A winner!

Yes we do have a winner, our good friend Charity is the winner of our birthday language quiz. Congratulations Charity! We'll have to see if she takes us up on our offer to stay at our place here in France.

Speaking of which...Ruth's sister Rebecca will be arriving with us to stay at our house for three months. We pick her up on Tuesday from the airport in Geneva. We are excited to see her. I'm (Adam) actually hanging curtains and Ruth is cleaning her room in anticipation of her arrival.

Here are the answers for the curious...

1. French
2. Russian
3. Japanese
4. English
5. Spanish
6. Italian
7. Mandarin
8. Dutch
9. Arabic

Birthday Language Quiz

Well...Today is my birthday. I am now officially 28. I've had a great day with many nice things: especially from Ruth and other people too. The Lord has been gracious to me for these 28 years, truly He has loved me with a love from before the world began (Click here to see Titus 1:2) . Even my French class celebrated my birthday: my teacher Pascaline had a little cake with a candle and people sang, "Happy Birthday" in their own language. There's nothing quite like the gutteral whisps of the 'Happy Birthday song' sung in Arabic (same melody by the way). They also gave me a card where all the people in the class wrote "Happy Birthday" in their own mother tongue.

So.....

We are having a little game with you blog readers. I've numbered the different languages on my card (as you can see below). The first person to correctly name all the different languages will win a free 3 month stay in Chambéry. Answer via "the comment section" below. Bonne chance! (good luck)

What all preachers want to know...what works?

I'm (Adam) still slogging through volume 2 of Iain Murray's biography on D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (probably one of the most influential ministers of the 20th century). Read a good quote this evening about what truly makes everyday folk in the pew lifelong fruit-bearers.

"He [Lloyd-Jones]was convinced that lives molded by Scripture will ultimately be the most fruitful. The best incentive to faithful and fruitful labor is the truth rightly understood and felt."

Amen. That is the truth. I still remember Steve Cowden personally taking me through (very late into the evening) and explaining to me verse after verse of Galatians 3 so that I could understand redemptive history clearly from the Apostle Paul. I still remember Bill Eubanks personally taking me through verse after precious verse of Ephesians. I am still thankful to John Piper for preaching verse after verse through Romans so that I could for the first time understand the gospel with great clarity. These were some of the most shaping times in my life, and it was just people who explained the Bible to me: verse by verse with sober joy.

So, to all you fathers, mothers, and preachers: just give your children and your people the Words of God accurately and with genuine prayerful passion.....it works.

Festive Homesickness

Probably the only times that we feel a bit homesick is when there are family events that we can't be apart of. Today, the 81st annual 'Huntley family & friends reunion' is being held. For you "non-Huntleys" this is has always been a highlight of my growing up summers. It is always held on Huntley Rd (yes, I'm not kidding, it was the place where I grew up). To see Huntley Rd. on google earth click here. Family members from all around attend, Uncle Pat and my dad are explaining geneology and showing old pictures, Great uncle Norman usually gathers everyone together to eat, and my mamaw often prays before we eat, kids are playing on the swings and in Hooper's creek, adults are talking and drinking sweet tea, and there is invariably several different people who bring deviled eggs in their special "deviled egg carrying case" (those from the south know what I'm talking about). And of course, there is plenty of fried chicken and chicken n'dumplings. I can almost taste them now.
In the past 6 or 7 years, the reunion has also included bluegrass jam-sessions headed up by my uncle Mike Huntley. Last year, one of the greatest bluegrass groups in the country (I'm not kidding) came to play at our little reunion, The Kruger Brothers. They are coming again this year and we'll unfortunetly miss their concert again. But it seems that John likes them just fine as you can see below. Check out the little video that John is watching to see these guys in action. (click here). Have a good day Huntley clan!

Just John Laughing

...a glimpse into the happy babyish life of John Thomas...

Bunnies, Guinea Pigs & Ostrich Eggs

Most Saturday mornings we head to the big open-air market downtown Chambéry, partly to buy a few vegetables for the week, partly to look around at the variety of foods and animals being sold there.

One of our customary stops is the place where they sell small animals, including several varieties of ducklings and tiny chicks. Here is a photo of John observing the lapins (bunnies) and cochons d'indie (guinea pigs). They are so cute, all of them running around and squeaking (actually, just the guinea pigs squeak, not the bunnies--but it's so funny to watch them all together, because the bunnies are a lot bigger than the baby guinea pigs they are caged with!)

The same seller that sells the animals sells eggs. Ostrich eggs (see that large white thing pictured below?? Pretty cool!) would cost €420.00 a dozen -- a little out of our price range -- so we settled instead for normal chicken eggs (also pictured below), which are a much more reasonable €3.30 for 20 eggs.

