A Firestorm

Whiskeytown Lake

last fall

A few days ago I noticed on my Facebook feed that there was a forest fire near Redding California.  Redding is surrounded by mountains and sits in a desert valley in the northern part of the state.  It is the home of Bethel Church, a large charismatic prophetic church that in well known across the world.  Joel and I went there last fall for 10 days.  We spent 40 hours at the church engaging in a variety of worship and teaching activities.  I left a piece of my heart back in that church community.  We also got to know the city of 95,000 quite well enjoying some of their beautiful places like Whiskeytown  Lake and Mt. Shasta. 

Whiskeytown Lake

We learned very quickly that Whiskeytown and the surrounding Lake area had burned.  Overnight a fire that had consumed 6,000 acres was fueled by winds to consume 20,000 acres.  Just three days later 38,000 of the residents have had mandatory evacuations, with about half of the city escaping south on Interstate 5.  Everything in the city is covered in ash and smoke hides the sun.  As of Sunday morning, the fire now has consumed 89,000 acres and is only 5% contained. 

I am very aware that this is only one of many fires that are out of control in the West.  This one touches my heart in a special way.  I cannot imagine the trauma involved with some of the stories I have heard on Instagram or Facebook live.  The fire has created it's own weather pattern and some poeple only have a few minutes to get out of their homes before it came with a roar, a fire tornado,  and fierce attack, burning everything in it's path.  A firestorm.

Bethel Church is still in tact, and since the fire turned a different direction, it was able to hold worship services this morning.  We watched live on Facebook, their media center was blocked and in an evacuation zone so Bethel TV was not up and running.  They are putting their resources in with the shelters and Salvation Army, and are planning to help all individual church members who have lost their homes.  Today they worshiped and prayed with people.  Worship is a weapon of warfare and certainly this destructive fire is not from God.  It is the enemy that comes to steal, kill, and destroy.  Not God.  God comes to give us abundant life.  And prayer?  It is a powerful tool and wonderful way to connect with God. 

A firestorm.  Ever feel like you have one of those in your own life, made up of sickness or disease, financial difficulties, or loss, to name a few.  It can come like a firestorm, burning up everything in its path, Our problems can seem bigger than our God.  The only place to turn is to Jesus.  Jesus, our Savior, our Provider, our Healer, our Everything.  Sometimes all we can do is speak His name, remembering that there is power in His name.  Everything can look bleak, hopeless.  But Jesus.  Our circumstances overwhelm......but Jesus. 

Jesus has the answers for us in His Word.  His promises.  God never goes back on His promises.    We can find a promise for every circumstance.  Like the one Sean Bohls prophesied over Bethel and the city of Redding based on Romans 8:28  "All things work together for good for those who love the Lrod." 

Things look desolate in the Redding community, and the fire rages on.  Losing your home, your possessions, your sense of comfort and safety has to be extremely traumatic.  In the midst of the suffering is where Jesus comforts and sustains.   No matter what firestorm comes our way, we are never without our God.

A Look Back To Remember With Gratitude

It was 44 years ago that our family was in San Francisco CA taking in a day of tourist sights before getting on an airplane and flying 18 hours across the world to The Philippines.  At the time our daughter Beth was four years old and our son Matt was going to be three.  In fact due to the time changes, we left the day before his birthday and arrived the day after!

This all came to mind recently when our son Matt texted us that he and his family had arrived in San Francisco and had seen the Golden Gate Bridge.  It immediately took me back to a photo we have of myself, Beth and Matt smiling at the camera with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.  Here it was 44 years later probably to the day that our son was once again at the Golden Gate Bridge.  What are the odds?  Sometimes life just comes full circle like that, reminding us how unbelievably amazing our world is.  And our Creator.

I have been writing some about our adventures with God over the past 50 years.  Our two years in the Philippines impacted us more than any other two years of our lives, that is for sure.  If I pause, I can take in the sights and smells as we landed that day into a tropical world of extreme heat and humidity.  A third world country that would shape our views of life to this day.  You cannot see children digging through your trash to eat your throw away scraps of food and not be affected.  You cannot live under Marshall Law, nor hire armed guards to patrol your off base homes filled with military personal and their families without being affected.  You cannot watch and live in the midst of such poverty and not realize how rich Americans are.

Sometimes I forget how rich we are here, how many freedoms we have.  We live in a lovely house that is too big for two people. We have two fridges in our house.  One that is old, but still works and holds the overflow food when family comes or when we buy in bulk.  Seriously.  We have laptops, phones, a Bose speaker, two TV's, and electricity and Wi-Fi to run them all.  I could go on...................

When we first were married we were pretty "first world" poor.  As an airman Joel brought home $200 a month.  We spent $13 every two weeks on groceries, eating a lot of pot pies and white rice with cinnamon and milk.  We never went hungry.  We never had to dig through someone's garbage for food.  We were and are richly blessed.

