Psalm 146

Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortal men who cannot save.
When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
the sea, and everything in them --
the Lord, who remains FAITHFUL FOREVER.
He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free,
the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the foreigner
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but He frustrates the ways of the wicked.
The Lord reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord.

Multiple Personalites?

This past weekend during our staff retreat, I learned that I have multiple personalities. After taking the Myers Briggs test, it seems that I am almost 50/50 I and E, 50/50 S and N, and 50/50 T and F. Sheesh!

That means I could be on any given day an:
ESTJ or ISTJ
ENTJ or INTJ
ESFJ or ISFJ
ENFJ or INFJ

Overall though, it was a lot of fun seeing everyone else's personality test results. We had a great afternoon session with a professional who taught us a lot about how we can work together as a team.

Frida

I had the privilege of going to Monterrey's modern art museum (MARCO) yesterday to see the Frida Kahlo exhibit. As I'm sure you know, she continues to be a very controversial artist, especially in her own country. The exhibit was shockingly beautiful and truly moving. It really was a once in a lifetime experience to see so many of her original paintings.





She was involved in a serious bus accident early in her life, and the painting I am sitting in is one she painted while in the hospital recovering from her injuries. Her body and spirit never fully recovered and the physical pain she experienced influenced the majority of her paintings throughout her life.

SMCA Lunch

Sierra Madre Christian Academy hosted a little lunch for the US staff on Friday afternoon. My students recited their Bible verses, Hebrews 12:1-3 and Miss Ruby's class recited a poem as well as their Bible verse. The kids had a great time showing off everything they have learned so far this year!

Polaroid Scavenger Hunt

The US Staff arrived on Thursday for our five day staff "retreat." We began the long weekend with a scavenger hunt. We had to drive around the city taking pictures of our group in ten different scenarios. My team won, of course, mostly because it was a contest. And because I'm competitive. The team who turned in their cd of photos to Meme first was the winning team. Knowing this, Juan and I brought along our computers and blank cds in order to transfer our photos in the car on the way back home. It was sweet action.

Bueno es Dios, Siempre Fiel

It may not seem like a big thing, but tonight I went to Bible study alone. Usually, Jazmine comes with me, but tonight she couldn't make it. So I went. By myself. To a Bible study completely in Spanish.

I've been learning a lot about faith lately. I can't get over this verse:

Romans 4:20-21
"Yet he (Abraham) did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being FULLY PERSUADED THAT GOD HAD THE POWER TO DO WHAT HE PROMISED."

We're talking about Abraham. His descendants were to outnumber the stars in the sky. God told him to sacrifice his only son on an altar. Talk about a test of faith. Everyone knows the story, Abraham tied his son up, raised the knife, and God provided a lamb. The Lord promised Abraham he would be the father of many nations. Yet he bound his only son and placed him on an altar because the Lord told him to.
Did he cry while looking into his son's terrified eyes? I'm sure he did.
Did he wish he had stayed home? He was only human.
Did he trust the Lord? Absolutely.
Abraham believed that even though God told him to sacrifice his only son, God would provide a way out. Abraham expected God to show up. And He did. And He still does.

On a much smaller scale, I was intimidated tonight. I didn't really want to go to Bible study alone. I know enough Spanish to get by, but if you know me at all, you know I hate saying the wrong words. Honestly, I thought about staying home. It's comfortable and safe. But, I went. And God showed up. He always does.

Every single time I go to my Bible study, I am able to understand every word of Spanish that is spoken. This is a group of 20-something women chatting away about what God is doing in their lives. They use words I'm know I've never heard before.

But, the Lord is faithful. I am convinced that it is by His power alone that my mind ceases to translate every word to English. I just get it. It is God's word whether in Spanish or Japanese. Same Spirit. Same Lord.

He is faithful.

"I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise will always be on my lips."
Psalm 34:1

Eye Taco

After living here for two years, I'm finally taking a Spanish class. Today, the most important thing I learned is that if a guy is cute, you can call him a "taco de ojo." Personally, I'm more of an eye candy kind of girl.

