Matthews Family Herald

Thanks to God, we are finally moved in to our new place in Neckargemund.

Our household goods are set to arrive on Monday and Wednesday and our "move out" inspection of the on-post quarters is set for Tuesday. I have a court-martial case to record on Thursday and Friday and so you can see we have a very busy schedule set for next week.

Last week at our third home fellowship, our son Jacob heard the Lord and asked to be water baptised/immersed. (This photo is not of him.) He had already decided to follow Jesus with all of his heart and life a few years before but now felt the Lord leading him that this was then the time to be immersed in obedience to the Lord and by the example, in so doing, of our Lord Himself. (Say that sentence three times without slipping.) So, our family gathered in the bathroom and Jacob was baptised in our bathtub. (German bathtubs are just as long and twice as deep as those we are accustomed to back in America. Did you know that being immersed did not begin with John the Baptist but was a custom of the Israelites/Jews long before then?) It meant so much to me to be able to immerse him as his physical father and I suddenly felt more connected than before with centuries of leadership before me. I felt hope in continuing to secure in my family the things of the Lord for those coming after us. This was affirming on so many levels.

It's so wonderful living in Neckargemund. If that weren't enough, we have the most amazing landlords, Herr and Frau Heise. ("Herr" is the equivalent of "Mr." but perhaps means more than that. The bible in German uses "Herr" for the same word we translate as "Lord.") They are more like grandparents, really, and have made this move so much easier and pleasant. We moved in on New Year's Eve and so this was reason enough to celebrate. But here in Germany, it's legal to shoot fireworks from your home. This was surprising because Germany has given us the impression, thus far, that the society as a whole tends to be more careful and to "err" (if one could really call it "err") on the side of caution. But I will say that it had rained for a good part of the day prior to the New Year's Eve celebrations here.

The point is/was that we live up on a hill-top neighborhood and so people began shooting fireworks at about 10:20 (2230 in German time. Germans use the 24-hour clock just like the US military.) These shootings were just random and "here and there," if you will. But just moments before the New Year turned over, the citizens began shooting them off in droves. We could see bursts rocketing from homes, lighting up things below us, on either side, and all around us for miles in a panorama of explosions of sound and color. This went on for over an hour and so it was likely the most spectacular fireworks show we had ever seen and certainly the most beautiful. The best part was just being upstairs, the whole family huddled into Micah's room and watching the show together by the window sills and enjoying the children's fascination with the whole thing.

Today, we go with the intent to complete the cleaning of the home, perhaps get the new tires I need to have our family van pass the German inspection, shop for groceries, and hopefully get the bills paid before Monday.

I have found an awesome tool, Google Translator! Yeah! Through the use of this, I have located and joined in to website forums made for other home fellowshipers in Germany. I found this chiefly through the website of an author, Wolfgang Simson, who wrote "Houses that Change the World." He is a German who lives, I believe, in Stuttgart but travels the world. The afore-mentioned book was the first house church book I ever read, back in 2004. Little did I know then that I'd be in Germany some day. :) How I long for fellowship here...

There's so much more to share...perhaps later when we are more settled in. Planning to get more pictures up soon as well. Heather and I are really enjoying the comments left here by readers and we will do our best to reply back anytime anyone leaves a comment on one of our posts or asks a question.

With that, I'm going to close. Here's an appropriate picture of Jacob putting all of his trains down to bed for the night.

Take care,

James