April 8, 2012

• “If I settle on the far side of the sea…”

  On Thursday, March 29, we arrived safely in Grabill, Indiana, at the home of Farrel and Marilyn Habegger, Jenni’s parents. The days between March 29 and April 8 have been filled with family time and final preparations for our journey to Kiev. I would bore you to death with the details. Highlights included…

       – Watching March Madness with Dad Habegger, Kevin Reed, and Mike Lindsey.

       – Worshiping the Lord on Palm Sunday at Garrett Church of the Nazarene with Pastor Kent Wright and family.

       - Dinner with Alice Stiffner.

       - Dinner with the “regular Wednesday night crew”.

       - Lunch date with Jenni mid-week!

       - Homeschooling Bekah.

       - Fishing for walleye with Adam Bilbrey in the Maumee River near Toledo, Ohio.

       - Dinner and a Fort Wayne Tincaps’ Single A Baseball game with Dad and Mom Habegger.

       - Easter Sunday services at Grace Point Church of the Nazarene.

  Today, some friends gave us a special plaque that had this verse on it… Psalm 139:9-10, “If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.” What a wonderful promise to keep as we make this move in our lives!

  A little information on our flights…

       - Leave Fort Wayne International Airport at 1:05 PM tomorrow (April 9).

       - We travel through Chicago where we have a 4 hour layover.

       - Leave Chicago at 5:25 PM with a destination of Warsaw, Poland.

       - We arrive in Warsaw at 9:55 AM (Warsaw time; that is 2:55 AM EST) on Tuesday morning.

       - Leave Warsaw after a one hour layover and arrive in Kiev, Ukraine at 1:35 PM (Kiev time; that is 6:35 AM Tuesday morning EST).

  Please pray for the safety of our flights, for Bekah and Sarah on the flights , for Scott and Jenni on our flights , for the movement of our luggage to and from the airports, for transitions in the airports with customs and the like, and most of all that we would display Jesus in all we do.

  As I worshiped the Lord today in church and praised God for the resurrection, a distinct thought came to my mind. My life is totally wrapped up in this ONE event. Not being a pastor or missionary. Not this journey to Ukraine. No, my life is completely wrapped up in the resurrection of Jesus! He is my everything. We pray to Him. We worship Him. We serve Him. We talk about Him constantly. My marriage is centered in Him. My parenting is focused on Him. We eagerly await His Second Coming. We go to every part of the world to proclaim His grace. NONE of that would be the case if the resurrection would not have happened. It is the cornerstone of our faith. Without it, we have no hope. Because of it, we have all the hope in this world and the world to come!

  A few months ago my family had an “estate sale.” Our move from Houston, Texas, to Kiev, Ukraine, required us to sell our earthly possessions. The problem with the title “estate sale” is that it usually is the name given to the sale of property when someone dies. Knowing that… someone… someone from Living Word, titled our sale a “Living Estate Sale”. What a great title! What a great challenge! Let’s give up our lives in total surrender to the King of Kings. Would you join me in wrapping your whole life around Jesus and His resurrection?

  Thank you for all your loving prayers and support through these past 5 months. We could NOT have made it without all of you. You are our partners! We love you.

  See you in Kiev!

  • 4:51 pm
  • 1 Comment