Goodbye Maddio

If you weren't encouraged enough by my last post in seeing how faithfully wonderful God is to lead us in the right paths, here's another story for the books. 

As as said before, Jozsef seems to be in a season of exceptional providence right now.  After graduation Jozsef began working.  He went and applied to all of his favorite places and establishments that he knew would be flexible enough for him to work while attending seminary.  Surprisingly, his responses were far fewer than he had anticipated and he ended up taking the job that had presented itself.  It seemed to be a good fit--a small pizza joint close to home and church that would pay him enough to buy a car and save for school.

 Well, the job has served that purpose.  Jozsef purchased his car and has lined himself up for seminary.  However, though rather flexible, his job started losing it's sheen.  It began with the boss ignoring Jozsef's 90 day review and also the previously agreed upon raise was never given.  Communication with management was lack luster and though the team was good enough, Jozsef was quickly realizing that he had already topped out where he was and he wasn't completely thrilled with that.  So Jozsef began to apply for jobs. 

He thought for sure he had a couple of applications in to places that he would quickly get hired into.  However, that was not the case. Jozsef began to get discouraged and he again went through the process of relinquishing his plans to the Lord.  He prayed and told God, "Lord, if you want me to stay in this job, I will.  I make just enough money and the schedule is flexible.  It's not fantastic, but it's enough, thank you.  But Lord, if I'm meant to move on, you'll have to drop a job in my lap, because I'm done looking and I don't want to push my will."  That night, a recruiter for a new Chick Fil A came in and presented Jozsef with an opportunity to apply for their store.  No kidding.  Just like that.  So, dutifully, Jozsef applied. 

Now, Chick Fil A was one of the places Jozsef had previously applied to.  He was two interviews in, and they suddenly never contacted him again.  Oddly enough, and to no one's understanding, because if you know anything about Chick Fil A, Jozsef could be their poster boy!  The company is Christian and prides itself on friendly customer service.  Not deterred by his previous experience, Jozsef applied on line and then he planned to go to the store and introduce himself later that week.  The day that Jozsef was planning to make his introduction, the hiring manager called to express interest in him and asked if they could meet.  How fortuitous!  So the meeting took place and a series of "chance" details surfaced--the manager that had previously interviewed him had made a recommendation for his hiring at this new location; the man that was now interviewing him was good friends with the church leader that Jozsef worked with; the opening of the new store would mean a start date that coincided with the last day Jozsef currently had on schedule at his pizza place.  Coincidence?  Umm, nope, not here--this was all God! As Jozsef and I like to say, there are no chance moments, only God moments.  :-)

 Needless to say, Jozsef as given his two weeks and will be starting his new job at Chick Fil A (at a higher pay rate and better hours) after the holidays, just in time for him to settle in and start school. A perfect beginning to the next chapter of his life.  :-)  And it's all God's pleasure to serve us in ways that only He can.  What a great and loving Father.  :-)

**If you didn't catch it, there's a bit of humor there.  One of the things Chick Fil A employees are trained to say is, "my pleasure" because service with a smile is the only true service of the heart. :-)

Acceptance

You know how you have this great idea, and you make a plan so that you can bring your idea to fruition, and because it's a really solid plan that you're sure makes sense, you expect all of the pieces to just fall in line?  But then, there's that one area in the plan, that seemed like a small bump that you were ready to handle, but it suddenly grew into a huge mountain that you now need to scale, still you're not deterred--yet.  Instead, you just gear up and tackle that mountain, sure that you can scale your way over it and to the other side where the finish line is.  And then, just when you seem to be making strides, you reach a chasm, that you quickly realize you simply cannot cross without help, but assistance is no where to be found.  Scanning the terrain, you decide that the best you can do is to camp out and wait for someone to come by who can help.  But the wait stretches out and you begin to get weary and you start to think that you'll be camped up out on that mountain side for far longer than you ever predicted.  And then, you resign your ability to actually lead yourself over this mountain and to your goal.  That, is the precise moment, when you give up control and give the situation up to God, I mean, really hand it over.  And then you wait. 

This is the point of glory.  The place that God was waiting for you to arrive at.  The place in the story where He can really move and you will know without a doubt that He delights in helping you to achieve greatness.  And suddenly, you see God move.  And the sight is so beautifully orchestrated, that you cannot help but to praise Him. 

I love those moments.  They bring such great peace and joy.  And they sustain. 

Jozsef seems to be experiencing a season of this obvious work of God, and it's a beautiful thing to witness. 

