A Dry and Thirsty Land

There are two words which can adequately describe the kind of summer we have been having. . .hot and dry.  Yesterday my daughter said they had been blessed with some rain just an hour south of us, but not even a drop here.  It's been so long since it last rained, I can barely remember what it is like to listen to the sound of it!

If I were to choose a word to describe the sound of rain, it would have to be "refreshing."  And nothing beats the smell of freshly falling rain.  Oh, how I would like to experience it again!  Part of me questions, "Why, Lord?  Why haven't we received any rain this summer?"  Then I hear His voice saying, "Don't ask why.  Ask what.  What will you learn through this time of dryness in your life?  Will you learn to trust Me?  Will you remember I always take care of My own?"

A song comes to mind.  It was made popular by Michael W. Smith a few years back.  The name of the song is "Healing Rain."  It speaks of another kind of rain we desperately need.  A spiritual rain of mercy and joy coming to bring relief to hard and calloused hearts.  Perhaps we need this kind of rain even more than the wet kind.  These are the words to the song, or you can listen to a YouTube version of the song at this link: https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=healing+rain+michael+w+smith+lyrics&view=detail&mid=64BE44B414F9886E1BA364BE44B414F9886E1BA3&FORM=VIRE

     

Healing rain is coming down
It's coming nearer to this old town
Rich and poor, weak and strong
It's bringing mercy, it won't be long

Healing rain is coming down
It's coming closer to the lost and found
Tears of joy, and tears of shame
Are washed forever in Jesus' name

Healing rain, it comes with fire
So let it fall and take us higher
Healing rain, I'm not afraid
To be washed in Heaven's rain

Lift your heads, let us return
To the mercy seat where time began
And in your eyes, I see the pain
Come soak this dry hearts with healing rain

And only you, the son of man
Can take a leper and let him stand
So lift your hands and they can be held
By someone greater, the great I am

Healing rain, it comes with fire
So let it fall and take us higher
Healing rain, I'm not afraid
To be washed in Heaven's rain
To be washed in Heaven's rain

Healing rain is falling down
Healing rain is falling down
I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid

 

 

We have a big celebration coming in our community next weekend, commemorating "100 Years and Building."  We had our City Centennial in 2004, but it has been 100 years since our beautiful Courthouse was built, and it was time to do another "All School Reunion."  We are also throwing in a few things to celebrate our church's 90th anniversary, which was actually last year.  It would be nice to get some physical rain to green things up before everyone arrives.  And my prayer is their time here will also give them a boost of the spiritual kind!

It's Official!

It was an April day in 2016 when I first heard the words over the telephone.  It was a pleasant voice informing me I had won a Premium Publishing Package from Xulon, a Christian self-publishing company.  My emotions went from excitement, to skepticism, to being overwhelmed at the process.  With last year being the year of Bert's first official campaign for North Dakota State Legislature, I found myself putting the whole thing on the back burner so we could focus on getting him elected.

Fast forward to January and our time in Bismarck, which included enough free time to focus on editing and combining the writings which had already been written over the last nine years of my career as a bank teller.  They were a part of my "Saturday Seeking" project, one which involved looking back on my week each Saturday for a "God Lesson".  There always was a hankering to get the writings published, but I never was sure of the "when" and "how" part.  As He always does, God came through with His perfect way and timing.

Today is my husband's 62nd birthday.  I had been waiting for my first 5 complimentary copies of "Teller Tales" all week.  The company told me they had been shipped on July 11, and it should take 7-10 days for them to arrive by UPS.  Part of my day included a phone call from a nice man named Jason at Xulon, who was answering some of my questions regarding the purchase of "author copies" to have on hand.  He was able to check on the initial shipment and found there had been an error in addressing the package where our post office box number was used instead of the house number of our street address. 

Just as I was wondering if I would ever see the package, a UPS truck pulled up in front of our house.  Phone in hand, I answered the door and was presented a package containing my books.  What timing!  I could give the first copy to Bert for his birthday! 

Where will the writing of "Teller Tales" lead me?  Only God knows for sure.  My prayer is it will lead others to seek Him more in their own everyday world.  If you are interested in checking it out, an order can be placed through my author page at Xulon.  http://www.xulonpress.com/bookstore/bookdetail.php?PB_ISBN=9781545606063&HC_ISBN 
Or if you are planning on being in Crosby for the big celebration on August 4-6, I hope to have a book signing scheduled.  I just need to make sure they have the address right to get the books here in time!  Something tells me God already has everything under His control!

Time for a Tuning!

This week a delightful woman by the name of Ann came to our house and tuned our piano.  It was interesting to watch as she opened the top of the piano and started inserting things which would aid her in the tuning process, made possible because God has blessed her with the gift of "perfect pitch."  Basically, she can plunk out a note and determine if it is playing the sound it is supposed to.  Although I spent much of the time in the back yard with my garden and flowers, I did get to listen to a portion of the process, which sounded something like this:  "Plunk, plunk, [adjust] plink, plink, [chord playing]" and so on, until the whole piano was in tune.

