Though I walk through the shadows of the Death Valley...I will fear no evil

Well, I am approaching the eve of a trip that I can honestly say I never thought, dreamed or even wanted to take.  A friend of mine approached me about 6 months ago with the thought of going to hike and 4WD in Death Valley for 8 days.  I have only been camping overnight probably three or four times in my life.  So, it was a quick "no thanks".  But he is a persuasive one and when he and another friend generously offered to help with expenses, my last (and, quite frankly bullet proof, or so I thought) excuse was vaporized.  So, the words that came out weren't "no thanks" but "sure, why not?"  Very un-Jeff like.  Well, those months have passed and tomorrow I fly out from Little Rock using the last of my frequent flyer miles to meet the "posse" and drive from Las Vegas to Death Valley to begin our adventure.  I'm praying that the use of the remaining frequent flier miles isn't an omen on ever needing them again :-).  Oh, I trust my friends.  But, I'm not sure I trust myself.

Unfortunately, the only real trouble with the timing of the trip is that it falls so close to our daughters graduation and preparation has begun (you know the drill--addressing graduation announcements, getting dresses for prom, signing up for all the graduation related activities, arranging family visits, etc).  So, my lovely and talented wife Sue will be doing a lot of it without my help.  Sorry, honey.

Well, in a few hours I'll be off.  I'll let you know how it goes IF I return :-).  I will have some pix, some video and maybe even a story or two.  Until I return...

Solia Deo Gloria

The More they Change--the More they Stay the Same

We've all seen the stereotypical scene...a family sits down to watch old homemade videos of family gatherings.  All you get is minutes of Uncle Harry snoring or minutes of someone swinging.  

As we get ready to launch our second child from the quiver, we are gathering up all the pictures and videos so that we can do what everyone else is doing...put together a video CD with clips and pics of OUR GIRL.  When you watch those family videos a few years after you shoot them, they are cute but there isn't much to see.  And, you lose interest pretty quickly.  And, I have to admit, I'm not the best videographer in the world.  I confess that I would have taken those shots of Uncle Harry snoring or a seemingly endless amount of time looking at one of our children in a car seat doing absolutely nothing.  Of no interest to anyone---including me.  

So, last night we are sitting around and going through some of the videos of the family.  Whereas maybe there isn't a lot to viewing those a couple years old, it's kind of fun to watch 14 year old videos to see and remember what the kids were like way back when (and to see that I actually only had one chin and could wear tight fitting shirts---and snicker at some of the hair styles my beautiful wife employed---can't believe I let her get it cut like some of the styles she had but what could I do?  That's one of the most dangerous questions husbands get---"How do you like my hair"----STAY AWAY from that one....you can't win.)  Anyway, as we're watching them, my graduating daughter is actually analyzing what's going on in the videos. 

There was a great scene where our youngest is sitting on the bed reading a bible story book.  She has a grumpy look on her face for some reason.  Erin, our older daughter comes in (she's about 5 and Jaclyn is about 3) and goes up to her and gives her a kiss.  Not once.  Not twice.  But four times.  We are all saying, "Oh, how cute".  Then, Jaclyn makes a kind of grunting noise and with the force of Muhammad Ali, shoves Erin away and says "Doooonnnn't".   We all chuckle at the cuteness of that moment some 13 years ago.  But, the now older Erin doesn't think it's quite so cute.  Instead she makes a comment that "some things never change".  

It is kind of fun to look back and to see that there are certain characteristics that are imprinted on each of us and it doesn't matter if we 5 or 55 we will respond to something the same way.  I think it will be interesting over the next 10-15 years as a whole generation who have grown up with video cameras being as much a part of the home as microwaves were after being introduced when I was a kid.  Pretty soon they are just a part of the everyday living.  And, for most of our homes with those video cameras, I have a sense that there will be much more analysis of why Chucky is the way he is today or why Jimmy and Sally never have gotten along.  Too many "tongues' being stuck out at each other or why Heather is always fussy about food after seeing her always eating a PB&J sandwich in the video clips.  Most of all, what they'll probably reveal is that as much as things change, many things are still the same--at 3, 33 or 83.

Funerals and Weddings-Celebrations of Life

On Wednesday morning of last week (March 26), we attended the funeral of our friend and relative, Roger (see blog about a tribute to him). After a 13 hour drive to Minnesota on Tuesday, Sue and I were tired but so appreciative of the opportunity we had to spend time with our family and friends that gathered to celebrate his life.

The highlight for me in the midst of the sadness was hearing Roger's daughter and three sons share briefly of some of the memories of their dad. They all talked about his love for sports. One said that when Roger died, Minnesota lost its #1 sports fan. They all spoke about his dedication to being a dad, i.e., he was always there for them. From attending their sporting events as a kid to listening to issues they were dealing with as adults---Roger took time. It was thematic. He took time with his family. They shared stories about his disdain for fishing not getting in the way of his effort to do it often with his boys. They spoke equally of his even keeled approach to just about everything in life and his relatively calm demeanor. It was difficult to determine if they were winning or losing a game based on the expression Roger had on the sidelines because he looked the same at all times :-)

But, the one thing that they all recalled which trumped all of his other memorable traits as a dad was his faith. His faith in Jesus Christ was the single most recognizable and memorable trait they recalled about their father. Wow! Isn't that how we all want to be remembered (at least those of us who profess Christianity as our foundation)? That at the end of our days, our lives counted for something more than just existing.  He wanted to make sure that everyone he knew had the chance to hear about the savior he was soon going to meet face to face.  We're all going to be known for something when it comes time for our loved ones to have a memorial service for us.  Roger's family and friends knew what was his real heartbeat...his love for his savior, Jesus Christ.  

