tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39741648087434979622024-02-18T17:53:12.196-08:00Olive Tree: Growing Green in God's HouseReflections on Faith and Cross-Cultural LivingBetsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.comBlogger137125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-59392145126020229452014-01-20T05:33:00.000-08:002014-01-20T05:33:13.444-08:00New Blogging Location<span style="font-size: x-large;">I've moved! You can visit my new blog, <a href="http://faithspillingover.com/">faithspillingover.com</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I want my faith to spill over into my everyday life, even during life's glitches and bumpy moments, and that's what I write about at Faith Spilling Over.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEhEZBXONIcwYVnjnhwbYOBMQrFjxXNkCSbQ2YcwLNWgEZuiMDPLVZA64vKSnNITtmpT6uxyq4qml-FCBdUvIhMMSidlNhSnIh8tgMgeTLWKPWL7ohk4asjp0FQmzYAP_WRjbGGkCYho/s1600/DSCN7784.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEhEZBXONIcwYVnjnhwbYOBMQrFjxXNkCSbQ2YcwLNWgEZuiMDPLVZA64vKSnNITtmpT6uxyq4qml-FCBdUvIhMMSidlNhSnIh8tgMgeTLWKPWL7ohk4asjp0FQmzYAP_WRjbGGkCYho/s1600/DSCN7784.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I also write monthly for Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion, follow this link for my newest post on cross-cultural life: <a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2014/01/when-you-feel-like-it-never-rains-but.html">"When You Feel Like It Never Rains, But It Pours." </a></span><br />
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<br />Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-10720123865595910792013-11-08T21:24:00.000-08:002013-11-08T21:24:02.453-08:00Hope When Your Faith is Faltering<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKKPehM0l5kESyktNhrsVbDzbcyUTh4c569ecrD84nlXrjrIpOWMZPai48XmyGDbimGvtRzSjlYOxdBiYdI3VeVdGpacQ57uyB8am5YjKEpVMVTcRvkjimyQHMD9k1oEDpBSEFJD_MdE/s1600/spring+scrapbook+020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKKPehM0l5kESyktNhrsVbDzbcyUTh4c569ecrD84nlXrjrIpOWMZPai48XmyGDbimGvtRzSjlYOxdBiYdI3VeVdGpacQ57uyB8am5YjKEpVMVTcRvkjimyQHMD9k1oEDpBSEFJD_MdE/s320/spring+scrapbook+020.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;">I smile as I think of you, my sisters serving in different ministries on different parts of the globe. You are caring for children, cooking, cleaning, teaching, discipling, leading Bible studies, and supporting your husbands. You are amazing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;"><span style="color: #222222;">I know Paul was describing </span><b style="color: #222222;"><i>you</i></b><span style="color: #222222;">when he said,</span><span style="color: #38761d;"> </span><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">“We always thank God for all of you…We remember before our God and Father your work produced by</span> faith<span style="color: #6aa84f;">, your labor prompted by </span>love<span style="color: #6aa84f;">, and your endurance inspired by </span>hope<span style="color: #6aa84f;"> in our Lord Jesus Christ.”</span></b><span style="color: #38761d;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">(1 Thess. 1:3) Our service is motivated by faith, hope, and love, but I have to tell you sisters, my faith is flagging before the new challenge I’m facing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;">Three years ago my husband and I started the biggest faith adventure of our lives...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;"><a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2013/11/hope-when-your-faith-is-faltering.html">Head here to read the rest of my post on Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion.</a></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-5979146483803185252013-08-31T04:22:00.005-07:002013-08-31T04:22:53.232-07:00Wedding, Circumcision, or Baptism?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfvf0BvcWARlu4Xuie2b7dKrIpoMwvsIdkDhIMt2JnHGwFvSkdGYMQwqjjH31y2_F8_P3kvuz65XAthrontJxIpe1L9jF_4o6ukU5lq_4ZuiHoh-pSX7-y20IFl-DWtxpmFRMsnZYo_M/s1600/baptism+family+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfvf0BvcWARlu4Xuie2b7dKrIpoMwvsIdkDhIMt2JnHGwFvSkdGYMQwqjjH31y2_F8_P3kvuz65XAthrontJxIpe1L9jF_4o6ukU5lq_4ZuiHoh-pSX7-y20IFl-DWtxpmFRMsnZYo_M/s400/baptism+family+picture.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ten minutes before my teenagers’ baptism was
scheduled to begin, God drenched our entire city in a torrential downpour, the
first rain in three months. Rain dripped and poured into the building through
cracks in windows and. Friends called, saying
they were stranded. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“Oh no,” I thought, “We’ve been waiting for this
milestone celebration for such a long time. How can this be happening?”</span></div>
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<i>To read the rest of this post, head over to<a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2013/08/wedding-circumcision-or-baptism.html"> Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion.</a></i></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-57716166125988488172013-08-04T23:12:00.000-07:002013-08-04T23:14:13.265-07:00Welcome to the Launch of My New Blog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TEwHejbUmmnc93o6vw2AUn513-Uh_sNEdMxekiqiLNvyj-ycj194qOMXCuPSwZKusGrG4TomffKEPymAktqfskbhWgDs3OBY6b4U-12ziI7-wjzSjeRMjNqntwLX5ggsLE0JNnefPcE/s1600/DSCN7190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TEwHejbUmmnc93o6vw2AUn513-Uh_sNEdMxekiqiLNvyj-ycj194qOMXCuPSwZKusGrG4TomffKEPymAktqfskbhWgDs3OBY6b4U-12ziI7-wjzSjeRMjNqntwLX5ggsLE0JNnefPcE/s400/DSCN7190.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;"><b>Today I'm launching my
new blog, Faith Spilling Over into Everyday Life.</b></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">I love my Olive Tree
blog and the community of friends I've found through it, but I sense God
calling me to a new venture. Faith Spilling Over will focus on letting your
relationship with God spill over into everyday life, even during the bumpy
moments, like when you have a family blow-up, complete with fireworks, during
breakfast, right after you prayed for peace!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Although I’ll continue
to write a bit about my cross-cultural life, because it’s part of who I am, you’ll
notice a definite change of focus on my new blog. I may post occasionally on Olive Tree, but to keep
my life simple, most of my writing will be for Faith Spilling Over.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>I’d love for you to
visit me there and have a look for yourself. <a href="http://faithspillingover.com/">Follow this link to Faith SpillingOver. </a></b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>I hope to see you there,<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">Olive</b></div>
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Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-32852223972505457372013-08-02T22:29:00.004-07:002013-08-02T22:29:45.840-07:00Mama Needs Time to Play Too<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNbVsfQ17oU_0l9PNQ4ybUg6MJRGokzRfkzOvFCX6kyJe0uRowV7Wp-eWPcaKY56J0qp8HTVD_l985u00t8-eCfAZAjMWPeMsvJXX4F8jckZRWp4f_QX1dx0u3COaZ5atNb028FrCNssDN/s1600/DSCN7286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNbVsfQ17oU_0l9PNQ4ybUg6MJRGokzRfkzOvFCX6kyJe0uRowV7Wp-eWPcaKY56J0qp8HTVD_l985u00t8-eCfAZAjMWPeMsvJXX4F8jckZRWp4f_QX1dx0u3COaZ5atNb028FrCNssDN/s400/DSCN7286.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">A few of my daughter's creative pursuits</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">The saying, “A Woman’s work is never done” perfectly describes our role as cross-cultural worker mamas. We care for children, cook and clean with few conveniences, home school, get involved with local schools, and study language on the side. We support our husbands’ ministry, invite people into our homes, and sometimes have ministries of our own outside of our families!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"><a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2013/08/mama-needs-time-to-play-too.html">Head over to Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion to read the rest of my post</a></span>Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-53259424757369790362013-07-26T08:55:00.001-07:002013-07-26T08:58:02.017-07:00Stay Tuned...<span style="font-size: large;">Hello Friends,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I'm still working on my new blog. I should have it up by August 5th. I'll keep you posted.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">May God bless you all on your summer endeavors.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Love,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Olive</span>Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-41123650930429896902013-07-17T22:41:00.000-07:002013-07-17T22:41:02.142-07:00Summer Cooking: Turkish Rice Salad<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiySlHkspB_7y1J60JG3nDfUZtn4nMi06mJiPF1MEPoe5cdB-QoDEsiDWtK-Qd1mp8vSKohvd4e69a_BcMIX_nlYh0W1XF0EosP613nkPiHlcHaqpIaHGzQ8uqYwpL_I3e0Cyb1LFazw9U/s1600/DSCN7155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiySlHkspB_7y1J60JG3nDfUZtn4nMi06mJiPF1MEPoe5cdB-QoDEsiDWtK-Qd1mp8vSKohvd4e69a_BcMIX_nlYh0W1XF0EosP613nkPiHlcHaqpIaHGzQ8uqYwpL_I3e0Cyb1LFazw9U/s320/DSCN7155.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">With summer heat in full swing, I don’t know about
you, but I don’t feel much like cooking. My kitchen is an oven between 4 and 6
p.m., so I try to stay out of there as much as possible. Turkish housewives are
practical; many of them cook in the morning, when it’s cooler, and then they
have food ready for later in the day.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> <b> </b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>I,
on the other hand, am not so organized.</b> So I’m always on the lookout for quick
and easy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here’s a simple recipe, great for summertime. Turks
call it “Chinese Rice,” which mystifies me. As far as I know, there’s nothing remotely Chinese
about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;">Turkish Rice Salad (<i>Cin Pilavi*</i>)</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
cup rice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
cups water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4
TBSP olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¾
cup frozen corn <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¾
cup frozen peas<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¾
cup carrots, diced in small cubes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1/3
- 1/2 cup dill pickle, diced in small cubes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3
TBSP chopped fresh dill weed (or 1-2 tsp. dried dill)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1. Cook the rice by sautéing it in 1 TBSP olive oil; then
add 2 cups of water and 1 tsp. salt. Let
it simmer 10-15 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Stir to fluff it, and let it cool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2. Thaw or gently cook the frozen vegetables. (If you live in the U.S., simply thawing them
works fine. If you live in Turkey, these need to be cooked 2-3 minutes.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3. When the rice and vegetables are at room
temperature, gently toss them together with the chopped carrots, pickles and
dill. Drizzle with 3 TBSP olive oil and continue tossing. Serve cold or at room temperature. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This serves 4-5 as a vegetarian main dish, or 8 as a
