A Milestone

Joshua 4:4-7

So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ then you shall say to them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”

The Israelites marked the crossing of the Jordan River by setting up 12 stones as a reminder to their children of how God had acted greatly on their behalf. God does great things in all of our lives that we never want to forget.

The doctors gave Steve four to six months to live. He is now in his ninth month since his diagnosis of mantle cell lymphoma. We had family pictures taken on October 4. These pictures will be a reminder, a “stone”, to our grandkids that we serve a great and gracious God who does more than we ask or imagine. God numbers our days, not doctors. I can point to these pictures in the future and talk with them about how God extended Paw Paw’s days and the many ways we saw His grace during that time.

This blog is another “stone” that our grandkids can read in the future and marvel at God’s goodness to us. Psalm 145:1-4 says:

I will extol You, my God, O King,
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is unsearchable.
One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.

What a privilege to sing God’s praises and declare His mighty acts to our grandkids!

(Will post our family pictures when we get them in a couple of weeks :)

 

But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God;
I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever.  Psalm 52:8

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:2-3

God has given Steve and me a visual reminder of the truth of these verses. Steve’s birthday was in April, and I wanted to get him a meaningful gift. Steve got a birthday card from his cousin Carroll in Arizona, and she told him that she had a tree planted in his honor in Sequoia National Forest in California. Steve spent two of his high school years with this cousin and her parents, and they took a trip to Sequoia National Forest while he was living with them.

Steve is a Jewish Christian (he prefers this rather than completed Jew or Messianic Jew). Normally Jewish people have a tree planted in someone’s honor in Israel, but cousin Carroll chose this location because of the good memories she and Steve have of this vacation. When we got the birthday card I thought, “What a great idea!” So I decided to have a tree planted in our front yard in Steve’s honor.

Marisa Marshall, a friend from our ABF, went with me to find a tree. I found a beautiful crepe myrtle, and Marisa graciously insisted on paying for part of it so I could get a bigger tree. On April 13 the Sweat Team showed up, planted the tree, and we dedicated it to Steve.

Then our son and daughter-in-law, Dale and Allison, in Flower Mound decided to plant a tree in Steve’s honor, and so did Steve’s daughter, Diana and cousin, Ann, both in California. Steve now has five trees planted in his honor!

We have watched the crepe myrtle grow and blossom, and we praise God that He chose us to be His children and to flourish as we trust Him and meditate on His law. Flourishing doesn’t mean having lots of material things or a position of power or prestige. It means that God continues to give us love, peace, joy, strength, and comfort through Christ our Savior. It means God gives us meaningful days with Him, each other, our family, and with our brothers and sisters in Christ even though we’ve had to pull back from “official ministry.” We have more time to pray. Our lives have slowed down so that we can enjoy those the Lord sends our way and hopefully encourage them. Our leaf is not withering even though Steve’s body is winding down. Only our God and Savior could do all that!

 

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.       Psalm 121:1-2

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.  James 1:12    
    
The joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10

Whom have I in heaven but you?
    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
    but God is the strength of my heart
    and my portion forever.                     Psalm 73:25-26

We got a call one day last spring from Mike Spencer, one of our pastors and our ABF teacher. He and Joe Adamson, a fellow class member, wanted to come for a visit. When they got here, they presented us with a journal that had been passed around class. The Lord put it on Joe’s heart to do this for us. The journal contains notes of encouragement and Scriptures penned by the class members. The above Scriptures are a sampling of those in the journal that we continue to read over and over.

Every day Steve and I read parts of four devotional books, Jerry Bridges book, Trusting God, the Bible, and the journal our class gave us. We feel loved, comforted, uplifted, and grateful as we spend time reading and praying. It keeps our focus where it should be – on God’s goodness, love, grace, and mercy in sending His Son so that we can have eternal life in heaven. We praise Him for choosing us to be His children before the foundations of the world!