John the Climber

Like us, John keeps busy every day. His new endeavor is to climb everything, and to pull himself up to a standing position next to anything: now he just needs to learn not to let go and let himself free-fall backwards!

What the Gospel ain't.....

I messed up. I have to admit it. Ruth asked me before she left for morning class if I could take the already cooked garbanzo beans mash them up and blend the final ingredients together for yummy hummus for tonight. I said, "Sure! No problem, honey." So after she left I looked at the recipe mashed the cooked garbanzo beans with our pastry blender, added the mashed garlic, the lemon juice, the tahini, the cumin, the salt to the garbanzo beans , and I saw that there was one more ingredient: baking soda. "Baking soda?" I thought, "That doesn't seem to fit...but hey, that is what the recipie calls for." After I blended all those things together I had to sample it to see how my 'first hummus' turned out. I stuck my finger down in the brown mixture gave it a swirl and popped some in my mouth. It tasted funny...it tasted like baking soda. Sort of a garlicy toothpaste kind of concoction. So I quickly stirred the mixture some more to see if I didn't stir it well enough, but afterwards it still tasted funny. I then looked back at the recipie to see if I added too much baking soda, but no, I did exactly what it called for. So I was confused...so I looked back at the recipie more carefully and with amazment I saw that the baking soda was to be added when the garbanzo beans were cooking to remove bad flavor.

But, of course, Ruth already cooked the garbanzo beans last night! So I should have never added the baking soda!

So there I was....stuck with toothpasty hummus. When Ruth came home from class I told her all about it and she tried it...She laughed and said, "Wow! It really tastes like baking soda! Ha ha!" and then she planted a big kiss on my cheek.

Now, Ruth didn't care that I goobered up the hummus, but I felt kind of bad that I ruined it, and Ruth really likes hummus too. So while walking back home from class I stopped by the store and bought some new chickpeas and a new jar of Tahini (pictured above) so I could make restitution.

I then began to think as I was walking home with my prized groceries in my arms, "Wow, this is exactly how some people view God."

They think, "I know that I've done plenty of wrong things in my life. I've sinned so many times just today that I don't think that my good will outweigh my bad when God evaluates my life and the final judgement. I really need to do something good to counteract and make restitution for the bad things that I've done, and then God will be pleased with me."

But the Bible says that men and women cannot remove the guilt of their own sins. The only thing that they can do is receive the punishment for their sins. And the punishment pronounced on anyone who sins (which is everybody) is the death sentence. That is all you can do with regard to your own sins, you can only receive the death sentence. Do you think that God is running a brownie point system with his world? Those who do more good than bad will make it to heaven!!

No that isn't the truth, The Bible says, "God made Jesus (who knew no sin) to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God."

What does that mean?

Listen to this: On the cross, God treated Jesus as if he had committed the sins of all those who would believe (although he didn't deserve punishment because he was perfect) so that if you trust in Jesus' work on the cross to rescue you from your sin, and stop trying to butter up God with your 'good-deeding', then God will then treat you as if you had lived the perfect life of Jesus (although you haven't lived a perfect life like him).

The great exchange. That is the good news of the cross. Do you believe that or are you like me with the messed up hummus, trying to make things right by your own devices. It may work with messed up cuisine, but it doesn't work for the judgement day.

Moong Dal - a Bean Recipe

I thought I'd share a new bean recipe with you, for those who either like beans, like trying new recipes, or like making new healthy foods. We like making new foods; some turn out better than others, and this one was quite tasty!

None of the spices are too rare; they are all common for Indian cooking and you should be able to find them at some grocery store somewhere. Sorry I cannot specify exactly which stores you could find them at, but I know they are around. :)

Ingredients:

1 cup mung beans (alternate names: green bean, mung, moong, moog dal, mash bean, munggo or monggo, green gram, golden gram, and green soy) that have been rinsed several times then soaked in water overnight.
6 cups fresh baby spinach or chopped spinach
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. salt or just to taste
1/4 tsp. garam masala

2 TBSP olive oil
3 small onions, chopped
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. hot red pepper powder

Rice, cooked (whatever kind of rice you like)

Instructions:

Cover the soaked mung beans with enough water to cook plus at least an inch higher (you can add more water as it cooks, if needed). Add the spinach, turmeric and salt. Cook until the mung beans get nice and mushy, adding more water if needed. Add the garam masala at the end.

Meanwhile, while the beans cook, saute the onions in the olive oil along with the cumin. Add the hot red pepper powder at the end.

