Impact

"Excuse me, young ladies."

An older gentleman with white hair and a round belly approached our round table at the funeral dinner after the burial of Leah, Harrison, and Sophia on Tuesday.

"There is a gentleman over there," said the man, "who wanted to find out who played the piano and the violin so beautifully yesterday at the calling hours."

During part of the time that 1,500-2000 went through to give their condolences to Uncle Brian, Uncle Kenneth and Aunt Erma (Leah's and my Uncle John's parents), and to Brian's parents, Amanda, Beth, and I had played the piano and violin a little. I don't remember all that the others played, but I played "Give Me Jesus" and "No Night There". We gave our names to the man who had come up to us, and he had us write them and our address down on a piece of paper. "Gil was very impressed," he told us.

He then began to tell us about Gil G.-- Aunt Erma's oldest brother, Aunt Leah's uncle. "Have you ever seen the movie 'End of the Spear'?" he asked us.

"We've heard of it," I answered.

"Yeah, well, he knew one of those five men who were martyred-- Jim Elliot."

*drops mouth open* !!! After the man left talking to us, Mommy told us, "You need to go talk to him!" (meaning Mr. G.)

I waited for the seats around Mr. G to empty, and then Bethany and I approached him.

"We heard you were asking after the girls who played the music yesterday," I said. "I am one of them. My name is Melanie, and this is my sister Bethany, who played the violin."

Mr. G was grateful for us coming over and began to tell us how the music had been a blessing to him and such. When there was a break in the conversation, I said, "We heard that you knew Jim Elliot personally. Is that correct?"

He answered to the affirmative.

"How did you know him? Did you know him really well?" I asked.

"Well, it's kind of a long story," Mr. G said, and then he went on to tell us. It was loud in the room, and he's an old man who's voice is a little shaky, so some of what he said was hard to catch. But I will tell you what I am certain of.

Mr. G worked in some kind of service... civil service?... with Jim's older brother, and Jim would come and see them at their work. Then that service transferred Mr. G up to Oregon where the Elliots lived, and Mr. G would worship with them at their congregation on Sundays!

"I remember the day he died," Mr. G said with a faraway look. "I was sitting in my living room and looked at the headlines.... and saw that he and four other missionaries had been speared by the Auca Indians.

"It's made a major impact on the world," he said. "And I believe that this tragedy will make a major impact on the Flora community, and will finger out into other places as well."

What perspective this gave me. I thought about it for the rest of the afternoon.

Jim Elliot was young, handsome, and passionate in his walk with Christ. He was not yet thirty years old when he, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming, Roger Youderian, and Nate Saint were martyred by hostile Auca Indians in the jungle of Ecuador, each leaving behind a widow and several leaving behind young children. Tragedy? Yes, I suppose it could be called so. But did God know what He was doing? Was God still in control when those naked Indians burst out of the trees with spears? Was God still on the throne when people pulled Jim's mutilated body out of the water? Were all of Jim's, and the other men's, efforts-- flying over, dropping gifts, praying for the salvation of the Aucas-- wasted?

We all know God was still in control, still on the throne, still at work. We all know that afterwards several of the men who were actually involved in the murder were saved and baptised and are now leaders in the church in that area. Various writings about Jim, Nate, and the others have brought people to salvation in Christ, been instrumental in the call of many to the mission field, and simply been a huge encouragement and blessing in countless people's lives-- including my own. Those five missionaries have become famous worldwide and we continue to be impacted by their lives-- and deaths-- even today. I am, as I keep a copy of the Journals of Jim Elliot on my nightstand.

Now for another story.

Brian W. and Leah F. were close friends growing up, and eventually became husband and wife. They had two beautiful children-- Harrison and Sophia. The children were active, energetic, and-- despite their young ages-- passionate for the Lord and for others. Harrison said that he wanted to be a preacher. Sophia comforted others during hard times in their lives-- even at four years old. Leah loved to minister to her husband, children, and friends, leaving huge impact on many lives-- and one of her favorite hobbies was running, being extremely athletic.

