'No news is good news'.....

Mum....
I don't know if it's a familiar saying here in America but back home its very common.

"No news is good news!"

i.e. if you haven't heard from someone it means everything is probably OK. Well this is the case with my mum. Sorry I haven't been very faithful to update my blog about her, but I have been in touch every other day with my dad.

She has been moved to another Hospital in Ballycastle, Co. Antrim.(Here pictured) She is here for physiotherapy and recuperation. I actually spoke to her today for the first time in 3 weeks! She was in good form, even though we had a bad connection. She is just waiting patiently to be sent home. Her hands are still in bandages and she cannot use them very well. She heads back to Londonderry on Tuesday for some more work on her elbow and hands. She is hopeful that she might get sent home after that.

Graduation.....

On Tuesday our second eldest, Esther graduated from Middle School to High School. There was a ceremony at her school, Horizon Charter, that we all attended. She has worked hard this year even though math tried to get the better of her a few times, we are very proud of her achievements and look forward to a restful summer. Here she is pictured with the Principal, Mrs Rosalee Hagstrom.

So concludes my update about things in the Briggs' Household. I am so glad to be finished school for the summer. I have a list of things the length of your arm to achieve over the holidays. (Don't tell the kids!!:) So I am going to rest a couple of days and then get stuck in. I'll try to keep up to date with things as I go along.

I do want to do a post on "What's on your Nightstand?" that Mrs Elaine Wallace has mentioned on her blog. My books may be scattered all over the place rather than on my nightstand, but you get the idea....

We have 16 new members giving testimony both this and next week in Sunday School. It will be a good time in God's House. May you also have a blessed day in the House of God tomorrow.

"I was glad when they said to me:We will go, into the house of the Lord."

Psalm 121

Memorial Weekend Project.....

For any of you who have visited with us since we moved house, you would know that our back yard had a lot to be desired. It was a preverbial jungle of weeds, left over 'rubbish and generally untidy.

I am bad at remembering to take the before pictures but I do have some after ones.....

We have tackled different areas over the past year and are getting closer to the end. Last year we set up our pool and put stones around it, but the other part lay as waste ground. Two weeks ago a friend, who is a gardener, came over, prepared the ground and helped us lay the turf.

It hasn't been cut yet, but is looking good. Not quite Wembly or Wimbledon but we are thankful.

Then this week I decided to build a little wall on the opposite side. Nothing very intricate or difficult but efficient and pretty (I think!) So with the help of Jen, who is staying with us at the minute and more than one trip to Home Depot, we put it together. Here it is......I have so enjoyed building, planting, watering and generally enjoying God's wonderful creation. The dirt you can still see is going to have more stones put on it, but that's for another day.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and a Happy Memorial Day, whatever you found to do.

This is our last week of school...YEAH!! I have plenty more projects up my sleeve for the days ahead. In the meantime I can sit in my back garden and enjoy the ones already completed.

Malatya, Turkey...Martyrs for Christ

Last night Robert brought a movie/documentary home which we proceeded to watch. It was on the lives and deaths of 3 christian workers in Turkey in 2007.

Tilmann Geske, Necati Aydin,(Pastor of the church) Ugur Yuksel

The following is from a little booklet that came with the dvd....

The Martyrs
Necati, Uğur, and Tilmann are not larger-than-life icons. They are three real men with very different stories, backgrounds, and personalities, united by the bond of Jesus Christ and the courage to die for His Name’s sake.

The Church
Before the killings in Malatya, Turkish Muslim background Christians had faced constant pressure, media slander, and even torture, but no one had paid the ultimate price. Since the martyrdom, attacks and attempted murders have increased all over the country, strengthening the resolve of some and compelling others to flee. These killings mark the beginning of a new age of persecution and purification for the Turkish Church.

The Enduring Faithfulness of God
The Malatya martyrdom has challenged the most fundamental assumption in Turkey (to be Turk is to be Muslim) and has forced the public to acknowledge the presence of the indigenous Turkish Church. In the midst of much grief and suffering, God has brought great opportunity, as the lives of just 3000 Christians are put on display before a country of 72 million. Those we spoke with testify with a unified voice that God is working for His glory and their good and this fact has brought the Church great joy in the midst of persecution.

This movie is truly moving and compelling. It leaves you admiring these men and those they left behind, praising God that they were 'faithful unto death' and asking yourself, "Do I have the spirit of Paul when he said "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain"?

We are very comfortable in our middle class society here in the US. We have no fear, yet, of being arrested or tortured for our faith. All we have to worry about is, what will I make for dinner? What color of paint will I use? Will I find a husband/wife? What college will I go to? What doctrinal book will I read next? Not that these are not important and necessary things to think about but in the big picture of the Kingdom of God they are momentary and passing.

I realise that for mothers at home we have priorities and God glorifying ones at that. Our children and our home are what God has called us to first and foremost. Our hearts and our prayers, however, can be for those who face the powers of darkness daily. We can instill into our children, hearts for God that put Him first, hearts that "Seek first the Kingdom of God".

I am reminded of the words of Jim Elliot, another missionary martyr, who died at the end of an Auca Indian spear.....

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

A Modest Heart....

On the 'Girl Talk' blog I mentioned a few posts ago I came across 2 very interesting articles.

