Brendin at 20

I remember the day he was born so clearly. If I close my eyes I  can see it   It was a Sunday afternoon. We were in ministry in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, but were certain we were not going to church that night.  All the details are not necessary to share here now.  The truth is, it was a bit traumatic and over the next six weeks, I learned more about life and how precious it really is than perhaps I had learned in the 27 years prior.

Truthfully, I probably didn't learn new lessons, but had life-long lessons brought home and made alive like never before.  I thought of my Dad who had died some 14 years earlier and how he loved babies.  He had a way with little ones, and they loved him.  It saddened me to think that he would never meet or hold Brendin or that Brendin would never know him.  I reflected on how he must have felt at my birth and that of my seven other siblings.  I couldn't wrap my mind around that much responsibility, yet was comforted and bewildered by the joy I felt and how much so many births must have brought to him and Mom.   

I remember wondering how I would challenge my youth group to partner with us in raising Bendin to love the Lord.  We were supposed to take the group bowling after worship that night.  When we didn't show up there was pandemonium with all the teens wanting to know what was happening.  In our youthful "wisdom," we had decided on a home birth, so our friends ran interference, giving us space and keeping the teens away.  Our Moms were both with us. What a blessing to have them there.

In quiet moments over the next few days, I reflected again and again on Psalm 139:
        Fearfully and wonderfully made...
        your eyes saw my unformed body.
       All the days ordained for me
       were written in your book
       before one of them came to be.
Those words had more meaning to me in the days after Brendin's birth than they ever did before.  They continue to amaze me and make me fall deeper in love with the One who created all things.  As Caleb and Alicia were born three and five years later, I revisited those quiet moments and the memories of my first days with Brendin.  Sitting in peaceful reflection, holding the tiny child and marveling at the perfect little fingers, I would sit speechless, every fiber of my being exuding gratefulness and praise to God for such beautiful gifts given to me.

If I continued to tell stories of Brendin, I could write pages and pages of how he has brought joy into my life and made me proud in so many ways.  Life with him has been an amazing journey of faithfulness and discovery.  He inspires me and gives me hope as I see faith shape him and laugh at the sheer joy of who he is.  It's hard to believe that he is no longer a teenager.  I don't feel old enough to have a twenty year old son, but God has taught me a lifetime of lessons through learning to raise and nurture him.

I am so grateful for all three of my amazing children - God's hand touches me through them daily.  I am deeply blessed by life with an amazing,beautiful wife and a trio of children who far surpass the blessedness I deserve.

Happy 20th Brendin.  You are my gift.

Sweetness and Grief

A few years ago, my mother-in-law passed away.  She was a wonderful prayer warrior and lover of life.  Shortly after she passed, a friend came to visit, bringing us a live plant and a large plate of brownies.  She explained that she was carrying on an old tradition.  The sweets were meant to ease the bitterness of loss. The plant was a reminder that life goes on.

I was reminded this week of how this wonderful traditon touched me when our neighbors had to fly to Florida for the funeral of the man's father.  While they were gone we watched their dogs for them and had a live plant and a plate of goodies waiting for them when they returned.

Reflecting on this tradition, I realize that it is a true picture of the faithfulness and provision of God.  Throughout Scripture we see that God is ever present in the lives of countless men and women.  Even when they fail to acknowledge Him, He is present.  When Adam and Eve fall from grace and try to hide, God meets them in the garden.  Even as their decision brings death into creation, God makes provision for them and brings them life through the birth of sons.  When mankind becomes so tainted by sin that God decides to begin again, He raises up Noah and gives the gift of the rainbow to show how He promises life in the face of death.  On and on it goes.  As sin and the selfish ambitions of men and women wreak havoc throughout history God meets us in the midst of pain and reminds us that we were created for something more, that He offers us a better life. 

Finally, God Himself pays the ultimate price.  He experiences the pain and rejection of sin when He has no sin.  Yet even in this death on the cross He is present, bringing us life.  It is in fact because of this death and through this death that true life, eternal life is even possible for us.  May we all have eyes to see.   May we be moved to live in such a way that this death is not in vain for us individually and each death we grieve will be a reminder that this life is not all there is!