Ice Skating at Patterson Ice Center

Alan says he grew up with hockey skates on, and ever since our kids were little, ice skating has been a major joy for us in the winter. Our six sons made a great hockey team, but with hockey sticks in hand, Kathy and I weren’t too shabby either! However, it’s not always possible to keep a rink on our lake (although it is now again), so earlier this year we enjoyed skating at Patterson Ice Center. We have our own skates, but they also rent skates for just $2, and on Saturday afternoons they have a great open skating time that’s a good mix of speedy skaters (like Alan and our sons),  and all sorts of small children who are just learning,  insecure pre-teens,   teenagers having fun, twenty-something getting some pleasurable exercise,  (like Stephen and Joel),  and all sorts of families making all sorts of happy memories together! I have to confess that Alan and I were probably the oldest couple at the rink, and I’ve been insecure about breaking a hip since I sprained my ankle skating last year, so Alan and my sons magnanimously took turns escorting me around the rink to insure my safety! Halfway through, a big Zamboni came out to resurface the ice. I loved that these girls were together wearing MSU and UM head gear. Sports teams are big here! After a bit of a rest to watch the re-icing, we were all up and at it again!What  a great way to get some exercise when the weather outside is frightful!

I was very taken with how the young parents invested in their children, and how everyone exercised care and consideration for others. I don’t think it ever occurred to me when I was teaching our kids to skate that “before you know it” they’d be helping me! Life sure goes around fast. I hope if you’re young, you take good care of those under your care and those who’ve cared for you, and if you’re old, I hope you’ll let your kids inspire you to take a few chances now and then!

“Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong: fear not!’” (Isaiah 35:3).

Grand Rapid’s Art Prize Winners

Have you heard who the winners are of Grand Rapids’ 2012 ArtPrize? It’s not too late to come on down and check out all the fabulous art, because thefestivities and voting will last through this weekend!Just in case you haven’t heard, Grand Rapids hosts the world’s largest art competition! This year there are 1,517 entries hosted at 162 different venues around the city, and the total monetary value of the prizes awarded will be a whooping $560,000! There is unbelievable creativity (paper cutouts above) and variety in the artwork, and anyone over 18 can apply to enter, so if you have anartistic passion and heart for adventure, consider joining in the fun next year,either as a competitor or connoisseur of fine art!There seems to be no end to the imaginative designs or the mediums used to portray ideas.There are ethereal displays involving music, lights, and movement…wall-sized panels of brilliant glass mosaics (“Return to Eden”),gorgeous oil paintings (“Rebirth of Spring” by a Dutch artist with no formal training), and huge murals by local artists (like my friend, Anna Donahue).This year, Cindi and Susan (our Birthday Club) took me to ArtPrize for my special day, and I’ll let you in on a well kept secret about a great place to eat lunch: The much loved and oft expensive San Chez has an “all you care to eat” lunch buffet including coffee (or soda), soup, salad, and sandwich for just $7.99!As always, we three girls had a marvelous time together celebrating my birthday,delighting in all the creativityingenuity (this “The Dragon” is made of over 40,000 suspended golden buttons),whimsical simplicityand mesmerizing complexity in some of the works of art!It would be nearly impossible for me to choose just 1 winner (“The Elephants”)from the 1,517 entries, although I’ve tried to show you a few of my favorites. Thisglorious set of swirls is entitled “One Thousand Prayers,” and it is exactly that!I missed the most magical moment. (These night pictures are by my daughter-in-law Brianna.) Last Friday night thousands of paper, hot air balloons were lit byspectators (like Dan, Ben, and Brianna) and sent aloft into the night sky, wingingtheir way heavenward to join the full moon in a joyous expression of glory.In fact, I didn’t see a single thing at ArtPrize that left a bad taste in my mouth, and so I’d like to invite you to come on down and join Einstein at ArtPrize. I think you’ll love it and agree with me that every person who comes is a winner!

“And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the    work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.”   (Psalm 90:17)

Bubbles Burst But Bubbles Rose

This has been a pretty horrendous week. In the triple minus column were two accidents and two funerals. The worst was my oldest son, Aaron, who was hit by a car (driver’s fault) riding his bicycle home from work last Monday night. The lady in the car  was fine, but the impact threw Aaron into the lady’s windshield, gashed his back breaking off her side mirror, and landed him in the E.R. with an injured knee, sore arm, scratches and bruises, but miraculously, no broken neck, brain damage, or other deadly injury. I was also in an accident (my fault), where I failed to see a car coming behind a paint truck. I was totally blindsided and didn’t know she was there until she careened off the side of my front bumper. Her SUV flipped and blew out both the back and front windows before landing back upright. It was the worst car accident I’ve ever been in, but miraculously, both of us walked away without a scratch. Unbelievable! Thank you, Lord, for your amazing mercies to all four of us!

