Italian Souls for Christ

At a recent mission conference Sandy and the other missionary wives sat on the platform in the sanctuary and were asked “20 Questions” during a morning ladies fellowship. Since one of the purposes of our website is for people to find a connection with our family on a personal level, we thought it would be interesting to do the same thing here. So listed below are some questions for Sandy and me. Enjoy.

20 Questions for Sandy
1. Favorite Bible Verse: For now… Psalm 4:4 “Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.”

2. Favorite Hometown Restaurant(s): Meadowlarks and Thai 9. I love restaurants that are unique, organic and/or the menu is planned with the seasons.

3. If you didn’t live in Ohio where would you live in the United States? Also, in the world (other than Italy)? My top 3 places for the US would be Malibu/Santa Monica, CA; Daytona/Ormond, FL; and any place with a great view of the Rockies in Colorado. In the world (other than Italy)… for now I have a fascination with Crete, Greece. Haven’t been there but it looks absolutely gorgeous with great Greek food!

4. Favorite book (non-spiritual): “Peter Pan and Wendy” by J.M. Barrie would definitely be my first pick. It’s enchanting. Love the classics. “Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens, “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne and “First Love and Other Stories” by Ivan Turgenev are also some favorites.

5. Favorite junk food: I am a veggie wrap, açai bowl, wheat grass shot drinking girl (when deputation allows). But when I get a craving for something not so healthy I usually end up with a Frisch’s Big Boy with extra tartar sauce or chocolate chip cookie dough. Yum!

6. Favorite TV shows: I love HGTV! We don’t have cable at home so when we are put up in a hotel that does, I try to get my fill. I especially love “Income Property”, “Holmes on Homes”, “Divine Design” “House Hunters: International”. “Man vs. Wild” with Bear Grylls and “Rick Steves” travel show are also my favorites.

7. Most exotic thing you’ve ever eaten: I have eaten sushi on many occasions but really enjoyed conch from the conch shell. My first year after college I worked in a high school and the French class asked me to try the escargot they had made. Not only did I eat a snail but I ate a snail prepared by a sophomore.

8. Your favorite past-time: Playing with my children outside, exercising (cardio-kickboxing, Pilates, running, etc.), taking walks as a family, learning more of herbal remedies and natural alternatives and shopping.

9. What is one thing you’ve always wanted to do? Ski. This time of the year always reignites my desire to someday learn how, or at least attempt once, to ski.

10. If you had a day to yourself to do anything you wanted what would you do? Sleep in. Sleep in some more. Work out. Have a complete spa day. Enjoy the sunshine.

11. When you look back on pictures of yourself what age are you most embarrassed about? My mother went to hair styling school when I was about six and she practiced on me until I could pay for my own hair style. At six, she cut off my long hair and gave me a tight ‘Annie’ type perm. Sad first grade picture. I don’t like to pull out those Jr. High pictures either.

12. What is one thing that cheers you up when you are sad? My children’s smiles, hugs, sunshine and good memories.

13. Favorite book of the Old Testament: Ecclesiastes

14. Have you ever missed out on something you really wanted to do? Pursue and receive my Ph.D. in Psychology from a prestigious college such as Pepperdine University.

15. What job do you think would be fun? Camp counselor. During my college years, I would work at a YMCA summer camp and it was absolutely the best job I ever had! I loved all of it, hiking through the woods, playing capture the flag and leading camp songs with the children.

16. What is your favorite family activity? Playing hide n’ seek in the dark.

17. What is your favorite Christmas movie? “White Christmas” with Bing Crosby. Vermont, the lodge, Bing’s voice, it’s all great.

18. What is your dream home? As missionaries in Italy it is very unlikely that we will ever own or live in a house. Most Italians rent apartments. But if I could have a dream home built it would be a very modern home that has an open floor plan, large rooms, uncluttered, modern line furnishings, floor to ceiling windows and an incredible view of the ocean or mountains. I absolutely adore Rocio Romero home designs particularly the first home design pictures on the flash shown here. Not for everybody. Stetson says they look like a box.

