Holiday Blessings from the Tollett FamilyGod is good…all the time! I realize I am so blessed to be able to send out letters from year to year with the same glowing report that all is well with my family. Tyler, Emily, Lauren and Hannah continue to grow, thrive and excel in school and in all of their many activities. We stay too busy much of the year, and admittedly struggle as a family to balance “going and blowing” with “quality family time”, but try and make up for it on those rare weekends we “don’t have to go anywhere”!
Tyler is now 11 and in the fifth grade. He is still involved in football, basketball, piano lessons and church choir. He tried out for the spring musical and did a fantastic job with his part. He continues to express interest in being a cook or an artist. Tyler is genuine friends with everyone, without any regard to class or social status, which I feel is a rare and enviable gift. Although he struggles with legalism in many aspects of life, he is a wonderful helper, esteemed classmate and a great big brother.
Emily is 8 and in the third grade. She still does gymnastics, piano lessons and church choir, and is going to try basketball for the first time this spring. Emily remains extremely sweet and laid back; she is fairly social and quietly confident. Emily is my hardest worker at everything she does and is very devoted to her close friends. The more she grows, the more Wes threatens to put a book on her head or lock her in the closet; but I am excited to see the attractive young woman that she is quickly becoming.
Lauren is 6 and in the first grade. She is involved in the same activities as Emily, and also trying basketball this spring. Lauren is our “sweet chariot” child…her emotions are constantly swing high, swing low. When she is high, she is our comedian clown, with a smile that crinkles her whole face. When she is low, she does battle with anxiety, insecurity, frustration and anger. Lauren gave her heart to God this fall, and I look forward to seeing her grow and mature as she figures out where she fits in.
Hannah just turned 3 and constantly pushes us toward the very outer limits of our parenting skills. She is a constant delight with the faces she makes and the things she says (I have been known to leave the room to laugh before I come back to scold), but she is so willful and determined that I often feel worn out at the end of the day. Like Tyler, Hannah also makes friends easily, as long as they understand quickly who is the boss (hint: it is not them). She loves going to her classes at church and is fixing to start gymnastics. I would consider starting her in 2-day school, which I think she would love, but she absolutely refuses to potty train. She is quite vocal that she wants to remain a baby for-“evah”. I haven’t thought of an incentive to counter that one yet.
Wesley does a great job at managing the family and takes his role at being a dad very seriously. He even has the Dad’s Against Daughter’s Dating shirt to prove it! Seriously, he helps coach Tyler’s football and basketball teams, takes the girls to Father/Daughter date night at church, and even chaperoned Tyler’s 5th grade overnight science trip this fall (and actually enjoyed it!) Wesley recuperated from his broken wrist from last year, after having surgery and several months of physical therapy, and jumped back into playing basketball as soon as possible. There have been a few knocks and gashes since then, but nothing more serious than a sprained neck. I’m just thankful the two injuries were not reversed!
All of you know that I had the incredible experience of going to Malawi, Africa twice this year, once in March and again in August. God was with me and worked in me in a very real way. After returning from my March trip, two serious needs pressed upon my heart. The first was finding a way to plug in and really help with missions—specifically Malawi missions—from home. The second was that I and my family needed to get as serious about our Christian walks as we were about football practice or scheduling our annual May camping trip.
Tyler is now 11 and in the fifth grade. He is still involved in football, basketball, piano lessons and church choir. He tried out for the spring musical and did a fantastic job with his part. He continues to express interest in being a cook or an artist. Tyler is genuine friends with everyone, without any regard to class or social status, which I feel is a rare and enviable gift. Although he struggles with legalism in many aspects of life, he is a wonderful helper, esteemed classmate and a great big brother.
Emily is 8 and in the third grade. She still does gymnastics, piano lessons and church choir, and is going to try basketball for the first time this spring. Emily remains extremely sweet and laid back; she is fairly social and quietly confident. Emily is my hardest worker at everything she does and is very devoted to her close friends. The more she grows, the more Wes threatens to put a book on her head or lock her in the closet; but I am excited to see the attractive young woman that she is quickly becoming.