I also attended two funerals. One was the brother of a friend, and the brother was just 2 weeks older than I am. This man was an alcoholic and his family wasleft with great grief and pain. The other was a very elderly lady from our chapelwho was much loved by everybody and had earned the nickname “Bubbles.”Despite these frightening and very sad negatives, there were some happy positive events too. I helped a friend with her garage sale to raise money for the adoption of a little guy from Columbia, and she raised a lot of money! On Saturday, thesound guru from our chapel sponsored a surprise 60th birthday party for the power-point guru and even managed to get his family from Wisconsin to come!Our pastor and the head of our deacon board sponsored a great impersonation of Doug and Bob cracking jokes behind the scenes, and Andy noted their similarityto some other famous commentators. Here’s our pastor, who cheerfully endured such cracks (doubtless his idea) as: Doug: “Boy, I sure wish the messages were on TV.”   Bob: “Why?” Doug, “So then we could turn ‘em off!” After the fun, therewas lots of good food(which I think is pretty much a part of most “family” gatherings, isn’t it?),and lots of good fellowship. Welcome to the 60′s Bob; they’re not so bad! It’s also ArtPrize in GR right now, an annual event that attracts about a half a million visitors and I believe has the biggest monetary prize of any art fair in the U.S. Alan’s hospital uses this opportunity to invite psychiatric residents to consider coming to GR after they’re through with school, and so Alan and I enjoyhelping host a gala event at the top of the GRAM (local art museum) each year.It’s a family event, & this year Daniel and Brianna joined us. The food was great,

and we always have a wonderful evening! Sunday we had friends from Virginia stop by for church and Sunday dinner, and our ladies’ Bible study has started up again. All 50 workbooks have already been claimed, and I think it’s going to be a great study on the book of James. (Not too late to join if you want!) I took a platter of goodies to our new neighbors, saw a beautiful buck on our lane (which has become my new facebook background now…) So, despite all the bubbles that burst, and there were bubbles of happiness too. The morning after Aaron’s accident, Reid (2) got up and decided on his own to set the table: “Daddy hurt, Mommy! I hewp!” Now, that cheers the hearts of parents and grandparents!And we mustn’t forget Bubbles! She rose and went to heaven. So, in the midst of all the ups and downers in life, I hope we all remember that even though some of our hopes and dreams burst like bubbles, if we’ve become the children of God through faith in Jesus Christ, we are like Bubbles, and we will rise when we die!

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Ecclesiastes 3:1,4).

Fat Tuesday and Ash Wednesday

Did you celebrate the beginning of Lent? Tuesday night we enjoyed the Awards Banquet at Pine Rest, where they honor employees who have worked for 5…up to 50+ years (for every 5 years more of service). One lady had completed 50! It was particularly special for us this year, because we have several close friends who were being honored for their years of service, including Alan’s assistant, Dona (pictured with her husband), several lovely psychiatrists,

and our very dear friends, Mike (who’s now served 30 years at Pine Rest) and his wife, Mary. Mike and Alan go “way back.” Mary sings on our worship team, and Mike has a long history of playing with our family band, keeping us on track with his gentle, smiling ways and impeccable sense of timing and dynamics.It was such a sweet night, and I was especially touched by the CEO’s remarks that although our lives are but dust and our bodies turn to ashes after we die, all the good that people do is somehow preserved by God. Love will endure.(Picture of Beth Moore from Living Proof Ministries)

So, that was Fat Tuesday. Wednesday morning we had our last lesson from the  “The Patriarchs,” video-taught by Beth Moore. Beth ended her series with a reminder that our bodies may perish, but our spirits live forever. She reminded us that Joseph forgave of his brothers, who had schemed against him and sold him into slavery (recounted in Genesis 37-50). If we’re willing to forgive others, God can take our greatest tragedies and make something beautiful out of them. She said, “There’s nothing Satan can deal you that God can’t trump. But, don’t try to hang on to your bad card and hide it. Don’t be afraid…play it!” Let God make a pearl from your pain. Let him turn it into something to bless others.Last night we attended an Ash Wednesday service. It was beautiful, and at the end everyone had the chance to write out their sins on a slip of paper, ask forgiveness for them, and then place them in a large incinerator, where they were burned to ashes. Sins that are forgiven can be transformed into a means of grace and blessing.  Just one of God’s many miracles!

Joseph said: “Fear not; for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not; I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.”