Soon after we celebrated a life well lived, we had the chance to witness new life.   Not a birth but a wedding.  Young friends of my son were getting married two days after we shared in the celebration of Rogers' life.  The bible tells us that when a couple makes a covenant promise to marry, they become one flesh.  A new life together.  And so we had the privilege of witnessing the impact of a man on his family and friends over many years and celebrating in the newness of life God was bringing together between a man and a woman.  Interesting juxtaposition.  My prayer for this young couple and for all of us is that we live this life with reckless abandon for something that is bigger than ourselves.  And, I contend that the only thing worth living for is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  If not, then grab all the gusto you can because this life is all there is.  Roger didn't believe that.  The young couple getting married don't believe that.  Neither do I.  Let's make an impact on the world using a life well lived as our motto.

A Tribute to a Friend- Roger

Last night we got news that a family member and friend died of cancer. After a battle of nearly two years, his fight on this earth concluded. He fought well and as the Apostle Paul desired, Roger fought the battle with excellence right up to the end. He was my wife's cousin and he and his wife Ann and their family have meant a lot to us over our married lives. Roger loved sports, his family and friends and, most of all, the Lord.

I can't recall a discussion with him that didn't include all three. He was a passionate Vikings fan and so I resonated with him on that since we met (maybe the word is commiserated). His love for his family was evident as he would share about the happenings in each of their lives. And, it is evident by the way his family loved him. And, he was always an encouragement to Sue and I over the years to keep pursuing our love relationship with Christ, especially as we entered into full time ministry with Campus Crusade/FamilyLife. He and Ann have supported us prayerfully and financially since the moment we started this journey. He and Ann showed us what it was like to live a life of love for Christ by the way they've lived. They did many things that showed Christ's love for others including volunteer work at Campus Crusade's headquarters when they moved to Florida to escape the harsh Minnesota winters.

Our last meeting with them was about 1 1/2 years ago over breakfast at Byerly's. He had just completed his first bout with cancer and was seemingly doing well and ready to enter into Chemo treatments over the winter. But, he was so positive and he was an encouragement to us as we discussed some struggles we were having with our financial support as missionaries. He and Ann were going to try and help us. Here he was in the midst of battling for his life and his concern was for us.

Too often, these kind of tributes happen after a loved one has left this earth. I'm saddened that I didn't get to tell him how much I appreciated his wise counsel over the years as I changed from job to job. He was in the professional human resources arena and helped people and organizations make wise position decisions. And, he was always encouraging to me when we would talk about the struggles I had to find a fit in my career with my personal passions. He would listen and offer wisdom. I appreciated that. I needed that. I'm saddened that I didn't get a chance to discuss another upcoming Vikings season with him to hear what he thought about how they might do. Or a discussion on the upcoming Twins season and his prediction about where they might finish. I missed telling him how much I enjoyed our opening fishing expeditions where I learned how to bait a hook and look for waders that didn't have holes in them :-). I was just in MN for a Weekend to Remember marriage conference and had hoped to stop by to say my good-byes since I knew he wasn't doing well. But, the days got away from me with activities and I was unable to work it out. For that, I'm sad.

But, for all the sadness I feel in losing a friend, I rejoice because of the celebration we just enjoyed yesterday---the truth of Easter. If Easter is about bunnies and eggs only, then this day would be extremely sad. Not only would we have lost Roger on this earth but he would have been lost for all eternity. Yet, because Christ lives, Roger lives. Because Roger placed his faith in the resurrected Jesus Christ, he now is healed of the cancer that ravaged his body. He's in no more pain. He's continuing his journey fully alive and experiencing the joy of being in God's presence 24/7. For that we can rejoice even in the midst of our sadness and sorrow. I read a passage in Acts this morning that I think relates to this truth.

After the crucifixion of Jesus, the apostles saw the risen Christ and they watched Him ascend to heaven with the promise that Jesus would send them a Helper, the Holy Spirit, to assist them in their daily walking on this earth. The Holy Spirit would give them courage to boldly proclaim their faith even in the presence of intense, even life-threatening situations. So, in Acts 4, Peter and John were arrested for speaking about Jesus to the masses and seeing many (it says 5,000 men) put their faith and trust in the name of Jesus Christ. The same religious leaders who put Christ on the cross and knew that His body was missing from the grave had to do something to squelch this newly energized group of men and keep them from teaching things that usurped their authority as the religious leaders of the people. So, they had Peter and John arrested. In Acts 4, when asked by what name they healed (they had healed a disabled man) and spoke, they said "let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene---whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead---by Him this man is standing her before you healthy. This [Jesus] is the stone despised by you builders, who has become the cornerstone. There is salvation in no one else for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved". When they said this, they were ordered not to mention this name again or there would be consequences. After all, they had the perpetrator crucified just a few weeks prior. They obviously had the power to get what they wanted. Though I can't say that Roger ever had to respond in the face of this kind of danger, I have no doubt that he would have. The apostles response is what reminds me of Roger. They said in vs. 19 & 20, "But Peter and John answered them, 'Whether it is right in the sight of God (for us) to listen to you rather than to God, you decide for we are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.'"

That was Roger. He never stopped speaking about the impact Jesus Christ had on his life! And for that, I'm forever grateful. He was not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ and because of that we have the hope that he is indeed whole again. Though his family and loved ones are saddened because we no longer get to see his smile and hear his laugh or words of wisdom, we rejoice with the angels because death is not the end for one who is a Child of Jesus Christ who conquered death for all time. Roger was and is a child of the King. We'll miss you Roger! But, we will see you again! Thank you for Easter, Jesus.