Archive for the ‘Family’ Category
Junior Church Camp
Last week I went with Isaiah to junior church camp (ages 8 to 12 years) held at Pleasant Valley Ranch outside of Mansfield, Ohio. The days’ activities included morning and evening chapel, team sports competitions, silly games, swimming, dodge ball, among other things. The week of camp was directed by our pastor and organized by our church staff. They did a wonderful job and put in untold hours of work. Here are a few highlights for me…
Sandy and I are jealous over the hearts of our children. I certainly have made my share of mistakes but I hope that they will look back on their childhood with fond memories of parents who loved them very much. Isaiah perhaps will not remember the details of this week of camp as he grows older but I hope he will remember having a really special time and a lot of fun with his daddy when he was 8 years old at junior camp.
On Wednesday Isaiah preached his first sermon. His text was Mark 16:15, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” It was touching to see him walk over to Pastor Siler before it was his turn to speak and ask
for prayer. He was very nervous but I was so proud he didn’t let his nerves get the best of him. He spoke for maybe 2 to 3 minutes… my heart rejoiced as I watched my son do his best to proclaim the word of God in front of a crowd of his peers.
The bus kids that attended camp made a big impression on me. When the lights went out in our cabin for bedtime and I told the kids it was time to put their flashlights away as well, a little black boy named Isaiah who slept in the bunk across the room asked if he could keep his on a little longer so he could read his Bible. He would often walk close beside me back to the cabin and I would talk to him about his day at camp. Then there was a larger black boy whose name I don’t recall at the moment but when we were at the pool he would ask to ride on my back… he weighed as much as I do, I thought I was going to drown but he had a good time. He saw me take a picture of Isaiah in the cabin and asked if I’d take his picture too. These are simple things but they moved me. It didn’t matter to me what race the kids were… what I saw was children that wanted an adult to love them and souls for whom Jesus died. I don’t presume to know what each of these kids go through at home but I would say there was a number of them that for a week of camp had a peaceful night of sleep knowing no one was there to hurt them and had three meals a day that was probably the best food they had eaten in awhile.
I also enjoyed the fellowship with the other two counselors that shared my cabin. Both are fathers of Isaiah’s friends and it was enjoyable spending time with them. As the psalmist wrote, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
It was great to spend a week with the Lord. I enjoyed walking around the camp early each morning reading my Bible as well as attending morning devotions with a few other counselors as well as a mid-morning devotion that Pastor Siler held with all the counselors that focused on “anger”. The sermons from Dr. Wayne Essex were a blessing each night and it was great to see so many children turn to Christ. I had the privilege of leading three boys to the Lord after the preaching. What a thrill!
“For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp” – Deuteronomy 23:14a
Titus
I enjoyed listening to Titus’ prayer. As he thanked the Lord for the lunch we were about to receive he prayed for those who were hungry but did not have any food to eat, he then prayed for those who hungered spiritually. It was a simple prayer but I was touched by how he worded his sincere concern for the physical and spiritual needs of others. He then added, “and thank you Lord for all of the Friday nights I spent with Stet and Sandy.”
Titus is my cousin and has always been a kindred spirit that I could confide in and cut-up with. Early in my marriage he would spend most Friday nights with Sandy and me. The laughter and conversations from those days is something we will always treasure. Today was the first time we saw him in three years. He moved to Florida not long after he married and is now pastor of a large church on Merritt Island. Our time together today was too brief.
In this Facebook culture we live in, where people are continually adding “friends” to their list, there really are very few people that pass through our lives that truly make a deep impact. It’s a mystery to me why it seems some souls, precious few as they are, become knit to our very own. Titus is such a soul to Sandy and me.
Lord willing, we will leave for Italy in December and today could have been the last time we spend with Titus for many years. As Sandy and I watched Titus leave the restaurant, we could echo the sentiment of Jonathan towards David that he “loved him as his own soul” (1 Sam. 18:1). In a time when shallow relationships are manufactured in a virtual world, I’m thankful the Lord has blessed me with a handful of true friends that will stand the test of time and space.
“But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you.” – 2 Corinthians 8:16
The Value of a Pearl
We celebrated our Pearl’s second birthday on Friday. She is more precious to our family than the rarest of gems. In fact, she is priceless. It is only fitting that the gemstone that bares her name, and is coveted as an object of beauty, is a metaphor for something very rare, fine, admirable and valuable.
A gemologist uses six main factors to determine a pearl’s quality and worth. Perhaps these factors will aid me in expressing the inestimable worth of my daughter.
Nacre is the smooth surface that gives the pearl its beauty. The thicker the layers of nacre, the more valuable the pearl. It is the substance from which pearls are made. Pearl’s “nacre,” the substance of who she is, can be seen in her mother. She looks and acts like Sandy. From her wisps of hair and button nose to her expressive face, from her determined and fiery spirit to her sensitive and loving heart, she is Sandy made-over.
Luster is the intense glow that comes from within the pearl that is produced by reflected light. Pearl has a luster in her beautiful brown eyes that reflects her indomitable spirit within.
A good quality pearl will have few blemishes or marks on its surface. Perhaps I am biased, but I have never seen a prettier little girl than my Pearl.
A perfectly round pearl is the most sought after shape. There is a hardly a greater feeling than when Pearl curls up in my arms.
Color does not greatly affect the value of a pearl as it is more a matter of taste. Pearls come in a wide variety of colors. Pearl can be very capricious. Her personality is colored with tenderness, passion, silliness, curiosity, and a myriad of other traits.
A key factor in a pearl’s value is its size which is largely determined by the size and vitality of the living thing that produces it. Pearl is a gift from God, made for His pleasure and entrusted to us to present back to Him. How can you place a value on that?
“Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it” – Matthew 13:46