Jimena is...

... in BONAIRE

Loooooooooong walk

I just wanted to post a few pictures Raphael took on his mobile from our walk yesterday. He had a day off so we went for a nice walk in nature. Before going we had a very nice study in I Samuel 1. I was really touched to learn about how God answers our prayers. It was just a great way to start the day.... so off we went on this walk. The weather was great, and my walking was quite good as well. Raphael showed me how to use two hiking sticks to see if that would help and it helped so well that on our way up he didn't even have to make an effort to slow down his walking, so that was very encouraging for me... So, we walked, and walked, and talked about heaven, and I kept asking him things that require a lot of imagination like... "If God gave you a country... would you like it to be an island or somewhere in a continent? What kind of vegetation would you put in it? What kind of animals?" and so on.... I know he doesn't like these kinds of questions very much because... they are so irrelevant, but he still answers as best as he can to satisfy me, and then I talk and talk and talk about what I would do if it were my case... all this while I'm still walking pretty well. I know he would much rather have me ask him how the internet works, for example... anyway. We walked and walked, and then after about 2 hours he pointed to where he wanted to take me... on top of a mountain, and I thought he must be kidding because how on earth would I get up there? But I just followed him... then after more walking I started to feel really tired and wanted to give up but he told me he wanted to take me just a little bit further up... so after walking and climbing a bit... he lead me to the very top and WOW, the view was amazing. then he pointed down to were we had parked the car and how much we had walked and WOW.... I just had to cry a little to think that just by taking little steps at a time you can get very far... He shared with me how it made him so happy to be sharing this walk with me. See.... my husband is a hiker... he loves to hike and climb... and how funny is it that the Lord gave him a wife that walks with so much difficulty. And yet... isn't that just like God?

Then we found a place to sit and we went through out prayer requests and those the Lord had answered already, and other blessings that we hadn't even prayed for but the Lord had done... and we prayed and just spent such a nice time on top of that mountain....

Then we had to go down... there were several ways to go back to the car, I asked for the shortest way because I was already kind of really tired. So we saw a path and chose to go on that one... there had been a warning sign hiding in the bushes but Raphael looked at his map and according to the map the path would lead us to the car. This path was smaller, going down, and had a lot of stones on it which made it very difficult for me... and after 30 minutes we hit a fence that prevented us from continuing and had no other choice but to turn back... The sun was already starting to set, we knew that we still had about two hours to go... and we had just lost 45 minutes going down and up this trail... my legs were getting heavier and heavier... and not only that but I was VERY discouraged. I knew it wasn't Raphael's fault, he was following the map, but still... walking up was easier, but much more tiring, and I knew once we were up we still had to go down the other way. Raphael felt really bad and I could tell he was a bit concerned about time. He put up the warning sign again (which said that it was a dangerous path) I just had to keep praying for the Lord to give me patience and a happy heart... Raphael also stopped after a while to pray for me because he could tell that I was having a hard time... I just kept thinking that all that was happening was like a perfect situation to discourage us after such a great moment of prayer. I knew that it was just the kind of thing that would make us forget how Good the Lord really is and it could have even gotten me mad at Raphael when it wasn't really his fault, so I tried to keep that in mind and just continue praying...

Raphael then decided that he was going to take me down on his back and that I should just enjoy the view... so that's more or less how we made it down.... and it was fun, it was good exercise for him he said, and it kept our spirits up. He carried me down all the way to the foot of the mountain and then when it was flat I was able to walk back quite ok. We left for our walk at about 14:30 and got back to the car at about 20:30... that was a loooong walk. On our way home we stopped to get some excellent pizza, and once at home my he prepared a foot bath for me. :)

I'm still kind of tired today, but... I'm just happy of the day we had.

On our way up... unawares of what awaits me... see those rocks up there?

View from the rocks i just showed you?

I loved that we could see the snowy alps... those are my favourite mountains around here...

Raphael took pictures all around with his mobile...

Super cool!

Too bad he didn't take a picture from where we parked... and too bad I can't load those pictures from my mobile for some reason...

Our first trip down the wrong path... again unawares...

This is where Raphael took me down... at the bridge

Picture of where we were! I can hardly believe it!

