Fond Memories

Having arrived back home, my mind is filled with wonderful memories of the time spent with family and friends in Michigan and Indiana.  The birthday party for Jeff was delightful and it was great to have the opportunity to see so many family members and friends.  We managed to keep it a surprise, but with so many people involved, it would have been easy for information to leak out.  Even the children managed to keep the secret.

The dedication for Ella on Sunday was beautiful but I did find it to be a bit emotional for me.  It was nearly four years ago that I made this same trip with Carol to take part in Justin and Laura’s wedding, so again I traveled the same route to the same church for the dedication of their new darling daughter.  Several friends told me how much they were impacted by Carol’s participation at their wedding service.  It was still fresh in their minds also.

After enjoying lunch together at a restaurant, we drove from Michigan to Indiana to have dinner and spend the evening with grandson Gavin who was in the midst of final exams.  He has done well this first year of college and is looking forward to medical school down the road.

After a very full weekend as I drove home, my mind was filled with fond memories of each of the children and grandchildren over the years, and I was grateful for Carol’s impact upon their lives and God’s grace and mercy in each of our lives. 

For those of you that asked about the swans, mother swan is tending the nest while father swan came over to my pier several times to let me know that they are still around.  I suspect that by the next time I make the trip there will be some little ones bobbing around with their parents.

Have a blessed week!

Chuck

Good trip

I arrived at the lake house with no problems. My eyes were a little tired but with several stops along the way to rest then, I made it successfully.

Today is a beautiful day so a good opportunity for me to do a little work out in the yard and I will also be meeting with a contractor to have some repair work done and the roof replaced on the storage building .

For some reason my computer does not want to connect to the internet today, so I am dictating this on my cellphone. As you can see, dictation isn't perfect.

I will be heading for Michigan tomorrow with Karin and Keith for the birthday celebration and then Ella's dedication will be on sunday. It will be nice to ride for a change be able to rest my eyes.

Thanks so much for your prayers and for the phone calls as I was traveling. It's always great to hear from you and helps too make the miles go by faster.

Love to you all, Chuck.

Seeing...

It has been a bit of a struggle, but I made it through 1 & 2 Kings. So far I have purchased three sets of reading glasses, none of which are perfect. I believe that the distortion in my right eye makes it impossible to find the right strength of glass. The doctor has me waiting for three weeks before determining a prescription. Hopefully by that time the swelling will have completely gone.

As I read through the two books of Kings, there are those kings that did not follow the Lord but also a good number of them that reportedly followed the Lord BUT failed to remove the “high places” or “pagan shrines” which prevented them from finishing well. I found that to be a good lesson for me to watch out for those “things” that I allow in my life while thinking that I am fully walking with the Lord. I had a vivid reminder of being on alert for them when I visited a friend over the weekend. I was keenly aware that I was encroaching upon the enemy’s territory and was out of my element. It is easy to make quick responses from the “flesh” and much more difficult to allow the Holy Spirit to direct my response internally and outwardly. Hopefully I am learning when to keep my mouth shut then when and how to respond to unusual situations. Do pray that both my internal and external responses will be usable by the Lord in both of our lives. I am certain that this is all part of finishing well, which is my desire.

Early tomorrow I plan to drive to Indiana. The family has asked me to join them for a birthday celebration and also on Sunday great granddaughter Ella will be dedicated. I am very much looking forward to spending time with the family but not quite that excited about the drive. I considered flying but that will take more time than the 12 hour drive and likely be more stressful, provided that I stop frequently to rest my eyes and stretch my legs.

Thanks so much for you prayers and your frequent emails and calls. You are appreciated!

Love, Chuck

Grateful

Thanks so much for your prayers. As I awoke this morning after yesterdays surgery and slowly opened my eyes the thought crossed my mind; “Regardless of the outcome I WILL be grateful!” I still am having ghosting in my right eye and my left one is very blurred, but thankfully I can see well enough to do many things…even drive. Reading smaller print is another matter, but I trust that will improve with time as the swelling diminishes. The doctor had me get some reading glasses which make it possible to read, but with considerable effort along with having the text much too close to my face for comfort.

I am thankful for wonderful friends that have brought in meals, driven me to surgery waiting over four hours each time before taking me home for a little rest then taking me back for removal of bandages and a quick evaluation. The phone calls and emails have also been a tremendous encouragement. I am blessed!

Having to stay here and not able to travel to be with family for the Easter weekend was a bit disappointing but I had the opportunity to attend both the Good Friday and Easter services at church. I was especially moved as we focused upon the four Roman solders at the foot of the cross. Being in reach of the cross on which Jesus was giving his life, they occupied themselves by distributing his clothing between themselves and “rolling the dice” for his very special outer garment. It reminded me of how easy it is for each of us to be so close to Jesus but at the same time to be so far away as we are preoccupied with all sorts of things of this world. That thought made me realize how easy it is for me to get so involved and miss the main thing/person (Jesus). I am praying and striving for better discernment in my choices and responses throughout the day.

I appreciate each of you so very much!

Love, Chuck

Making progress

I just returned from another reassuring post-op appointment with my surgeon. I still have a bit of swelling that causes me to see double, but he assures me that will clear up shortly. He said; “You are a man of faith and with what I see, I have no concern.” I’m not sure that is completely Scriptural, but I was pleased that my faith “came through” to him. Next Tuesday I will have the second surgery and I am told that within 2-3 weeks the swelling should be down, allowing my vision to return to normal. It will be interesting to see what normal will actually be. In the meantime I am doing a minimum of reading, writing and spreadsheet work. Fortunately I have some excellent people that I use to check all of my critical work. It is extremely easy to mistake a 3 for an 8 and a 7 for a 9.

Reading is also rather slow for me presently, but I have been working my way through 1 Kings. My thoughts have focused especially on Solomon who became king after his father David. What a fantastic beginning as he prayed; “Oh LORD my God…I am like a little child who doesn’t know his way around….Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong…” (1 Kings 4:7-9) God granted him that desire and more…wisdom, long life, and amazing wealth. Unfortunately he did not consistently follow the Lord. His worship was divided between God and pagan gods. He followed God’s leading one day and would ignore it another. He focused on God’s promises and then disregarded them. Ultimately his divided heart resulted in a divided kingdom. What a tragedy!

I was invited to dinner with dear friends the other evening and their prayer was in part that being now in their latter days of life, they will finish well. I want that to be my top desire also!

I will be staying here for the Easter weekend due to my eyesight and upcoming surgery. This will be the first in many years, not being with the family. I trust that each of you are blessed this weekend as you are vividly reminded of all that Jesus accomplished on the cross on our behalf…He is risen indeed!

Love to all,

Chuck