We made it!

Well, it was a long journey across the Pacific, but we made it in one piece!

Then, half of us all, very promptly, got very sick….yuck.

The good news? There are always massive tubs of cheese balls if needed!

Sad to see, however; there’s trouble at home!

Off to the States in a few hours!

Well, we’re pretty much packed and the kids are about to go to bed so that they can wake up at 3:15am! Whooohoo!

Our flight leaves Glasgow at 6am, so we hit the airport at about 4am….fun times!

Currently everyone is in high spirits….and even though I’ve been sick for the last three days, I am praying that tomorrow morning, I will be good to go!

We arrive in Portland at 11:30am on Monday and will be in town for two weeks.

Mark your calendar for January 26th at 6:30 to 8:00! We will be having an open house at Willamette Christian Church in West Linn, all are welcome to come by and say hi!

Here are the directions:

http://www.willamettechurch.com/about-us/location-service-times

See you soon!

Off to Oregon in 10 days

Our family is gearing up for the journey to the West of the United States, from the West of Scotland, and oh baby what a journey it’s gonna be!

We get up around 3am on January 16th in order to get to the airport at 4am for a flight leaving for Amsterdam at 6am. Talk about starting with a bang!

Only 12 some hours in the air with the 8 of us! Whoohoo!!!

We’ll be in P-town until January 31st….hopefully, we will get a chance to see you! I will be updating this blog with where we will be if by chance you would like to connect!

A new Year!

January, 2012 will mark the point at which our family has been in Scotland for three years.

For Dylan, Scotland is obviously all he has known. (He’s almost three months old)

For Taren, Scotland is all he has known (He’s two)

For Caileen, Scotland is where she has spent most of her years

For Connie, Scotland is going to be most of her years too…soon.

This country has become home in a very short period of time.

The other day, Raiden commented that he wished his two younger brothers were American.

When I asked him why, he couldn’t put his finger on it. He just did. It didn’t matter to him that they hold US passports and that they are not citizen’s of the UK even though they have been born here.

I think, that in his own way, he is coming to grips with the oddity of our family. Some of us have been born in the US, some in the UK. Some have spent most of their lives in the US while, an ever increasing number have spent their lives in the UK. We visit the US occasionally, but it is not home. Accents are changing all the time with the kids, not to mention their vocabulary.

And, as a parent, it is a bit odd to think that my kids will not be like other kids in our family. They don’t fit in to the US anymore, neither are they Scottish. They will be, I believe, stronger and more resilient, and maybe at times, a bit confused and lonely.

Through it all, God will never lose control. He will never cease to ordain what occurs in our lives. That is comforting. We will always be first and foremost, citizens of the Kingdom which has come in Christ Jesus!

A US Visit

The Luse family will be leaving Scotland for three weeks starting January 16th in order to visit the United States.

Pray for us, as the 12 hours in the air with 6 children will be quite an adventure!

Hope to see you!

Introducing….Dylan!!

Our prayers were answered (ok….mine and Raiden’s)and on the 1st of November at 11:31am we were given care of a baby boy.

Dylan Kenneth Luse weighed in at 9.8lbs and was 20.5 inches long. He was the third largest of our children, and was 15 days late. Born in Paisley, Scotland at the RAH.

Mom and Dylan came home the next day and although the first night at home was rather sleepless, last night was great!

He is a cutie…and to my eyes, he looks alot like a boy version of Connie.

Thank you for all the prayers and notes!

Introducing…….

Strep throat!
Not what you were thinking that I was going to introduce? Yeah….not what we were hoping for either.

Shauna has gotten some antibiotics though and should be on the mend real soon, which is good ’cause baby is over due by about a week.

It looks like they will induce on November 1st, which Shauna is quite happy with in terms of birthdays in our home. That would mean we have Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, and March in a row!

The kids had a great holiday week last week. They attended Re:hope’s holiday club in the mornings and generally relaxed in the afternoons…..a good break!

Hopefully, real soon, I will be able to introduce the newest member of our “little” family!

A room of her own

Charlotte turned 10 on Sunday.

Hard to believe our first is that old, and yet not so hard to believe. God has seen fit to grant us with a daughter who is first of all faithful to the Lord, intelligent, beautiful, funny, so helpful….I could go on and on. She is wonderful!

So when Shauna came to me and suggested that we try to give her her own room, in my heart I thought it was the perfect gift and very appropriate. The logistical side of me though, coudn’t see it.

We have 5 kids, and four rooms. The three girls in one, the two boys in the other. The third is ours, and the fourth was the “changing room” with all the clothes and such.

Well, the changing room is no more. Shauna did an absolutely amazing job of transforming it into Charlotte’s new room. On Sunday when we surprised her with it she was over the top excited! And, as an added gift from God, our other kids did not weep and moan…they were amazing and happy for Charlotte.

Still waiting…..

Yep, we’re still awaiting baby Luse #6!

The official due date? October 17th, the day after Charlotte’s birthday.

As I wait, I pray.

I am so very thankful for my family. God has given them health, both spiritually and physically. I do believe, and it would appear, that God has given each of them His grace in salvation. We will continue to watch and see.

I am so very thankful for my health. I realized today in prayer, how blessed I am to not be in constant pain or sickness. The ministry would be so much more difficult if that were the case. But if God ever chooses to visit my life with suffering, He will still be completely justified and righteous in doing so. And I, I will serve as He will give me strength. What more can any of us do?

I am also very aware that if God does not unleash the power of His Holy Spirit on our body in a powerful way, we will not prevail against the present darkness in our town.

I thank the Father for sending Jesus Christ as a light to our world!

Come, shine on Renfrew!

Not long now….

We are officially 23 days away from the due date of baby Luse #6!!

Names are not coming as easy as they once did…..wait a minute….did I say easy? Ok, names never really have been easy….

I have now been the pastor here at RBC for two years, and it looks like they are willing to go a bit more.

We are averaging around 63 adults in attendance, and around 12-18 elementary age kids with 6-10 toddlers and nursery kids.

About 18-24 women are in the midst of a Beth Moore Bible study being headed by Shauna at our house on Tuesdays. Men are gathering to watch Rugby championships while having a sausage and bacon meat lovers breakfast on October 1st.

Thanksgiving will once again be taking place in Renfrew on November 24th, stocked with Turkey, candy corn, pumpkin pie (a rarity here) and sweet potatoes with marshmallows!

And….we are soon to have a new website!

Whew!

Amazing and busy, all for the glory of Christ our Lord!