Moving to or even visiting Italian villages is a unique and sometimes perplexing experience. Expect people to stare (and I mean really stare) as you walk down the street, without letting it give you a complex. No, you are not funny looking or strange. They just don't see many outsiders, and curiosity is one thing Italians do … Continue reading Life & Missions in Small-Town Italy
Mixed Blessings of Missionary Life {and Our Summer Home}
We celebrated 29 years here in May! And while our years here have not been easy, we would tread this path all over again. For it's been a good life in which we have seen God's faithfulness. But missionary life is joy mixed with sorrow. Unable to attend the funerals of Mario's parents and my grandparents, the … Continue reading Mixed Blessings of Missionary Life {and Our Summer Home}
When God Says ‘You Have Not Failed Me’
The apostle Paul often found himself sitting in a prison cell. The city in an uproar over this man who stirred things up wherever he went. I would have asked, "Why Lord? I was only obeying you and preaching your message. So please get me out of this fix! I've done nothing to deserve jail!" … Continue reading When God Says ‘You Have Not Failed Me’
Italy: The Missionary Graveyard
One-by-one we've watched them go. Quite often heart-broken, usually discouraged, but always leaving a big chunk of their hearts behind them. Graveyard life did them in, and it's really no surprise. It's often dark and gloomy. Often oppressive and crushing. What in the world am I talking about? Italy. Beautiful, marvelous Italy, where most missionaries … Continue reading Italy: The Missionary Graveyard
The Old Aunty’s Kerchief {And the Power of Love}
I can picture her still so old and frail, hobbling up the steep hill leaning on her pair of homemade walking sticks. "What do you have there, Zia (Aunty)?" my husband asked, pointing to the open-mesh bag on her kerchief-covered head. I just gaped, wondering how many other nasty things she'd carried on that seldom-washed, dirty kerchief! "Oh … Continue reading The Old Aunty’s Kerchief {And the Power of Love}
God Will Always Keep a Place for Us
Tickets? Ready! Passports? Ready! Our eight suitcases bulged with the little we owned, including eight teddy bears! Other than one box left with my parents, a small stash of money, passports and other documents, that was all we had in the world. Luggage? Ready! At last! We were finally ready to leave for the mission field! Italy … Continue reading God Will Always Keep a Place for Us
