Easter Blessings

I am thankful for safe travel and a wonderful time with the family at the lake house in Indiana over the Easter weekend. Thirteen of us were able to gather there and we were blessed with great conversation, active children, and delicious food. I was especially thrilled to have my four great grandchildren with us…Annika, Lydia, Joshua and Ella, our newest, shown here with their Boppi. With the wet weather, the older kids spent quite a bit of time playing various video games. You will note that dog Halley got a little bored with it all.

It was three years ago that Carol and I spent our last time there with the whole family, chatting, taking pictures and realizing that Carol’s life was rapidly coming to an end as cancer took its toll. As I look back I am amazed at the way the Lord was leading and even orchestrating the events to give Carol an amazing quality of life and experiences to bless her and prepare the family for the difficult days that were ahead of us. Those memories are rich and I often fall back on them when I feel a bit “down”.

I have been reading Kings and Chronicles these past few days and continually am reminded of those that spent many amazing years faithfully walking with the Lord, only to make a major slip-up near the end. As I read about Uzziah today who reigned for fifty-two years. 2 Chronicles 26:5b reports; “As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success.” Unfortunately in the later years of his reign he intruded into functions intended for priests, not him, and was stricken with leprosy. It is shocking to see similar stories of many kings and leaders of that day. I have found it an interesting study to attempt to analyze what it was that caused them to go astray. It seems that in most every case their humbleness turns to pride and the desire for more power and influence. What a blessing it is to have trusted friends along with the Holy Spirit that are quick to point out any of those tendencies in our lives that we will finish well.

I trust that each of you enjoyed a special Easter reflecting on Jesus, his life, his death on our behalf, and his resurrection from the grave as our Lord and Savior. What an unspeakable blessing!

Love to you all,

Chuck

Prayers

I just finished reading 1 & 2 Kings observing how many of the kings that followed Solomon became corrupted during their reign. Actually, Solomon didn’t finish all that well either. Some started out well but along the way it seems that power went to their heads and they certainly did not end well, even causing the nation of Israel to split apart. I was especially interested in a couple of amazing prayers during that time that God answered.

Elijah prayed that it would not rain during the period to prove God’s power, and it didn’t! That certainly was a prayer of sacrifice as he was fully aware that he would also suffer along with others as everything dried up, while putting his very life in jeopardy. I especially liked Hezekiah’s prayer indicating his total dependence on the God who had the power to deliver his people. He did not look to any of his or the countries resources but to his great God. In both cases, these men displayed a great measure of humility that seemed to please God. They both were a good example of Peters words in 1 Peter 5:5 “…God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” I found these chapters a good reminder to me of the importance of total obedience to God in spite of any potential risk or inconvenience on my part and the importance of striving to finish well. I trust that will be indelibly etched into my brain!

With all of the activities at the office coupled with additional spring yard-work necessary at home, I became so busy that I did not realize how soon Easter was coming. When I woke up to the fact that it is just around the corner, I quickly made plans to drive to our lake house on Thursday to spend time with family members that can join me. I am thrilled that Justin and Laura are planning to bring Ella so that she can get acquainted with her “Boppi”. It will be a long day of travel being that I need to be on the way to the warehouse to pick up donated bread for the mission by 4:00 AM, hitting the road after that for a nearly 12-hour drive to Indiana. Do pray that I will stay alert for the trip and arrive safely.

Thanks for your continued encouragement and prayers,

Love,

Chuck

Always challenged!

WOW…This week sure has gone fast! It has been a delight for me to have son-in-law Keith and granddaughter Calli visiting. Daughter Karin was not able to make the trip as planned due to a combination of a flare-up with Crones, a strep infection for grandson Gavin, helping him get ready to leave on a ministry ski trip to Colorado, and recording a video that he had to send off to a college before leaving. On Tuesday, Keith and I took Calli to Charleston to spend the balance of the week with friends who were vacationing there. Some of our best laid plans do not work out exactly as planned. Thankfully schedules adjusted and we will all soon be back to “normal.” Keith drove through last night to be home to take care of the dog being that Karin has to leave for Chicago to attend a continuing education seminar. When I last talked to him around 9 PM his GPS indicated arrival time to be around 1 AM today. (I hope that he is still sleeping) Karin called to let me know she was feeling a bit better and Calli is traveling back home with friends from Charleston today. Gavin will be driving back home from Colorado tomorrow with the group. Much to be praying about!

While praying for the family this morning I was reminded of a recent reading in Indeed titled “Live the Message” based on Jeremiah 1:17 “Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you.” I am thankful for family members that do their best in discerning the Lord’s message for their lives and desiring to not only live the message but to also pass it on. Much credit for that comes from their mom and grandmother, Carol. I find that rarely a day goes by when we are together, that we do not talk about some special influence that she had in our lives and those around us.

In the reading I was challenged by the reminder that we all have a message that we are constantly delivering. It can be one of redemption or guilt, confidence or insecurity, faith or doubt…what ever we believe to be true. Those thoughts have caused me to think more often before making a quick response while at the same time attempting to be more discerning about the messages coming my way. I liked the way the writer summed it up; “God wants us to live the message He gives, not the ones we hear from ourselves or others. He wants us to be incarnations of truth.” Hopefully my response to that challenge will glorify Him!

I trust that you are each enjoying His rich blessings.

Love to you all,

Chuck