Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Prayed Together

Our 41st anniversary is this week. 41 years! I feel so very blessed to have Joel as my soulmate. It is one of the reasons why I know how much God loves me! He brought Joel into my life.

Speaking of God, the story of how we met and married is a good one. In 1966 Joel and I both attended The Lutheran Bible Institute which later became Golden Valley Lutheran College. On parents weekend my older sister who raised me came to visit with her good friend from our church where they worked together. They visited the dorms and campus on their own and then met me at the commons building. As we talked from the second floor balcony, they said to me, "Oh, Renee, we met the man you are going to marry! He wants to be a missionary in Africa and we can just see the two of you working there together." I was curious and asked who it was.... Just then Joel walked through the downstairs door. They said, "There he is!" My reply? "You have got to be kidding! He is loud and obnoxious, and he wears boots!" They both just smiled and said, "We will pray about it."

Just 3 mo. later we started dating, 9 mo. later we became engaged, and 6 mo. after that we were married. A farm boy who wore cowboy boots married a city girl who wore suede go go boots! It was a match literally made in Heaven and 41 years later we still rejoice in the prayers that brought us together. It was not part of God's plan for us that we go to Africa, but it was part of His plan that we spend our earthly lives together.
Oh, by the way, Joel still wears cowboy boots...but I gave up my suede boots a long time ago!

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Parched

Lately I have been walking through the desert feeling as prickly and dry as the cactus in this picture. I cannot seem to pull up anything inspirational to write about. I read or hear something inspirational and pick up a pencil and paper...and that is far as I get. I am definitely in a dry spell. I have tried to figure out why, and lately feel God has me in a dormant state of stillness to teach me. I believe He is asking me a rhetorical question...."How can you write and inspire others when you do not quench your own thirst with my Word?"
I am in need of spiritual waters. I am dry and prickly because I do not nourish my own soul.

Isaiah 35:6 says, "Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.

I am clinging to this verse today. God is waiting for me to feed my soul in His waters. He will make streams in the wasteland....streams in the desert when I am obedient to his teaching. My "muted tongue" will once again shout for joy, and I will return to my deep desire to write again with inspiration.

Monday, June 1, 2009

Worth The Wait

We lived in the Philippine Islands from 1974-76 while Joel served as a meteorologist in the Air Force. He forecasted weather for the pilots flying to such places as Japan, Viet Nam, or the U.S. Clark Air Force base had a population of about 40,000 at that time. It was a small town with its own college, churches, library, etc. All our food was brought in by plane, or on big ships to Subic Bay and from there came on trucks to Clark. There was only one grocery store for the whole base and going shopping on pay day was more than a challenge! It was a waiting game. First of all it was important to get there early because it took about an hour just to get in the door to shop. With the heat and humidity it was always good to bring along something to drink....and a good book! Shopping was not so bad, but when it came time to check out, the lines were yet another hour long. And yet knowing we needed food to sustain us, it was"worth the wait". Somethings in life are worth the wait.

There are important times in our lives that require patience and remembering that "all good things come to those who wait". Times when we just need to bring along a "good book" to read while we wait in line....Those circumstances in our life when God answers our prayers, not with a yes or no, but with wait. We know that God wants what is best for us~ the "Good Book" tells us that he has a plan for us...a plan for good and not for evil....that God loves us so much he gave His son to die for us....so if we focus on what His Word tells us, we can trust that the answers to our prayers will come...and they will be worth the wait!