side dish. Turks fill a small bowl with the salad and unmold it onto each
individual plate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Afiyet Olsun!</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 115%;">*I’ll correct “Cin Pilavi” as soon as I find the
Turkish keyboard on my new computer! </span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-90705493713451078572013-07-11T04:37:00.001-07:002013-07-11T05:18:52.269-07:00"Do What You Can" Summer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGLFHSz99X1JUA5i2z6hyphenhyphenqwJ47CGWYl9jpplyKf2orKAliPdN3IwYjZEgdUie-O-TtXJ4sbTmOdi46_mg90QaTH34vVT_DoUK_J3nktskH260dPgMl583ap6MyvZc4azqdRaFlG2cFQg/s1600/Palamut+Buku,red+black+belt,+Camille+b-day+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGLFHSz99X1JUA5i2z6hyphenhyphenqwJ47CGWYl9jpplyKf2orKAliPdN3IwYjZEgdUie-O-TtXJ4sbTmOdi46_mg90QaTH34vVT_DoUK_J3nktskH260dPgMl583ap6MyvZc4azqdRaFlG2cFQg/s320/Palamut+Buku,red+black+belt,+Camille+b-day+014.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What is summer like in your corner of the
globe? Here in our Aegean home, summer’s
all about a laid back, slower pace.
Ramadan started this week, so many friends and neighbors will be lying low
during the hot afternoons while they fast long hours from food and water. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m taking
advantage of extra free time to start a new project. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In a few weeks, I’ll start a new blog, and I’m
already excited about it.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Change and
variety add spice to my life, so I decided to try a new angle on blogging.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;">"Do What You Can Plan" </span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One thing that’s encouraging me to make time for a
new project is <a href="http://holleygerth.com/">Holly Gerth’s</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Plan-Ebook-Shorts-ebook/dp/B00AFWM2VS/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1373542075&sr=1-1&keywords=do+what+you+can+plan"><i>Do What You Can Plan: 21 Days to Making Any Area of Your Life Better</i>.</a> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;">Holly’s book is great encouragement for taking baby steps towards big dreams that seem out of reach. My ultimate dream is writing a book, but for right now, blogging seems like a more attainable goal for this home schooling, church planting mom.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Meant to be read
over 21 days, the book has a short devotional reading and an application point
for each day. Holly talks about starting
small, doing what you can each day, and not waiting for the perfect time to
start! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I have other summer projects that aren’t so
exciting, like de-cluttering and organizing closets and drawers, but I’m trying
to set aside some time each day to work on my new writing project. I’ll keep
you posted on my progress.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;"><b>How about you? </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Do you have any summer projects that
you’re working on? Any dreams you wish
you had time for? I’d love to hear how you’re spending your summer.</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-86410549685654145702013-07-04T07:34:00.001-07:002013-07-11T04:38:25.742-07:00Enjoying the Journey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVcRzi91WBDwZhwaF5mjvkJ7BWXsjw-a4xJPQjda3aKONUtr35I1zhBaxY-4ONDCSg4LwsZywz9EX_HFW21UhcULtOi7dp0MrrKEpqng7PWF1Ysi5hxcep9aeYaNRqdMLVwQrUs2Bzfg/s1600/fuller-cactus+071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVcRzi91WBDwZhwaF5mjvkJ7BWXsjw-a4xJPQjda3aKONUtr35I1zhBaxY-4ONDCSg4LwsZywz9EX_HFW21UhcULtOi7dp0MrrKEpqng7PWF1Ysi5hxcep9aeYaNRqdMLVwQrUs2Bzfg/s320/fuller-cactus+071.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Travel is part and parcel of the cross-cultural
life, but let’s face it, most of us dislike airplane and car travel. We look
forward to arriving at our destination, but the actual trip is a drag.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Last month I took two trips: a 27 hour
airplane journey over 10 time zones from Izmir to Los Angeles to stay 6 days
and come back, and then a 9 hour car drive to stay at the beach for 2 days
before returning home.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I dreaded our first day of air travel because it
included a 5 and a half hour layover in Munich.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;"><b>To my surprise it was an eye-opening epiphany.</b></span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;"><b> </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the way to the airport a thought came to me: “What
if I just decided to enjoy the trip, long flights, layover and all?” After all, I’m a busy home schooling, church
planting mother. Why wouldn’t I enjoy the chance to sit down, read, watch
movies, eat, and sleep? That decision to enjoy the trip changed my day, and even
the dreaded layover turned out to be pleasant. My husband and I had an interesting bistro lunch and spent hours reading, something we never find time to do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Two days after our return from California, it happened
again. Still jet lagged, I was cringing
at the thought of a 9 hour car trip, but my husband and I decided to take our
time and enjoy the trip. When we stopped at a road-side tea garden, we met with
a little serendipity. Sipping delicious
hot tea under some cherry trees, our eyes were opened to the beauty of the
moment. We heard the wind sailing through the trees and felt a cooling breeze.
It was a perfect moment that we could have easily missed. It lifted our spirits and cheered us on for
the rest of the trip.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;"><b>Life is full of journeys. </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We have dreams and goals we want to accomplish. Most
of our time is spent on our way somewhere or working towards something, but the
sweet taste of victory is short-lived.
My husband spent 5 years working to complete his doctorate, but the
graduation ceremonies lasted a short 3 days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sometimes the road seems long, and our anxiety about
arriving at our destination is great. We forget to enjoy life where we are
because we’re focused on where we wish we were. I don’t want to miss out on life
by always wishing I was somewhere else. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;"><b>So How To Enjoy the Trip?</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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</div>
<ul>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">Adopt a Positive Attitude. If you start acting happy, you’re more likely to feel that way.</span></b></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">Find little things to take pleasure in each day</span></b></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">Be grateful</span></b></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">Enjoy the process while you work on your goals</span></b></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">View actual travel as a delightful part of vacationing,
even when things go wrong!</span></b></li>
</ul>
<div>
</div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>What about you? Are you going on any long trips or
working on any long-term projects this summer? What are your thoughts on
enjoying the journey?</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-17978914351188877982013-06-05T06:00:00.003-07:002013-06-05T06:00:52.115-07:00Taking a Break When Life Gets too Fast<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBCpQxwZeTgbAlvrXUH_OOHE_OYqiwRbWoCIz2A5KPGCwVmx8I03d7pu-pFwvFbm3GHt23aK-gmMQIFfR9hwIzM56vUMtXEEEwQyzq40oLmg_GXPo-t6oy_FtTqxAHLigsdKCJT1a93c/s1600/ayvalik+059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBCpQxwZeTgbAlvrXUH_OOHE_OYqiwRbWoCIz2A5KPGCwVmx8I03d7pu-pFwvFbm3GHt23aK-gmMQIFfR9hwIzM56vUMtXEEEwQyzq40oLmg_GXPo-t6oy_FtTqxAHLigsdKCJT1a93c/s320/ayvalik+059.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Life is going too fast for me to find time for
writing, so I’m taking a break.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The last month has been full of teaching
commitments, end of the school year events, birthdays, trips, meetings, and home
schooling. This week I'm remembering that God is in control as every day brings news of people getting hurt during the political protests here in Turkey. At the same time I’m preparing
for a trip to the U.S. June 11-19. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;">Life is a whirlwind, but God is in the center.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">I will return to my blog July 4<sup>th</sup>.</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Until then, I hope that the Lord gives you joy and
peace for each day. </span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-77189950764788042642013-05-17T07:17:00.000-07:002013-07-04T07:35:43.866-07:00Taking Hospitality With a Grain of Salt<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 19px; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYEw6aSJxXwsA_nzR7ptEra_7d4WdrOH9JBT_XuzqXkICckb4y7KNYE00LWSvYH4qa8a-hgoKki9JL0yAsLf9K-Sk-iDExl0vil4IZsUJDslv_xbSWVHlp9vfhxxyaaOSdrbY-CSpWlw/s1600/laughing+at+ourselves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYEw6aSJxXwsA_nzR7ptEra_7d4WdrOH9JBT_XuzqXkICckb4y7KNYE00LWSvYH4qa8a-hgoKki9JL0yAsLf9K-Sk-iDExl0vil4IZsUJDslv_xbSWVHlp9vfhxxyaaOSdrbY-CSpWlw/s320/laughing+at+ourselves.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
<div style="font-size: 19px; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Blessed
is the man who can laugh at himself, for he will never cease to be amused.” </span></i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">This proverb is one of my favorites. It reminds me not to
take myself so seriously.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Being able to laugh at myself
certainly helped me during a recent catastrophe. My husband and I had guests,
and when I stood up to re-fill the tea glasses, the slip I was wearing under my
skirt mysteriously slid down in perfect ring around my feet! I won't go
into that story now, but I'm pretty sure it broke the norms of hospitality in
any country, not just here in Turkey. (<i>I still can’t believe it really
happened</i>.)</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">On a more serious note,
one thing I appreciate about living here is the chance it gives me to learn
more about hospitality. Turks are some of the most generous and gracious hosts
I've ever seen. Hospitality is a virtue and an art, whether it's a casual visit
over Turkish coffee and a piece of chocolate or a dinner with 10 different
dishes. I've learned a lot about how to receive guests in my home, but honestly
I sometimes feel pressured to somehow live up to Turkish standards, and If I
compare myself to them, I'll always fall short!</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Here are some helpful
lessons I’ve learned:</b></span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Relax and be yourself</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I'll never be the <i>Perfect
Turkish Hostess (P.T.H.)</i>, and that is okay! Instead I try to relax in
and be who I am. The P.T.H. is elegantly dressed and serves delectable treats
while she chats effortlessly with guests. She probably only exists in my head.