Then, one night (Friday, May 15, 2009) a thunderstorm rolled over their little town of Flora, Indiana. Fire broke out all throughout the house. Brian escaped. Leah, Harrison, and Sophia did not.

Did God know what He was doing? Was He still good when firefighters found the remains of that beloved wife and mother in the burnt kitchen of the house? Was He still wise when He took a man's wife and only two children? Was He still on His throne as the champagne-coloured casket, containing the bodies of the three, was lowered into the sod on Tuesday?

Oh, my friends, I tell you, He was good, He was wise, and HE WAS ON THE THRONE! In the past week, I have seen tragedy and grief-- I have felt grief at the loss of these beautiful children who I had been so blessed to call my "cousins"-- even though they were my cousin's cousins. But in the past week I have seen Christ lifted up, the Holy Spirit at work, and God glorified. Brian, Kenneth and Erma, and Brian's parents are looking to the Lord and are confident that He is in control and that He is with them. They know the Aunt Leah, Harrison, and Sophia are in a better place-- worshipping and singing in the presence of God and living in glorious exaltation of their Saviour-- and couldn't wish to come back. From what I heard last, two children, friends of Harrison's, have accepted Christ as their Saviour, and one girl has chosen to make a public profession of faith by baptism. And I believe that people will continue to come to Christ through this. And those who already know Christ will see even more than before the need to set their eyes on Christ and cling to Him and trust Him-- as I have been learning this week. I am excited to see what further impact this will have not only on the community of Flora, but also all over the state of Indiana-- and, via family members and friends, throughout all of America.

"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth:

Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours;

and their works do follow them."

(Revelation 14:13)

"And Jesus answered them, saying,

'The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.

Verily, verily, I say unto you,

Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die,

it abideth alone:

but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit."

(John 12:23)

Regency

Regency Era: the years from the 1790s to the 1820s, mainly in Europe. To me, "Regency" means beautiful dresses and hairstyles, social classes, Pemberly, Hartfield, Norland, and, well, in short, Jane Austen! :-)

I love everything Regency! Mainly my love for it is inspired by the excellent books by Jane Austen, and some of the delightful movie renditions of them...

Lately I have taken up sewing (or attempting to sew) my own Regency wardrobe. :-) But you kind of have to work from the inside out, so I started with the chemise, which is like a slip, and is also called a shift... I learned so many new skills while sewing it, such as sewing gussets in sleeves, making a bias, and sewing flat felled seams! (Thank you, Mrs. Smith! :-) )

Then the short stays... which are a mild form of a corset, basically-- softer and shorter. It was a big project, and lots of fun, especially applying the boning. :-) I finished that on Monday, but haven't gotten a picture of them. Unfortunately, they were a little big on me, but fit Amanda, so either I am going to have to make a new pair or try some other option. At least, it only took me a week to make, but still... that was all afternoon every day but Sunday! :-P

Below is the basic look of the stays, only these aren't the ones I made. The pattern is from Sense and Sensibility.

Well, once I find a solution to the stays problem, I will, Lord willing, make the dress. The pattern I have is from Simplicity, but the same pattern can be gotten from Sense and Sensibility (link above.) In cutting out the pattern pieces for this dress, I have decided I like working with the Sensibility much better than Simplicity-- I say that in case you decide to buy the pattern yourself. Of course, your taste in may vary from mine. :-)

I've also tried a hairstyle inspired from the films, particularly Elinor in the new "Sense and Sensibility" (BBC). Here's Elinor:

And here's me:

Hmm... needs some improvement in the back where it wraps around. How do some people manage to make their hair (or others') so nice?

Well, I don't know whether or not to say this post was totally pointless... but it's fun for me and thought you might like to know what's going on over here in between Sundays. :-)

I hope you are all enjoying the beauty of God's creation and the joy of a blooming spring, inside and out. May the Lord "grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being..."

Thanksgiving

"And God be praised, we had a good increase... Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of ours labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help besides, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we excercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty... These things I thought good to let you understand... that you might on our behalf give God thanks who hath dealt so favourably with us."