Reading and meditating on the Scriptures brings peace, joy, and hope. Our hearts swell with love for our Savior and God, Jesus Christ as we think about all that is in store for us when we leave this earth. Yes, it will be sad for those of us left here when God takes Steve to heaven, but oh, how glorious for Steve to see Christ face-to-face!

Revelation 21:3-4: “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

This verse sparks fireworks in my heart! We have so much to look forward to when Christ returns for His church. Meanwhile, I pray we will walk in faith and trust God with all that He allows in our lives. God is good, no matter what!              

 

 

Mark 12:28-31

One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’  The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 

Loving God includes loving Him with our minds. I had the joy of loving God with my mind by going through Bible Training Center for Leaders, a course for women at Denton Bible Church. This intensive two year program covers Old and New Testament Survey, Bible Doctrine, Servant Leadership, and four other areas of study.  

I stopped going to my second year classes in early March in order to take care of Steve. The BTCL graduation was scheduled for May 11, and we didn’t know if Steve would live long enough to go to the graduation. That’s when we saw the second part of Jesus’ command to “love your neighbor as yourself” in action.  

On March 23, Janis Saville, Sarah Pogue, Nan Anderson, my shepherds Verna and Gayle, and the rest of the second year BTCL leaders held a graduation ceremony for me at our home so that Steve could be part of it. Our pastor, Tommy Nelson gave a message and elder Jim Roberts also participated. The BTCL leaders brought food, flowers, decorations…and my diploma. Our son and some friends were there to help celebrate. What a joyous time! Every person who came sacrificed their time to make this a special occasion, and Steve and I appreciated all the effort it took to pull this off.

BTCL is another of those “families” at Denton Bible Church. Spending two years together studying the Bible with like-minded women forges bonds of love. I will always treasure my time at BTCL and marvel at the commitment of the leaders who invest in women year in and year out. 

And guess what? Steve felt well enough to attend part of the graduation held at church on May 11. He saw me get my diploma (again J) and was able to stay for about 15 minutes of the reception. 

God filled our hearts to overflowing with the love demonstrated by Tommy, Jim and the BTCL community “loving their neighbor as themselves.” Our desire is to spread that love to all we come in contact with.

 

 

John 13:14-15; 34-35

 “If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.  For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.”

 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

Jesus spoke these words to His disciples after He had washed their feet at the Last Supper. Our DBC family lives out these commandments of our Lord; namely, to wash feet and to love. In a sense, our feet are being washed through the loving acts of kindness that so many pour out on us. This not only blesses us, but it speaks loudly to our neighbors without using words. They see people coming almost daily to help us and encourage us during this time of Steve’s illness. They see love in action. 

One example of this happened several months ago. Choir member Glenna Butler organized about 20 choir members to come over and sing hymns to Steve. One of our neighbors called while they were here, alarmed at all the cars in our driveway. She thought something had happened to Steve. I told her choir members were here singing and invited her over. She didn’t come but another neighbor came and sat on our deck and listened to the beautiful hymns the choir was singing.

The choir is another of those “families” that make up Denton Bible Church – people serving together who become closer, in many cases, than birth families. Steve’s love of classical music drew him to sing in church choirs all of his Christian life. Until he got sick, he looked forward to choir practice on Wednesdays and the church service on Sundays where he could use his love of music to worship the Lord. The DBC website says this about the worship and music:

God has designed everyone for the purpose of praising His name. It is the primary goal of the Music and Worship Ministry at Denton Bible Church to exalt the name of Jesus and encourage others to join in doing the same. The psalmist writes “Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious!” 

Steve always appreciated the emphasis that Kendall, our worship pastor, put on glorifying the Lord through the worship music at DBC. Kendall and his two assistants, Jacob and Andrew came to visit Steve after he was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to drop out of the choir. Here is another example of carrying out Christ’s command to love one another. Their visit nurtured and comforted Steve with the love of Jesus. 

Our organist, Dede Benton and hubby Bob, have also visited several times. The organ is Steve’s favorite instrument. Every Sunday before the church service Steve used to spend a few minutes talking with Dede, so we came to know and appreciate Bob and Dede. Their visits brought back fond memories of times when Dede let loose with the organ and caused Steve’s spirit to soar in worship to God.

