He has shown you...

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.   And what does the LORD require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”  (Micah 6:8)

I returned from a beautiful memorial service a few minutes ago for a dear friend, Ron, who with his wife Joan, went overseas to serve the Lord and the people of Bolivia in 1960.  Retiring from leadership of the mission in 1999, didn’t last long.  In 2000 Ron and Joan returned to Bolivia for seven more years serving as support staff continuing to impact multitudes for Christ.  Parkinson’s along with other maladies slowed Ron down a bit, but even during his several hospital stays these past months and the advancement of his illness, he was not deterred from his focus upon people and their need for a Savior.  In spite of pain and sickness, every time I visited him in the hospital, he was focused on the staff and others.  A challenge to each of us who knew him.  As I sat there today, I thought of Ron as a Micah 6:8 man.  He will be greatly missed, but I assure you, never forgotten by great numbers of us that were impacted by his life!

Another dear friend, Stuart certainly fits the Micah description.  His Multiple Myeloma has slipped down the priority list now that he has been diagnosed with CID which is so much faster moving and has no known treatment, providing for a short window of reasonable health ahead.  With that, Stuart and Donna have accelerated their plans to move to Sebring, so activities are moving rapidly on both ends with family and friends working together to hopefully have them here on August 6^th.  Moving is always stressful but coupled with the health and medical issues they face, it must appear nearly impossible to them at times.  When asked if I thought it possible, I had to admit to Stuart that humanly it appeared an impossibility but I have seen for too many miracles from the Lord these past months to rule it out.  I believe that it will become a reality!  Please pray for a special measure of strength and peace for Stuart as well of all the family as they work together to accomplish this task.  Not only is it energy draining, but also emotional for family members, putting many hours between them.  But they all agree on it being the best plan and are diligently working to that end. 

What a joy it is to have the assurance of knowing that in a moment of time, we can move from the agony and discomfort of this world into a “new world” of total freedom from all of that unpleasantness into joy and contentment that will never end…if we know the Savior that makes it all possible.

I trust that you will have a blessed Sunday preparing and encouraging others in preparation for that long awaited, but sooner than anticipated day!

Love to all,

Chuck

A Merciful God!

Reading and reflecting upon the book of Jonah this past week was a great reminder of God’s patience for his people to obey Him in spite of our disobedience.  God does not give up on us, but rather shows His mercy, bringing many situations into our lives to teach us the lessons that we need in order to realign our lives in accordance with His will.  Even though Jonah refused to obey God, God never gave up on him!

Humanly I can see why Jonah was hesitant to go to Nineveh with the reputation it had of abuse and atrocities.  Thousands of captives burned alive, decapitating hands, fingers, noses and the putting out of eyes along with impaling hundreds of men on stakes when they ran afoul of the leadership.  I would have been mighty hesitant to go also.  But God had specifically spoken to Jonah because of His desire to awaken the people of Nineveh spiritually.  When Jonah did go after some rather harrowing experiences on the sea and in the sea, traveling inside a great fish for three days, the people not only repented, but the king issued a decree that everyone call urgently upon God (Jonah 3:8).  God then showed His great compassion upon them and they were spared!

Jonah’s “sermon” of only 8-9 words accomplished its purpose, but Jonah became angry with God for relenting and he proceeded to pout and complain for the remainder of the book which ends abruptly with me wondering if Jonah ever changed his attitude?

I found the book a good reminder of God’s mercy upon every individual even as we disobey Him, while at the same time presenting us with experiences along with opportunities to repent and enjoy His abundant blessings as we serve Him.

I am reminded of David’s request; “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  (Psalm 139:23-24)   After reading the book of Jonah, I recognized my need to ask the same for myself on a continual basis!

Love to all,

Chuck

Catching Up

Sorry for the delay in getting another blog out.  No, I didn’t get to close to the edge of the world and fall off.  There were several changes in my travel plans and they actually extended my trip by a few days and miles.  It was special to get several things accomplished at the lake house and to be able to handle some business matters in Michigan.

On my return I spent a couple of days in Charlotte visiting my dear friend Stuart and his family.  His prognosis is not good.  The chemo used to hopefully arrest the cancer has caused brain damage which has activated a very rare additional problem which is indicating that he likely has only two months of “good” life remaining.  It is his desire that he and his wife move to Sebring as soon as possible, so we spent considerable time talking, praying, planning and yes, crying.  It is really difficult to move away from family at a time like this for everyone, but he would like to get them moved into the house that they have here so his wife will be settled at such time as the Lord takes him home.  As difficult as it is, his children are in agreement and doing all they can to help.  I was helping a bit with the Charlotte plans and will also be working on making the transition as smooth as possible on this end.

My good friend Jerry who lives here also received a bad report for his doctor while I was away and is now under Hospice care.  His cancer seems to be progressing so rapidly and the doctors have been unable to arrest it.  While these things are difficult, I can’t imagine how a non-believer in Christ and his Word could deal with something like this!

Please pray for both of these men and their families.  They both have so faithfully served the Lord both in Africa and in the U. S. for many years, and are continuing to impact multitudes as they bravely face nasty procedures with their hope never wavering, as they anticipate their soon passing through that curtain into an eternity with their Lord and Savior, completely free of any further illness or pain.

The anniversary of Carol’s passing was on the 8^th  of July, so this has been a bit more emotional for me at this time.  Some things you never forget, but at the same time there are an overwhelming number of wonderful memories to focus upon.  What a blessing that is!

I trust that you all have a blessed weekend!  I hope to find time to work in a bit of extra sleep!

Love to all,

Chuck