Raphael... always happy, and me thinking "Take me home!"... but happy too :)

God+1Year+1day+Raphael=Happy Me :)

On the 28th of April 2007 Raphael and I got married in a beautiful little church, on a beautiful Sunny day in Holland (!!!). It's been a year and a day since that day and it has been such a blessed year for me and Raphael. On our wedding day we received an album from one of my colleagues and her boyfriend with some photos of "my children" at the school where I worked... a souvenir to always remember them... and they also added some pictures of our engagement. At the end they put... "to be continued" - So I thought a year after I could offer it to Raphael again with some pictures of what this year has meant to me. So... a friend and I went to the beach in Cannes... she brought her cool pink camera and I brought a bag full of things to see if I could somehow make pictures of what love was for me...

All the pictures were taken by Tuuli, a friend from church... I thought she did a great job at taking them and going ahead with all my little crazy ideas. I would just set up things and she would snap away... it was great because often times I would like to take a picture of my hands or so, and I would need a third arm to take it.. so it was great to have Tuuli there. She admited she had never taken such pictures, but I think they turned out great. Thank you Tuuli!

I did edit the photos some to add text or colour...and make them a bit like what I saw in my head... didn't quite work as well because I'm not very good with photo editing programs at all... and I just had a short time to work on them, but it did get me interested in learning more about photo editing...

Anyway here are some pictures :)

The idea was to make a little album of what love meant to me in our marriage. So on one side of the album I put a "love is.." picture and on the other side I put a picture of what it was...

Because of my disability I find that love... or how Raphael shows his love to me is by being patient. Tuuli later commented on how the love I felt was coming from him was love from God, and she was right on!

"Love is..." "...Marriage"... to me ;)

Well... in this case I put what it was in the same picture... :)

Les Petits Nounours :)

I love the way my simple kitchen matches look in this picture. Had no idea they were so photogenic!

Tuuli wasn't sure love was really forever as it kept being blown away... but I assured her it was...as God is eternal.



I have many more pictures that I used for the album but just wanted to share a few here...

In the morning we exchanged our old vows again and put on our rings for fun... Raphael gave me a huge bouquet with beautiful flowers and took me to a lovely restaurant in the evening close to our house. We just walked there and later walked back home in the cool of the night. We also got some phone calls that made our day! It was a lovely day to remember our wedding and the verses we used... :)

"My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;
The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away."
Song of Solomon 2:10-13

To any young lady reading this that would love to get married one day I will say this..."I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please." Song of Solomon 2:7

It's not easy to hear to "wait", to "not look for" or "find" but it is so worth it when we do wait on the Lord... trust me, but most of all trust the Lord who loves us more than we can ever imagine. :)

God bless ~

Net Hoy... o_0

Today is my little borther's Bithday, but I can't get in touch with him because his phone broke and there is no other way to get in touch with him... so I think this is the first year I will not speak to him on his Birthday... and that's sad... for me :(

So, I thought I would post a picture of him... and oh why not, I'll put my other brother in there too.. and wish him a Happy Birthday on my blog.


I won't say much about him because I don't want to embarrass him, but I will say that this little brother of mine does inspire me because of his maturity, his sensitivity to others, his really funny laugh, and how he can encourage his much older sister to be strong in the Lord, trusting always, only looking back to remember how God has been present in my life.

I didn't write a post for my other brother on his Birthday (which was last month) because I talked to him... but all I can say about him right now is that I have not seen him in way too long! He lives in Spain where he seems to love it, but God willing we will be able to see each other next month. I love both my brothers, I miss them, I wish I could see them more often, I think they are great guys and I just pray that they will both learn to put their trust in the Lord for all things. I've always been very happy with having brothers :)

Feliz Cumpleaños Carlos David!
днем рождения

What I've gotten myself into...

Raphael and I just returned from a short trip to Paris... we got to see family and share some good time with them. We even got to see a very old wedding album from his grandmother's sister... great-aunt I guess. That was fun! I don't have any pictures of the Eiffel tower, but maybe next time... we'll be going back soon God willing...

