to make a donation, and the questions of a new student from a far-off country whose child is sick. She learned when to spring into action, and when to be still and wait. I could spend hours documenting what she learned.

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Our personalities are quite different. We learned to adjust to each other, and we found that we fit together well. She was the one who brought the jokes and the laughter to our office. It seems so quiet today! She has really left a big hole . . . and so I pray:

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Lord, today I am praying that You will prepare my heart for another adventure. I know that Shelby can never really be replaced, but I am trusting that You will provide the next person who will be the right person for this time. I am looking forward with an expectant heart to see what you will do.

Sweet Baby Boy

It's true . . . another long gap in my blogging. Sorry about that. My few loyal readers are going to give up on me!

It's almost the end of the year, which is always a super-busy time at IGSL. We are busy sending one group of students home, and busy with the Admissions Department processing new students coming in.

In the next few days, I am losing two of the four employees in my department. OUCH! They are irreplaceable! Shelby has been with me 10 years, and Leah for 4 years. Pray for me, I don't know how I can survive without them!

And now, presenting . . . more photos of the cutest little boy on the planet. Yesterday, my brother Joe became a grandpa. That means all five of us siblings are grandparents now. Amazing! (Joe won't mind me calling Danny the cutest little boy on the planet because his grandchild is a girl.) So here are the latest shots of Danny Boy...