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We arrived home on Mon. evening, the 16th after a delightful two weeks in Ireland! We were on a tour with a choir picked by Urie Sharp-18 total and we were to the Emerald Isle and called ourselves the Emerald Chorale. Lee and I were asked to go along to cook and it was such a privilege!
We left our home on Mon., the 2nd of June and traveled to Terre Hill HS where we all met and went by bus to JFK airport. Jay Fox drove the bus from their school.
After several hours wait, we flew to Ireland and arrived there at about 7 in the morning. The Dan Yoder family met us with a bus and took us to their community-Dunmore east. On the drive to Dunmore East, we stopped at the Bunratty Castle and park. It was very interesting and at first I thought, "why are we stopping to sight-see before we are settled in?" But it was great! It gave us a feel for the history of the Island, and gave good exercise after many hours of sitting. Actually the entire two weeks was very planned and precise.
We went to the church after our castle venture and were shown where we would stay. The guys stayed in the church-had a shower and washer. The ladies were at Dan Yoders about 3 miles away, and Urie's and Lee and I were at the Nathanael Yoders who live beside the church. It is a neat "community" of the church people. They really work together. Dan Yoders had us all to their place for supper. The whole church group was there.
the first two days the chorale practiced and the church ladies made our meals so we all could get acclimated. On Wed. Lee and I sat down with three of the ladies and discussed menus and travel plans-if lunches needed to be packed, etc.
Our first program was on Fri. evening at Kilkenny and it was a fairly large church and good attendance. We ate our meal on the way home that we packed.
Sat. morning we toured Waterford Crystal factory. Ever heard of Waterford glass? It is simply fascinating-they make each piece by hand and we watched! As a result, it is very expensive, but they have NO seconds. If it doesn't get perfect, it is heated over and redone!
the program was at the Dunmore East Christian Fellowship church (a Beachy church) and was packed out. We made supper after the program which was a common occurrence throughout our stay, and getting to bed late was a regular. It is daylight until about 10:30, so it seems earlier than it really is.
Sunday morning we gave a program at the local Catholic church which was a first and a joy to be able to sing there. It was the 8:30 Mass and it sounded soooo good in there!
Sunday afternoon we left for an evening program and did not return until after a program on Tues. evening. The three churches we sang in each evening gave us a meal and that was so very nice. We had a lovely tea at the one, with sandwiches(small), luscious desserts and all the tea you could drink. The Irish have tea at 10 am and 3 p.m. every day. I soon learned that too much tea too late in the day produces a hard time to fall asleep at night! Their tea is not decaffeinated and not herbal teas, either.
Mon. we toured Dublin, the capital, saw the Kells at Trinity College and thousands of books in the historical library. The Kells are a very old document found a long time ago and is a Catholic treasure.
We slept at a hostel on Mon. evening and got up early to go to Newgrange, WOW! That was something to see! There is a tomb there that is believed to be the oldest structure in the world. It is dated at 3200 BC. It is just amazing the engineering skills they used way back then. The huge rocks had to be brought in and it would have been all hand labor. I think it took 15 years to build it. Get on the internet and search for the tombs in Newgrange, Ireland. You will be fascinated and I can't begin to tell you the half.
Tues. evening on the way home, we gave a program in Waterford.
Then on Wed. morning we took a cliff wald by the sea and it was breathtaking.
Also went to see a lighthouse and a famine ship. This ship is built like the ships they used during the severe famine in the 1840's and thousands of people died and thousands left on ships to Australia or the US. Our ticket had a family's name on it and we could find the LITTLE space that family occupied.
Thurs. we left, never to return to "headquarters". Sang in churches every evening. Sunday morning we were at the church we gave a program Sat. evening and stayed in homes of people from that church. We were blessed to stay with a couple that lived in a renovated castle and the view was the most beautiful I believe I have ever seen! An inlet from the Atlantic with mountains in the background, lovely sky and a wonder of an Almighty Creator!!
We toured a catheradal that was very ornate with probably 70" high ceilings and sang in it just for the fun of it, Was absolutely heavenly!