19. Favorite clothing store: J Crew, Boden, L.L. Bean, Gap, Ann Taylor, Garnet Hill, and Anthropologie. Preferably outlet or clearance prices.

20. What is your greatest accomplishment? Giving birth to my daughter Pearl with absolutely no pain relievers after having previously almost died from giving birth to my son Isaiah.

20 Questions for Stetson
1. Favorite Bible Verse: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

2. Most frequented restaurants when travelling: Cracker Barrel, Chick-Fil-A, and Five Guys Burgers and Fries (when Sandy isn’t with me). Just east of Pittsburgh, PA there is a Five Guys Burgers and Fries right next to a Starbucks – it doesn’t get any better than that.

3. How did you get your name? My great-grandfather (John Burnam Kindred) was a sheriff in Kentucky. The attorney who prosecuted the criminals he brought to trial was named Stetson Smith. My great-grandfather named his son after his friend, the attorney. My grandmother named her son after her brother (Stetson Kindred). My mom named me after her brother (Stetson Green). Unfortunately neither of my brothers carried on the tradition, but then perhaps my nephews (Evan and Matthew) are thankful for that.

4. Favorite book (spiritual, other than the Bible): “Pilgrim’s Progress” by John Bunyan. I also enjoy anything written by A.W. Tozer, Leonard Ravenhill, and Andrew Murray.

5. Favorite snack food: Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch Cliff Bars or Vanilla Yogurt with Granola

6. What current fad/trend do you dislike? Facebook

7. When you look back on pictures of yourself what age are you most embarrassed about? Most of my embarrassing pictures from childhood have to do with my hair… there was only about a three year period that I had a decent haircut. But the hair wasn’t my only problem… as a child I didn’t know how to smile so I always bit my bottom lip in pictures. Also, there was a period during my adolescence where I was super skinny except for the huge potbelly I had (due to a “healthy” diet of pancakes and whole milk with plenty of cream my dad brought home from Melvin’s Cow Palace).

8. Favorite clothing store: I hate to shop but I do like clothes from Eddie Bauer.

9. One book you would recommend every Christian have in their library? “Explore the Book” by J. Sidlow Baxter.

10. What is one of your biggest regrets in life? Eliminating things that are too personal or too lengthy to explain I would say quitting Muay Thai kickboxing and quitting guitar.

11. Favorite city (both domestic and international) that you have been to: Obviously my top places would be in Italy so eliminating that I would say domestically my favorites are Ormond Beach, FL; Glenwood Springs, CO; Boston, MA; and Newport, RI. Internationally, outside of Italy, with a brief layover in France, I have only been to Japan, Mexico, and Canada. So from those countries I would choose Tokyo, Japan.

12. Favorite sport to play: Basketball.

13. Favorite childhood toy: I loved playing with GI Joes. Although, I did own a Milky the Cow and Gobbles the Goat too. Sandy laughed at me when I told her about Milky and Gobbles, I thought every kid growing up back then had them… must have been a farm boy thing.

14. What month of the year best describes who you are? October… cool demeanor but warm on the inside, plus I’m loosing “foliage” up top and that which remains is changing color.

15. Most important ingredients to a friendship: Sincerity, honesty, and dependability

16. Who is your biggest hero? Sandy… she’s overcome a lot in her life.

17. Favorite Bible character (outside of Jesus): Paul (NT) and David (OT)

18. Favorite book (non-spiritual): “Lonesome Dove” by Larry McMurtry. I’ve also really enjoyed listening to Sandy read the following books to Isaiah for home-school… “Red Sails to Capri” by Ann Weil, “Walk the World’s Rim” by Betty Baker, and “The Sign of the Beaver” by Elizabeth George Speare.

19. If you could have dinner with four people from American history (dead or those still living) who would they be and why? Ronald Reagan, George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Michael Savage. Reagan, the Great Communicator not only of conservative ideals but of humorous stories; Washington, a courageous general with high integrity and profound insight; Franklin, an inventor and statesman known for his pithy comments; Savage is a highly intelligent radio commentator that would make a good moderator for the evening. (Isaiah recently studied Washington and Franklin in American History so that’s probably why they came first to mind).

