Son 1 turned 22 today. Taller than me. Stronger than me. More handsome than me. More brain cells than me. A better heart than me.
Just the way it should be.
Happy Birthday, son. The day you arrived was one of the happiest in life. No doubts.
Archive for September, 2008
22
Monday, September 29th, 2008Changing times
Thursday, September 25th, 2008I don’t know if you heard about it, but it seems the financial world is in crisis. It’s all the talk here.
The money woes of the world make the front page and the opening stories of the Swiss news, and the radio continues to explain the situation, inviting ministers of finance to share their opinions and bank executives to give their take. I don’t understand much of it, though I’m not a neophyte to world markets. But I have enjoyed the illustrations that have been used:
"The bad debt was like a hot potato that got passed around. The important thing was not to be holding it in your hands when the alarm went off…"
"There used to be investment companies, banks, savings and loans, insurance companies… And they were all sealed off from one another. All you had to do was close the hatch, like in a wounded ship…"
The best comment came a bit ago when I asked a Christian, and a partner in a private bank, how he was doing. He said: You know, it’s not much fun. But shake ups like this get people to look at what’s really important. Some people will turn to God. So if that’s what it takes, I’m ready for it."
No one likes to lose money or see the value of their home or their retirement dwindle, but I was appreciative for the perspective.
In Marseilles
Wednesday, September 17th, 2008Daughter arrived safe and sound in Marseilles early this afternoon. She and three other young women will spend 10 months together in an extremely small apartment in a very poor area of town. Yet Daughter couldn’t be happier.
When she first decided to participate in the spiritual internship, no one else was committed to going. Then she started talking to her friends that from camps and retreats and other church events. One by one, three others decided to participate. One is from Geneva, one is from Lille, and the last is from Marseilles. They will make great Musketeers.
But it will be a tough one for the internship leaders. The Hutchinson family who had been active in French missions for 18 years had to go back to New Jersey to take care of ailing parents. Another is struggling with bad health. The challenge is huge for the team that’s left for planting a church in a poor neighborhood, running an internship program and preparing events for the French work. The team is full of dreamers who rarely say no. They follow God’s leading, and I thank Him for them. Please, pray for the team in Marseilles, France.
Adjusting
Monday, September 15th, 2008The time in the USA was refreshing. It was very difficult to say
goodbye to son, Dad and Mom, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews,
aunties and uncles in addition to our family in Christ. I feel that we
are privileged to see "snapshots" of your lives every two years.
Children who were not even born last time we visited now chat away in
some incomprehensible baby language, where the only truly recognisable word is the frequent MINE.
Between "pictures" some people lose a step. Some gain a pound or two.
Some of us lose a bit on top. Others inherit a crease or two. Some grow to greater depths of love…
I am not much of a change agent. If someone asked me to "come in and change things", I would probably say: Why? I tend to gravitate to the familiar (though I’ve dared to do many new things). I often think I was born about 25 years too late. Yet perhaps being born too late is what will save me from myself. I might have (I’m not safe yet, I know) grown up into someone extremely narrow.
Yet despite my love of stability, life has sure changed. Son 1 is a senior, finishing in Lausanne his BS in forensic science. Son 2 is over 5,000 miles away in only his fourth week of studies at Harding. Daughter leaves tomorrow for a year-long spiritual internship in Marseilles, France. Last Saturday, we welcomed Joel (16) to our home. He’s from German-speaking Basel and will live with us for two semesters as he learns both French and English. Yep, things are changing.
I guess the key for me is simply to adjust, to always appreciate those around me, always looking for God at work today.
I know He’s there. I know he’s working. I just want to see it more clearly.