The Best Offering

It didn’t take long to realize that God was going to teach me a lot through our children…and He continues to do so.

When the boys were young, we pretty much had a Saturday morning routine.  After chores were completed and the Sunday School lesson was read, it was time for the weekly allowance and getting their offering envelopes ready for church.  The year that Brad and Chad were in kindergarten, they earned 50 cents each week.  They would either bring a nickel or five pennies to put in their envelope.  About halfway through the year, Chad brought two pennies and said that was his offering.  I explained that he needed to bring me a nickel or five pennies, not just two pennies.  He was not pleased, but finally went and brought three more pennies.

The next Saturday, Chad again brought only two pennies and said that was all he would give.  I remember telling him that it was important enough to me that he give the “right” offering that he wouldn’t get his allowance until he was willing to do so.  That was OK with him because he “still had more money in his bank”.  Not letting the situation go, I finally asked him why he would not give the five cents.  He burst into tears and said, “Jesus said two pennies was the best offering.”  You see, in Sunday School, he had heard the story of the widow’s offering.

Mark 12:41-44

⁴¹ Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. ⁴² But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

 ⁴³ Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. ⁴⁴ They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Since Jesus said that two pennies was the best offering, that is what he wanted to give.  After talking more about the story and why Jesus said that, he went to his room and brought back more than five cents.  His motive was to give Jesus the best.  And the best offering always involves the heart.  Lesson learned… and remembered.

2 Corinthians 9:7

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Health Update:  I had my 5^th infusion today and am now the recipient of a total of 1 billion new stem cells.  While I was having my treatment, we were able to visit with three other people who were there to meet with the doctor and make preparations to begin the process.  Since this may be my last treatment, one of the doctors asked Larry for his business card so he can call Larry when he needs him to pray specifically for him.  Whenever Larry drives by their office, on his way to make hospital visits, he always prays for the doctors, Celltex, and the patients who will be receiving treatments.  We’ll definitely be going back to visit from time to time.  What an incredible experience this has been.  God is so good and has blessed us both abundantly during these days.  And now we gratefully wait and see and rejoice.

Father's Eyes

Just like every day, I started off the morning by putting in my contacts.  For some reason, my vision didn’t seem right.  I checked the contact case to make sure I had put both contacts in.  When both cases were empty, I decided to take the contacts out, clean them, and start over with the process.  After taking the contact out of the first eye, I discovered that I had accidentally put both in the same eye.  My eyesight certainly cleared up once the contacts were in the correct eyes.

Since I don’t have 20/20 vision, I am very grateful for eyewear that helps me see well.  Sometimes I wear glasses, but mostly I wear my contacts. I have also found that it is very beneficial to use sunglasses when I am driving or out in the bright sunlight.  Wearing 3-D glasses can even add an interesting dimension to viewing a movie.  Needless to say, I am thankful for the provision of eyewear.

But there is more to vision than just being able to see or read.  In the song, “Father’s Eyes”, Amy Grant sings of the importance of “seeing” through God’s eyes.

“She's got her father's eyes
Her father's eyes
Eyes that find the good in things
When good is not around
Eyes that find the source of help, when help just can't be found
Eyes full of compassion, seein' every pain
Knowing what you're going through, and feelin' it the same.”

Father, may my desire for perfect vision be because I want to see people, things, and situations through your eyes.

Psalm 34:8

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

Psalm 66:5

Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf!

Matthew 6:22-23

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Luke 2:30

For my eyes have seen your salvation.

John 4:35

Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

Names and an Update

While shopping at a Christian book store, I found each of our boys’ names printed on a small poster.  So since they were very young, our sons have had a framed representation of their name, its meaning, and a scripture that depicts it hanging on the wall in their room.  Even though that was not considered when they were named, it is amazing how each description and scripture seems to “fit” each son.

Having a frame with name information on the wall, doesn’t necessarily make the meaning true.  But because each has chosen to be a “Christ Follower”, their life and name do have worth and purpose.  It's because of Jesus.

Philippians 2:9-11

⁹ Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
   and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
   in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
   to the glory of God the Father.

Proverbs 3:3-4

³ Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
   bind them around your neck,
   write them on the tablet of your heart.
⁴ Then you will win favor and a good name
   in the sight of God and man.