Ostriches = Pure Evil (What I learned at the Monterrey Zoo)

I am not afraid of many things. I live alone, I walk to the laundry room by myself in the dark, I kill tarantulas and scorpions with no problem. I am, however, terrified of ostriches. The Monterrey Zoo offers about thirty different "areas" to explore. I'd say five of these house ostriches. What's up with that?

In case you haven't seen an ostrich lately, they have red, beady eyes, three gnarly toes, and sharp beaks. They are just ugly. I know they are the largest birds in the world and all, and they can run really fast, but five cages of ostriches? Really?

Gracias!

This is a picture of where our school is being built, taken last May. (It will be behind the Joshua House.) Northstar Vineyard generously donated the money to build a new school building.



John, Todd, Corrie, Bill, Cathy, Greg,Christy, Steve, Gabo, Kelly, Antonio, Celso, and the masons worked all day yesterday pouring the roof on our new building. Thank you so much for all your hard work!

today we remember

Today, I sat down with my students to pray for the families of those who were killed on 9/11/01. To be honest, I planned this time as an afterthought at the end of the day and was not prepared for the questions I faced.

I reminded them briefly of what happened, and like all children, they were brimming with questions:

"What is a terrorist?"
"Are the people who died that day in heaven?"
"Were there kids and babies on the planes?"
"Was God sad when all those people died?"

Psalm 34:18
"The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."

beauty for ashes

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives... to comfort all who mourn...to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
Isaiah 61:1-3

Happy Who Dey!

Can I just tell you that today is going to be the best Monday of the year, no matter what. It is the one Bengals game I get to watch on television until I go home at Christmas. AND it's a Monday night game. Not just any Monday night game, THE FIRST MONDAY NIGHT GAME of the season.

All that to say, Happiest of Who Deys to you all. I'm sitting in Las Alitas, an hour prior to kickoff attracting the stares of many confused Mexicans.

Futbol? You know, the American kind? At least they changed the channel, that's all that matters.


A little Monday night Katie Housh/Bengals history:



2005: My first niece, Claire Suzanne Housh, was born on October 25. This was one of the happiest days of my life, made even more perfect by the first Monday night Bengals win since October, 1990. (We played Denver, Rudi had 119 yards, Chad had 149)



2006: What Monday night game? It never existed as far as I am concerned.
The only Monday night game that COUNTED in 2006 was the preseason slaughter of Green Bay on August 28. Evan and Josh joined me at Las Alitas to cheer our team to victory!



2007: Cincinnati 27. Baltimore 20. I want to marry Michael Meyers.

you know you live in Mexico when...

Does anyone have anything to add to the list Ruby and I made?

-you put your shoes on to kill a spider
-cows and chickens are your alarm clock
-you can smell what your neighbors are cooking for dinner or hear their dinner conversation
-you have to get out of the car to open a gate to leave or come home
-you have to turn down plastic bags of shrimp for sale on the highway
-it rains just as much inside your house as it does outside
-the only TV you watch is last season's DVDs
-you carry your laptop around on Sunday wearing your team jersey and checking espn.com
-you take walks carrying rocks to fend of the wild dogs

Obviously these things are specific to our Back2Back community and not necessarily the entire country of Mexico!

a mexican delicacy

I finally broke down and tried cabrito (baby goat) tonight. It is a regional specialty of the city of Monterrey, Mexico, and the surrounding state of Nuevo Leon, based on the Jewish cuisine of the founders of the city. Apparently, it is slow cooked over a charcoal fire for about 8 hours, turning it every 15- 20 minutes.
I pass the restaurant El Rey de Cabrito, in downtown Monterrey, every time I go to the market. It is a huge tourist spot. I've been avoiding the eating of the baby goat since I moved here two years ago, but Rosa's cousin, Angela, who is here to help when the new baby is born, decided to prepare an ENTIRE BABY GOAT last night. Today, she graciously invited us to try her delicious, um, meal.