As I've mentioned before, Raphael and I have started a Bible study at home... it has been our prayer to have a study at home and now that we have one we are praying for those the Lord might want to send our way.... like our neighbors? We live on a very cute little street, and lately we have gotten to know our neighbors a little bit better and I have also started to go to an association on our street where they have activities for children and adults. The lady in charge would like to form activities that would allow people to share their knowledge with others in town. I thought it would be a good way to get to know people around so I have been going to get French lessons and have recently started going to their cooking courses.... well, Wednesday was my first class... we had a Tunisian lady over who taught us how to make "King's ears"... which is a Tunisian specialty... it was a very small group of ladies, but it was fun... and of course they asked us if we knew how to make any nice typical dishes or whatever... I don't know why, maybe I felt some pressure, but I actually said that I could make something (arepas I think)... so now they are all excited and the lady called me to ask if I could teach them how to cook something in two weeks... I don't recall saying that I knew how to make anything well... I told her I would think about it, I think I should make something because I do want to get to know these ladies and share with them... but I have no idea what I could teach... I was thinking maybe pancakes... they don't have pancakes for breakfast in France so maybe I can make some... it's not typical at all from where I come from, but it's the only thing I can think of that I'm quite good at, and I can make from scratch... the lady that was teaching us told us that she always has her hands in dough... she makes her own pasta and all! If anybody has any easy good ideas out there... they are more than welcome!

Ephrussi de Rothschild Villa

View from the villa with 7 gardens....

Today I went to Cannes with a friend. It might sound really fancy to some people... or not, but we just walked around, looked at nice shops, had lunch, talked a lot, walked by the beach, had a nice cup of hot chocolate, and played Scrabble at a coffee bar/restaurant... how cool is that! The Cannes Film Festival is in a few weeks so there is a lot of work going on. I took some fun pictures of Joanna on the "Red" carpet... with her camera. It was nice to have a girly day out, and Joanna is a lot of fun. :)

On train trip from Paris to home :)

As soon as we see the sea, we know we are almost home!

Today Raphael and I went to Menton, it's on the border with Italy. In the morning we taught some children in Nice and then we drove down to Menton. It was a beautiful day and I really do enjoy going out with Raphael... he's great, funny and he loves chicken! I don't have any pictures of Cannes or Menton, but I do have some other nice pictures... and I've noticed that people like pictures... so I will quit writing and post some pics...

Lady teaching us how to make King's ears...

Our street... :)

Et Voila!

Thank God for nice funny friends to hang out with, a super cool husband, King's ears and happy birthday to my brother!

The End -
________________________________________________________________________________________________________

- Not the End-

Raphael just mentioned that I couldn't put pictures of a pink villa without talking about what it was... I guess in case anyone thinks we live there. Well, we went there two weeks ago on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I told him I wanted to visit a garden and he took me to a pink villa with 7 gardens. It was a beautiful place in St. Jean Cap Ferrat. There is a link to the website under the picture... I also saw many beautiful houses/castles/villas today, and I think "Wow, that's amazing!" but what's even more amazing is that I'm sure no matter how impressive they are, they are nothing compared to what the Lord is preparing for us :)... can't wait :)

