Well, when I thought that I certainly had a plan for serving, it completely changed days before. I was going to assist at a local nursing facility with whatever their needs were and even if it was just to sit and visit with the residents. Instead, my own dad and stepmom had urgent home repair needs, and so did my mother and father-in-law, and so did my oldest son and his new bride.
Just a couple of weeks ago my son and his wife had just moved in to their new house. They were there less than a month when a thief kicked in their front door during the day when they were at work. They stole many important documents as well as electronics and personal items. Now my kids felt very unsafe in the very house in which they are to build their new life together. God has blessed me with construction and painting abilities from days of my youth. So, i was able to replace the front door jamb with an ultra-secure door armor, and then repaint inside and outside in a way that totally hid all reminders of what terrible event took place. Glory to God!
My in-laws have been in their home for 25 years and had smoke damage to paint and wallpaper from a wood burning stove through the years. Once again I was able to strip paper, texture walls and paint so that they could once again enjoy the very home they host so many events in for the family. Glory to God!
But perhaps the greatest gift during my time on sabbatical, has been the ability to “serve” my own dad with plumbing crisis, fence repairs, electrical issues, and any other thing that i could assist with that could let me have more time with him. Here’s a little to the back story……..We had been estranged for almost 10 years until a couple of years ago. I was once the middle child of three boys. My oldest brother, John Jr. died in a car accident in 1981. My youngest brother David, died after a 12 year battle with cancer in 2003. My dad, who is not a Christian, has lost two children and has no hope of seeing them again (even though they were both believers). He feels that when someone dies the lights just go out and it ends. I tried to “preach” to him so much at the passing of my second brother in 2003 that he felt I was judging him and that angered him. I was insensitive and not allowing for parental grief either. I completely botched any evangelistic attempt to reach my dad with unwise words and fueled also by my own grief. What he really needed was just to be loved on and reassured. I failed in every possible way.
Fast forward to a couple of years ago when he received one of those scam calls that sounds like a grandchild calling his grandparents saying they are in jail and need $3,000 to get out. This rattled my dad and forced him to call me after almost a decade to make sure that my son was OK. We began talking again and most of our dialog has been pretty superficial. But this month was a time for me to call him every day, see him 3-4 times per week and to just serve and honor my dad the way I should. We have had some pretty deep conversations (still not about salvation though) and very nostalgic moments of watching home videos, looking at photo albums and him sharing his childhood memories of growing up in south Texas. We have really deepened our relationship again and the greatest thing is, he is accepting of my love. He also realized that it was easier for him to shut me out for fear of losing a 3rd son, rather than ever risk having to suffer that loss again. I have received the second chance to “get it right.” I will go forward just loving unconditionally with no agenda and leave the rest to God.
For this, Glory to God! And a big thank you to FDLIC for creating this opportunity.