I thought it tasted like putrid, slimy chicken, but that's just me. Has anyone else ever tried it?

it's saturday night and we ain't got nobody...

so this is what we do. i love having ruby here!

i'm a proud sister

Making the grade

Reynolds continues to impress on field and in class

By David Youngblood
Sports Writer







Cole Reynolds often finds himself in demanding situations as the holder for Oklahoma State, but the pressures of playing football are overshadowed by the pressure he puts on himself to succeed academically.

Listed as a sophomore for football after being redshirted a year, Reynolds will already have fulfilled his requirements for graduation as an international business and Spanish major in May 2008 in just three years. He’s maintained a 3.96 GPA while taking between 19-22 hours per semester and is in the Honors College.

“I’ve always been a student first before an athlete,” Reynolds said. “It just means a lot to me to be able to manage my time wisely and be competitive in school as well. I take a lot of pride in my school work.”

Reynolds, who also serves as the backup punter, said his several of his teammates give him a hard time about his grades.

“Some guys just refer to me as the GPA booster of the team,” he said. “They joke that the only reason they let me on the team is because I raise the cumulative GPA a little bit.”

Reynolds was one of the 13 Cowboys who earned Academic All-Big 12 honors last year. Coach Mike Gundy said the coaches talk to players every day about performing academically.

“There’s only a very small percentage that will have an opportunity to play and do this for a living,” Gundy said. “The rest of them need to get good grades and give themselves a chance.”

Reynolds said his parents always stressed the importance of academics, telling him he couldn’t play ball forever. With that in mind, he plans to enter law school, though he hasn’t decided yet whether he will do so now and forgo his final two years of football eligibility, or stay at OSU and get a master’s degree.

Reynolds has carved himself a role on the team, though it hasn’t been easy.

An accomplished quarterback and punter at Edmond Memorial High School, Reynolds suffered injuries as a senior that prevented him from playing quarterback in college and is behind All-American Matt Fodge at punter.

He said it was hard at first to adjust to being on the bench.

“There’s times when I wish I could be out there more often, but really, it’s just fun to be a part of the team and get out there in any facet,” Reynolds said.

This will be Reynolds’ second year as the team’s holder, and special teams coordinator Joe DeForest said it has been clear that he’s the right man for the job.

“Everyone has a certain niche that they can do to help the football team,” DeForest said. “As a punter, Cole understands how to take a snap and put it down. He works with those kickers every day, so it’s a great relationship.”

In addition to balancing football and school, Reynolds is involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

He talks at schools and churches three or four nights a week and said he loves doing outreach and ministry.

Finally, Reynolds devotes as much of his free time as possible to being with his wife, Elizabeth. The couple were married in July, and Reynolds said her support has been important.

“Right after we got back from our honeymoon, I got thrown into camp, 7-10 every day, and was completely locked up,” Reynolds said. “But she’s been a trooper through everything.”


Sophomore Cole Reynolds, left, was a two-year starter at quarterback in high school but serves as OSU’s holder. He has a 3.96 GPA in college.


This story was published in the O'Collegian on August 29th, 2007 under Sports.

it's baby season!

Antonio and Priscila, two great friends who are on staff with Back2Back, just gave birth to their first child last Monday. Baby Zua is so beautiful, I can't wait to visit her again!


Meme's daughter, Janet, and her husband, Jose Angel, welcomed their third daughter about three weeks ago. She is still without a name, but they are thinking about naming her Chelsea. Meme is such a proud abulelita!

weather report: hot and rainy

A few neighborhood/barrio kids find a good way to cool off.

welcome

I created this blog to keep in touch with all of you while I'm living here in Monterrey. Here is a picture of our students on the first day of school. Miss Ruby just joined us this year and is teaching K-2. I am teaching 3-5. We just finished our first week and are taking a much-needed night off!

Check out my facebook photo album if you want to see more SMCA pictures.