Every day when Steve and I pray we thank God for our church family. More next time about those wonderful saints!

Some people say that Denton Bible Church is too big, but the ones who say that have not discovered the “families” that make up DBC. I’m talking about ministries where you serve together, grow together, and comfort one another during tough times. One of the ministries that Steve served with before he got sick is the Sweat Team, a group of men and women dedicated to helping the poor, widows, and the sick. The Sweat Team mows yards, paints houses, does plumbing, electrical work, and carpentry such as building ramps. Steve put in ceiling fans, GFI’s, and did other electrical jobs as part of the Sweat Team. 

Right after Steve got diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma, Wayne Carrigan, head of the Sweat Team, presented us with money that the Sweat Team had collected for us to go on vacation. We were blown away at the amount they gave us. Sadly, Steve felt he did not have the strength to go far. We used some of the money for gas to drive to Waco to meet my family for lunch. Some of the money took us out to eat, some of the money paid medical bills, and the rest we put in savings.

Since Steve and I can no longer worship with the body of Christ in the church building, God brings church to us. Our pastors, Tommy Nelson and Mike Spencer, came to visit Steve in February. We talked about the Lord, about heaven, about Steve’s illness, and then Tommy prayed with us. Their visit encouraged Steve greatly in his journey to finish well.

Steve was in the choir, and fellow choir member Bill Stewart began bringing us the CD’s of the church service and the worship music. We get our Bibles out and participate via CD in the service. Bill serves in the media ministry and puts in the announcements and prayers, so we get the entire service.

I put two folding chairs in the bedroom so people can visit with Steve there when he’s too tired to get up. Those chairs have gotten a lot of use! We have great conversations about the Lord, the Bible, and heaven when people come over, and visits often end in prayer. We experience joy, peace, love, and laughter with our brothers and sisters in Christ. This is just a foretaste of heaven when we’ll all be together worshiping the Lord with the angels.

John 17:24:  Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 

Just think, some day we will see Jesus’ glory and live with Him face-to-face! This high priestly prayer of Jesus in John 17 before He went to the cross gives us insight into some of the incredible things awaiting us in heaven. Imagine being surrounded by the glory and love of God. No wonder it says the following in Revelation 5:11-12:

Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.”

Recently Charles Stolfus and John Brown preached eloquently about heaven. It seemed like the messages were tailor-made for us. So many of our thoughts and conversations veer toward heaven because of our situation. We praise God for the sure hope of heaven!

Psalm 139:15-16 says: My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.  Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.

God ordained our time on earth before we were born. Our days are in His hands. These verses comforted us as we met with the oncologist and heard that there were few options for treatment. Steve chose not to go the route of experimental treatment since it would mean two weeks in the hospital with massive chemo several different times with no guarantee of success. He has a heart problem, and the oncologist said he might not even be a candidate for massive chemo.  Steve decided no more tests, no more doctors. The oncologist gave him four to six months to live. But…all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. The Lord has graciously given Steve more time than the oncologist said. We are currently in the eighth month of Steve’s illness.

So many difficult milestones in February as Steve grew weaker…his last Sunday in choir, his last day on the Sweat team…our last Sunday in an entire church service.  First Thessalonians 5:18 says to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. To quote Jerry Bridges again: “He (God) knows before He initiates or permits the adversity exactly how He will use it for our good.” Steve and I thank God constantly, not for the cancer, but for the good that He will bring about through our circumstances.

Throughout the illness, Steve has kept his sense of humor. About his weight loss he says, “That’s to make it easier on the pall bearers.” When people tell him he’s looking good his comment is, “Yeah, from the neck up.” We don’t skirt the issue of dying. We talk about heaven often. As Steve says, “It’s a win-win for Christians,” and “I get to go sing in the big choir.” Having a terminal illness causes you to focus on your eternal home, and that’s a great thing.

In the next post I want to share some of the incredible ways our church family has blessed us during these past months.