The first is the testimony of a girl called Rachel Barkley. Rachel is a wife, a mother of two children, and she is not expected to live to see her 38th birthday. She has cancer. In the video "Death is not dying, a faith that saves." you can hear how she loves the Lord and is looking to Him. This is a very real and moving testimony I would recommend you watch it. Have a Kleenex handy......

The second thing is a talk on 'A Modest Heart' by Janelle Bradshaw. You can listen to it here.

Praise God he continues to teach us through many different means but ultimately His Word is the light to our feet and the guide to our paths.

Spring Fling

Mrs Yvonne Reddig a dear lady in our church, opened her home and ranch for the whole church to go up and enjoy a day of fun, fellowship and food near Marysville last Saturday. What a blessed time we had. There was horse riding, B B gun shooting, boating on the pond, obstacle races and the balloon toss. What a great day it was , the weather was perfect, the fellowship, sweet and the food delicious.

Our girls had great fun on the horses ,this is Esther.....

Here is Lois......

And last but not least, Deborah.....

Andrew decided to try his hand at Bee Bee gun shooting.....

Thanks Yvonne for a great day, hope it becomes a tradition!!

My Mum and Dad....

This is my mum....

Please pray for her as she is in hospital following a car accident last Sunday......

She has a fractured elbow and some broken bones in her hands.....

They cannot move her to the hospital for her surgery until her breathing has regularised....

My Dad is at home nursing some fractured ribs....

Thank you

As Mother's Day Approach's...

For Mother's Day I thought I would post something thought-provoking and inspiring...but why re invent the wheel.

Head on over to Girl Talk and read a great series of 'different' mother's day messages.

I wish all you mums, mums-in-law, grandma's, and mums to be

a very

Happy Mother's Day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDREW!

Its Andrew's birthday he is 9 today, May 8th and we are so excited!....

I can't wait..."Where's my presents! Where's my presents!".....

OK, someone better get the presents...QUICK!!

Thanks everyone...these are great, I wasn't really going to hurt anyone...you knew that!!

Love the shirt...LEGO my favourite,

....the animals

and wait for it....Lego, now there's a surprise!!!

Now for breakfast.... I get to pick,

now that's what I call pancakes!! Thanks Mum.

Just in case anyone doesn't know....Andrew loves LEGO, so I decided to make him a Lego brick for his cake this year. Lois decorated it. Thanks, Lois.

In the evening we went out to Red Robin for a birthday meal with the family...

We had a tower of onion rings to share.

I enjoyed being with my family....

Last but not least I got a special ice cream treat as a gift from the restaurant.

I even got a special song....


After we went home Andrew got to blow out his candles and have some cake....

It was a great day!! We love you son.
We pray you will "..seek, serve and follow Christ"

End of School Electives....

3D Sculpting and FUNdamental Engineering. (Emphasis on the FUN!!)

These were the elective classes the kids took this semester through the charter school we are involved with. They had their last class yesterday followed by an Open House.

Esther and Deborah were our artists sculpting shells from papier mache and bikes from wire.

Esther's bowl

Deborah's Bowl

Open Day..... Deborah and Esther at their displays

Deborah's bowl, mask and dolphin...which is now painted bluish grey.

Andrew's Class...every little Lego guys dream...and they call it school!!!

Andrew with his hydraulically powered aeroplane. Below is a video of the his 'Bug Crawler!!'



We've had a good year at school and we're looking forward to our summer holidays. Just 20 days to go...YEAH!!!

A couple of good blogs...

Recently I became familiar with the blog that CJ Mahaney's wife, Carolyn writes in along with her grown up children. It is well worth a read, there are many good posts that we can benefit from as christian women. It is called Girl Talk.

The second one is called Radical Womanhood. It is written by a lady called Carolyn Mc Culley. She has written 2 books called Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World (Moody Publishers, 2008) and Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye? Trusting God with a Hope Deferred (Crossway, 2004). Both these ladies are members of Covenant Life Church, MD

New Camera...

Well about a month ago my camera decided it didn't want to take any more photos. I was really miffed as it had cost us a lot and would have cost a lot more to send it away to get fixed. So I had resigned myself to the fact that I would not have a camera for a long time again. Lois was very kind to lend hers to me for a few occasions. However today Rob was off and had taken me to lunch ( very nice indeed) and on the way home I suggested we go see the Ritz Camera Shop that was closing down. I never manage to get any bargains at these kind of things but I thought we'd go and see what kind of cost would be involved. Long story short it paid off!! We got a little Olympus camera for 1/2 price!!!YEAH!! So it did not take me long to go and shoot a few pictures to try it out. Here are a few of my amateur shots....
This little bird lives in the eaves of the house next door. The zoom is pretty good!!

One of the beautiful roses in the front yard...strange how it looks even more pretty after a rain shower....

OK "Why did she take a picture of the number of her house?" I hear you ask. Well here is a little tip for all you DIY ladies who also want to save a little bit of cash. We moved to our house a year ago and the lamps and numbers outside were a terrible brass colour ( sorry if yours are brass its just not my taste.) I priced some new ones and they were too expensive for us at the minute to change so I went to Walmart and bought a can of black satin spray paint $3.47. I took as much of the light down as I could and taped newspaper behind it. I removed the numbers completely. I then proceeded to spray all that was brass. I have to say I was so pleased with the finish the kids were fed up with me admiring it every time we left the house. It really only took me about 1 1/2 hrs to finish the whole job. My next project is the brass light fitting inside the house.

It also takes video...enjoy!