As I listened, it occurred to me we can compare our Christian walk to a good piano tuning.  The Holy Spirit is the "tuner," and the tools used include Bible reading, prayer, Christian fellowship, and sound Biblical teaching.  Without a regular adjustment process, our Christian walk may be in existence, but not quite "in tune" with the perfect plan God has in place for our lives.

Another activity I participated in this week was attending a unique conference in Williston, ND hosted by First Lutheran Church.  The speaker for the day was Dr. Richard Melheim, whom I first met 47 years ago [can we possibly be that old??] at the same Bible Camp which invited him to Williston to educate us on a new concept in the Christian world called, "Cross+Gen."  With my roots coming from the Lutheran Church, it wasn't as much of a stretch for me as it was for my 18 year old nephew who joined me for the day.  He grew up in the home of an Assembly of God pastor, so knew little about the "Lutheran ways."  Hopefully, by the end of the day, he discovered we really aren't so different after all!

The basis of "Cross+Gen" ministry is to combine the "wonder of the child" with the "wisdom of the aged."  Instead of dividing Sunday School and worship time into age appropriate segments, their desire is to see people of all ages gathered together to discuss and learn from the Bible and each other.  As our speaker showed us statistics showing the steady decline of the current Sunday School system, it was apparent some kind of "tuning" was in order.  Could "Cross+Gen" be the answer?

Another concept Dr. Rich presented was something called "Faith 5."  It is a tool which could be used in a church setting, but is also seeing great success in homes and families.  The idea is to do 5 things together every night.  First, share the highs and lows of your day.  Second, read a Bible verse or story.  Third, talk about how the Bible reading might relate to your highs and lows.  Fourth, pray for each other's highs and lows, and finally bless one another.  What a difference it would make in the world if each household would undertake to faithfully do "Faith 5"!

The final part of our time together at the conference was focused on learning about Martin Luther.  Unbeknown to this now Assembly of God person, the Lutheran world is celebrating the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses to the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, which brought about the start of the Protestant Reformation.  Dr. Rich and his team have put together a high quality comic book, a color book, and an animated musical detailing the life of Martin Luther.  I found I learned more about the roots of my faith than I ever had during my 19 years in the Lutheran Church!

If you are interested in "tuning up" your faith walk a bit, feel free to check out the organization Dr. Rich started called "Faith Inkubators" www.faithinkubators.com  It is filled with valuable resources for people of all ages.  Check out the remaining dates on the "Cross+Gen Tour" and see if they will be in an area near you.  It would be well worth your time to attend, if possible!

"Thank you, Richard Melheim, for the memories both then and now!"

Although I had a large collection of pictures from Bible Camp days, they were all taken by me, so I'm including my class picture from back then!

Thankful God crossed our paths once again!

  

This Man

To some he was known as "one of the Divide County farmers."  To others he was the one to call when their crops needed a round of aerial spraying.  To many, during the course of his lifetime, he was known as someone who was always willing to lend a helping hand, or offer a means out of a difficult situation.  To my mother, he was a faithful life partner, and to my 3 siblings and I, he was "Dad."
 
My children were blessed to know him as "Grandpa," if only for a short time.  He passed away when they were only ages 8 and 5.  This past week-end, we have been blessed to have our four grandchildren stay with us, with the youngest two being similar to those ages.  It was difficult to imagine them losing a grandpa.  This morning I was able to "introduce" the 5 year old to his "great-grandpa."  We happened to be in the living room at the time I realized it was July 3, my dad's birthday. 

"Today is my daddy's birthday,"  I explained, and proceeded to tell him this man was his mother's grandpa, making him my grandson's great-grandfather.  We took time to look at a picture of him and my grandson's response was, "So, not my great, great-grandfather?"  No, just one great.  Unless, of course, you are describing what kind of a great-grandfather he would have been.  Then it would be a GREAT great-grandfather!

This man's life was cut short, but only after he survived a quadruple bypass heart surgery, a stroke, and prostate cancer which eventually made its way into his bones.  He left this life at the age of 72 and would have been 103 today if he were still counting years by earthly standards.  It is a comforting thought to know he will be among those to welcome me "home" when it comes time for me to transfer to a "heavenly home."

What comes to mind when I think of my dad?  Perhaps farming, flying, and fireworks rank near the top.  When I worked as a bank teller, the drive-thru window often let in the fumes of diesel pickups, and instantly my mind thought of the man who supported our family by long hours on tractors, trucks, and combines.  Another smell, the scent of spearmint, brings to mind the many times we flew as a family, and Wrigley's gum was the ammunition we used to avoid popping ears.  The sound of an airplane overhead usually makes me look up and say, "Hi, Daddy!" 

With his birthday on July 3, and our country's birthday the day after, there was always a nice display of fireworks to delight us.  To this day, the sound of fireworks and sparkle of lights in the sky bring a smile to my face as I think of the planning he did to make us "oooh" and "aaah" as he lit off the fireworks. 

And so I end the day saying, "Happy Birthday, Dad!  Thanks for the precious memories!!"