We had some time for shopping, too, different times and also had a scenic trip to one of the churches where there was an evening program.
We left for the airport Mon. morning from our motel and flew West, arriving about 2 p.m. and riding home again on the school bus back to Terre Hill and then home. The chorale had an evening program at White Oak Church of the Brethern on Tues. evening, but we came home as we had Bible school last week.
I must close this epistle and tell you (you would never guess:)) that it was a wonderful trip and I thank the Lord for the safety, health, prayers of people back home and the opportunity He afforded us to have!!
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| Last evening we were in PA and had dinner at Country Table in Mt. Joy to celebrate Lee's oldest brother's 50th wedding anniversary. It was a fun evening and great food.
We enjoyed a wedding celebration earlier this year of Deaniel Yoder and Katrina Yoder in DE. We had the privilege of hosting the rehearsal dinner on Fri. evening and then the pleasure of attending the simple but elegant wedding on Sat.
Sarasota. FL was a wonderful reprieve in Feb. from the "blahs" of late winter in MD. BMA had Ministerial Enrichment week there, and it was a blessing in many ways-weather wise, spiritual wise, food wise and relaxing wise. We had so much fun riding bikes. One day I think we probably rode 5 miles. We arrived 2 days early and had some time for sightseeing. The gulf was beautiful and I think I move fast sometimes-WELL, those sand pipers little legs make a blur when they are in motion. We saw some graceful, snowy egrets and you had to look several seconds to see if they were real. They can remain so still you think they are lawn ornaments.
We had a granddaughter who got married in Feb. and a grandson that will marry in May. How is that for age advancement?? It hardly seems believable that we are at that stage in life but then when you witness the mileage on your torso, it is a bit more believable:) But you will agree with me, won't you? that they just don't make mirrors of quality like they used to!
June looks adventuresome with our planning to accompany the Emerald Singers to Ireland. Urie and Delilah Sharp dropped a bomb shell on us several months ago and ask us to go along and keep stomachs filled for the group of about 20. We accepted the challenge and will have to give account of the "fair green country" upon our return.
Until then, God's blessings to each of you who were brave enough to complete reading these rambllings.
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| This morning as I was going over my "children' church" message, my illustration hit me in a vivid way. My point in the message is that God is looking for good, taking it from 2Ch 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. King Asa previously had put his trust in God and now he had called a heathen king to help him.
One of my illustrations is the 7 applications I have right now for service at the orphanage in Mexico. What hit me is that we are looking for good applicants for missionaries. We do not get these application because we are interested in getting bad missionaries.
And that is what the scripture in 2Chronicles points out. God is looking for the good but what does he find. How about me and you, will he find a perfect heart in us or will he find us depending on someone or something else as he found with King Asa in the scripture.
Lee
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| After a "decade" of silence, the Lee/Joyce team has chosen to break the record and send ya'al warm Christmas greetings!
2007 has flown by at Concord speed, it seems. We have had a busy year of travel here and there and at this hour, about to embark on yet another venture. Tomorrow we plan to go to SMBI and pack suitcases of food for a week long tour with choir, leaving early on Fri. morning. Hopefully the food will arrive when we do, and in edible form. It should be an interesting week and marks about the tenth time on the Island for Lee and I.
Church planting investigations have taken us to WI, TX, TN and Quebec. It is exciting to be involved in Kingdom work and the Lord has been so good!
Just this past weekend our family was together for Christmas. It was wonderful! Since two of our children live a distance, we are together usually about 3 days and it makes for some fun times and short nights! An activity we did this time was to work at the Maryland Food Bank for a few hours. It was fulfilling, after seeing a film on the outreach of the Food Bank to hungry people, and then to help in a small way to feed them.
We also had a shower for our oldest granddaughter who plans to marry in Feb. That was fun! We made her a gown of toilet tissue and had some intuitive ideas for it from the guests.
Have a Blessed Christmas and may the Lord open up the windows of heaven and pour out His goodness on you in 2008!
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