Relieved for the Moment

Things are coming together, a little. This morning's prayer time was heartfelt and agonizing. Today is Monday, and by Thursday morning I am to build a coffin, prepare a funeral sermon, weed-eat our cemetery, have the hole dug and organize the program. All or any of that is pretty manageable, but the idea that I had so little time to build a decent casket was terribly nerve wracking. For prayer, I usually go thru' my list and whatever it is I am reading, plus talk to the Lord about the things that are on my heart. Today, my heart was so troubled with this coffin project that I couldn't rest. I could just plead with the Lord for help and wisdom.

Well, guess what? My little secretary has a huge burden for her own granddaughter who was a friend of our Brittany who drowned. The little lady has no spiritual interests at all. She is coming to the funeral and Frances, my secretary, sees it as an opportunity to teach her about death and where the dead go when they die. So Frances volunteered to buy a casket out of her own pocket. Pastor Eagan and I will share the service. I'll do the short sermon in the church. He'll do the talk at the cemetery. I am perfectly relieved. Praise God, I feel like I have time to accomplish what is before me now.

We have beautiful hay and the Lord has been keeping the rain off of it. Yesterday, we started baling it. So it poured torrential rains on it. It looks like we've lost most of our first crop. Ah well, it's the Lord's hay. He can do as He pleases with it.

Till next time. Got to go prepare a sermon.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Tragedy at Eden Valley

I've cancelled my 3ABN assignment. I have yet to call them to let them know.

I was preaching at the Estes Park Church today. The Lord blessed in a mighty way. After potluck, I rec'd a phone call. Bill told me that Brittany Schult and Sylvia were walking their dogs on the canal road after lunch. Brit's dog jumped into the full canal. She tried to help the dog out of the canal and fell in. The dog got out of the canal easily, but Brittany couldn't get out. She told Sylvia to put the leach on the dog and throw the dog back in. I think she was hoping that the dog could help pull her out. Sylvia did as she was told but, the dog just came back out.

Sylvia ran to Brit's mother's house and told her mother. I assume the mother called Bill and he rushed over to the canal, but couldn't find any trace of her. They called 911, and the police, EMTs and divers worked all afternoon trying to find her. The divers couldn't do anything in the canal because the current is too strong. They resorted to closing the flow in the canal to reduce the current.

I arrived late in the afternoon. Cindy was pretty sure her daughter was gone, but she held up pretty well. When they found Brittany, five miles down the canal, they said she had a big bump on her head, but she was dead. That's when it was apparent that Cindy had been hanging on to hope. She broke down fully.

At the moment, Cindy, Sylvia, Leasa, and Shari are gone to the morgue to identify the body. Nearly everyone at EVI spent the whole afternoon with Cindy and the emergency people. There were ladies among the police and medics sent especially to comfort Cindy. They expressed that they were surprised at the support Cindy rec'd from her community, and the spiritual impact it had on their hearts. One of the ladies, the one that appeared to be in charge broke down and said she will be forever changed because of what she witnessed today.

Who knows? God's ways are mysterious, but predictably good. I believe it with all my heart.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Doing all I Can

It's Friday morning and I'm still on course. I managed to send 3ABN the information they wanted, I taught two classes yesterday and three this morning. For tonight, I see my way clear to present a message at the graduation ceremony. (I still have to determine what I will share. I still have to decide what I'll preach in Estes Park tomorrow, but the Lord doesn't let me down.)

All our hay is cut, but there is such heavy dew that it is soaked every morning. We just have to wait for God to dry it.

I leave for 3ABN on Sunday morning. I will have all day, Monday, to fill my head with the topics I am suppose to present. I'm more relaxed about it now. If it fails, I will have tried. If it doesn't fail, then someone will gain a blessing. I've long established that I can't succeed if I don't try. So, here goes.

I have a young couple coming in tonight and staying two nights. My house accommodates visitors on a regular basis. After they leave, two lifestyle guests should be moving in. Probably on Sunday.

I'm doing all I can do for as many people as I can do it for. Let me know if I can do anything for you.

Says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Relaxed

Are you relaxed? I am, I'm totally at peace. It isn't because everything is going my way, however. It's because I know that when I am pressed to the limit, the Lord will pile it on to teach me that He can get me through anything.

I'll be taping at 3ABN on Tuesday the 8th of June. I haven't even seen the TV program I am suppose to participate on. Dee Hildebrand (of 3ABN) called me yesterday and wanted to make sure I was ready. She said I needed to have sent 10 questions per program for the host. I had never heard anything of the kind. There is suppose to be some forms that she sent in my packet. (Attachments on my internet packet.) I suppose its there. I will look soon.

Soon should have been last week. In any case, I was going to work on that today, but things didn't work out. I taught a class (preached a sermon) to my staff and to the students this morning. Someone suggested we have a work-bee today. Work-bees don't work unless the president participates. Tomorrow, I need to teach two classes. Friday, I need to teach three classes and prepare a sermon / challenge for the graduation Friday night. On Sabbath, I get to preach in Estes Park and take the students to the Rockie Mountain Park in the afternoon. Jack Long showed up. He had made an appointment to meet with me today. Something about fixing the road to the cemetery. So we went up to the cemetery and examined the road. Leasa asked me to call Quest telephone company and arrange to have our telephone system changed. I got Laural to do that for me because she's the expert. But, I needed to spend two hours chopping veggies for her so she could do my job. Then, dear Leasa was to buy me a flight on-line. She was working on it, but she had to go teach a class.