I'm much better at being myself than at striving to put on a show of elaborate
hospitality that just leaves me feeling stressed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Keep it simple</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Sometimes it feels like I’m forever
in the kitchen preparing food for meetings or for guests. This is a
warning that I’m striving too hard to be a P.T.H., and I’d better simplify
things instead. I've seen Turks get out a simple assortment of nuts, fruits and
bought cookies for visitors. That’s a lot easier than baking a cake.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 19px;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Focus on your Guests</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I can't prepare a 10 course meal and
be happy and relaxed when my guests arrive. What I can do is a salad, main
dish, rice and maybe a vegetable or soup. If I keep things simple, I'm more
relaxed and able to actually enjoy time with friends. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Find a Middle Ground</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I want to be cross-culturally
relevant, so that Turks can relate to me. I try to do some things their way. I
can kiss my guests, offer slippers, pass around lemon cologne (if I remember)
and make Turkish coffee. But on the inside, I’m still American, and I need to
be myself as well. For example, a few weeks ago, I had to gently explain to a
guest that I needed to leave, something that a P.T.H. would try to avoid. I
find that most of my Turkish friends are extremely understanding and kind when I
do things differently.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Laugh at yourself when things don't
go as planned</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">During the <a href="http://olivetreeingodshouse.blogspot.com/2011/07/still-breaking-rules-after-10-years.html">Classic Turkish Moment</a> I
wrote about last week, when I found myself serving a dinner I’d made for 4 to 9
people instead, I laughed. What else could I do? Keeping my sense of
humor helps me to continue enjoying cross-cultural life and time with my
friends.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: black; font-size: large;"><b>After all, isn't enjoyment what gracious hospitality is all about?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black;">I am posting this from my archives, so that I can focus on two different talks I need to prepare this week.</span></div>
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-64166355697660541692013-05-09T04:33:00.003-07:002013-07-04T07:36:30.854-07:00Why I Can Now Be a Real, Bona-Fide Turkish Housewife<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yesterday I celebrated my 49<sup>th</sup> birthday
and made it to #2,985 on my One Thousands Gifts List. See my list below to find out which gift
makes me qualify to be a real-life, bona-fide Turkish housewife:</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGXwygWmWLv4yP13Q-0OR5KtBXHgo2clhdAzNaahvr6bv-NM6zFACl0Yr7eodUPiahLB-8Tr-qgqzOPyalHycfbzDgnhyyX_92l0tlxmNlHCopkmVBJ9EZHcyvMQKZL0hddx7eJxh_mDI/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGXwygWmWLv4yP13Q-0OR5KtBXHgo2clhdAzNaahvr6bv-NM6zFACl0Yr7eodUPiahLB-8Tr-qgqzOPyalHycfbzDgnhyyX_92l0tlxmNlHCopkmVBJ9EZHcyvMQKZL0hddx7eJxh_mDI/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+016.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b># 2, 977.</b> The sweet sister who organized my birthday breakfast.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLRJcdHYBLlgEfOqd37mj9oH-Po3RL2GLbe4DDK0p1NLSQ9tdQAUBFlWc82KegEjrObfC_1nnnq8hDd9EfQEl4TgI7CKrBLNUr4a94JuGSrYB40-thdhR8GHRXujnnALZcyPLRM-e_kMQ/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLRJcdHYBLlgEfOqd37mj9oH-Po3RL2GLbe4DDK0p1NLSQ9tdQAUBFlWc82KegEjrObfC_1nnnq8hDd9EfQEl4TgI7CKrBLNUr4a94JuGSrYB40-thdhR8GHRXujnnALZcyPLRM-e_kMQ/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+005.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b># 2,978.</b> Sixteen dear friends (not all shown here) <br />came to celebrate.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm8mSGgbRY5YTEvIrNx4HTbuR5fi3XLaYSIRi56UVfZjoRczJn2E1uKAnBBtzpZFwhLvZ3Xvb-BXoVaYHQm_YWxhHG5KFRv26E9tB00EW0eFO65lIAvu_lSZBtMpJucmOvlO4MdLqlIws/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm8mSGgbRY5YTEvIrNx4HTbuR5fi3XLaYSIRi56UVfZjoRczJn2E1uKAnBBtzpZFwhLvZ3Xvb-BXoVaYHQm_YWxhHG5KFRv26E9tB00EW0eFO65lIAvu_lSZBtMpJucmOvlO4MdLqlIws/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+018.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>#2,979.</b> Delicious food.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH2WvcZNV35i6xh8xPhb8aRygXfI-hqzXsLGVahFnvtO_VRLxcwMcEuK7xjNQXHquJdou8hXI99wgehlOHZOS5ItfJlDsxpxJD_EjFuLuNQw84R9eqWJobSrNRzt9-vfuP_xuj9MlCQdY/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH2WvcZNV35i6xh8xPhb8aRygXfI-hqzXsLGVahFnvtO_VRLxcwMcEuK7xjNQXHquJdou8hXI99wgehlOHZOS5ItfJlDsxpxJD_EjFuLuNQw84R9eqWJobSrNRzt9-vfuP_xuj9MlCQdY/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+060.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>#2, 980.</b> My very own <i>düdüklü tencere</i>! <br />Everyone contributed to buy me a pressure cooker. Now <br />I can qualify to be a bona-fide Turkish housewife and make my<br /><i>mercimek çorbası </i>(lentil soup) in no time!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUU298GGFSUzB8SZHk-Op7E6XdkHAYa9i7vMXrXtAvlONDLb82N0UBsiYQMTincaro3LlMZ2zniAL90UUPPcbE3W8ueGtX-u76IU2y7jMOE4YWKb22zt0TLIS8OlS9m1MKbP_B8dCasOE/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUU298GGFSUzB8SZHk-Op7E6XdkHAYa9i7vMXrXtAvlONDLb82N0UBsiYQMTincaro3LlMZ2zniAL90UUPPcbE3W8ueGtX-u76IU2y7jMOE4YWKb22zt0TLIS8OlS9m1MKbP_B8dCasOE/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+070.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>#2,981.</b> Every year I give thanks for the best gift I've <br />ever received: a great husband!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim2rhIDLbj0RQ9r-IrDJR-tS8EQ1HBp_P0MiXXBd8oubxWbq3uzRtY3S0oxzm2Ikecv2Th-spCxqllIxem6hgTCYRpdPG-_Do3WstPtkAOusHUeD0OwFAboBaEwLP8DCKIv19Q_1w2HeU/s1600/birthday+ciceklikoy+079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim2rhIDLbj0RQ9r-IrDJR-tS8EQ1HBp_P0MiXXBd8oubxWbq3uzRtY3S0oxzm2Ikecv2Th-spCxqllIxem6hgTCYRpdPG-_Do3WstPtkAOusHUeD0OwFAboBaEwLP8DCKIv19Q_1w2HeU/s320/birthday+ciceklikoy+079.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;"><b>#2,982.</b> My daughter wrote a poem about me.<br /><b>#2,983.</b> My son learned to play my favorite song:<br />"Take Me into the Beautiful."</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>#2984.</b> This year my birthday gift to myself was to memorize
Psalm 100. It reminds me to be
thankful even though the microwave just broke, we had the plumber to the house
twice yesterday, and the electricity was off this morning! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>
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<span class="text" style="color: #38761d;">Shout for joy</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #38761d;"> </span><span class="text" style="color: #38761d;">to the</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #38761d;"> </span><span class="small-caps" style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span></span><span class="text" style="color: #38761d;">, all the earth.</span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span id="en-NIV-15511"><b><sup> </sup></b></span><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">Worship
the</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="small-caps"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">with gladness;</span></span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;">
<span class="indent-1-breaks"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">come
before him</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">with joyful songs.</span></div>
</span>
<span class="text"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text"><b><sup><span id="en-NIV-15512"> </span></sup></b>Know that the</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="small-caps"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">is God.</span></div>
</span>
<span class="indent-1-breaks"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">It is he who made us,</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">and we are his;</span></div>
</span>
<span class="indent-1-breaks"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">we
are his people,</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">the sheep of his pasture.</span></div>
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b style="color: #38761d;"><sup> </sup></b><span style="color: #38761d;">Enter his gates with thanksgiving</span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">and
his courts</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">with praise;</span></span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;">
<span id="en-NIV-15513"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">give
thanks to him and praise his name.</span></div>
<span class="text"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text"><b><sup><span id="en-NIV-15514"> </span></sup></b>For the</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="small-caps"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">is good</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="text">and his love endures
forever;</span></div>
</span>
</span><span class="indent-1-breaks"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text">his faithfulness</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span class="text"><span style="color: #38761d;">continues through all generations.</span></span></div>
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<span class="text"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="text"></span><br />
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<span class="text"><span class="text"><span style="color: black;"><b>#2,985.</b>
I also give thanks for YOU, the friends who read my blog. </span></span><span style="color: black;">May the Lord bless you today, and remind
you that you are His, the sheep of His pasture!</span></span></div>
<span class="text">
</span></div>
