In less than one hour I will be turning 55! Wow! When did that happen? Where has that time gone? Here I am sitting at my computer blogging my way into my 56th year. It is a time of reflection.
At this moment any professional milestones don’t mean much. Anything that has been accomplished or gained during my short tenure here seems a bit devoid of any significance—at least at this particular moment. Tomorrow morning will bring its share of moments of joy and satisfaction. What I do here in Arizona provides me a purpose in life and reason for being here and doing what I do. I am enjoying my ministry.
I must confess that there are days that are less gratifying than others. This time of year brings more than its share of days with moments that I find no pleasure in experiencing. I wonder if the efforts made to further and lift the system above the ordinary and into the extraordinary levels God wants us to experience will become a reality. There are naysayers—I have one who regularly sends me messages that are far from encouraging. I wonder what motivates such notes. I sense no one is out to destroy Adventist Education—certainly not me. I would think that neither do those who do not believe in what we are trying to accomplish. But that does not mean we have to try to chisel away at each other.
Right now I just miss my family. I miss the sounds of my grandchildren asking me to give them a ride around the room on my back or asking me to tell them a story I just made up. I miss the smells of fresh cooking from the kitchen. I miss more than a virtual moment of solitude with Penny. I miss going to church with my wife and grown children and the deep discussions about God and life and ethics we regularly had on Friday nights during and after supper. I miss holding Penny in the crook of my arm as we fell asleep after a long day.
Yet here I am because I believe God somehow wants me here and because I want to make a difference for the Adventist children and young people who should benefit from soaking in a solid and spiritual education in an Adventist school. What’s wrong with that? Have all decisions been absolutely the best decisions? I don’t know that right now. I believe they have been. But the Enemy is also at work trying to sidetrack our efforts. That’s the enemy, not any detractors out there, and not me. We would do well to focus our corporate efforts in defending our children from the real Enemy! We need each other—we need to band together if we are going to stand a chance. God calls us to unity.
Anyway—please forgive this indulgence in sentimentality. The bottom line is that I enjoyed preaching Sabbath morning in Gilbert. I enjoyed preaching again on Sabbath afternoon at the Paradise Valley Spanish Church. I enjoyed a restfully busy Saturday evening at home and a busy office day and Holbrook Personnel Meeting today. Somehow I still believe we are making a positive difference here. The unkind words and unfortunate developments along the way are the dues I must pay for the privilege of being part of something special. My children incessantly remind me that I left a good thing behind in California. They are so right! I left a chunk of myself back there. I leave a piece of myself there every time I visit and have to drive away from them once again. But this is where I believe God called me and I will remain at my post until God calls me home or elsewhere. There is something special here too.
Let’s pray for each other. The option to pray against each other or to ignore each other in our prayers is not good. Those do not sound like viable choices. We may disagree over methods or motives, but we can still pray for each other. Ten minutes to go. The great unknown awaits! Good Night! By the way, my secret friend-- I could use some building up occasionally. (229.6)
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