It is healthy to pause at times and just be thankful.  Thankful for a house that is too big for two people.  Thankful for a full fridge and one to spare.  Thankful for full tummies and conveniences our parents could never have imagined.  Thankful we do not live under Marshall Law.

It is always good for us to look back at our two years over in a third world country.  It stops me in my tracks and brings balance back into my thinking.  We have so much to be grateful for. 

Saturday's Scribbles

It has been a while since I opened my blog to write from my heart.  I have been struggling with my eye.  At times the large blister of fluid from a leaking vessel and under the retina is causing me to see strobe black and yellow reflecting lights when I look at bright light, go outside, watch TV or get on my phone. It stinks.  Doctors have different explanations for it, but we know it improves when I get the eye injection, so it is related to the swelling and blister in my eye.   I am wearing sunglasses to watch TV, have a lowered the screen light on my phone, and am wearing sunglasses as I type this today.  White is just too bright. At this point the eye injection is slow to help.  It is definitely in God's hands.

On a positive note, every since our friend from the hills of Kentucky prayed for me, my energy has returned and I am now walking 30-45 minutes a day for the first time in 3 years.  It has to be inside, but I am still walking.   Yippee.  Joel has been busy biking.a lot and in the past 5 days he has put 100 miles on his recumbent.  Yippee, and can you say AMEN?!

The weather has finally been cooperating and we have been able to have the windows open, get some fresh air, and enjoy our singing wren family.  Nice.

We have been missing our family since our celebration.  Today I read something one of my favorite authors, Christie Purifoy, wrote about seeing some of her family.  They live a distance away and don't know each other as well as they would like.

"Our family has roots and wings in equal measure. 

 It hurts sometimes, but is also good and beautiful.  

It is complicated like most blessings."

This definitely applies to our family too.  Our kids were given roots and wings and it can be difficult to not see them as often as we would like.  It is sad and complicated, but looking at how each family in our circle does life, it is a blessing.  They have created beautiful lives.

Way too soon our friends here in this corner of Iowa will be moving into their dream of being full time RV'ers.  We will miss them greatly, but have only good thoughts and prayers for their new adventure with God.

Moving on, we are thankful that our recent storms were filled only with heavy rain and not the tornadoes that hit SE Iowa.  What a mess.  Thankfully no one died, but injuries and loss of property are difficult enough to deal with.  I don't think I could ever live in a house without a basement in our corner of the world.  And what about that duck boat that went down in Missouri.  Wow.  They were not given life jackets when the predicted storm hit......17 died.  Someone messed up there royally.

We are loving our new Bose speaker our children and their families gave us for our Anniversary.  We play a lot of music through Amazon Prime but also go online and listen to teachings on You-Tube or at Bethel TV, streaming them through the speaker.  Loving it.  What a gift!

My sister Jan is gathering with family today and 7 great-grands will be there.  How fun.......and how time marches on.  Our oldest grand will turn 20 this fall and the youngest is 10.  It will not be long and we will move from confirmations and graduations to colleges and then weddings.  Time.....In the winter I wish it would go faster, but in the summer.....linger.  Linger on.

Hope your summer is going well.  Have a wonderful weekend and take in a little sunshine.

Just Put It To Rest

In 1984 a church member shot up his brother in law's house and then told them he was going to go kill the pastor.  That pastor was Joel.  The police called, and soon arrived and were outside and inside with guns drawn.  Our kids were frightened.  We were frightened.  Several squad cars escorted us out of town down to the Twin Cities.  It did not end there.  More threats and another arrest and 6 years of being on "high alert" because one mentally unstable man decided Joel was the cause of all his problems and needed to be dead.

We learned something very interesting during this tough season of our lives...........many people did not take the threat seriously.  The police did.  Our family did.  The psychiatrist working with him did.  The schools did.  But there was a kind of, "Oh that is just how he is" that came from people in town.

When I first started talking about the abuse I went through as a young child, the reactions were somewhat the same from some people.   Why talk about it.  It is over now.  Lots of people go through it, it's not really a big deal.  Put it to rest.  I learned late that I lived my whole life on high alert because I never felt safe.  My voice had no power as a child, but it does now even though there are those who try to silence it still.

The #MeToo revolution is in full gear right now.  I am finding it a bit overwhelming to listen to all the women who are angry and hurt, broken by what happened.  Those who are finding their voice now.  Do some have an agenda?  I'm sure they do............although it is a documented fact that only about 3% are NOT telling the truth.  That is a pretty small number.

 I truly hope and pray that the #MeToo gives not only voice to those who are part of this group but that change will actually come from it all.  That it will NOT BE OKAY any longer.  The climate of our country, of our world has fueled much of it, and more than ever we understand that the victim cannot become the suspect.  I hope and pray that each man and woman, and let's remember it is 1 of 5, will have someone as willing to listen, believe, and validate like my husband Joel has.

Even though right now the focus is on what happened, we know that Jesus provided healing for us on the cross.  For all suffering and sin.