</span></span>Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-85732157643895802672013-05-02T00:06:00.003-07:002013-05-02T00:12:57.135-07:00Hope for When You Still Don't Speak the Language<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">It’s easy to get discouraged about language learning, especially when you still don’t speak the language after five years!</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">During our fifth year, Turkish neighbors asked my husband, “So you’ve been living here a long time now.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">How come you don’t speak any better than this?” They didn’t mean to be unkind, but we were left speechless and discouraged.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihCDNsCfmEK5kglfkpjdxSxFXMKTvJ4Hkseq__3js8vRaTOgEMsEJELWlvIbYAgL-imPGLfnQsiasABA_Z454Mr4kvwXlwt1tyXWWMxwSZicI-VNUHHRHpuiqP3OV-KDJYEyorooEv3y9u/s1600/ayvalik+019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihCDNsCfmEK5kglfkpjdxSxFXMKTvJ4Hkseq__3js8vRaTOgEMsEJELWlvIbYAgL-imPGLfnQsiasABA_Z454Mr4kvwXlwt1tyXWWMxwSZicI-VNUHHRHpuiqP3OV-KDJYEyorooEv3y9u/s320/ayvalik+019.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">My Husband and Daughter</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">My husband Javier is my language learning </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">hero. Although he scored in the 25</span><sup style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 14px;">th</sup><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;"> percentile </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">on a language aptitude test given by our </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">organization, he came to Turkey at age 48, determined to learn Turkish. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s been a long road, and we’ve learned some things
together about language learning:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<div>
<b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 27px;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 27px;"><br /></span></b>
<a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2013/05/hope-for-when-you-still-dont-speak.html" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 27px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Follow this link to read the rest of my post on <i>Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion</i></b></span></a></div>
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Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-74202067363708453412013-04-25T11:27:00.002-07:002013-07-04T07:37:34.739-07:00When Language Learning Has Fried Your Brain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpkfMmVaQ1kAjt7IwOmrdKqQtx8AnArrLM0VwEDd86Vow_5-H0I4niYWYyDmKSXgHoD7DDuR0G57PEiNsPHkA51M7Rs0v0X3MrQMWWYKusFEw3N0A3i2tBbzfBwaMmFA5BB2dac2Bs04k/s1600/last+month+in+Izmir+Feb+2012+078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpkfMmVaQ1kAjt7IwOmrdKqQtx8AnArrLM0VwEDd86Vow_5-H0I4niYWYyDmKSXgHoD7DDuR0G57PEiNsPHkA51M7Rs0v0X3MrQMWWYKusFEw3N0A3i2tBbzfBwaMmFA5BB2dac2Bs04k/s200/last+month+in+Izmir+Feb+2012+078.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Is there anything more frustrating than language
learning for cross-cultural workers? My brain has been permanently addled by
the languages I’ve studied. I’m a French teach who no longer speaks French. I
used to be a totally fluent Spanish speaker, but now I stumble a bit. I’m more
comfortable speaking Turkish.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My experience with Turkish goes back 13 years. I
remember my first teacher, a 65 year old lady who peered at me through glasses
that magnified her eyes. She would make me repeat the same words and phrases 20
times, even when I had no idea how I was saying it wrong. I had to repeat everything
until she was satisfied I’d gotten it. After
13 years I still find myself stumbling through Turkish word order and prefixes.
I have to think back to how I started a sentence in order to finish it, and often
everything comes out garbled, but people understand me anyway. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;">Why Is Language Learning So Hard?</span></b></span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Language learning can be a headache for many
reasons. Sometimes there’s no language school; perhaps the language you’re
learning is extremely different than your own. (Spanish was much easier to
learn than Turkish, but I’m glad I don’t have to deal with Arabic or Chinese.) Parents
of small children barely have time for language study. It’s especially frustrating to live in a
country several years yet still struggle to speak the language.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Suggestions for the Journey:</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Keep a Positive Outlook</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Enjoy as many things as you can about your new
country even though you may not know the language perfectly yet. Resist the temptation to constantly evaluate
yourself in terms of your progress in language learning. Relax, and be patient with yourself. Remember
that you’re God’s child, and He loves you and has great plans for you, not
matter how well you speak Farsi or Spanish or German.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Don’t Play the Comparison Game</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s tempting to compare yourself with others who
speak better than you do, especially if they’ve been living in-country for the
same amount of time you have. Everyone has different gifts and callings, and
God can use us all, regardless of our language skills. I’ve met workers here who
barely speak Turkish, but manage to share God’s love effectively. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Think Long Term</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember that language learning is a marathon
activity, the fruit of patient diligence over years. Sooner or later you’ll get it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Keep Going</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do a little every day, and be consistent. Even if
you are caring for small children, purpose to set aside a half hour for study
each day. Try 15 minutes of reading or watch
one half hour of television. Small steps
over time lead to big improvements. Slow and steady wins the race.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It you are juggling home schooling or caring for
small children with language learning, you deserve a gold medal, so pat
yourself on the back. Join me next week
for more ideas about language learning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>What has your experience been?</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">You may also enjoy: <a href="http://olivetreeingodshouse.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-to-survive-your-first-year-overseas.html">How to Survive Your First Year Overseas</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
and <a href="http://olivetreeingodshouse.blogspot.com/2012/09/5-ways-to-deal-with-culture-shock.html">Five Ways to Deal with Culture Shock</a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-56702602867403956272013-04-18T05:24:00.000-07:002013-07-11T04:40:04.055-07:00Chocolate Cake in Olive Country<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My main service as a cross-cultural worker in Turkey
is probably cooking. I cook for my
family. I cook for other workers. I cook for our church meetings. I cook for
Turkish visitors. Fortunately for me, I enjoy cooking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Hospitality is important here. This is a chocolate
cake recipe that has saved my life countless times in twelve years here. When
Turkish women friends come over for tea, it’s customary to serve at least one <i>tatlı</i> (sweet) and one <i>tuzlu</i> (salty). Turks often serve more,
but this homeschooling mom sticks to the bare minimum. I know this recipe by
heart and can whip it up and throw it in the oven after school for afternoon
guests.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The best part is that Turks seem to like it. It’s
not always easy to find recipes that “translate” since tastes here are
different. When my kids were younger, Black Magic Cake was our default cake for
birthday parties, and several Turkish neighbors asked if I’d bake this cake for
their kids’ birthdays too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiieBzdSJgrywiBMw5fWJboeyyJ-JxOwGbNI9-rFN52Gg09E_GKKTrfBz0Ng0l2MsD5AU2kkNNvGrxELb0iHG5YaA3056Y-8tnxB9Nl1H4AEVbfTjx23kivLVe2mQv7vdq5WaONGZ_Mkwc/s1600/Alev,Camille's+b-day,taekwondo,+Sevda,+124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiieBzdSJgrywiBMw5fWJboeyyJ-JxOwGbNI9-rFN52Gg09E_GKKTrfBz0Ng0l2MsD5AU2kkNNvGrxELb0iHG5YaA3056Y-8tnxB9Nl1H4AEVbfTjx23kivLVe2mQv7vdq5WaONGZ_Mkwc/s320/Alev,Camille's+b-day,taekwondo,+Sevda,+124.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Magic Cake for a girl's 11th birthday.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7L8mX9YLhBLCYPskkbwKiiCZpEo_UaYV1z4N59YYoM-QTpXaQbp8-k2XG0F1uJpucYwQi7thmYch5zc3U7ZDCc4XR5aLcIPffUsEbeAy3fTwJRLO1rqEaZn8ZhHRqmD8Suln8Myqcpk/s1600/last+month+in+states,+arrival+in+turkey+076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7L8mX9YLhBLCYPskkbwKiiCZpEo_UaYV1z4N59YYoM-QTpXaQbp8-k2XG0F1uJpucYwQi7thmYch5zc3U7ZDCc4XR5aLcIPffUsEbeAy3fTwJRLO1rqEaZn8ZhHRqmD8Suln8Myqcpk/s320/last+month+in+states,+arrival+in+turkey+076.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Couldn't find birthday candles anywhere that year!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;">Black Magic Cake</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Sift together:</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
cups flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
cups sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¾
cup cocoa<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
tsp. baking soda<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp. baking powder<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Then
add and mix:</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
eggs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
cup black coffee (or one cup of water and 1 heaping tsp. instant coffee)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
cup milk<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
cup oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
tsp. vanilla (or two packets vanilla granules)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pour
into a greased and floured 11 x 15” cake pan.
