Let us Scatter!

  I write this blog today with the mixture of a heavy heart and great rejoicing.  I know, it's a strange mix.  Not unlike all of the paradoxes in Scripture...you know, free-will/election, truth/grace, slave/free.  Two opposing ideas that are a divine balance.

  Two days ago, a tragedy struck at the Indiana State Fair.  The sound and lighting rigging which stood at least 3 stories high crashed down on concert goers. A sudden gust of wind, 12 miles ahead of an approaching thunderstorm clocked at 70+ miles an hour, took the structure down. I've heard that it was a mere 3 seconds between the time the structure showed signs of weakness until it hit the ground.  As of this writing, 5 are confirmed dead and approximately 40 are hospitalized with various degree of injuries.  We were introduced to the 5 who were killed during a memorial ceremony this morning. Their ages range from 21 to 51 years of age.  I couldn't help but wonder if they had any inkling that this day would be their last?  Did they have a "feeling" that something was different but discounted it? 

  Just two days prior to this event, Rusty and I were at that very stadium. We were there to worship God with 2 Christian bands.  We had been looking forward to that concert for months.  We don't go to concerts often and had never been to the Indiana State Fair before.   So we thought this would be a special chance to do both.  We were a bit disappointed however.  I don't know if it was the venue where the concert was and therefore the format of the bands was changed a bit or if we're just getting old, but Rusty and I both got the feeling that the concert was more about worshiping the bands than about worshiping God.  I found myself praying at the stadium because of that.  I was reminded again just how much the culture has influenced the Church.  In any case, Rusty and I talked much about our feelings after the concert and we both felt heavy-hearted.  We were disappointed that God wasn't lifted up as much as we had hoped outside the walls of a Church.

  But, this morning, because of the recent tragedy, there was a special prayer and memorial service at that very stadium which was televised locally in full and possibly in part nationally.  The Lt Governor of IN prayed a wonderful prayer, fully glorifying God and speaking truths that many probably have never heard.  Then the Gov spoke and lifted God up as our Comforter.  The service ended with an Indiana State Trooper leading the attendees in the song "Amazing Grace".  It was beautiful and powerful.  Then it struck me.  God was glorified magnificently in this event!  In an instant, with the power of a storm reminding us of how small we are, our fragile our life is, and a reminder that we never know when our last day will be,  God was lifted up and glorified before many more people than the Christian concert venue could've possibly reached!

  More come to faith when the Church is scattered than when it's gathered. Christianity grew by leaps and bounds when the Disciples were sent out to spread the good news.  I'm so thankful for God's grace and His reminders that He is at work and He will be glorified no matter what.  I am very sad for the families who lost loved ones in this event and I pray that this event will be used to bring about the softening of hearts and minds so that when the Church leaves the building and is scattered among the lost to spread the good news, many will be ready to receive the saving faith in Christ.

No more boating

  I am sitting quietly out on the water today just waiting for direction.  Floating isn't a bad thing.  I have to stop myself from frantically treading water because I've been so conditioned to be "doing something" that to sit and be still is really hard for me.  But, I've had more than one Godly friend remind me this week that I should relax and take some time to be still.  Afterall, I'm not even unemployed yet!  I have this week of emploment and a month of salary coming because I didn't use all of my vacation days. And during the decision process, I was fully convicted that I needed to take time away from all the noise and just "wait".  I need to remember that (thank you friends for reminding me!!)

  Rusty and I are preparing for our "Freedom" tour to kick off. We're so looking forward to connecting again with our friends and fellow service-members from our years in the Air Force. We have a group in Ft Walton Beach FL we're spending some time with and then another great group of friends in San Antonio TX.  We love those guys and are looking forward to reminiscing about the "good ole days" and sharing with them about what God has done in our life since we last saw them.  It's been one heck of a ride!  To look back on all that has happened in and with our life since Rusty and I met and married---wow. I don't even know where to begin.  I would not trade one second of it for anything.

  As I write this blog, our nation is celebrating Independence Day.  U.S. history is fascinating. If you've studied it with any depth, you can see that where we are as a free nation is divinely inspired.  So evident in fact, that many history books are being re-written as to remove anything that remotely suggests divine intervention. So many things happened beyond human effort. The dedication and fearlessness of the first settlers is beyond what many of us can imagine today.  In that respect, we as a country have a lot to be proud of and thankful to God for.  But, we have gone too far now in seeking independence. We now want to be independent of God and His will and do our own thing as a nation. Relying on the state for the things that God Himself promises to provide.  We've been so blessed in the past with natural resources, creative hard-working people, plenty of everything, that we've come to believe it's those things that made us a blessed nation.  We no longer praise the One who has given us those things.  I do pray that as a nation, we repent and turn back to God and His will.  But even if we don't, as a child of God, I pray that I personally repent, humble myself, and earnestly seek the One who alone is worthy of praise and thanksgiving for the abundant blessings that we've been given. As our Pastor reminded us yesterday, if everyone who is called by God's name, humbles themselves and prays.....THEN God will heal our land.  We can't dictate others to do it--we must do it.  Our nation can change but it will only happen one child of God at a time. Let it begin with me!