Genesis 50:19-21

Hillsong United Comes to Grand Rapids: “Aftermath”

Yes, and so we went to join in singing with them…along with 6,000+ others who love Hillsong worship music. Having never been to the Van Andel Arena for a concert, I didn’t realize that “general admission” tickets meant we would be standing on the floor for nearly four hours, crushed together like so many sardines in a can, along with thousands of young people jumping up and down for joy throughout the entire evening!(Just in case you’re wondering, when we got to the arena, the officials asked that no one take pictures, so I don’t actually have any from last night. I took these pictures a year ago when the Hillsong Live group came to Kathy and Carl’s church in Detroit, which seats about 4,000. Nevertheless, the excitement and enthusiasm were strikingly similar, maybe minus a bit of the jumping, having a slightly older mean age for their audience. )

Stephen graciously dropped me off to meet Alan in the long line waiting to get in, and we were able to get a place to stand in the very front row (unlike last year, where our seat was almost in the back row. But, hey, it was a very comfortable SEAT!) At any rate, we opted to stand in the corner on the right hand side, so I could rest my arms and back against the right barrier and still see and hear everything.We noticed that the flying speakers were aimed farther back and thought we’d be spared from some of the sound intensity, but we failed to notice that the bassist’s eight 12-inch speaker cabinet was aimed directly at us, so the bass and drums were pretty much rocking our bodies with palpable sound waves throughout the evening!In all, it was a most memorable experience, and I’m glad I went. If I go again, I’ll try to sit in a seat. But—as Alan pointed out to me—no one in the entire sea of people was sitting throughout the arena. The energy was electric, and after thunderous applause that was absolutely not going to stop, Joel Houston came back on stage and led us all in several other songs, finally ending with a prayer and a gorgeous rendition of the comforting piece “Take Heart.” Alan and I were both hoarse from singing our hearts out, and I’ll bet almost everybody who attended felt just the same! Happy and exhausted. More enthusiasm for the Lord than for a football game, that’s for sure! I love praising God, and I love all the emotion and energy of kids. It made me feel old and young at the same time.

Take Heart
There is a light
It burns brighter than the sun
He steals the night
And casts no shadow
There is hope
Should oceans rise and mountains fall
He never fails

So take heart
Let His love lead us through the night
Hold on to hope
And take courage again

In death by love
The fallen world was overcome
He wears the scars of our freedom
In His Name
All our fears are swept away
He never fails

[Bridge:]
All our troubles
And all our tears
God our hope
He has overcome

All our failure
And all our fear
God our love
He has overcome

All our heartache
And all our pain
God our healer
He has overcome

All our burdens
And all our shame
God our freedom
He has overcome

God our justice
God our grace
God our freedom
He has overcome

God our refuge
God our strength
God is with us
He has overcome            (—Joel Houston)

“These things I have spoken to you, that in me [Jesus] you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33)

Maranatha: Summer Breakaway

Susan asked Sunday if there was any chance I could go with her to the ladies’ summer retreat at Maranatha. I rarely ever indulge myself, and it meant rescheduling two appointments, but I was fighting anxiety over Alan’s upcoming PSA test (first since his radiation) as well as a very dear relative’s new-found mass in her right lung…so—YES! I decided to “breakaway” and go for it!There are 900 seats in Maranatha’s tabernacle, and 950 ladies registered for the conference, so there was quite a traffic jam when we arrived just 15 minutes before the opening session. Happily, some friends had a couple of seats open by them, so we flurried in just in time and settled in for a fabulous day!After some rousing music where we learned to yodel (as a very lively icebreaker) as well as worshiping together with hymns and choruses, we were taught throughout the day in several hour-long sessions by Nancy Leigh DeMoss, who took us through a wonderful meditation on Psalm 46. I’ve tried for two days to get the time to summarize it for you, but that’s apparently not going to happen. I will tell you that she can be heard daily on Moody’s “Revive Our Hearts” radio program, and I can see why she is so highly regarded.At lunch, Susan and I “just happened” to sit next to a lady from Texas, who—as it turned out—is the mother of one of the guys in our chapel family! Small world, and lots of fun! We also enjoyed visiting with a group of gals from our churchand lots of friends from various contexts while we strolled along their Lake Michigan beachfront during the lunch break.In the afternoon, Gracia Burnham shared her story with us. While Gracia and her husband Martin were serving as missionaries in the Philippines, they were kidnapped by Muslim terrorists and held for over a year in the jungles. Gracia’s book, In the Presence of My Enemies, became a NY Times best seller, and I bought the book because I was so impressed by her account, not only of her struggle to survive physically, but of her journey through bitterness and anger into learning to love and forgive. Only God can change our hearts so that we can truly “love our enemies.” Amen? Well, at least I know that only God could do such a miracle in my life.

