Pastor's Blog

To the left you will see that one of the books I'm currently reading is the Apocrypha. For those who may not know, it's a collection of Jewish writings composed between the close of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New. This morning I happened to read this...and it expresses beautifully how I feel about Melinda, my bride of (almost) 25 years: Happy is the husband of a good wife;      the number of his days will be doubled. A loyal wife brings joy to her husband,      and he will complete his years in peace. A good wife is a great blessing;      she will be granted among the blessings      of the man who fears the Lord. Whether rich or poor, his heart is content,      and at all times his face is cheerful.      (Sirach 26:1-4)

Indulge me just a little and let me post a video link to KAKE TV sports showing James hoopin' it up last night in Wichita. Fast forward to the 2:30 mark.

It came out of nowhere. I never saw it. But believe me…I felt it. Smack! Splash! I’d been hit, and hit good with a water balloon right upside the head, launched by my son from at least 40 feet away . The reason I never saw it coming was because I had my back turned and was running away. I had just made my sortie into hostile territory, unloaded my supply of water balloons, taking out both James and Suzanna, and was making good my escape. I was just about ready to break out into a victory dance as I proudly carried the enemy flag back to our home base. And then it happened. James didn’t even know he got me. He said it was a desperation throw. He didn’t even aim. He just let it fly. But it found its mark—my left temple. The force of it snapped by head sideways. I was drenched. It was by far the best throw of the night. Nevertheless, Melinda, Elizabeth, and I, won the best of three capture the flag water balloon wars over James, Suzanna, and Hannah. What a way to celebrate Father’s Day!

This has been an especially good eating week. One of the blessings of having so many daughters is that they are being trained to be wives and mothers, which makes yours truly the beneficiary of their still developing—but already amazingly honed—culinary skills. This week Melinda had three of our girls each take a turn at preparing supper. On Tuesday Suzanna (15) made homemade pizza. On Wednesday Elizabeth (13) made spaghetti and garlic bread. And Thursday Hannah (11) made Mexican food…just the way I like it—with fried flour tortillas shells. All this was after Melinda made smothered steak and mashed potatoes on Monday night. As I said, it’s been an especially good eating week. The Chronicler says that Obed-edom’s eight sons were a blessing from God (1 Chron. 26:4-5). No doubt they were. But if Obed-edom could have eaten what I’ve eaten this week, he might envy me for my five daughters!