The Father's Love

Hey y'all!
A lot has happened in the last three weeks. Another team from Mississippi came (Shout out, Pine Lake, you're awesome!), and I wandered around with them and thrilled at the sound of southern accents and southernness. It was good to be with people who speak my language. After that, I had a week of routine, and then my parents came to be with me for a week. We were all over the city, and we had some major fun. It was also a big learning experience for me. Every now and then, God gives me concrete experiences to show me things about Himself, and much of this past week was a lesson in the Father's love--from my father.

I have been here in Canada for six months now, living totally on my own (long-term) for the first time in my life. I have gotten pretty used to this independence , and I have gotten used to having my apartment to myself. When my parents came up here, they were in my space. This was okay, and I would dearly love to have them in my space again, because I miss them tremendously, and it was beautiful to be able to share them with my people here, and to share my life here with them. But, because Dad and I are very similar, I found myself irrationally annoyed and angry with him. I mean it; it really was irrational. And I acted out of this anger and treated him unjustly, snapping at him and frequently being sarcastic. Do you know what my dad did? He took it. He was hurt, but he loved me anyway. He was patient and kind and generous, and he gave much better than he got. He taught me a lot about the Father's love--how frequently I am ungrateful and angry and hurtful and unjust toward Him, but He's so gentle and patient (long-suffering) with me.

Thank you, Dad, for your example.

Praises

• This week I am helping some dear friends out by staying with their daughter while they're in the States. This is great, because I have someone to chill with since my parents have left.

Prayer requests

• I need to get back into a routine, and I need wisdom especially in how to focus my time. I have a special project that needs to be completed this month, and it'll be a pretty big deal, and I need to get back into a routine of studying Farsi. Please pray for me in these areas.
• I would like to serve in the Iranian church. Please pray that the Lord would open a door in this area. I have a couple of advocates who would like to get me involved with women's discipleship. Please pray for wisdom for us in pursuing these goals.
• Please pray for open doors for the gospel and the establishment of some Bible studies. Pray for wisdom for me in broaching these ideas with people.