In all, I was so glad I “broke away” for the day. I didn’t even know it, but it was just what I needed!

“Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)

Freak Wind Kills Father of Six

Last week the kids and I noticed that it got extremely dark mid morning, and even though there wasn’t a tornado warning, we retreated to the basement waiting for the storm to pass. Little did we know that at that exact time the wind actually blew over a large maple tree across the street from where Alan was working, smashing in a garage and killing a young father who was just shooing his six children and wife inside away from the threatening weather.

The tragedy immediately brought to mind the terrible wind storm some years back that left 600,000 people out of power in southwest Michigan (including our family) and knocked over about 20 mature trees in a straight path through our woods as well as bringing down a giant tree that landed (literally) inches away from the bedroom windows where Kathy (upstairs) and our three oldest sons (downstairs) were sleeping. That storm left the indelible understanding in my brain that disaster can strike anyone unexpectedly at any moment! “Time and chance happens to them all” (Ecclesiastes 9:11).

News accounts this week mentioned that the family are members at Resurrection Life Church, and that their faith has been sustaining them amidst this incomprehensible tragedy, most importantly—the knowledge that their dad was saved by faith in Christ and is now in heaven—the secure final home for all who repent of their sins and accept Christ’s free gift of salvation. I can think of no greater comfort for someone who has lost a loved one. And yet, it’s hard to imagine life without father. The dad was 38. When Alan and I were 38, we also had six kids about the ages of theirs. It could have been us. Why them?Tragedy is like that. It leaves us bewildered, and I think in this world we are often left with no obvious answer to the events that occur around us. I do know that God desires us to trust Him even though we can’t understand Him. I hope that as I experience more of the disasters of life I can react like this amazing family.

“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him..

He also shall be my salvation” (Job 13:15-16).

Storm Warning

The weather man is predicting 10-14 inches of fresh snow today and tomorrow. I ran to the grocery store early to stock up…along with half of town, apparently, given the long lines at the checkout and the paucity of parking places. As I write, the wind is starting to wail and our wind chimes are clanging mournfully. The snowflakes outside are swarming like a cloud of gnats—up and down and sideways. Son Aaron spent 3 hours shoveling his driveway and roof top over the weekend, since out east they’ve been getting hammered for a good week already. Nothing like a good storm to make us button down the hatches and be grateful for a warm house.

At such times, my heart goes out to the homeless. We have several wonderful shelters in our city, but some people are unaware that such shelters exist, and others are afraid to get help…I’m guessing either because they’re mentally ill or wanted by the police. So, sadly, every year one or two people die from overexposure during the worst storms. Dear Lord, please keep any from dying tonight!

I wonder, are we prepared for the spiritual storms in life? Have we “stocked up” on the oil of the Holy Spirit in our lives, like the wise virgins in Matthew 25? Are we snug and warm in our hearts, safe and secure because God is our shelter (Psalm 61)? Or, are we at risk for disaster because we’re afraid to come to God for help? In every storm—both without and within—may we run to God for refuge!

“This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.” (Psalm 34:6)

MSU Medical School Comes to GR: Inaugural Gala

When we moved to GR fifteen years ago, the Lord put Jeremiah 29:7 on my heart: “And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.” It’s not that I felt like a captive being carried away from my homeland, but I did feel like tadpole in a tiny pond being scooped up and dumped into a lake. And, I did feel commissioned to pray and “bloom wherever planted.”

Alan’s new position at work has required us suddenly to be in attendance often where there is action, and last night it was at the inaugural gala for MSU’s new medical school here in GR. We heard addresses from the president of MSU, the dean of the medical school, and a truly inspiring talk on what it takes to be world class: concepts, competencies, and connections (and I dare say…I think the topics of commitment and contributions were briefly and politely included). Two very elderly city fathers were also honored: Peter C. Cook (at the tender age of 94) and Ralph Hauenstein (who served under General Dwight Eisenhower during World War II…now the tender age of 96). These two are men whose names are on buildings here in town, but I’d never seen them personally, nor am I likely to see them again. They have been huge philanthropists who have a vision to see GR become a center for medical research. I hope it happens!!

At any rate, I felt very privileged to be a part of this special occasion, and I stand a bit in awe of what the Lord has done. My contribution will doubtless continue to be in the area of “prayer warrior,” but it has been thrilling to see true spiritual progress in our community in many arenas as well as significant academic and commercial growth.

Are you praying for your community? May we all pray for the peace of the city where the Lord has planted us, and may we learn to bloom there!