They are on their way! As I write this Flight 2410 is between Billiings and Bozeman, Montana at 38,000 feet doing 430 mph (the internet really is an amazing tool). The Copper Island crew convened at County Market early this morning, or late last night - depending on your perspective. They are headed to a small island off of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. There is a mission there which ministers to First Nations Children. We were there in 06 on a construction job and are going back to build a worship center. Anyway, we took Andrew to County Market at 3:10 this morning and most were already assembled. Two vans and a pickup left for Midway airport for the flight to Seattle. I did not sleep much last night. Partly because I was awakened at 1:30 A.M. by a banging sound. Laying in bed, I counted 1 1000, 2 1000, 3 1000 and knew the banging happened every 40 seconds. If it was a ghost; it was a ghost with rhythm. After prowling through the house I discovered it was the upstairs toilet running and shutting off, running and shutting off. If you have ever seen "The Christmas Story" and the dad's response to the furnace in the basement, you know my response to the toilet upstairs; minus the profanity. When I finally got back to bed it was not long until Andrew was to get up to fly to Seattle. It was an opportune time to pray for him, to pray for the team, to pray for the project, to pray for all our short-term ministries. It was also a time when I felt discouraged because I was not sharing this experience with Andrew. It was two years ago that I went to Copper Island and I was thrilled he was going, but I felt like I missed an opportunity for some shared experiences. Plus, I wanted to witness for myself Andrew growing in his faith and life-experiences throughout this trip. But, his mother reminded me that it was good I was not there. Andrew would grow more absent my presence. I consoled myself that she was right even though I grumbled about her being right "again". It really is a matter of faith, this raising children. The Lord gives them to you to steward, and you give them back to Him with prayer. And off they go, winging their way to do missions trips or college or become a missionary or to walk away from the Lord while you wait for them to come back. Off they go to jobs and marriage and children and heart-ache and blessings and joys. If it is possible, your love deepens and matures as they grow older. Certainly your prayer life becomes healthier! The plane is now 481 miles from Seattle. It is not just a plane, it is a symbol of my son winging his way to maturity.
3 comments:
Please continue your interesting blog---little "sermons" are just as important as regular sized ones. Thank you for them.
Our favorite grocery here in Fisher made us aware of your blog. Thank you for sharing; there's much wisdom in the mere musing of life's happenings. I believe that God does indeed use this season of parenting more for the purpose of growing us up than for the purpose of us growing our kids. You are so right, our faith and prayer life do become deeper and stronger. I have two sons on the Copper Island trip as well, so you can be sure that we're praying alongside you. We're so grateful for the opportunity they had to work with the crew from GCBC.
Thanks for starting this blog as it is a wonderful way to share insights of life in a new way. Julie and I too are experiencing many changes as our two older daughters are learning how to make their own way through life's journeys. I pray that we have given them a stong foundation to build upon.
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