Bake at 350-375 *F for 30 minutes. This cake turns out perfect every time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>American Style Butter cream Icing </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Beat
the following until smooth:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
lb. powdered sugar (450 g)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
cup butter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5-6
TBSP milk<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp. vanilla<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To
frost the top of a sheet cake, I cut this recipe in half. Turks don’t like our
sweet American icings, so a thin layer is best.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Alternate
icing if you live in Turkey:</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
packet of Krem </span><span lang="TR" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: TR;">Şanti<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span lang="TR" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: TR;">1 packet Dr. Oetker Krem Ole instant pudding<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span lang="TR" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: TR;">1 ½ - 2 cups cold milk.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Beat
until it reaches the desired consistency. Use 1 ½ cups milk and gradually add
more if the icing is too thick.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do
you have a favorite, “go-to” cake that turns out perfect every time? What is your experience baking for local people where you live? Do they have different tastes?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-66166331883483812902013-04-11T03:17:00.000-07:002013-04-11T11:20:28.634-07:00When You're in a Spiritual Funk<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Do you ever get in a spiritual funk? You feel dry
spiritually, your prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling and God seems far
away? You might be going through the motions of attending church and reading
your Bible, but it seems like you get nothing out of it.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSRXTLBAYnYHu14LbcxuF3roOV1enbRiLCSNgb5IIruxnR-byROXou1CsGjFZKlCro_eYDzIZr6wCgeFk0hyz2K9_R-Q5bTSiQ-xHZ76tZiR0YJuaxLoyPHbny9ZHUV6XRjpcWt1jeOQ8/s1600/spring!+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSRXTLBAYnYHu14LbcxuF3roOV1enbRiLCSNgb5IIruxnR-byROXou1CsGjFZKlCro_eYDzIZr6wCgeFk0hyz2K9_R-Q5bTSiQ-xHZ76tZiR0YJuaxLoyPHbny9ZHUV6XRjpcWt1jeOQ8/s400/spring!+002.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still enjoying spring in Izmir</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve been there. In 2007 I began the year with a
special prayer asking God to teach me more about joy, but I ended up struggling
with depression instead!</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">For the first
time in my adult life I felt depressed without understanding why. My husband
and I went through a difficult time struggling with whether or not to stay in
Turkey, but my discouragement went deeper than that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was too distracted by negative thoughts to get
much out of Bible reading. Long passages overwhelmed me, but I could focus on a
simple Psalm, so I went back to the book of Psalms. I memorized Psalm 23 and
repeated it over and over to myself: <b><i><span style="color: #38761d;">“The Lord is my Shepherd. I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green
pastures. He leads me beside quiet
waters. He restores my soul…” </span></i></b> Even
though I didn’t feel any different, I kept asking God to renew my joy and I
kept quoting Psalm 23. After about 6 months my depression lifted as
mysteriously as it had come. Psalm 23 stayed with me though; to this day it is
my “go-to” passage when I need an extra dose of God’s tender loving care.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Daily Time with God</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What has kept me spiritually thriving for 12 years
in a Mslm country is spending daily time with God. Nothing else encourages me,
renews my perspective, or gives me strength and peace like sitting quietly with
God to read His word and pray. Even so, sometimes I get into a spiritual funk,
and trying new things in my quiet time helps get me out of it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Ideas to Revive Your Quiet Time</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Go back to simple truths: God loves you, and you can
trust Him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Meditate and read scriptures on God’s love.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Read Psalms for a few days.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sit quietly in God’s presence without doing anything. Just enjoy being with Him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sing a few simple worship songs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Focus on listening. What might God want to say to
you?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">If you need guidance, ask God a question and write
down whatever impressions come to mind.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Keep a gratitude journal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Jot down prayer requests and keep track of answers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Read a Bible story and imagine you’re one of the
people in it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Get outside to connect with God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Try a new Bible study method. (I’ve enjoyed Good
Morning Girls' <a href="http://www.goodmorninggirls.org/2012/09/how-to-soap-your-quiet-time/">SOAP method</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Memorize a passage you like.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Write out a one or two line prayer to take with you
into your day.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Try a devotional guide (I like <a href="http://www.ucb.co.uk/word-for-today.html">Word for Today</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>These are just a few ideas for adding variety to our
quiet times. Do you have any
suggestions? I need all the help I can get!</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-85870664958035943912013-04-03T05:14:00.001-07:002013-04-11T03:38:29.119-07:00One Thing You Need to Survive Overseas<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My hair was standing on end, I had no makeup on, and
I was dressed in ragged jeans, an old sweater and a bare face with no makeup
when the doorbell rang. I was feverishly trying to finish cooking for our house
church, so I could go get dressed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“It must be one of my daughter’s friends,” I
thought. “I’ll let her answer it. “ But
when the doorbell kept ringing, I went to the door. It was Nesrin, a woman I’d invited to visit
our fellowship for the first time. One
and a half hours early.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I breathed in deep before I opened the door. The last thing I needed was a guest one and a
half hours early. I was already a bit nervous because we’d accidentally
scheduled a skype interview with someone back home for the same hour as our
meeting.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I invited Nesrin to pull up a chair at the kitchen
table and tried to focus on talking to her while I finished cooking. (I’ve never been good at talking while cooking.)
