Rejoice with us!!

Dear Friends,

I am rejoicing.  A many of you may know, I literally lost our passports, along with other resources a few months ago.  I have always "prided myself" (dangerous words) on carefully accounting for essential travel stuff, which, if you lose, creates at the least great inconvenience, and at most leaves you stranded. 

These past weeks in the Northwest we have experienced delays and displacements in our lives in record snow, ice, wind (75 mph in the Colombia Gorge a few days ago), cold, and flooding. Yesterday, after a wonderful 9 days of ministry in Korea, I boarded the last leg of my journey. Finally, the end was in sight. I was headed to Port Townsend after a 20 hour flight from Korea via Japan, San Francisco, and Portland  Just a simple 30 minute flight to Seattle. As we approached the city, the pilot mentioned we may have a problem. (I hate when pilots say that) "We've got some fog here, we can't see to land...minimum is 1/8 of a mile visibility. We'll circle and see what happens."  Well, we circled, and circled....for almost 2 hours before running low on fuel and flying back to Portland. 

As I stood in line with several hundred other travelers waiting to re-book and for the fog to clear, CNN was broadcasting the inauguration of Obama.  I had this conversation with the Lord:

ME: Well Lord, I've lost important stuff...now there's fog...(talk about fog as a metaphor), massive change in our nation's leadership......I'm tired...where are you in all of this?

LORD: You are learning to live in days of change and unexpected delays. Trust Me. I am your Resource, Protector, and Guide.

ME: Yea...easier to preach it than to live it.

LORD:  Wait....Trust....especially in the things  you cannot see.

ME:  OK

Now, I know that doesn't sound like much of a spiritual conversation. I was tired but trying to be grateful, even rejoicing in the trial....trying to keep a good attitude amongst many disgruntled passengers.

At 1pm, I was seated on the first of just a few planes to finally press through the fog and land in Seattle.  I reunited with Carlene who picked me up in Bremerton, and within 3 minutes of entering the house, found our missing passports and other items.  Yea God.

There is this wonderful story in Luke 15 that Jesus told about a women who lost, and then found a coin.

And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.'

So, rejoice with me, especially in the things we cannot see.  In the middle of change, delays, falling financial markets, weird weather, disappointment with yourself, frustration at our disruption of plans...trust, wait, and rejoice.  I am convinced we are learning to discern the birth pangs which foretell the end of this age.  I agree with Rick Warren's prayer at the Inauguration:

Almighty God, our father, everything we see and everything we can't see
exists because of you alone. It all comes from you, it all belongs to
you. It all exists for your glory. History is your story...

Hmmm..everything we can't see
exists because of you alone. It all comes from you, it all belongs to
you. 

I say, Amen.

I'll post a detailed longer (12 min) audio podcast as Korea January 2009.


Bless you as you rejoice,

Darrell and Carlene