Mix the onions with the bean mixture and serve over rice. It's so good, and is also, by the way, a good source of vitamin C, vitamin K, and fiber and protein. Enjoy!

(Important note to [you know who you are] -- do not confuse this with split pea soup just because it looks similar to it, because it tastes a lot different!)

Sunday: Church and an After-church Visit

We are beginning to feel more and more a part of the church we've been attending here in France. Today was my (Ruth's) first Sunday getting to work in the nursery and Adam's first Sunday to feel that he really understood the sermon (which was on the Lord's prayer)--yay! Here's a picture of John with friends in the nursery. Mostly my nursery duty consisted of rescuing John and the other small baby from too-small toys (like Fisher-Price figures with small choking-size heads) that they were trying to eat:


After church, we went for lunch to the home of David and Claudia, who could certainly win the award for France's most hospitable couple. Claudia made us an amazing pineapple cake (with "Welcome, Adam, Ruth and John" written around the edge with whipped cream!), and showed us photos of the missionaries they have been befriending since 1982; many of them were people we knew! What a wonderful ministry this couple has here:

Claudia walked back home with us and we visited for a while. She likes helping newcomers with their French, which is a huge blessing for us! She is really a sweet friend.

Fun little friends

John is usually a content little boy, but he seems to be especially happy when other little people are around. He enjoys watching them, and he especially likes it when they pay attention to him. Here's John with a couple of his favorite little people - Madi and Jet. Another of John's favorite little friends, Eli, is just off the corner of the picture. (By the way, they are some of our favorite little friends, too!)

Air Mandolin....

When I (Adam) take care of John during schooldays, we usually go on a walk before his nap, and after, if he is still not sleepy, then sometimes we listen to music together. John tends to like clear instrumental melodies, so bluegrass is a favorite of his. Normally, we listen to mandolin music and I play 'air mandolin' on John. John enjoys it because he is being held, getting tickled, and listening to music, and I enjoy it because he is enjoying it.

John and Anna

Here John and our good friend Anna are enjoying one another's company.

Celebrating Claudia's Birthday

Pictured below - Adam, Bartek (friend from Poland) and Claudia (friend from South Africa):

Last night, we had an enjoyable evening with a handful of our classmates who came over to celebrate Claudia's birthday. We have really enjoyed being able to develop relationships with fellow students! The friendships we are building are certainly one of the most meaningful parts of our time here in France.

God isn't codependent...

Here is a quote from one of my (Adam) favorite Puritans, Stephen Charnock. In his book, The Existence and Attributes of God. He writes about before creation, God was happy and wouldn't have lost anything if He never decided to create anything. God didn't make us because He was sad or lonely or lacked anything. Do you see God this way?

"He was gracious, merciful, just in His own nature, and also holy, though no creature had been framed by Him to exercise His grace, mercy, justice, or holiness upon. If God had not created a world, He had in his own nature been almighty and able to create a world. If there never had been anything but Himself, yet He had been omniscient, knowing everything that was within the verge and compass of His infinite power; so He was pure in his own nature, though He never had brought forth any rational creature whereby to manifest this purity."

To Mont Granier and back again...

This past Saturday I(Adam) went on a hike up the mountain that we can see from our window. I had two other fellow hikers with me. They both will work in Francophone Africa, one in Central African Republic and the other in Senegal. The name of the mountain is Mont Granier. There is a bit of a history in that in the mid 1200s a large portion of the mountain fell and completely destroyed the village at its foot. The debris of the fallen mountain covered 12 square kilometers. It truly was the most beautiful views I've ever seen in my life and I imagine I will ever see this side of death.

The picture above is a cliff running parallel to us a the beginning of the trail. We actually climbed much higher than this cliff.

Below are the guys who I hiked with Tim (L) and Neil (R)

Here are some Alpine cows. They really did have the bells on their necks. In fact one time a whole herd was resting right where our trail was.

Below is a portion of the trail that was in the Alpine meadows, if you click on the picture you can see little people below to get scale of how large the valley truly is.

Below are two boulders that fell off the moutain that we were climbing and Mont Blanc is in the background.

A video with a surprise turn in our trail. We had to scale rocks on a good size portion of the trail

Mountains and meadows with purple summer flowers.

Sheer cliffs near the summit.

At the summit 1933m/6200ft (top) Most of the mountains here have a cross on top (below)

In summary, our hike gained over 850m (2800 ft), it took us from 9:30 in the morning to 5:45 in the evening, I have 4 large blisters, a strained left calf, and a new appreciation about how you should bring more water than you think that you might need. I was so glad to get back to Ruth and John. Although I've never seen more natural beauty, there are some things you only do once and places you only visit...there's no place like home.