A Great Substitute

A Great Substitute
This December 20th Catherine and I will celebrate our 56th wedding anniversary. I always thought that people who reached their Golden Anniversary were ancient and decrepit. Somehow I have difficulty thinking of myself in those terms, but I do know that 56 years are a whole lot of years.
We were married on a Saturday afternoon in Hackensack, NJ. It was a great day and there are so many wonderful things that stand out as memories, but there is one part of the wedding that was intensifying. We were standing around waiting for the ceremony to get under way when a phone call came to the church. It was from Dave Curtis who was coming to sing at our wedding. Dave had left the New Jersey Turnpike at the wrong exit and was lost in a section of the area that meant there was no way he could be to the church on time for wedding.
One of the ushers (groomsmen today) was Joe Sastic whose father was on the police force in Clifton, NJ. He also sang in churches and youth meetings in the area and was known as the “Singing Cop of Clifton.” Joe’s dad was at the wedding and we made contact with him asking him if he could fill in for the wedding. He had a case of laryngitis, but he said that he would do the job. He did a fantastic job and Catherine didn’t know that it wasn’t David Curtis (whom she had never met) until after the wedding.
It took a special friend to forget his laryngitis and fill a special need. We still feel in debt to the “Singing Cop of Clifton” who did something so special for a good friend. He was only a substitute, but no one except Joe and me knew that fact.
As great as that was, there is one who is a much greater substitute. Jesus came and took our place on the Cross. He gave His life that we might have a new life in Him. The Bible tells us that “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” He was a substitute for those who had turned their backs on God and desperately needed to establish a relationship with God. There was no way that we could find peace with God, but He could do it for us. I am very thankful to have Him for my substitute.

On the Trail

Our grandson and his wife, Spencer and Jenny Brown, came to us a few weeks ago and gave us a startling announcement. They informed us that they had decided to walk the Appalachian Trail. They said that they were not planning to start seminary training until January and they had about six months where they could do something that they would not be able to do again during their lives.

It did not take long for this dream to come to fruition and today or tomorrow they will go to Mt. Katahdin and start a journey that will bring them home some time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. They left here last week and gave every appearance of being ready for the journey. Their pack was ready. Their supply route was prepared. They had read everything they could gather to be prepared mentally for the journey.

There is something impressive about a young couple having a dream that is different than most. It is encouraging to see them pursue that dream and try to make its accomplishment a reality. They could wear out and stop before they leave the state of Maine, but they would have tried. There are any number of reasons they could stop, but they would know that they had tried. The great expectation is that they will not wear out and they will not stop, but they will come down the last mountain in Georgia and come home with a glow on their faces that will demonstrate a sense of accomplishment for them.

They have a much greater goal in life and that is that they are planning to serve God in some capacity once they have finished their graduate training. Walking the trail pales in comparison to accomplishing what God wants in their lives. That walk is a great goal. Walking with God is a goal that supersedes anything else that we can dream. I will try to update their progress along the way.

Pleasing God in family matters

Don and Catherine speaking in Manila church on Family Life in 2004

Recently we were asked to give some comments on the best things to do in order to have your children become what God wants them to be. The following is a list of some of the keys that seemed to be important for our family. It is important to understand that every child is different and must be treated as an individual. You may notice that we have included “love” both at the beginning and the end. That is not an accident. It is vital because God says “love” never fails

1. Love the Lord with all your heart.
2. Love each other with all your heart.
3. Love your children with all your heart.
4. Remember that loving them is not just saying it.
5. Believe in your children.
6. Never promise them anything you can’t fulfill.
7. Never promise them any punishment you know you won’t execute.
8. Give them the best of your time possible.
9. Let them fight their own battles—school, friends, etc.
10.Have confidence in the teachers, group leaders, and others who work with your children. Be realistic about problems.
11. Let them do their own homework, projects, etc.
12. Don’t hide family problems, needs, ambitions from them. Make sure they are really an integral part of all that is happening in the family.
13. Endeavor to always build pride in their church, school, and other groups. Do not have roast preacher for Sunday dinner. Do not develop bad attitudes about programs, people, and activities at church.
14. Endeavor to set the example of faithful attendance at church functions.
15. Try to be consistent in your lifestyle. Be fiscally responsible, morally exemplary, and modest in your apparel so the children do not think you are inconsistent when you expect them to be modest in their dress, responsible with their money, and morally above reproach.
16. Try to be sure to have family meals together. Try to make the meals really good so the children will feel that their home meals are better than any place else.
17. Make sure that you really deal with the important things and don’t get hung up on what really doesn’t matter.
18. Love them with all your heart.
19. Love the Lord with all your heart.