First Thing - PRAY!

I am amazed how easy it is to get so wrapped up in day-to-day activities and not take time for the things that are most important...like keeping up to date with family and friends.

Wednesday I was leading our chapel/prayer time at the office and for a devotional I focused on 1 Timothy 2:1-10 from The Message. Here are a couple of thoughts that especially spoke to me:

"The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know." I needed to hear that. It is so easy to get involved with so many good things and neglect the most important...prayer. Verses 8-9 say; "Since prayer is the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray--not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. And I want women to get in there with the men in humility before God..."

We took time to pray for friends, neighbors and family members as well as for the workers and countries scheduled for the 16th. We follow a schedule that allows us to pray for each of the countries and the workers each month. It is a joy and a privilege to do that each day, but it is also most important to keep my personal time with the Lord each day. That is where I find it is easy to slack off if I am not careful.

Today was my early day at the office. Leaving at 4:15 AM to pick up donated bread items for our guest house and the kitchens. It makes a long day but it is a huge saving for the mission, so I am pleased to do it.

Our temperatures are slightly cooler and there is a feeling of fall in the air these days as the days continue to get shorter. I am not sure where the summer went. Time just keeps moving on.

I trust that your week is going well. Thanks for your messages and prayers.

Love,

Chuck

Returned Safely

Dear Friends,

Thanks for keeping such close contact with me. Yes, I am back home. I arrived late in the day yesterday but received a call on the way home asking me to attend a neighborhood business meeting shortly after I arrived. It has been quite busy since returning but I will take a few moments to give a quick update.

The trip went perfectly with outstanding weather in the Upper Peninsula. While there we took a 3-hour boat trip on Lake Superior to see the Pictured Rocks and joined the throngs to walk the Mackinac Bridge on Labor day. I never did hear a count but they were expecting around 50,000 so we were not alone. I was amazed to see many trees up there starting to turn to beautiful reds and yellows indicating that fall is just around the corner up there.

Gavin rode with me as far as Clare at which point Karin had to leave our route to head back to Valparaiso and Keith and Calli joined us on the trip back to Warsaw. I spent a rather short night at our lake house and was on the road back here early in the morning.

Thanks so much for your prayers, calls and emails. You are a great encouragement.

Love,

Chuck

Encouraged by Nehemiah

My trip went well, arriving in a bit less than eleven hours which reminded me I did not make enough stops to stretch. I felt it when I arrived but after a good night of rest am revived and was thrilled to see a beautiful sunrise across the water as I was reading this morning. As the sun came up, our swan family came over by our piers so I went out to see the little family that has grown since I saw them early July. The “kids” are about as large as the parents as you can see below. The proud parents are in the lead, showing off their growing family.




Reading in Nehemiah this morning, it was encouraging to me to see how he faced adversity, not letting it get him down…a timely lesson for me! In chapter 4 he reports that “The whole wall was soon joined together and halfway to its intended height because the people had a heart for the work.” Shortly thereafter he reported that threats against them and their work again surfaced and; “We countered with prayer to our God and set a round-the-clock guard against them.”

Wise strategy for me when faced with challenges or discouragement:

1. Keep my heart focused on the “work” God has for me
2. Keep my focus on prayer for needed wisdom and courage
3. Keep my guard up against opposition along he way

The next couple days will be for relaxation here at the lake house and doing a few yard chores before heading North with Keith, Karin, Gavin & Calli to spend the weekend with Sue and Jeff, hopefully walking the Mackinac Bridge on Monday.

Thanks so much for your prayers and keeping in touch. You are greatly loved and appreciated!

Love,

Chuck

Train me to live by your counsel

Early tomorrow I am heading for our lake house to spend a few days and then on Saturday I plan to drive up to Mackinaw (Michigan) with Karin, Keith and the children. We will be joined by Sue and Jeff and plan to walk the Mackinaw Bridge on Labor Day with a multitude of others. This is a tradition for many Michiganders and Carol and I have done it several times previously. It is a beautiful walk high above the water and amounts to a reasonable amount of exercise, especially for we older ones.

It will be especially nice to be with some of the family this weekend which would have been our 50th anniversary. The past few days my mind has drifted back frequently to that special day and the nearly 49 years that Carol and I enjoyed together. What a blessing to have had the opportunity to spend those years together!

I have been enjoying The Message version of Psalm 119…Great examples for me to follow. Here are just a few words from the Psalmist that especially spoke to me:

“Remember what you said to me, your servant—
I hang on to these words for dear life!
These words hold me up in bad times
Yes, your promises rejuvenate me.”

“I get up in the middle of the night to thank you;
Your decisions are so right, so true – I can’t wait till morning!”

“Your love, GOD, fills the earth!
Train me to live by your counsel.”

That is my prayer…to be trained to live by His counsel.

Have a wonderful week and long weekend.

Love,

Chuck