Proverbs 22:1 

¹ A good name is more desirable than great riches;
   to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.

    

So Scott, Brad, and Chad,

¹¹ With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. ¹² We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

Health update:

I am continuing to feel stronger.  It is easier for me to take the walker out of the car and put it back in by myself.  Of course, I rarely have to do that since Larry usually meets me.  When exercising, I have also been able to get up off of the floor by myself.  In the past, Larry would have to pull me up.  I still don’t try this “trick” unless he is home to supervise.  I’m even practicing my golf swing in preparation for miniature golf when we go to the beach this summer.  I am about half way in the cell repair process.  They will do an additional infusion in 2 weeks. 

Chad and Lori's Story

Thanks to Chad for being the guest writer for today's blog.

On the Grand Opening Sunday for the new building at Sienna Ranch Baptist Church, I re-met one of my neighbors, Lori Hudson.  Tim Raines, who also lives in our neighborhood, invited her to come.  I first met Lori on Trinity Baptist’s last Sunday before we merged with Colony.  We had that last service at Tim and Gayle Raines’ house and Lori and her husband Dave came by for the Bible Study time (they were going to another church at the time).  About 7 months later Dave passed away from a sudden cardiac arrhythmia.  Lori was 5 months pregnant.  When all this happened, Tim let me know and asked me to pray for them.  So even though I had only met Lori briefly once, when I met her again I already knew quite a bit about her.  We talked for a little while before the Grand Opening Service.  From this point on, I began to pray about and consider dating Lori.

After that Sunday, I randomly ran into Lori and her son, David, who was 13 months old, as they went for walks around the neighborhood.  We would stop and talk for a little bit and a few times I joined them on their walk.  For a little over a month, these truly unplanned meetings took place.  All this time, I was praying about the possibility of dating Lori.  I did not want to enter into this relationship lightly for both Lori and David’s sake.  One morning, after I had prayed awhile the night before, I woke up with Jeremiah 29:11 going through my head.  That verse reads, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Along with that verse God gave me a peace and assurance that dating Lori, and ultimately marrying her, was His plan for my life.  I have longed for that peace about a relationship for a long time now.  Every time I have dated someone and prayed about where it might be headed I would get an uncomfortable feeling about the relationship, which fairly quickly led to me breaking up with the girl (unless she beat me to it).  This was obviously and overwhelmingly different.  I continued to pray about this relationship and how to be sensitive to Lori while she still misses Dave and wants to be honoring to his memory and his family.

While I was praying about dating Lori, God had been working in her heart to encourage her to be open to the possibility of getting married again.  She was struggling with how she felt versus what God was telling her to do.  She wanted the Lord’s will and wanted to be content in whatever circumstance God placed her, single or remarried.  It was only shortly before we met again that she reluctantly moved her wedding ring to her other hand.  Over the following weeks, not knowing how I felt, she began to be open to the possibility of getting married again.  She felt that if God was going to work this out it was going to take a miracle in her life.  She began to pray in very specific ways.  She prayed that this person would be a godly man who loved the Lord with all his heart.  That he would be accepting not only of her and her son David, but also Dave and his family, the Hudson’s.  She prayed that he would be open to keeping Dave’s memory alive and allowing David to know about his dad.  She told God that this man would have to make the first move because she wouldn’t.  She also prayed that this person would feel led to pursue a relationship with her, knowing what that would entail.  Ultimately, as she prayed she knew that the deciding factor that would reveal that this man was from God would be that he would voice that a relationship with her was something that he felt the Lord has placed on his heart.

This all came together as we went from randomly (though I think God probably had something to do with this making it not so random) running into each other in the neighborhood to going on a date.  We got frozen yogurt and played bocce ball at Oyster Creek Park.  We also talked for a while.  Not knowing what she had been praying about, I told her, “I think it’s obvious that I like you and with that I know what all that entails.”  Then not knowing what she had prayed about, I began to talk about each of her desires in our conversation.  They were all things that I had thought through and prayed about as I considered dating Lori.  There were many other aspects of subsequent conversations that were answers to prayer.