Trains, horses and taking Jesus to Nice

I hope everybody has had a good and blessed weekend. I've had quite an eventful one that I will not forget soon. I was finally able to do something I hadn't done since I moved to France. I took the train to Nice.... alone! I have to go to Nice to get some paper work done at the Dutch embassy. I had hoped that Raphael would be able to go with me to take the train for the first time, as I was really clueless as how to do this, but he works and the embassy is only open in the mornings. Besides that he was sure I would be able to take the train with no problem. I was used to taking trains in Holland and according to him it's the same thing. Well... I wasn't so sure about that... and knowing I had to do this had me feeling very anxious for a long long time. So Friday he reminded me that I had to get this done and how there was nothing to worry about... how it was really quite simple... but somehow his comforting words did not comfort me at all. For some odd reason I had fear that was beyond my understanding. It was unreasonable because why should I be scared? What was I so afraid of?... I couldn't come up with a good reason. My feelings of fear were so strong though that it was even making me cry... then out of the blue a friend calls to say something about the Bible study we are having at home, and in asking me how things were I shared about how I was planning to make this solo trip and it scared me, and what bothered me was that I didn't know why I was so scared... then my friend told me that I actually had good reason to be afraid... in fact, I had three things against me! This was a surprise to me, three things? What could they be? Well... my friend went on to share that first of all: I didn't speak the language well, and even for someone (my friend) that had been living in France before and spoke the language well (translator) it was still difficult. Secondly, France is completely different from Holland. I still cannot situate myself very well anywhere on the coast, things just appear much more complicated when you don't know where you are, things can even be complicated to those who have been living here longer than myself. Thirdly... I have a walking disability. It is not easy to get around, especially when I constantly have to look down to not trip over anything, and that as I have a neurological problem, my legs are very very sensitive to my emotions/feelings. If I'm nervous, my legs also get nervous and they either tremble or just appear to be loosing strength, which makes me even more nervous, which then goes back to my legs... and so on. So, according to my friend I did have good reason to feel as I did, it wouldn't be normal to feel otherwise.... and you know, that made me feel so much better. Why?... well simply because I know Someone who is very very good at handling difficult situations. See, if I have to depend on my own strength to do things, I know I will faint, I will go weary, I will age a hundred years... BUT... you know how I mentioned Deuteronomy 20 before? The chapter I said I like to read with a Scottish accent? Let me just share two verses with you.

¨When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt." Deuteronomy 20:1

When you go out to battle and you see that your enemy is greater than you... don't turn around and run away... no, the LORD your GOD is with you! Do I believe God is with me... yes I do! Why? I believe in Him. I used to have a quote, by Lewis, on a folder back in high-school that said... "I believe in God like I believe the sun has risen. Not because I see it, but because by it I see it all." I believe the Lord has opened my eyes to His truths, and I want to keep tasting and seeing more of Him. See... the world can say to me: "Depend on no-one but yourself. Believe in yourself! Be your own god! If you are nervous, take action! take a pill!" I could have indeed done that... but you see... I believe in this incredible God who has done extraordinary things... I chose to depend on the Lord, because I know that by doing so, He can do extraordinary things... that I could never manage to do in my own strength. Does it make me lose my identity, do I become a no-one... no, not at all... I'm unique, and my story is mine... that's what I also find so beautiful... when I meet other Christians I love to ask them about what the Lord has been doing in their lives, because they have such a unique story! Back to Deuteronomy....

"...Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." Deut 20:3-4

I don't have to tremble, or faint, or be terrified... because God goes with me and He will fight for me... to save me. Speaking of pills... I don't have anything against some medications... in my case I know that for my anxiety I could have been given some because it was almost unbearable, but... taking them would go against my own personal belief that the Lord IS my strength and I do not have to fear. Please understand that this is the way I chose to walk with the Lord... To win a battle you had to have chariots and horses and weapons... the more the better of course. Even in these days of war it's clear that the bigger and more equipped your army is, the more of a chance you have to win the war. But Psalms 20 says... " Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." Psalm 20:7

There is nothing wrong with horses... with strength. There is nothing wrong with good health, or good foreign language skills... these can be good things to fight a battle with, if you will, but don't depend on them to be your strength, don't think that unless you have them you can win a battle... if you don't have them, like me, it's ok. God is with us :)

So, ok Jimena, that's all nice and all... but how did it go? Well... after praying with my friend, I also shared a bit with my youngest brother, who reminded me of this poem he likes, "Footsteps in the sand"... the one where during the difficult parts there is only one pair of footsteps walking... If you don't know the poem please go here :), if you do know it... then you can understand that I knew it was time to take Jesus on a walk. If I wouldn't be able to walk, He would. And off I went... feeling much better. :)

Bus I took to the train station in Cannes

Waiting in line to get my ticket...

My ticket!

At one of the stops...

Some people waiting for a train...

People walking by ... I like the reflection of the guy in the corner

At Nice! Seeing my train continue to Italy...

"Nice Ville" Station

Outside...

Not sure what this was about, but the man was playing lovely French music :)

There was a free photo exhibition about women right next to the station.

Walking around looking for the embassy...

I ever found a Christian Bookstore.

walking, walking...

Pretty pink building...

Le Mozart...

YAY!!!

Green...

Going back home... on the train :)

"We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and will lift up our banners in the name of our God..." Psalm 20:5