20. Best advice you’ve ever received (outside of the Bible): That would be to take the daily quiz from John Wesley’s 18th century “Holy Club” at the end of each day… (1) Am I conscious or unconscious of creating an impression? Do I create the impression that I am a better man than I am? (2) Did I exaggerate? (3) Did I pass on what was told in confidence that I shouldn’t have passed on? (4) Am I enjoying prayer? (5) Am I self-conscious or self-pitying? (6) When was the last conversation I had with the object of winning someone to Christ? (7) Did I pray about the money I spent? (8) Did I insist on doing something about which my conscious was uneasy? (9) Do I grumble and complain constantly? (10) How did I spend my spare time? (11) Was I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, or touchy?

Sandy’s life, and consequently mine as well, would have been very different had she kept her interview with Pepperdine University. It was 1997 and after four promising years of undergraduate studies, she suddenly found herself lost and unsure of her future…

Sandy was uncertain of which career path to take when she enrolled at Defiance College in the fall of 1993. She wanted a profession in which she could help others while at the same time earn a lot of money. She was considering the medical field until she sat through a required career survey class that first semester which happened to be taught by the main psychology professor at Defiance. She was really impressed by his insight and enjoyed how he turned teaching into a performing art. At the end of her freshman year she declared herself a psychology major.

The same professor who sparked her interest in psychology would soon become her mentor. She had most of her psychology classes with him and she was his student assistant for three years. He became the most positive influence in her life to that point. He had studied abroad and recommended Sandy apply to graduate schools somewhere other than her home state for the experience. One of the universities she applied to was Pepperdine in Malibu, California for a PhD in clinical psychology. The application process was very intensive and they were selective in extending invitations to prospective graduate students. After the formality of the interview process acceptance was highly likely. Within a week of Sandy receiving her invitation to be interviewed by Pepperdine the beginning of her last semester, her mentor abruptly left Defiance. She never learned the details of his withdrawal from the college but his departure was devastating to her.

Sandy had a few other teachers in her life that took interest in her as a person but her mentor invested himself in helping her grow in the field she thought would be her life’s work. To a person who never really had someone that seriously cared for her, his leaving the college shook the confidence he helped to build. She never replied to Pepperdine to schedule her interview and was unsure about the next step on her career path. She felt lost and was unclear about her future. Only having a bachelor’s degree in psychology greatly limits the job opportunities and she realized over the course of the next year that in order to have a satisfying career she needed to continue with her original goal of furthering her education. She had already been accepted to Eastern Kentucky University when she had applied to Pepperdine and since the reapplication process with them would keep her from enrolling for another year she decided to attend EKU. At this same time in her life she began searching for spiritual truth and through the providence of God she was invited to Grace Baptist Church in Middletown, Ohio where she heard the preaching of the gospel. Seven months later in the midst of her first year of graduate school she received Jesus Christ as her personal Saviour. At the end of that school year she left EKU to become a homemaker.

When we were in southern California this summer for meetings we spent a day in Santa Monica and visited Pepperdine University in Malibu after dinner. The campus is composed of classic Californian and Mediterranean architecture situated among several steep ridges that overlook the Pacific Ocean. It was the most beautiful setting of any college campus that Sandy or I had ever seen. Sandy would not exchange her life now for the career path she once worked so hard towards but standing in a place that could have very easily been a springboard for a completely different life was rather surreal. She could have received her PhD from a respected university on a stunning campus in one of her favorite parts of the country and had a distinguished career earning a six-figure salary. Ironically Sandy has since learned that Pepperdine University is religiously affiliated with the Churches of Christ, the religion she grew up in that taught a false plan of salvation in baptismal regeneration. Her life certainly would have been grander in material possessions and things of temporal value had she attended Pepperdine but in contrast her life spiritually would most likely have been wanting, and that with eternal consequences.

“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” – Psalm 16:11