They were Foreigners and Nomads Here on Earth

One of our classes we're currently in is Hebrews.

For our homework, we are required to read each chapter of Hebrews in 3 different translations. Sometimes this seems tedious, but often I am encouraged by each version in a different way. Tonight I was reading Hebrews 11 and I was surprised that it took the 3rd reading (New Living Translation) to be struck by a truth that is so close to my heart because of where Ben and I are in life and because of what we plan to do with our life:

"It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise. Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God" (Hebrews 11:8-10)

"They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them" (Hebrews 11:13b-16)

I sometimes find myself struggling that we don't have a true home. I know that it won't get any easier either as our family plans to head overseas to a country we have never even visited before. These verses are an encouraging reminder that this is not our home. Feeling like an alien and a nomad on this earth should be expected as we follow Christ in faith. I am thankful that Hebrews 11 has reminded me of this truth :)

Random Sophie-ness to Catch Up On :)

Currently, poor Sophie is sick with a cold :( We're hoping she gets better soon!

In other news, Sophie is a pro at sitting up now. She's still not crawling, but she's starting to pull herself up on me a little. She also is an amazing jumper. She absolutely LOVES to jump! Maybe she'll have some of her daddy's basketball skills or her mommy's high jump skills?

At the end of October, we went to Indiana to celebrate Grandpa Miller's 75th birthday. Ben's cousin Ashley and I have babies that are just a few months apart, and here they are together :)

Sophie turned 7 months on the same day as the birthday party!
We're teaching her young to cheer on the best football teams... Notre Dame and Colts!
Sophie with her daddy on Halloween :)

Sophie with mommy on Halloween...

Sophie playing with her friend Ivy in the ball pit

Sophie ready for the cold winter in her new cute chickie hat, made by Keisa Troyer... check her hats out here! http://www.etsy.com/shop/keisajeanne

Tribal Cup

Every year we have Tribal Cup at New Tribes. There are two Bible schools in the U.S. We are in Michigan of course, and the other school is in Wisconsin. They come here in the fall and play outdoor sports, and we go there in the spring and play indoor sports. In preparation for the big Tribal Cup weekend (which is going on currently), we have Spirit week where we have different dress-up days.

Monday was Superhero vs. Villain Day. Sophie had an appointment that morning, so we didn't dress up on this day :)

Tuesday was Twin Day...

Sophie dressed up like her friend Daisy who is one month younger than her (Daisy was sick of pictures by time I finally got my picture snapped)!
Wednesday was Hippie Day... at this point Ben and I became lame and stopped dressing up, but we kept dressing Sophie up!
Thursday was Mix-Match Day...
Sophie and her friend Ivy mix-matchin' it...
And Friday was Black-Out Day since Jackson's school color is black. This is the most black that Sophie owns, haha...
This weekend student have been playing ultimate frisbee, softball, and soccer to determine which school is better at each sport. Our school has the trophy from last year. We won't determine until the spring which school will get the trophy this year. Ben and I aren't participating in any sports this semester, but it was good to see my friend Hannah! I babysat her when we were both younger, and she now goes to the Wisconsin school. We determined that we haven't seen each other in about 10 years. It's so neat that we were able to reconnect!

Learning New Things Everyday...

October is flying by, but it's been a great month! It's been a good month of being challenged in classes, hanging out with friends, and enjoying our family :)

Also this month, our friend here at school had her baby Adele... welcome to the world baby Addie! You make Sophie look so BIG!

We have been learning a lot in classes, but we're not the only ones learning. Sophie has been learning a ton lately! She has learned to like the ergo baby backpack...
She has learned to push herself backwards...
She has learned to get up on her hands a knees (she rocks back and forth- no crawling yet!)...
She has learned to sit up... although she still needs to be watched closely :) ...
She has learned to stuff diaper laundry... haha just kidding! She's sitting up here again though :)...
Daddy is teaching her how to play Angry Birds on the computer...
She also got two teeth this past month on the bottom! Yay Sophie! It's fun watching her learn and grow. She also has been consistently sleeping 10 hours at night now which is, of course, most exciting!

Sophie is Six Months!

Today our baby girl turns 6 months! We love her and are so thankful for the best blessing that is in our lives. I truly cannot imagine my life without this little human being. It's so fun watching her learn and grow.

The other day the marrieds on the 2nd floor decided to have a dinner together. We all brought our own food to eat and then a little extra to share. It was so much fun, and it reminded many of us of Acts 2 where the early believers are said to "have everything in common with one another" and where they shared in the "breaking of bread" together. It really is a neat community that we have here.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned on this blog before, but we cloth diaper, and I LOVE it. We decided to do it to save money, but I (Alisha) admit that it has become somewhat of a hobby. It's fun that we are not only saving money, but Sophie also gets to wear cute diapers!

And here are some 6 month pictures of Sophie girl :)

I've Always Hated Titles...

I think Blogger makes you have a title for your post. I've (Alisha) always hated titles. As an English major, I would type my entire paper and then come up with a title at the end, and usually it was the part I dreaded the most. Okay, that was a side note. Onto the update...

We have begun our second block of classes. We are still in Romans, but we now are both taking James too. Ben is also taking History of Missions and Islam. We are really being challenged in Romans to consider how all men are held accountable for their decisions and how all men know the truth. We are also overwhelmingly encouraged by Jesus Christ's obedience to God the Father to justify us and give us the opportunity to reign in life (rather than death). As believers, we are reigning now in life! While Adam's choice only led to death for all, Christ's decision has allowed us to have peace with God rather than enmity. We have the opportunity to spend 45 days in this 16 chapter book, and we are amazed that 45 days doesn't even seem like enough!

Ben has continued to work at Red Lobster 3 times a week. Alisha and Sophie like to go on stroller walks and visit friends :)

Sophie has continued to help Daddy with his homework:

...still loves child care:
... is growing quite the mullet:
... loves to smile:
... wears cute farm clothes from Uncle Dana and Aunt Karen
... and cute outfits from Aunt Katie (and cute cloth diapers underneath the cute outfits):
And while we're on the topics of Sophie outfits... we're so blessed by many family and friends who have bought Sophie the greatest wardrobe. We never have to buy her any clothes. Thank you!

Angels and Families and Romans, Oh My!

We are all doing great! We're a couple weeks into classes, and we are really enjoying the ones we are taking right now! We are both taking Romans and Family Relationships, and Ben also has a class called Angelology where he learns about Satan, angels, and demons. It's interesting and a topic that many people know very little about. We are reminded again about how fortunate we are to have two years to devote to studying the Bible, and we realize how much we didn't know before. Ben is also back at Red Lobster, but his schedule is more consistent this year which is better for making plans.

While we're in classes, Sophie enjoys her time in child care with two great teachers and other babies... and lots of fun toys:

Sophie has started having a little bit of food. She loves it:
Grama and Grandpa Jenks came for a visit to Indiana, and Alisha and Sophie took a weekend trip there to hang out with family:
Sophie helps daddy with his Romans homework:
Sophie playing on the floor... still not scooting or crawling, but she's anxious to!
She's 5 months now!