Our Resident Wrens

We have Wrens who are residents of our backyard and the two houses we have up in the trees.  They first created a nest in the house located at the end of our deck, then when those baby birds "flew the nest" they moved over to the other birdhouse and built a new nest.  It has been fun to watch them on their journey.  We love listening to their songs too......they seem to be a happy couple!

We have laughed often as they chase away anyone and anything that gets near.  We once saw a squirrel running up and down and all around our big locust tree and then realized the wren couple were chasing him and he was trying to escape their wrath.  The same thing happened with a crow that came to visit with the hope of snatching an egg or two.  It was driven off by the parents as they fought to protect their offspring from a bird that was 20 times the size of themselves.  They are amazing little birds.

I could not help but think about our family that came for our 50th celebration.  We enjoyed having them here for 3 nights and 4 days....longer than most visits.   It was hard to have them go.  They are definitely grown and "left the nest" with our youngest being 32 years of age.  They have their own busy lives and we are always thankful when we get to spend time with them.  Our oldest son has said to me often, "You raised us to be independent, capable, people, going out into the world to make our own way............and now we have all done that.  And there is sadness for you in that too, because none of us live nearby. "  So true.  So very true.

Like those wrens that visit us every year, we, too, did what we could to protect our children.  We raised them in a  Christian home, fed them well, loved them deeply.  We made plenty of mistakes, but our children have turned out well in spite of and because of us.  They each walk their own journey.  We are very proud of our children and their families.  They are good people, and do life well.  Of course they have their ups and downs, their challenges and hardships, but they know to rely on God.  Their faith sees them through. 

And now they are seeing their own children grow up and leave the nest.  Watching them find their way, and stepping back to let them "fly away" into their own future.  Not an easy thing to do, but necessary.

And here we are, finding ourselves in the autumn season of our lives.  So grateful to be here to celebrate each new day, but pondering our future and God's plan for us.  Our grands are growing up, our children are well settled with some coming close to 50.  My goodness, when did that happen"!   How often our prayers are about them, for their protection, their success, their health.  With gratefulness of course.

I wish our Wren families well as they nest, raise and teach their little ones to leave the nest.  I wish our children well as they nest, raise and teach their own children to be adults who one day leave the nest.  It is an amazing journey filled with mostly joy and always God's presence.  Be proud of them.  We are. 

Our 50th Celebration

Happy 50th

Our Plan B for a location turned out to be a good decision for our 50th Wedding Anniversary gathering.  The heat and humidity were off the charts, and right before the party started at the church, a heavy storm came through with torrential rains and a bit of hail.  Awful!  Even so, by 4 the party was in full swing with family and a few colleagues and old friends coming together to celebrate.  We did not invite anyone from former congregations except a couple from the Morris area where we lived years ago.  If we were to invite parishner friends, we would have to pick and choose from the two dozen churches Joel has worked in at in some capacity or another, so we made the hard decision not to do that.

Vow service

Vow service

We celebrated with cake and coffee.....and then we gathered in the sanctuary to renew our vows.  Our children had a small part of the brief ceremony.  After the vow renewal we offered supper, and after supper and more visiting we danced a little to music on our new Bose speaker, a gift from our kids and their families.  It was wonderful!

Dancing to "Could I Have This Dance

by Anne Murray

"our song"

Our friends Mary Lou and Keith came around 2 and spent the time working, which made it easier on the kids to get out and visit with family, too.  And the grands were helping people get in the door....taking umbrellas out to those who were getting rained on.  A lot of hard work went on so we could spend our time greeting and visiting with those who came.

Mark and Beth with Sarah in background

Sisters Jo and Jan dancing

Sunday morning we had a brief worship service with communion and then a brunch.  I think everyone was gone by 2:15 at which time we crashed for a nap!  Ha......We were in bed by 9:30.   Monday  we were wishing it was not over, but we took two naps and had early bed again!   Tuesday Joel rode 15 miles and I walked so were are starting to recover......although we are kept napping twice a day and heading to bed early.  That continued on Wednesday!  Huh....Guess the weeks of planning and work and then a few days of family and the party kinda wiped us out.  Isn't life grand?  We always say we would rather wear out than rust out!

It was wonderful to see a friend we first met in Salt Lake City in 1970.  We visited with long time friends we met 42 years ago at the seminary, plus another pastor friend who we met in MN.....but I remember as a child because he and his family were missionaries to Brazil and our church helped support them.  My friend Lana (since 5th grade) and her husband Roger came.  Some of Joel's family came from NW Minnesota and and some of mine from Minnesota, Texas, and Arizona.   I think our son-in-law's parents came the farthest as they were heading home from CT and did a round about stop here before heading back to WI and their own home.  So nice of them to come.  We had about 70 people come for some food, fellowship, and fun.  So so grateful.

Joel and I are so grateful we are able to celebrate so many years together, grateful for our family and all those we love and care about.  Grateful for God bringing us together so many years ago.