-Edward Winslow, in a letter to a friend in England

"They began now to gather in the small harvest they had, and to fit up their houses and dwelling against the winter, being all well recovered in health and strength and had all things in good plenty. For as some were thus employed in affairs abroad, others were exercised in fishing, about cod and bass and otehr fish, of which they took good store, of which every family had their portion. All the summer there was no want; and now began to come in store of fowl, as winter approached, of which this place did abound when they came first (but afterward decreased by degrees.) And besides waterfowl there was great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many, besides venison, etc. Besides, they had about a peck a meal a week to a person, or now since harvest, Indian corn to that proportion. Which made many aterwards write so largely of their plenty here to their friends in England, which were not feigned but true reports."

-William Bradford, Of Plimoth Plantation

"And thus they found the Lord to be with them in all their ways, and to bless their outgoings and incomings, for which let His holy name have the praise forever, to all posterity."

-William Bradford, Of Plimoth Plantation

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Calico Captive

Calico Captive is a historical fiction novel written by Elizabeth George Speare and published in 1957. While classified as a book for children, it is an excellent book for any girl wishing to curl up on a rainy day and be transported hundreds of years back in time into the life of a girl not so different from herself.

Calico Captive was based off true events of a family living in New Hampshire in 1754. Susanna Johnson recorded her experiences in a book Narrative of the Captivity of Mrs. Johnson, and the book is built on the events recorded therein.

The main character is Miriam Willard, the younger sister of young wife and mother, Susanna Johnson. Miriam lived with Susanna's family just outside the town of Charlestown, New Hampshire. One day, Miriam's life is full of hope and promise of happiness. But the next day, her hopes are dashed, and she and Susanna's family are trailing bound through the woods, looking forward to nothing but possible death or slavery. Bound by Indian captors and facing near starvation and difficult terrain, Miriam struggles with hateful feelings towards the strange enemy people, anxiety for her expectant sister, and fear of what might lay ahead.

After the Johnsons and Miriam reach the notorious St. Francis, things seem to take a turn-- rather for the worse-- as the family is broken up bit by bit. Miriam, her brother-in-law, and two of Susanna's four children, are taken to Montreal, where they are further split up, and Miriam is sent to work for a well-to-do family as a servant. A whirlwind of events work to change her from the frontier girl she had always been. Will her family ever be together again? Will she ever again see the man she left her heart behind with, or does Montreal hold other plans for her?

While the book is not written from a particularly Christian perspective (though Christianity mentioned in a historical way), the reader of Calico Captive still gleans much of both the early history of our nation and also the close bonds of the family and the nature of true love and friendship. The writer does an excellent job in catching the reader up in the adventures; while reading it, the reader can feel Miriam's loneliness, confusion, and struggles with pride, fear, and anger. The reader's heart aches with hers as her family is torn apart and rejoices with her as she discovers the qualities of life that really matter--and that people are the same, whatever their nationality, and that honesty, goodness, and love are far more important than any of the riches and prosperity the world may have to offer. Calico Captive is an excellent companion to learning early United States history and a fun candidate for a rainy-day quick-read to any who enjoy a good history and romance!

The Wisdom of Winthrop

In my History I read about John Winthrop, who was the founder and governor of Massachusetts in the 1600's. I was impressed with some of what it said about him, so I wanted to quote the book here:

"He was a man of great wisdom. When another of the leading men in the colony wrote him an angry letter, he sent it back, saying that 'he was not willing to keep such a provocation to ill-feeling by him.' The writer of the letter answered, 'Your overcoming yourself has overcome me.'"

- A History of the United States and Its People by Edward Eggleston, page 43

This stood out to me. How often we hold something against someone else and keep feeding ourselves with negativities about someone, which continues to feed our anger and bitterness. Here, Winthrop chose not to dwell on what the other man had said-- in fact, he chose to not even put himself in the position to become bitter-- and this self-control and wisdom that he showed was more effective than if he had reacted in the flesh and blown up. Let us remember this as we interact with people throughout the day. Let us not hold things against others and dwell on wrongs done to us; instead let us go on in the love and kindness of our Lord, responding as Christ would respond and not "giv[ing] place to the devil" (Ephesians 4:27). Maybe it can also be said of us, "Your overcoming yourself [through Christ!] has overcome me."