Then I disappeared a few minutes to slide on some makeup, brush my hair and
change clothes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At 5:00 a friend came in with a big pot of soupy
beans, so I quickly got out bowls in additions to the plates I’d already set
out. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“We need bread to serve with this, but I don’t have
any change,” my friend said. “Can
someone go out and buy bread?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So my husband ran out to buy bread, and for the next
half hour chaos reigned as I tried to open the door for guests, set up a skype
call that wasn’t connecting, and serve food at the same time!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do you ever have days like this? I’d like to say
that I was peaceful and cool as a cucumber, but I wasn’t. Maybe on the outside I seemed calm, but on the
inside, I was tense and uptight. (<i>Okay, I
probably didn’t look so calm on the outside either</i>.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">One of the most important qualities a cross-cultural
worker needs is FLEXIBILITY. </span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Somehow life back home is a lot more predictable
and planned. In the Middle East, life is
unplanned and full of surprises: guests who come early, guests who come late,
people who cancel on you, people who wait to the last minute to plan, and friends
who drop by for a surprise visit. You
never know what might happen, and even the best laid plans can change!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Being Flexible Means:</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">Being open to Interruptions </b></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why not look at them as
serendipities instead? Especially if they involved an unexpected guest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">Maintaining a peaceful, joyful attitude when things
don’t go as planned.</b></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m grateful for many Turkish friends who are
gracious models of flexibility. Ready to
change plans at a moment’s notice, willing to go out of their way to help
someone, and open to receiving a last minute guest in their home, Turks are
people I can learn from.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">When was the last time you had an experience that
required you to be flexible?</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-31927714137442015472013-03-26T05:53:00.002-07:002013-04-11T03:39:28.147-07:00How to Get Spring into our Hearts<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="293" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_t5P9G9A2EA" width="520"></iframe><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m driving my family insane listening to this song,
“Take Me into the Beautiful.” It’s my spring song. What does spring look like
in your part of the globe? Here’s why spring is my favorite season in Turkey:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Spring is a season of hope: </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Have you ever lived through a winter that never
ended? The weather never got warmer, birds never sang, the trees stayed bare,
and flowers never bloomed? No matter how long the winter is, spring always
comes! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Spring is physical demonstration of God’s promise to
renew us and give us new life. No matter
how long you’ve felt spiritually weary or dead, renewal WILL come</span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. <span style="color: #38761d;"><b><i>“<span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Weeping may last through the night,</span></span></i></b></span></span><span style="color: #38761d;"><b><i> <span class="text"><span style="background: white;">but joy
comes with the morning.</span>”</span></i></b></span> (Psalm 30:5) It’s a
promise that I love to hold on to</span>.<br />
<a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Spring brings a message of renewal: </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Spring is my personal season to seek renewal. Here
in Izmir-on-the-Aegean, fruit trees are blossoming in the park next door,
yellow dandelions are sprouting up everywhere, and the spring rains are a sign
of God’s grace in our lives. All of
these signs in nature put a spring in my step and spur me on to pursue God, to
seek him for renewal. Hosea 6:4 says it perfectly:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b><span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">“Oh, that we might know the </span></span><span class="small-caps"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-variant: small-caps; line-height: 115%;">Lord</span></span><span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">!</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b><span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">Let us press on to know him.</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span class="text"><span style="background: white;">He will respond to us as surely
as the arrival of dawn</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></i></div>
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<span class="text"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Or the coming of rains in early spring.”</b></span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A
few weeks ago, I talked with a group of 5 other cross-cultural workers, all
women, and we agreed that spiritual dryness is a part of the ebb and flow of
our lives. It happens to everyone. These were some reasons they gave: being
tired or over-committed, the day-in day-out stress of caring for children, and
discouragement over what looks like little fruit in the Middle East.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yet God promises to rejuvenate us if we seek
Him. I asked the same group of women what
they do to seek </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">spiritual refreshment, and here’s what they said: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Spend time talking with a friend you enjoy and can
trust</b></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Listen to worship music</b></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It brings life to boring household chores and calm
to that witching hour when you’re trying to juggle cranky </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">kids with making
dinner.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Get outside</b></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Listen to scripture</b></span></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">One busy mother of three mentioned that she listens to
the Word while breastfeeding.</span></div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Pray with another person</b></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Another friend says she has her quiet time with her
husband because alone she just falls asleep! </span></div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Listen to a message or read a Christian book</b></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Try something new in your quiet time.</b></span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><b> </b></span> (My personal favorite)</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">I hope and pray that you’ll experience new life and
renewed hope from God this Easter. Is there anything you like to do in your quiet time to change things up a bit when
you feel yourself getting into a rut?</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-54990463133492730112013-03-18T01:08:00.000-07:002013-04-11T03:45:10.901-07:00How to Keep on Going When the Road Seems Long<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggQcrkxGOvv2X7Rv2pWytHFdGqJzlp-YNuDP452SK6HHIDEdpr-cbp3dIv7saWSFK5d97m32kOI7PCMI5tR-tiU_oHYF9f1LRTE2z1Oy9zhWLTNiX71kfPo3ssaDNt8mH2D9UQHUA7ipM/s1600/spring%2521+015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggQcrkxGOvv2X7Rv2pWytHFdGqJzlp-YNuDP452SK6HHIDEdpr-cbp3dIv7saWSFK5d97m32kOI7PCMI5tR-tiU_oHYF9f1LRTE2z1Oy9zhWLTNiX71kfPo3ssaDNt8mH2D9UQHUA7ipM/s320/spring%2521+015.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do you ever feel like all your hard work is in vain?
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You clean your house, but it’s dirty again the next
day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You strive to teach your children something, but it
seems like they never learn.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You want to change a bad habit but fall back into
the same trap.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You resolve to be more patient, but once again you
find your nerves on edge and your voice rising.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Here in the Mslm World we share our faith and sow
seed in hard ground, but few respond. </b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://moreformissionarymoms.blogspot.com/2013/03/how-to-keep-on-going-when-road-seems.html">Follow this link to the rest of my post on Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion</a></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-12665380069246472232013-03-14T05:56:00.001-07:002013-04-11T03:39:50.574-07:00Health Food, Turkish Style: Red Lentil Balls<br />
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQquo57-Rcl0GA4QgU2KoMHH559W4LTveRAqRQXkpFwJ6ba9t84MkATlAhHshU93Vyr4u1rvzH7H-ic-2tnlaAFLV3pIDSojqVFAI5TJqPi5l15fTPsjI4JAUbWOw-bWIpgE_LiPnYJz0/s1600/fasil+and+mercimek+koftesi+027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQquo57-Rcl0GA4QgU2KoMHH559W4LTveRAqRQXkpFwJ6ba9t84MkATlAhHshU93Vyr4u1rvzH7H-ic-2tnlaAFLV3pIDSojqVFAI5TJqPi5l15fTPsjI4JAUbWOw-bWIpgE_LiPnYJz0/s400/fasil+and+mercimek+koftesi+027.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My Turkish sister and I have a new subject in
common: cooking and recipes! I grew up watching
my mom and my aunts look at cookbooks and talk about food. Cooking is an important conversation topic
among Turkish women, but I never thought I’d live to see the day when my “career
girl” sister and I would talk about recipes! </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Bahar and I always talked about books
we were reading, God’s word, the joys and challenges of our lives, and everything
under the sun, minus cooking. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, however, she occasionally calls to ask for a recipe or cooking tip and gets positively bubbly when she tells me about the food she's cooking. I guess it just goes to show how getting married
changes a person. </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">J</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcQzTmQFB2XfGt2ss_HJSb3AafAhiU3IVCD_-2ptzewCW3tTHnc3E0NSIXmmbJnDFByl_92BMZluBhGFIUrcE1qrIWRSiZ_Dz89Yl67qutg_1lLWMJgoyDC5yt84RIDeIE5SkHBrbiAFc/s1600/fasil+and+mercimek+koftesi+033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcQzTmQFB2XfGt2ss_HJSb3AafAhiU3IVCD_-2ptzewCW3tTHnc3E0NSIXmmbJnDFByl_92BMZluBhGFIUrcE1qrIWRSiZ_Dz89Yl67qutg_1lLWMJgoyDC5yt84RIDeIE5SkHBrbiAFc/s400/fasil+and+mercimek+koftesi+033.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So grab a glass of hot tea with Bahar and I, and let
me share one of my favorite healthy Turkish recipes:</span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">Mercimek Köftesi </span><span lang="TR" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">(Red Lentil Balls)</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="TR" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: TR;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4
1/4 cups of water <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
cup red lentils*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
tsp cumin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp paprika<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¼
tsp. crushed red pepper<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
TBSP tomato paste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2
TBSP red pepper paste (just use 4 TBSP tomato paste if you can’t find red
pepper paste)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
cup fine ground bulgur wheat*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4
TBSP olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
medium onion, diced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
small bunch of parsley, chopped <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
bunch of chopped mint, if desired<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1. Bring
the water to a boil and add the lentils. Stirring occasionally, cook for about
40-45 minutes, until the lentils are softened. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2. Add
the salt, cumin, paprika, crushed red pepper, and tomato and pepper pastes. Stir
well. The mixture should be like a very thick soup. Add the finely ground bulgur wheat and stir.
Cover and let sit for one hour. Sauté the diced onion in the olive oil, and
chop the parsley and mint.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3.
Uncover the bulgur and lentil mixture and empty it into a large, shallow
bowl. It should be a kneadable consistency,
like a thick cookie dough. Add the sautéed
onion in olive oil and the parsley. Knead
and mix well with your hands. The
mixture should be easy to shape, but not too dry. If it seems dry, add a bit of water. Using the palm of your hand, shape the
mixture long, finger shaped patties.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.
Serve with lettuce leaves and lemon wedges as a garnish.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Afiyet
olsun and happy cooking!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">*Red
lentils and finely ground bulgur should be available in Middle Eastern stores, in
the food bin area of health food stores, or in the international food aisle of
larger grocery stores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do
you enjoy sharing recipes with friends?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-52494627468501170862013-03-07T01:48:00.001-08:002013-04-11T03:42:26.313-07:00Creativity Makes a Difference!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ5Mb8bj1hQW87IPFO5WGhLsZTp1vxvh3r88ZkpXVJ4YJl_LrjfQPi2EgK7UG77XJYwZGWzU_aJ_xXs0ZFDNajc49XDi8r2SVVkuhMHv5zYg4YHKVw_Qz7jTlcn37hENlEYQyt8gAGVVI/s1600/second+dan+black+belt+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ5Mb8bj1hQW87IPFO5WGhLsZTp1vxvh3r88ZkpXVJ4YJl_LrjfQPi2EgK7UG77XJYwZGWzU_aJ_xXs0ZFDNajc49XDi8r2SVVkuhMHv5zYg4YHKVw_Qz7jTlcn37hENlEYQyt8gAGVVI/s400/second+dan+black+belt+018.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Some days I ask myself what on earth I got myself
into when I answered the call to start a new fellowship in the Middle East with
my husband.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In fact, I might have said
no if I’d known ahead of time what a long, challenging road it would be. I’m not
sure if it was love for God or plain ignorance that made me say yes!</span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>The first year was tough…</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We started meeting for worship in our living room two
years ago with another couple. Including
our kids, we were nine people. Sunday after Sunday we’d look at each other and wonder
if anyone we’d invited would join us.