"So," she said, "you finish it."

It took me one and one half hours to get that done. Then, guess what? It is 6 P.M. and I haven't even looked at my 3ABN assignment.

Do you think I am frustrated? No, I am not! Do you know why? It is because this is what I can expect of God, every time. Then, He turns around and rescues me (He'd better rescue me. He's always done it that way in the past) and I praise His name. Isn't that great? I count on Him and He never fails me. If I didn't have God, I go crazy.

So says the Preacher to his tribe. . .

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Learn your Lessons

I just came back from DayStar Academy. We had a board meeting yesterday. Steve Grabiner and I rode over there and back again together. On our way, we were not very optimistic about the prospects for DayStar. It seemed, at the moment, that their financial woes would be too much to overcome. On the way back, we were thrilled to be encouraged. There are certainly financial troubles, but somehow the people are full of faith and even if they've had no stipend for a long time, they believe the Lord will turn things around for them. Oh, I need to find someone with means to help these lovely people.

Joy Grabiner (five foot two, cute as a button and only 26) has been a missionary in Honduras for the last two years. A couple of days ago, she and a visiting friend, Alissa, needed to go a few blocks away from Joy's house. Joy asked Alissa what she was carrying. (Joy lives in a bad neighborhood.) The girl had her camera and some money. Joy was worried, but it's just two blocks, "we should be alright," she thought. On the way, two men came around on bicycles, stopped right in their faces and pulled a gun.

"We want all you have," they said.

Joy stepped between Alissa and the would be robbers and accosted them in Spanish with, "That's not nice." (Or its equivalent.) She proceeded to chastise them for what they intended to do. Well, she took so much time that, in their urgency, they decided to grab her cell phone and high tail out of there.

Was the gun they were brandishing real ? I don't know, but poor old Steven wishes his daughter wouldn't be quite so bold in such circumstances. Anyway, all's well that ends well, and Joy is a heroine for a day.

We are doing our first cutting of hay for this year at EVI. The weather doesn't look too promising, but we are going ahead anyway. We are praying for no rain. With that, we are selling tiny tomatoes and cucs to Whole Foods, Inc. and sunflowers to someone else. Everything on the farm looks great. May the Lord keep the blankedy blank devil at bay this year.

I have eight or nine classes (sermons) to do this week in the L.I.G.H.T. program and in Estes Park on Sabbath. Then I go to 3ABN. (That is so nerve wracking.)

We had our first Search Committee to find the next president for OCI. My logic and heart leans heavily toward Steve Grabiner for President. On the other hand, my prayer is that God's will be done. It will be interesting to see how things develop. I'm glad we are finally on our way with this responsibility.

I was asked, by another search committee, if I would accept to be the president of another OCI institution. The answer is no, no more if I can help it. I hope that my institutional leadership days are over. I'll be happy to support my wife in her work and to teach at Kibi, RFI, and any other African school on a relaxed basis. The Lord knows the freedom I experience from knowing my incompetence in these matters. Let the young men/women pick up the heavy loads and by God's mercies avoid the mistakes I've made.

RH Dec. 16, 1902:9 "There are some lessons that are never learned only through failure." Supposing now, your life has been an on-going success. You've learned every lesson you can possibly learn through life thus far and all that remains is to learn the lessons that can never be learned except through failure, would you be willing to learn those lessons too?

Doesn't that place failure in its proper perspective? The quotation goes on to say that "Peter was a better man after his fall." He lost his self-sufficient confidence. Listen, dear ones, the sooner the better. Try, unlike me, to learn on small projects instead of big ones.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Ramblings

Did you check out Julie's blog? All she did was put her fingers on the keys and voila, presto. Isn't that easy? It will work for you too.

Well, today was an uneventful day. I ran to Denver to get a fender and bumper for my car. We had a short Executive Committee this morning. We made one tough decision. Sorry, I can't tell you what it is. I've been trying to write or edit some articles for my next Faith Venture magazine. The weather is in the mid 70's and all is well. I wanted to call my wife today, but our land lines are down. I hope to do it tomorrow.

I have to run to DayStar Academy this weekend. It is Graduation time and with that we have a Board Meeting. Things are in a crisis over there. They have no way to make enough money to run an academy. The old team is burnt out and the new leader, Chris Andersen, in suppose to move in this summer. Last week, before moving in, he resigned. The situation seems hopeless. It is hopeless, but apparently, the Lord spoke to him and convinced him to accept the position anyway. Poor guy. It's a good way to become very humble. My heart goes out to him.

The next weekend, Sunday to be precise, I'll leave for 3ABN. I will record three half hour TV programs with Shelley Quinn. The title of the show is Issues and Answers. I am suppose to introduce an issue and we discuss it. I assume I must have the answer, as well. Stress! I'm a glutton (or is that gluten) for overwrought nerves. Ah well. It will either be good, very good, excellent or lousy. My trust is in God. Pray for me.