Lauren is 6 and in the first grade. She is involved in the same activities as Emily, and also trying basketball this spring. Lauren is our “sweet chariot” child…her emotions are constantly swing high, swing low. When she is high, she is our comedian clown, with a smile that crinkles her whole face. When she is low, she does battle with anxiety, insecurity, frustration and anger. Lauren gave her heart to God this fall, and I look forward to seeing her grow and mature as she figures out where she fits in.
Hannah just turned 3 and constantly pushes us toward the very outer limits of our parenting skills. She is a constant delight with the faces she makes and the things she says (I have been known to leave the room to laugh before I come back to scold), but she is so willful and determined that I often feel worn out at the end of the day. Like Tyler, Hannah also makes friends easily, as long as they understand quickly who is the boss (hint: it is not them). She loves going to her classes at church and is fixing to start gymnastics. I would consider starting her in 2-day school, which I think she would love, but she absolutely refuses to potty train. She is quite vocal that she wants to remain a baby for-“evah”. I haven’t thought of an incentive to counter that one yet.
Wesley does a great job at managing the family and takes his role at being a dad very seriously. He even has the Dad’s Against Daughter’s Dating shirt to prove it! Seriously, he helps coach Tyler’s football and basketball teams, takes the girls to Father/Daughter date night at church, and even chaperoned Tyler’s 5th grade overnight science trip this fall (and actually enjoyed it!) Wesley recuperated from his broken wrist from last year, after having surgery and several months of physical therapy, and jumped back into playing basketball as soon as possible. There have been a few knocks and gashes since then, but nothing more serious than a sprained neck. I’m just thankful the two injuries were not reversed!
All of you know that I had the incredible experience of going to Malawi, Africa twice this year, once in March and again in August. God was with me and worked in me in a very real way. After returning from my March trip, two serious needs pressed upon my heart. The first was finding a way to plug in and really help with missions—specifically Malawi missions—from home. The second was that I and my family needed to get as serious about our Christian walks as we were about football practice or scheduling our annual May camping trip.
I came home and got involved with many of the administrative parts of Pure Mission. I began to write articles. I got the opportunity to tell my story and speak about Malawi several different times. I talked about Africa with my family. I taught the kids the verses of the “Romans Road”, and how those verses told a person the story of why and how we can come to a saving knowledge of Christ. I left for Malawi in August.
The one thing I remember pondering over at the end of my August trip was “Why?” I would have loved to have stayed in Malawi, but my life was at home. So I struggled to understand why I had been led to go to Malawi in the first place, and then go again, and fall in love with that place and those people, only to have to leave, knowing I probably couldn’t ever go to stay for any real length of time, without any clear indication of when I might even be able to return. I grew depressed and struggled with finding joy in the tedium of my daily activities. I questioned my effectiveness in what I was doing here. I grew more reticent in my walk with God than I had been before going to Malawi in March. And I began to wonder if I was capable of making any kind of a difference at all.
We all struggle with life, even as Christians. There is no magic cure, and walking the walk is a slow (and sometimes agonizing) process. But this I know. GOD IS GOOD. Two people stepped in from out of the blue to help talk me through my time of despair and doubt, and I let them. GOD IS GOOD. My uncle, after many years of turning his back on God, got saved against tremendous odds. GOD IS GOOD. My brother has been able to be a father to his son after a year of heartbreaking separation. GOD IS GOOD. I was offered a volunteer opportunity to help coordinate and organize other groups to go to Malawi throughout the year. Organization is my gift, and Malawi is my passion. Being involved in this is the next best thing to going to Malawi myself. GOD IS GOOD. I have a beautiful family, a wonderful home, and people who love me. GOD IS GOOD. I am not perfect and never will be, but thank God He is. GOD IS GOOD!
You know, as little as they have in Malawi, and despite the things they deal with on a daily basis like hunger, poverty, sickness and disease…they have a favorite saying. And they say it a lot. Mulungu ndiwabwino nthawizonse. Nthawizonse Mulungu ndiwabwino! God is good all the time. All the time God is good!
And it is true.
Thank all of you for supporting me and praying for me through my journeys. If you want to read more about my time in Malawi and see some pictures, check out my other blog posts.
Have a wonderful holidays!
Thank all of you for supporting me and praying for me through my journeys. If you want to read more about my time in Malawi and see some pictures, check out my other blog posts.
Have a wonderful holidays!
Wesley, Beth, Tyler, Emily, Lauren and Hannah Tollett
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