Journeys

I love listening to people’s journeys—they are fascinating and illumine how God works in many different ways.

Recently I helped a couple prepare for a wedding. As we visited one of them told me that if the two of them had met earlier in life they probably would have never been attracted to each other. But somehow in a mysterious way they met each other just at the right time. Because their individual journeys intersected at that time, the couple fell in love and eventually committed their lives to each other in marriage.

Soon my wife and I will celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary and the 11th anniversary of meeting each other. Both of us would say that we probably would have never been attracted to each other earlier in our lives; both of us would say that it was a fluke, mystery, coincidence, very strange (pick the word) that we met. We met through a personal ad in the newspaper. I believe (though I could never prove it) that God wanted the two of us to be married. Our journeys intersected just at the right time.

I’ve wanted to serve as a New Church Development pastor for about eight years. I waited a long time (sometimes impatiently) for an opportunity to do this in Minnesota. The wait was long and at times I gave up on it; however when the opportunity to serve at Chain of Lakes happened, it all fell into place smoothly. One of the last parts of our family’s transition from Rochester to Blaine will take place when we move into our new house in Blaine on June 15th.

Just this past weekend our family has seen significant changes in the journeys of people close to us.

Amy’s son, Drew, has left Iraq and is going to be stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. Just a year ago on Memorial Day we were tearfully saying good bye as he left Iraq. On Memorial Day 2009 we were relieved that he safely left Iraq.

Drew’s wife, Nikki, has left her home in Rochester and will be living with Drew at Fort Hood.

Just this past week our family has seen tragic developments in the journeys of people close to us.

The father of a close friend of Hannah’s died suddenly this past weekend. We are still in shock.

A neighbor of Amy’s parents (a young married man with a young child) died suddenly at his home last Thursday, apparently from an epileptic seizure.

Mystery, joy, change, tragedy—each is part of our journey and somehow in a mysterious way God is involved. I can’t explain how this is, but I keep grasping to understand that which we can’t understand. Sometimes I grasp with more success than at other times. The grasping and searching for the working of God helps make my life as a follower so rich.