Just hosting a meeting (cleaning our homes, preparing food, worship and
a Bible study) was a tremendous amount of work for nine people and an occasional
visitor or two. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That first year God did more <b><i>in</i></b> us than He did <b><i>through</i></b>
us. When tangible fruit was slow in coming, we were forced to walk by faith and
not by sight. We learned perseverance. We learned to enjoy the journey and take
special delight in our relationship with God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>…But we’ve turned a corner!</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The first year was daunting, but God kept us going
and brought us to the next level. He added two families to our team, and a
national couple came to Christ. We’ve grown a small community of friends who
have not yet made decisions for Christ, but who visit our fellowship from time
to time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>We broke out of the mold…</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It sounds unspiritual, but our weekly meeting had
become a burden for our small group, so we tried something new. We now meet
every other week for Sunday worship.
This gives us more time to prepare for our meetings and to focus on
being with and praying for non-Chrstn friends.
Twice a month, we look forward to and enjoy our worship meetings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b> …And tried a
more creative approach</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On alternate weekends, we have social events that
are more natural to invite non-believing friends to. We’ve had a picnic, a games night,
Thanksgiving and Christmas parties, a scrapbooking class, a Turkish bath visit
for men and a beauty day for women. Sometimes these events are just for fun;
other times we give a brief spiritual talk. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj9ozz2lESxSt6PQSDP3iKL-FYNuZLzfQ6q0G2aM67bbVIsrPwYSMD9AmmuBZlYbKwkRQfZLCCsQaagsiGVv39GhNvcjS_hgy2zDVXG2umhERpnmN2G_4QMZLNlv9tRSZVCcnnonJkNIs/s1600/second+dan+black+belt+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj9ozz2lESxSt6PQSDP3iKL-FYNuZLzfQ6q0G2aM67bbVIsrPwYSMD9AmmuBZlYbKwkRQfZLCCsQaagsiGVv39GhNvcjS_hgy2zDVXG2umhERpnmN2G_4QMZLNlv9tRSZVCcnnonJkNIs/s400/second+dan+black+belt+010.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Men's Breakfast</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsLuduV-wFZ0b29FNFCxpQ1CM3jGjv6lOTew8Vae9ipMnxy0ce3GUuyAqMYG1icP5eYOrHD1-cGe6CeJ0ci9h5NARQzxZN5NCtb1PJNMtMiDCmquhGpqQu4W8kEDJr2JSUacd8pNzBmk/s1600/image+(5).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsLuduV-wFZ0b29FNFCxpQ1CM3jGjv6lOTew8Vae9ipMnxy0ce3GUuyAqMYG1icP5eYOrHD1-cGe6CeJ0ci9h5NARQzxZN5NCtb1PJNMtMiDCmquhGpqQu4W8kEDJr2JSUacd8pNzBmk/s400/image+(5).jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby Shower</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTZQeUuv-s0yXGRLEfIHQF6oEuLzk-LOvKM0-ffLZ5-YUxaGsE24hj6_Wmbj5TZGZJ5UjLOn2fr4cqkSlVpKKNSCymgos3cMnFpgV_6bR2463fz4j90oygQ4vvpijiVIQbVIH5DfqcIfM/s1600/image+(6).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTZQeUuv-s0yXGRLEfIHQF6oEuLzk-LOvKM0-ffLZ5-YUxaGsE24hj6_Wmbj5TZGZJ5UjLOn2fr4cqkSlVpKKNSCymgos3cMnFpgV_6bR2463fz4j90oygQ4vvpijiVIQbVIH5DfqcIfM/s400/image+(6).jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Roasting marshmellows" at the baby shower!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Recently we had a great time hosting a Valentine’s
dinner for nine couples. Teamwork made it easy. We set up tables and decorated
our living room, served a simple spaghetti dinner, and invited an older couple to
give a talk about relationships. During dessert each couple spent time talking
about what they appreciated in each other.
God gave us a special evening. The two mslm couples present had a unique
opportunity to hear the message and to invest in their marriages. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHzZjERIUWy9-OAkDMzM6wYXGrJx_1bXM0syuBt7OigX9huaQ50NM1UwJHteeT2PVHyWUud4eP5fmH8swaorbz8m7mvMDhyAQuReHA-UzXp2-lyvAOqAComab6W-ueZ_MFDsm_uJZJF8/s1600/second+dan+black+belt+031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHzZjERIUWy9-OAkDMzM6wYXGrJx_1bXM0syuBt7OigX9huaQ50NM1UwJHteeT2PVHyWUud4eP5fmH8swaorbz8m7mvMDhyAQuReHA-UzXp2-lyvAOqAComab6W-ueZ_MFDsm_uJZJF8/s400/second+dan+black+belt+031.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-X1ette8IU3zSO5pjItJ3hJcQ60FOShJm2AdtoW1eenSgJ-hgmKx2yvVYcdooyP0-wSgMwtK4hKsJC9GYsgQLRlcCumfJzCEJVBtud1LmJvS5CKhLHLE4xIqRuvxVLrseFderX8vlZp4/s1600/second+dan+black+belt+032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-X1ette8IU3zSO5pjItJ3hJcQ60FOShJm2AdtoW1eenSgJ-hgmKx2yvVYcdooyP0-wSgMwtK4hKsJC9GYsgQLRlcCumfJzCEJVBtud1LmJvS5CKhLHLE4xIqRuvxVLrseFderX8vlZp4/s400/second+dan+black+belt+032.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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</div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A different approach has added new life to our group. We’re
having more fun, and we’re enlarging our circle of seekers at the same time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">What does your ministry look like? Do you enjoy
trying new things or do you prefer traditional approaches?</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-2068543137275998132013-02-21T05:14:00.002-08:002013-02-21T05:14:54.209-08:00Taking a Break Until Life Slows Down<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF_XfvTreCH5GznCljMELXa3Mo8tTd8LITnVIu9Db1oqRpto4A4yPUW0cDEap2O5wy5PM-t4_CTA-D0kULJ3wHEA_PzYcvOUlOy-5Oj897yhYO78k6CWAJE63bO4hYRUTz7S6qUv1s17Y/s1600/Austin+Botanical+Garden+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF_XfvTreCH5GznCljMELXa3Mo8tTd8LITnVIu9Db1oqRpto4A4yPUW0cDEap2O5wy5PM-t4_CTA-D0kULJ3wHEA_PzYcvOUlOy-5Oj897yhYO78k6CWAJE63bO4hYRUTz7S6qUv1s17Y/s320/Austin+Botanical+Garden+004.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m not sure how I get so busy when I live in what’s
supposed to be a slower paced culture, but life is happening a bit too fast in
my little Aegean corner of the world, so I’m taking a break from blogging until
March 7<sup>th</sup>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m hoping to heed Jesus’ call to his disciples in
Mark 6:31: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>“Come with me by
yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”</b></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">May the Lord give you grace and moments of rest, even
during your busiest days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-67371894413921130882013-02-14T05:34:00.000-08:002013-04-11T03:40:18.439-07:00Five Ways to Help Kids Growing Up Overseas<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGT3bGvOJCDOf9XAw169xl1hRPxf1gfUnVKXOOFOnAKSue-DiCvMjxgoQFuOY9AL1_xO_yCwaUD0GCHWiZgvRQOPjVjlRzteCDo8ctYYR0w02IQ1EkbErqo9BZYAU-iF9aN3ntklvoZE/s1600/Alev,Camille's+b-day,taekwondo,+Sevda,+137.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGT3bGvOJCDOf9XAw169xl1hRPxf1gfUnVKXOOFOnAKSue-DiCvMjxgoQFuOY9AL1_xO_yCwaUD0GCHWiZgvRQOPjVjlRzteCDo8ctYYR0w02IQ1EkbErqo9BZYAU-iF9aN3ntklvoZE/s320/Alev,Camille's+b-day,taekwondo,+Sevda,+137.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My kids with their Turkish abla, 2010</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I still remember the circumcision party of my
neighbor’s boy. My son followed all his buddies into the boy’s bedroom, and suddenly
the door shut. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I realized the
circumcision was about to happen behind that closed door, and without making a
scene in front of our whole neighborhood, there was no way to get my son
out!</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I thought that was a pretty big
step of independence for a 5 year old.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Just the other day my 13 year old daughter rode the bus downtown by
herself for the first time.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Growing up
always involves bigger and bigger steps to independence, but somehow that
journey seems a bit more perilous when you’re overseas.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Third Culture Kids are foreigners in the host
country where they grow up, but sometimes they don’t feel quite at home in
their parent’s country either. My daughter says, “Turkish kids don’t exactly
understand me, but the kids back home don’t understand me either.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Here are some principles I'm learning to help my
kids thrive:</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Pray for them</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the most important thing you can do. Only God’s grace will keep them. God can turn
a challenging situation into a positive one!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Cultivate a relationship with them.</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many TCK’s feel a bit isolated, so it’s doubly
important to foster strong family ties.