As you know, Jozsef graduated high school in June.  He has a plan to attend a seminary but in order to attend, he has to have a mentor.  Jozsef has spent months dutifully working his pizza job and scouring his contacts, networking in every way he can, trying to find a suitable mentor--which is no easy task as the candidate has to have at least a Master's degree and meet certain specifications (in essence, the mentor applies too) in order to be qualified to lead.  Jozsef had a handful of people who were wanting to help, but did not qualify.  The resulting answer was to pray and wait.  Sounds easy enough, doesn't it?  But you know what, we, in the flesh, especially in American culture, are used to making plans and forging ahead with them.  However, in God's economy, there is often not much more that one can do but to pray and wait on God.  The acceptance of His plan takes great faith--especially when His timeline doesn't seem to be matching up with yours.  Still, Jozsef did just that--he expressed his need to the Lord, laid out his preferred outcome (timeline included), and he waited. 

The months dragged on and Jozsef was beginning to get very discouraged.  It was right around Thanksgiving when he began to think that his goal of beginning his seminary program after the holidays was going to need to be amended.  Feeling a little defeated, Jozsef resigned.  He accepted that he could do nothing more and he gave his situation over to God.  He decided that when the right person would come along, it would be worth the wait, and so he would trust.  However, knowing that we are responsible to do our diligence while God orchestrates, there was one more thing Jozsef had to do.  He decided to write a letter to the school letting him know of his desire to attend, the search he'd been on in seeking out a mentor, and he asked if they could lend any advice. 

The response Jozsef received we would have never seen coming.  The director of the school asked if he could talk to Jozsef over the phone.  Their conversation was hours long and quite full of details that only God could string together.  In short, it seems that there was a two-way prayer in action.  Jozsef was looking for a mentor so that he could equip himself to follow his calling, and the leaders of the school were seeing a decline in Christian leadership in the world  and they were seeing a great decline in the quality of applicants to their school.  As Jozsef was asking God to lead him to a mentor, the school leaders were asking God if there were any good leaders left.  The result of the conversation was two very excited men.  Jozsef was thrilled because the Director of the school was so impressed with Jozsef's passion that he offered to be Jozsef's mentor.  And the Director was thrilled because he saw Jozsef as an answer to the group's prayer--there were still good leaders and hope for the future.  Seriously, it was amazing! 

After a few more conversations, it was settled--Jozsef had a mentor.  So the application was finally completed and just this week, Jozsef received his official acceptance letter.  The best part is, this man is everything Jozsef prayed for in a mentor, and the timing of this acceptance letter means that Jozsef will begin his seminary program right on time for the preferred timeline he expressed to God.  Is God great or what?  :-) 

We couldn't be happier for Jozsef and we are thrilled that the team is excited to bring him on.  There is much work ahead of him, but he's been prepping for it.  By the time the holidays are over, he'll be ready to dive right in. 

Congratulations Jozsef on your acceptance to TNARS!  May God bless every moment of this new chapter. 

Halloween

Halloween was quite eventful this year.  It all started with a Hipster Halloween for the boys at their youth group meeting.  In case you didn't know, a hipster is:

hip·ster¹

/ˈhipstər/

noun

INFORMAL

1. a person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural 

   mainstream.
2. 
   
3. The boys had a great time getting their outfits together and they looked pretty good too!  :-)

The Sunday before Halloween, the church had the kids wear their costumes to service, which the kids loved.  

The day before, Starbucks was running a special holiday drink--Witch's Brew frappacinos.  The kids love these specials--they are kind of like flash sales, here for a few days around a holiday and then gone.  Jozsef was at work, so we took a drink to him.  It was a nice break in our day.  

On Halloween proper, we studied the history of Halloween and some of the traditions, we did a few fun activities, and we even did a little art.  Then we went out for lunch.  One of the kids' favorite restaurants was having a Halloween promotion that included free lunches for kids in costume.  So, of course, we went.  We had a great lunch.  

Later in the afternoon, we headed out to a city celebration called Kidfest.  It's a great venue with vendors, games, music, and just plain community fun for kids to attend in costume.  

We had a Special Ops Soldier, Pocahontas, a Cow, Moana, and a Gorilla

And we also had Groot.  :-) 

It's way more fun than trick-or-treating and the kids come home with all kinds of goodies.  

Two of their favorite games are the balloon pump race

Who can pump the balloon up fast enough to be the first to pop? It's a fierce race!

and an apple game that puts a clean twist on bobbing for apples.  The prize for the apple game is the apple you snagged cut up and drizzled with caramel.  It's fantastic! 

We got a great surprise at the festival--we were told that each child that went to a local place called Stars and Strikes, in costume, would get a free $10 game card.  So we had a small change of plans--we didn't go straight home after the festival--we went to Stars and Strikes.  :-)  The kids got their game cards and we stayed and played awhile.  We had a really good time and were thankful for the detour.  

He found giant cards to play with and he thought they were really cool

Old school video games on the big screen were an extra thrill for John to share with the kids

They had the Jurassic Park game--his favorite!

