Saturday, May 26, 2012

Travelling with Chris

 I travelled to Sacramento and back on Amtrac last weekend to see my beloved children and grandchildren in Granite Bay. From Fresno to Sacramento my unplanned-for travelling partner was Chris who is shuttled back and forth like a pingpong ball on Amtrac from his dad's home to his mother's. I asked him how old he is and after telling me "I'm fifteen", without a second of hesitation he asked me, "...and how old are you?" When I told him I am 83, he looked stunned, then blurted out: "How have you lived so long?" I laughed then replied: "Jesus!" "Oh yeah, I went to Sunday School once when I was seven, and the teacher asked if I wanted to invite Him in. ...so I did. I haven't been back to Sunday School since though." ...so we talked about Jesus.

Last week,  Patsy Walkup died. My Ted and Doug met her at the Gate with the rest of the cloud of witnesses. She was seventeen, and we were twenty-nine when we met her in Palo Alto when we were on Ray Stedman's staff as Youth Directors. She was without a dad at home to be her rudder; Jesus became her Rudder. Every Friday afternoon I drove to Palo Alto High School to fetch Patsy for Bible study. Most of the time, she would fill up my nine-passenger station wagon with her friends and we woud go to our house and study God's Word. After we moved to Bakersfield to pastor a small church, Patsy came for a summer to help us launch our youth group. During college, she met John, a student at Stanford, they fell in love, married and moved to Lubbock, Texas, where John served for many years as a professor at Texas Tech. Upon retirement they returned to the Bay Area, joined Campus Crusade for Christ and ministered around the world to teachers and professors.

Patsy's Homegoing, as was my Doug's, unexpected. Today for the first time, I placed a picture of my two sons, side by side, that was taken just a few days before Doug left to be with Jesus. Until now I haven't been able to look at the picture. The stages of grieving are different for each of us.

This last Thursday afternoon as I looked down both sides of Lynda and Bob Howell's dining table at the beautiful teenagers who were laughing and joking with each other as they opened their Bibles to I Corinthians, Patsy was on my mind. I had just heard that morning that she had died. What if I had heard that and did not know that she is not dead at all, but is very much alive with our living Lord in Heaven? In the future, the teenagers I was about to teach will be with Him; by then I will be in the throng that meets them at the Gate. Already they are beginning to fan out and be a Light in the darkness. I do not hesitate for a minute to tell them that in their lifetime, the visible church may be severely persecuted, but the scriptures they are learning will be their strength and power. I cannot express to you how grateful to my Lord I am to have eternal Purpose. Nothing brings me more joy than imparting His Word and observing the transformations that only His Word can bring.

Slowly I am digesting Bonhoffer's biography (Author: Metaxis; Publisher: Thomas Nelson) which graphically traces the account of the way Satan blinded even the Christians' eyes in order to use them for his purposes in putting Hitler in power.

One night, in Jerusalem, Ted and I sat at a dinner table with sixteen Jewish Holocaust survivors, all doctors at Hadassah Hospital. Later I will tell you that story. Many of you tell me to keep writing my stories. As Chris told me: "You are very, very old and have had many experiences!" ...so I will. I will write more stories.

                          HYMN OF THE WEEK: A MIGHTY FORTRESS

A mighty fortress is our God; a bulwark never failing.
Our helper He amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe
His craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate
On earth is not His equal.

Love, Jo

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