My Wife Sings, and I Fly Airplanes

I recently attended a Sunday evening worship service at a church that I attended back from about 1990 until 1993. The church had gone through some very difficult, dry, times through the mid-to-late 90's and until recently. A new pastor is now at the church and has undertaken some ambitious programs to attract visitors and seek to grow the church. I've been watching this Pastor's blog and was interesting in meeting him and hearing him preach.

There were only a handful of "old timers" that I recognized at the church – everyone else was a new face. One of the couples I recognized, in particular, stood out. He had been a retired pilot and then farmer, and now a muscular disorder has made him practically an invalid, and who may also be battling some form of dementia, too.

He had just walked up a short flight of stairs and was sitting in chair that was in the foyer trying to catch his breath (that chair is the only chair in the foyer and it's there for him). I shook his hand and visited with him for a few minutes before the service began. He told me, "You know what, my wife sings here, and I fly airplanes." I told him I remembered his wife singing songs at the church, and we talked about him being a pilot. After the service I told him that it had been a blessing to see him again, and he looked at me, paused for a few moments, and then said, "You know what, my wife sings, and I fly airplanes." He then went on to share about some men in the church who had, a few months prior, rented a plane and taking him up for a flight - something which had blessed his heart immensely.

This is a man and his wife who have (as far as I know) been very faithful to the Lord through their lives. They were extremely involved in the pro-life movement, and have sought to faithfully serve the Lord in their local church.

He has such a desire to still work and try to farm that his wife told us of a time recently when he stood a ladder up near his tractor so he could try to get on his tractor and do some mowing. It worked OK for him getting onto the tractor. After he was done he carefully parked the tractor next to the ladder, but in the process of getting down the ladder he slipped and fell. He was unable to get up. His wife noticed the tractor outside parked by the ladder, and when he didn't come inside after a while she went out and, with difficulty, was able to help him sit up. They then tied a rope to the tractor wheel and he was able to pull himself up with that.

I experienced such a mixture of emotions. I was grateful to see them still faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ and thought how precious these two must be to the Lord. And yet my heart broke for this dear man and his health.

And I couldn't help but wonder, when I am his age (if the Lord tarry, and if it be His will) and perhaps in his condition, what will it be that I tell people about myself? What will be the defining characteristics of my life? And, will I still be trying to work, or will I be wanting to just sit around?

May I be busy with the Lord's work while I still have breath and especially while I have my health!

"I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work." (John 9:4)

I'm Good in That Department

Saturday was a beautiful day and I was working at my house on some projects. As I was working, an older, distinguished gentleman came walking up the side driveway. He looked identical to Ted Turner, and it turns out he works for Time Warner. He was a salesman, but wasn't pushy at all. We talked about television (he was very surprised to find out that we don't watch television) and I even brought up how liberal Time Warner is as a company. Conversation shifted to a nearby military base where this gentleman has done a fair amount of work, and we talked about the security around the base. That led to talking about how this nation has changed over these past years, and he volunteered, "and I'm not sure it's for the better."

I was praying that the Holy Spirit would give an opportunity to share with him. Actually, I was a little hesitant, at first, to share, because I was in the middle of a work project. God convicted me that my attitude was wrong and I prayed that the Holy Spirit would be working in the man's heart and would give me an opportunity to share.

As we kept talking the subject of neighborhoods that we live in came up. I asked if he attended a church near his home. He ignored my question and kept talking. I went back and asked again. He was sharp enough to realize that I was bringing up spiritual things – and he was very closed to the discussion topic. He put his hands up a bit, waved them back and forth, and said, "Oh, no, no, I'm fine! I'm good in that department." Even though we had enjoyed a few minutes of chit-chat it was clear that simply asking him about church had made him uncomfortable. And, I figured he was already uncomfortable, so why not ask another question? I asked if he had a Bible at his house.

Again, he ignored the question and kept talking. Eventually he backtracked in his conversation and did say that, yes, he had a Bible at his house. I said that was good and encouraged him to be reading in it so that he would know how a person who has broken God's law and is deserving of hell can be born again and forgiven of his sins through the Lord Jesus Christ. I went ahead and helped close the conversation by thanking him for stopping by and he left soon thereafter.

While he was a very friendly, outgoing, and personable person (most good salespeople are), it was interesting to see how quickly he locked up when spiritual things were brought up (and some would say that asking where a person attends church is hardly bringing up spiritual things!). While there's a chance that he is truly "good in that department", the fact that he wasn't willing to confess the Lord Jesus with his mouth ("that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus..." Romans 10:9) makes me suspect that he has not been born again. May the Holy Spirit bring great conviction to his heart.