Fast forward to December 23^rd.  We were at my parents’ house celebrating Christmas with my family.  While I was showing Lori around their house, she saw the word widow in a framed meaning of my name on the wall in my room.  So without telling me what she was thinking she asked me how long it had been in my room.  I answered, “As long as I can remember.”  Then I got quiet as I read it.  I looked at it often growing up, but that night I noticed something for the first time.  It has my name, “Chad”, under that is written the meaning of my name, “defender”, and under that the verse Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.”  After reading it I said, “Wow! It takes on a whole new meaning now doesn’t it?” And she said, “It does.”

This whole time we have seen God at work in our relationship and have grown to love one another and I have grown to love David.  This process has not always been easy as Lori has sought to honor Dave’s memory and be respectful of how his family and friends feel.  She has sought to grieve in a way that will bring glory to God in the midst of brokenness as well as in the joy of a new relationship.  All the while I have desired to walk alongside her to be the one she can lean on, confide in, and trust to be there both in her grief and as we look forward to life together.

I will condense the rest of the story to… after talking with my parents, Lori’s parents, and Dave’s parents, over the last few weeks, on January 5^th I asked Lori to marry me and she said, “yes”!

Engaged!

Chad and Lori are engaged!

From the time the boys were born, we have prayed that they would choose a wife who loves the Lord.  We also asked God to help each one of our sons become a godly man who would attract a godly wife.


Several years ago, Wayne Watson wrote a song entitled "Somewhere in the World".  The boys would love it when it came on the radio because I could not listen to it without tearing up.  I'm still not convinced that they did not call KSBJ to have them play it when we were going somewhere.  Brad even selected it to be played during the groom and mother dance at his wedding.  The chorus, especially, was a prayer from my heart.


"Somewhere in the World"
Chorus:
And I don't even know her name
But I'm prayin' for her just the same
That the Lord will write His name upon her heart
'Cause somewhere in the course of this life
A (My) little boy will need a godly wife
So hold on to Jesus, baby, wherever you are

God has answered our prayers and we are greatly rejoicing.  We love you, Lori.  Welcome to the family.

Proverbs 18:22
He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD.

Proverbs 31:10
 A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.

Preparing for 2012

 

I am always amazed at the details of the Christmas story as I read and hear the accounts each December.  This year, I was reminded that Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and Magi had a common thread in the story of the birth of Jesus.  There were some profound lessons to be learned and taken to heart.

God sent the angel Gabriel to Mary to tell her that God had found favor with her and the Lord was with her.  She was to give birth to a son and name him Jesus.  He would be called the Son of the Most High.  God would give him the throne of his father David.  When Mary did not understand, the angel explained that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and she would conceive and have a baby.  Mary believed and trusted God.

An angel appeared to Joseph, in a dream, and told him to not be afraid to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was of the Holy Spirit.  He was to give him the name Jesus.  When he awoke, he did what the angel had told him to do.  Joseph again obeyed when an angel warned him, in a dream, to take Mary and Jesus and escape to Egypt.  While living in Egypt, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to now move to the district of Galilee and lived in the town of Nazareth.

The shepherds were watching their sheep when they were surprised by the angel telling them the news of Jesus’ birth.  Then the angel chorus arrived to join in on the celebration.  Even though they were afraid, they believed the message and went to see the baby they had been told about.  And then they spread the word about what they had been told about Jesus.

The Magi came from the east because they had seen the star in the sky.  After visiting Herod, they continued to follow the star until it stopped over the place where they found Jesus.  They were warned in a dream to go home taking a different route. 

They each

heard God’s message,

listened to what was said,

believed the message,

and acted with obedience. 

And they were assured that they did not need to be afraid.  Sounds like a good plan for 2012, too!

Luke 1:38

³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Matthew 1:24

 ²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

Luke 2:15-18

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”  ¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

Matthew 2:12

¹² And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Merry Christmas!

May this Christmas be a blessed one for you as you celebrate with family, friends, and most of all Jesus.


Debbie and Larry



Abby and Scott



Brad and Melinda



Chad


And because of Christmas...Easter is on its way.

Galatians 4:4-7
⁴ But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, ⁵ to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. ⁶ Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” ⁷ So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.