After the festival, we returned home for a finger-food dinner and a viewing of the 1981 version of Clash of the Titans.  It was great! Wow, what a day! 

Fall Around Town

If you like festivals, music with local talent, craft and food vendors and just a feeling of celebration, then this is the season for you!  In our area, from about mid-September through October there have been multiple festivals to attend.  Some weekends are packed with as many as six events to pick from.  It's amazing!  And it's a really fun way to get out and explore the area and what it has to offer.  We have been attempting to sample as many events as possible.  Sometimes just John and I will go.  Often it's me and a kid or two.  We figure we'll take note of the good events and try to do them again next year.  :-)  Here are some photos of a couple of the events we've been to.  The best thing is, 'tis the season to be jolly and the events just keep piling up!  Much more, especially in the way of pop-up shops and boutiques are on the way through November and December leading up to Christmas--such fun! 

This was Autumn Fest.  It was a hot day, but the kids loved it anyway.  :-)

Initially, Riley didn't want to make the climb, but after watching his siblings do it, he was inspired and encouraged.  I'm glad he stepped out of fear and into the challenge.  He did a great job! 

This was the Great Pumpkin Festival--but it truly wasn't that great (don't tell Riley--he loved it!).  It was the smallest "festival" that we've seen so far but the weather was wonderful and though it was just Riley and I, it was a great afternoon.  Riley admitted that the animals were the best and the chickens were his favorite.   I think that he would have stayed in that pen petting the creatures all day if he could have.  :-)  He's such a sweet kid.  :-)

The piglet was so cute--every time someone came to pet him, his little tail would just spin like a propeller.  He was loving the attention.  :-) 

Even though Christmas will be here way too soon, we sure are enjoying the opportunity to soak in the season and the activities it brings.  Bring on the fun!

Pumpkin Creations

Pumpkin picking is only half the fun.  What you create with them is other half.  :-)  This year was no exception.  John led the kids in their carving endeavors. 

They were extra creative using hardware this year.  At first, Sonja was a bit crushed.  Her pumpkin, though it was well inspected at the farm, began to mold before she could even make the first cut.  However, inspiration hit and the day was saved as her yucky pumpkin was transformed into Frankin Pumpkin.  :-)  The final result was actually really good. 

Every designer worked diligently until their pumpkins reflected each vision. 

Nikolas took a very different route this year.  Instead of getting one large pumpkin to carve, Nikolas chose to bring home eight tiny pumpkins which he carved up into a tasty treat.  He used spices and the pumpkin puree to fill the tiny pumpkin shells and he baked them into a fine dessert.  We all enjoyed each pumpkin creation, but his was especially tantalizing.  :-)  Sadly, we don't have any pictures of them. 

The finished products!  From left to right, the designers were, Hannah, Riley, Connor, Jozsef, and Sonja 

Apple Festival

Fall showed up quickly in our part of the country.  One day it was 97 and humid, and two days later, it was a high of 67 with a pleasant breeze and a low of 38.  What a switch!  But since we're not truly fans of the humidity, we welcomed it.  The fickle fall weather means rain one day and beautiful sun with crisp air the next--it's a craps shoot as to what you'll get on any one given day.  Truly though, our weather here is pretty schizophrenic like that year round.  Rain is always an option.  We had scheduled our Apple Festival outing a month in advance.  With only two weekends running, we had to pick what best fit into our schedule.  As it turns out, the weekend we didn't go was beautiful and the weekend we did go, it rained.  Thankfully, it wasn't a downpour and the mud wasn't thick.  We prepared.  We wore jeans, boots, and light jackets.  We even had a couple of umbrellas. 

The good thing about rain at a festival is that the crowds are smaller.  :-)  The rain was persistent, but not consistent, so there were periods of dry and sun to enjoy. 

The Apple Festival is great because there is art, music, and plenty of apple treats to enjoy.  We sampled fresh apple fritters and dried apple rings, and we took home fresh pressed apple cider.  Yumm! 

The kids didn't go on too many rides due to the rain, but they did sneak in pony and camel rides.  Yes camels.  It was a fun novelty. 

Jozsef had tried a pineapple drink last year, and we couldn't wait to have another.  We purchased two and shared--those things are big enough and filling enough that we all had some and were satisfied. 

There were a couple of specific vendors that were supposed to be there that we were looking forward to seeing (one of which did not show :-() and new vendors to discover.  Hats, maybe because of the rain :-) were a big draw for the kids this year.

After several hours of walking around and taking in our surroundings, we had decided that we'd seen it all and we were ready to leave.  On the way home, we stopped in on the quaint downtown of the little city that was hosting the festival.  It was nice to walk through and window shop.  The rain had completely stopped by then and the sunset on the way home was a beautiful way to end the day.