Passion for Paraguay

Over the weekend of September 6th and 7th hundreds came to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Church of God in Obligado Paraguay .  Who would have taught or imagined a growing church established in four states and in the move against all odds.  Several schools have been established, one radio station and one cable tv station.  Missionaries have come and gone. Missionaries are even sent out of Paraguay. So much good is happening.  The next and final event will be in Encarnacion on the weekend of October 31st and November 1st . A lot has been planned for the last celebration of the year. 

On April 17th, 2012 everything seemed find as a typical day in my life was passing. On April 18th, 2012 everything changed within a few seconds on our way to Asuncion We had been traveling for a little less than hour on what would have been a six hour trip to Asuncion, our capital city, when at 5 am, we hit a parked truck with no signs, lights or reflectors, sitting on the highway. I will not go into details here. But that moment changed my life around and the way I see things today. I have replayed the images of that day over and over until I thought I will go crazy. My head was hurting constantly. I had wished over and over to never gotten into that vehicle that day and instead stayed home. But I cannot go back, even if I want to. The weeks after April 18th turned into my valley of shadow and death. I struggled with my faith, with guilt, purpose and the meaning of life. If it wasn't for my loving family, my church and Gods love to me, I am not sure where I would be today...

On August third, I have been newly married five months . Nancy is Gods gift to me after losing Julie. It does not mean, there are moments I wish I could still have Julie with me and we did not have to go thru so much pain. But as they say, time has a way of healing. Time has a way to help you forget the pain. Today, August 12 th Julie and I would have celebrated our 15 th wedding anniversary . Our plan was to travel Europe, just the two of us. We began saving back in 2010 for this occasion. Yes I would like to be with Julie in Europe now, enjoying the scenery with the woman I thought I would grow old with. A lot of healing has happened, but the void will never be filled. Today I am in a very different place with different people doing different thinks. I will probably never comprehend, I just take a day at the time and try to enjoy, serve and live fully. These are some things I am doing different. I enjoy each meal with my new family with intensity. I don’t st...

I woke up exactly at 5 am on Friday April 11 th . I go to my office and write this. It was so unique, since I was not planning to be up this early. But I was so awake and ready to get up that I just got started with my day. Usually I sleep until 6 or 7 AM. I realized I woke up at exactly the time the accident happened, one week before the second anniversary. It’s almost like I sense Julie and Timothy saying to me, we are with you and want to walk by your side during this week in a special way Over the past months I have felt the need to stop everything. I have intentionally taken time off to pray, think, grieve, cry, journal, reflect and pause. I have sensed an increasing need to pause this month. I have set aside, delegated and minimized all my responsibilities and duties. I believe this month will bring more healing to my soul and help me move forward. After getting up and having a wonderful time with the Lord, I decided to get up at 5 am every morning until April 18 th. ...

  My second anniversary without Julie Thirteen years ago last month, on a hot and humid summer morning in Indiana, in the open-air ceremony Julie had wished for, the two of us said, "I DO." For the next 12 years I shared my every day with Julie. But for the last 18 months I have been without her. While Anahi has given me a reason to get up every day, not having Julie with me has been exceedingly difficult. Julie and I always stuck together, even during the early adjustments of marriage. During our conversations, we would often agree. "Yes," she would say. With Julie, I learned that the depth of conversation develops and the shaping of character occurs only in the long run. How many couples skip out too soon, I wonder, and miss out on what their marriage could have become? Over the years, I also came to realize that marriage becomes sweeter as it ages—I loved Julie more as the years went by, and agape love began to really make sense. I remember how Ju...