Right there, on the street outside the little church on Delfin Street, was this incredible tree. The closer I got to it, the more amazing it became...It was similar to trees I'd seen before, except for these incredible "blossoms" or petals.... Look at this....this beautiful blossom is about the size of your hand, and the tree was covered with just such beauty...
(Click on the photo for a closer look at this incredible blossom!)
Everywhere...everything is crying out....GLORY, GLORY TO GOD...The Creator of EVERYTHING!
What did YOU see today that invited you to join in the praise?
Did you? Go ahead...do it...Praise!
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
My Brother Larry
One year ago today...
I miss him...not because I lived very close to him these last years...in fact, we lived miles apart, my life having taken on the usual twists and turns, moves and changes...his having remained steady, constant in the face of so much change-just the way he liked life. No, I miss him because he profoundly impacted my growing-up years, who I became and who I am today.
Larry loved photographs, phonographs, 8-track tapes, and the boxes that housed them.
He was a collector, a keeper, a horder of all things he could find. Nothing was not good enough to save...and he did so admirably.
He loved processed cheese, regular cheese, and diet soda... usually all three before he went to bed at night...that is, before he went to live at the Range Center. After that, he was placed on a diet...for his weight and his diabetes...and he did so well.
Larry loved Christmas...he'd light up long before anyone's trees or decorations were up, and his worn-out catalogues from JCPenneys or Montgomery Wards and Sears were the usual fare come fall at the DeLong household.
Dad wouldn't put up the tree too early; Larry simply couldn't handle the excitement. But then, just days before the big opening, he'd be there supervising the set up of the tree and wanting to help bring out all the gifts to sort them under the branches.
He'd sit in his worn-down, much-loved recliner next to the tree..half on the edge of his seat...counting and recounting the gifts. His teachers didn't believe he could read...but we knew otherwise...he knew which gifts were his...and he would stack them just a bit closer to his chair each day as we approached Christmas Eve.
On Christmas Eve, when Grandma still lived on 39th Street, Dad would pack us into the old '57 Chevy and take us over to her little house, where Larry and I would sit on the fold out couch/bed, waiting for Grandma to finish wrapping each gift. It was there that I learned to love ribbon candy, and where Larry would wait and wait for all the gifts to come out, signaling to Grandma which ones he thought were his.
Larry wasn't able to speak like the rest of us, but he knew how to communicate...in ways that always amazed me, often frightened me (he did have a temper!) and in ways that reminded me of how limited I was in my own communication...especially in communicating love...something Larry was able to do with a simple smile ... like in the photo above.
Somehow, though all my theological training gives me little information about persons like Larry, I do believe that the Lord has grace and mercy in special measure for persons like my brother.
I know, because God graced me with the special privilege of having many years growing up in a little house in a shared bedroom with Larry, my brother.
In the past 12 months, two very significant men in my life have died...first, Larry - just one year ago today. And second, and somehow I believe in response to or relation to the first, my Dad - just 6 weeks ago.
My life has been so touched by these two people...and is now so empty without them.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Over Our Heads - Way Over!
An army surrounded our house while we were in Mexico...a heavily armed militia that had been assembled, not so much in the usual way, but through a call that went out via many avenues. And they answered...in droves. This army lay seige upon our house, landing on the roof as their point of entry. They took chainsaws to offending trees, causing the branches to fall and the menace to retreat from the roof.
Ripping, scrapping, shoving...this band of warriors skinned the roof, slicing away layers of old asphalt shingles (in some cases two layers). They found water-logged boards here and there, and ripped them from their moorings. The bricks of the chimney came toppling down, the inner pipe dislodged and heaved from its once glorious heights. The television attenna, no longer connected nor functional, was given flight...as was the rooster weather vane...banished to some more welcoming home.
And then...the army of well-trained if not well-loved and selfless workers...proceeded to rework the roof, to lay down new water and ice shield, new valley tin, new board, new paper and finally most beautifully, new shingles.
Okay...enough dramatics...but can you blame me? Our roof was in such dire straights...rotting away, shingles deteriorating in the 20+ year sunshine and brutal weather of Wisconsin. I knew it needed replacing...but such a task simply wasn't in the budget...nor the time schedule.
Little did I know that while hosting a grad party for our son, the "contractors" of this secret invasion were scoping out the project of love, determined to get this work done on the sly...they had chosen a time when we'd be gone...to Mexico, and had begun to work on all the details. Even a serious motorcycle accident to one of the "founding contractors" couldn't stop the work.
The week before we left, the insurance agent informed me that the company we'd recently switched to for homeowners had decided to cancel our policy because the "roof was in need of replacement" and the "tree branches were touching the roof" unless we replaced it quickly (like in days!!!). That same day, later in the afternoon, our son (in-law) called to break the silence re: the roof and let us know that it was indeed happening.
The roof is spectacular...the army of many unknowns to us worked so beautifully. Sue and I are blown away (not the shingles, they have a strong warranty against wind damage)...we are so thankful for such love and concern. We praise the Lord above who knows all our needs...we know that He is glorified through this invasion.
To all who helped ... in any way and in all ways... we say THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! You have touched our hearts and lives in ways we cannot begin to explain....know this, that God has used your actions to bring about special healing to our hearts, and your selfless actions have touched more people than any of us may ever know. The story of all this will be retold again and again....You are all loved...Thank You...for your actions are over our heads...your love...and HIS...is WAY OVER OUR HEADS INDEED!
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Tluhauc, Mexico: 8/3-13/2007
A Journey in Faithfulness (not mine, not the team's, but God's Faithfulness) began with a restless night (make that a couple of hours) of attempted sleep at a church in Chicago, followed by an early morning wait for NWA (read "North Worst Airlines) ticket counter folks to arrive. Once checked in and on board, we had an uneventful flight to Detroit, followed by a great cup of CARIBOU COFFEE (available in the Detroit airport...why not O'hare or Mitchell??). Our 3+ hour flight to Mexico City was smooth and relaxing, with a meal served to boot.
Upon arrival, an army of local believers was present to help us with luggage and transportation to the suburb of Tluhuac on the southeastern edge of the largest city in the world. The colors and sights were awesome, the people smiling and friendly, the reception far more than we deserved.
God is faithful...leading others to His Son, providing health and strength to the team, and blessing us with new incredible friendships that we trust will last through eternity.
LESSONS:
"-ish" time is more relaxing and more relationship-focused than North American time
-People with little to give often give more than they have to those of us who have more than we should.
-Futbol (soccer) can be played with the heart when the feet don't know what on earth they're doing.
-"In a Park," like many ideas, can be easily "lost in translation"
-Don't believe the skeptics re: temperature in Mexico in August; children on mission trips; hail storms in worship!
-God knows where the funds come from and where they end up, even when we don't have a clue.
-Seeking God (like seeking a precious jewel - say a diamond from a wedding ring?) - to give up I'd be a fool.
-Children are more apt to continue seeking long after adults have given up.
-I am, way too often, a fool.
-Preaching through an interpreter leaves all results to His Holy Spirit - Gloria Dios!
-God's gifting is to be used for His glory...and must be...even after the world seems to steal it from you.
-I miss the pulpit; I love cross-cultural ministry; I feel God's pleasure when I am about both.
-My wife Sue is my best friend and partner in all the world...I love her so very much and serving God with her is the VERY BEST.
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