Talk with them about what interests them. Spend time with them. My
daughter is home a lot, and her Turkish friends are busy studying after school,
so I take her along to many places I go: to the store, on errands, to visit
people. It gets her out of the house,
and in the process, our relationship is deepening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Invest effort into opportunities for them</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Since my kids are home schooled, my husband and I
place a high priority in making sure they’re involved in extra-curricular activities
outside the home. This means time and money!
We’ve also spent many an hour chauffeuring our kids across town and inviting their
friends to our home so they can get together with peers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;">Foster independence</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Resist the urge to overprotect them. Kick them out the door if you need to so that
they can develop relationships with national friends. In our city it is
reasonably safe for teenagers to ride the bus, so last week, I gulped hard and
pushed my 13 year old girl out the door to ride the bus downtown and find a
restaurant where she was meeting friends.
She came back ecstatic that she’d found it by herself. (If I still lived
in El Salvador, I would not do this because the security issues are different.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Take advantage of unique opportunities </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rather than bemoaning what my kids are missing out
on at they grow up here, I want to maximize the opportunities they have. Both of my kids are fluent Turkish
speakers. I want to encourage my 15 year
old to start a tutoring business to help kids learning English. He helps run
the sound system and participates in worship at our fellowship. My daughter has a heart to share the message
with locals. These are opportunities they might not having growing up back in
America.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">What has worked for you as you seek to
encourage your third culture kids?</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> </span></span></b>Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-51185485753473477642013-02-07T05:40:00.002-08:002013-04-11T03:42:55.815-07:00When It's Hard to Trust God with Your Kids<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgikRZAH2EPoKIifqwf_EPtk2286md4QQrzYMkudzp-iULmdYexiA27yrbf9p1PGCMWOh0eiuVDY4BvMengBl-iby_7FyQvOhPbM-RVNyp_DSPtjMlWbWfgzxNWkfSUyLqa12GAFf7-dW0/s1600/New+York+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgikRZAH2EPoKIifqwf_EPtk2286md4QQrzYMkudzp-iULmdYexiA27yrbf9p1PGCMWOh0eiuVDY4BvMengBl-iby_7FyQvOhPbM-RVNyp_DSPtjMlWbWfgzxNWkfSUyLqa12GAFf7-dW0/s320/New+York+014.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I saw my minutes-old son kicking and screaming
in the delivery room 15 years ago, I had no idea how much joy and heartbreak
being a mother would involve. I had no idea that he’d go from speaking Spanish
to English before learning Turkish and that he’d learn to navigate anywhere
alone by bus, metro or ferry in our Middle Eastern city. I had no idea that my biggest challenge
living overseas would be agonizing over whether we’re messing up our kids by
raising them here.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Years ago when I shared my worries with a seasoned
cross-cultural worker, she told me, “God has called you here, so you can trust
Him to bless your kids.” I wasn’t sure I believed her, but over the years I’ve
seen it’s true. Last week, I learned once again:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>I can trust God with my kids.</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My children have grown up happy here, but now that
they’re teenagers, it’s a bit harder because our city has no high school for
TCK’s, so most families with adolescent kids either move to other cities or go
back home. Their circle of fellow TCK friends has dwindled a bit, and they
don’t know many believing Turkish teenagers either since the church is small. Sometimes
my kids feel lonely. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Several of Marc’s friends left Izmir last September
to attend Black Forest Academy in Germany, and when they came home for
Christmas, he was excited to see them.
So when these friends returned to school in January and yet another
friend left for the US to pursue college, Marc, who is normally a happy,
upbeat person, hit a low point. In fact, I’d never seen him so discouraged. My
husband and I were so concerned that in my last e-mail ministry update I asked
friends to pray for him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>I was amazed at how quickly God responded.</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The very next
day at our home fellowship, I saw my son worshipping with raised hands, and I
knew God was telling me, “Trust me. My hand is on him.” Within two days Marc’s outlook had totally changed! He was excited because his kung fu teacher
came back from furlough. He got a once a week tutoring job. The worship leader
of our old church asked him to play bass for one of their worship teams. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Then our team went on a retreat, and the unplanned highlight
of the weekend was a time focused on encouraging our teenaged TCK’s. A week later Marc and his sister led worship
by themselves for the first time at our fellowship, and I’d never seen him so
motivated to lead (without me!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God came through for him and opened up all these
opportunities at just the right time, when he needed encouragement. I knew it
was because people back home had prayed for him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Do you struggle with raising your kids
overseas? What are your challenges and
how has God come through for you?</b></span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">You might also enjoy:</span><br />
<a href="http://olivetreeingodshouse.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-handle-kids-whod-rather-eat-cack.html" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, FreeSerif, serif;">How to Handle Kids Who’d Rather Eat Cacık than Captain Crunch</a><br />
<a href="http://olivetreeingodshouse.blogspot.com/2011/02/messing-up-my-kids.html" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">Messing Up My Kids?</a><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974164808743497962.post-68173410900976745802013-01-31T01:37:00.000-08:002013-02-07T06:02:56.150-08:00Slowing Down to Enjoy Cooking: Turkish Cabbage Rolls<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPKkFVd1nwNPD1BVyAF6_yenHzDFAyIE6dekwfI23HEQnrB7WkUYDoxWBB8c7GcE833qvEtBnkdF3RRJPASgMs5rvxCQ6Nuv4XCnhOUXvWrwUN7Z-MNT9sqnA4b7q_u3tIjZwYTNbSwuE/s1600/lahana+sarmasi+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPKkFVd1nwNPD1BVyAF6_yenHzDFAyIE6dekwfI23HEQnrB7WkUYDoxWBB8c7GcE833qvEtBnkdF3RRJPASgMs5rvxCQ6Nuv4XCnhOUXvWrwUN7Z-MNT9sqnA4b7q_u3tIjZwYTNbSwuE/s320/lahana+sarmasi+007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I like slow food because it reminds me that I don’t
have to live life in a hurry.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So often
we buzz through life on high speed, and meal preparation turns into a stressful
quick fix, whatever we can get on the table the fastest! Of course, most
evenings I want a nutritional meal that’s quick and practical, but once in a
while I slow down to enjoy cooking as a hobby. Slow food </span><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">is “produced or prepared in accordance with local
culinary traditions, typically using high-quality locally sourced ingredients.”
**</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Last weekend I took the time to
make a traditional Turkish dish that I love: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><b>Etli Lahana Sarması (Cabbage Rolls
Stuffed with Meat and Rice)</b></span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>INGREDIENTS:</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 large cabbage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients for filling:</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">300
g ground beef (just under ¾ lb.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1½
cups rice (uncooked)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Small
bunch of parsley, chopped<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
onion, minced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3
TBSP olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3
TBSP tomato paste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
½ tsp. mint<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">¼
tsp. pepper<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">½
tsp. sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients
needed for cooking:</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5-6
cloves minced garlic<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3
cups boiling water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1
½ TBSP tomato paste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">STEP
1</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Cut
out the core from the cabbage and plunge it into boiling water for a
minute. Rinse it with cold water and
carefully remove the outer leaves.
Repeat this step until you’ve removed all of the smooth outer leaves. Save
the small, wrinkled middle to make coleslaw.
Set your cabbage leaves aside on a large tray.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">STEP 2</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Mix the filling ingredients thoroughly in a bowl.
Take the cabbage leaves and use kitchen scissors to cut out the central veins
that are too thick to roll from the outer leaves. Cut the leaves into 3 x 4 ½
inch pieces, give or take. (8 x 12 cm.) Using cut cabbage veins and scraps, line
the bottom of a lidded skillet or pan.
To line the pan, use only whatever cabbage you won’t be able to roll. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>STEP 3 </b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Put a heaping tablespoon of filling onto the short
end of a piece of cut cabbage and press it into a little roll that is a bit
shorter than the width of your cut cabbage leaf. Roll it up, wrapping the cabbage
twice around the rice roll. Don’t bother
trying to close off the sides. Make rolls and place them side by side, tightly
together in your pan. You should have enough filling for two layers. When you finish one layer, sprinkle it with salt
and half of the minced garlic. Make a
second layer of rolls on top of the first, and repeat, using the rest of the
garlic.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>STEP 4</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Mix 1 ½ TBSP tomato paste in the boiling water and
slowly pour it over the cabbage rolls.
Place a heat proof dinner plate face down over the rolls. Put on the lid
and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the water is absorbed. Let the rolls rest for 20 minutes or so after
you’ve turned off the heat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Serve plain or accompanied by garlic yogurt. (1 cup of yogurt with ½ tsp salt and 1 minced
clove garlic) Afiyet olsun!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>If you live overseas, do you enjoy learning to cook local food? Or do you stick to foods from your native country?</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">**Quote from Wikipedia article, "Slow Food"</span></span></div>
Betsy de Cruzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07081162585307212930noreply@blogger.com6