If I remember correctly, Dave brought flowers for me on our first date. Sixteen years later, he still brings me flowers.

He’s romantic like that.

I’m a blessed lady.

We’re busy around here today so I’ll just say have a very happy Saturday!

1 Corinthians 13

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

You may remember Tina from the letter she wrote to Carmen. She lives in Switzerland now but came “home” to the U.S. for a few weeks to visit. Last night, she stopped by to see us.

Thanks Tina! We know you are super busy and we really appreciate that you took the time to come see us!

P.S. The chocolate is GOOD.

For Father’s Day 2007, Dave asked if we could drive to Atlanta to go to church at Northpoint. He was sooooooo excited, like a kid in a candy shop. I suppose it seems strange to drive 12 hours to go to church. But, we would drive 12 hours to go to a theme park or the beach, so why not church? (Just trying to justify our strangeness, ha, ha!)

So, we went. And it was great! I would agree with Dave that there isn’t a church in America that gets it right like Northpoint (yes, we recognize that it’s far from perfect!). The atmosphere was great, the people were friendly, the children’s ministry was amazing, Andy is a fabulous communicator, the music was wonderful, etc. I’m sure Dave could give you a point-by-point summary of the sermon but I can barely remember what I ate for breakfast this morning. Thankfully, as we were leaving the service, the greeter handed us a card with a verse on one side and a prayer on the other. That card has been hanging on our refrigerator door for almost four years.

Front: “The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” Proverbs 27:12

Back: “Heavenly Father, help me to see trouble coming long before it gets here. Then grant me the wisdom to know what to do and the courage to do it.”

We drove home from Atlanta and put our house up for sale. We had talked about selling our house before we went to Atlanta but had few concrete reasons to do it, just a nagging feeling. We loved that house! We loved our neighbors. But, we felt like we needed to sell and the message by Andy proved to be the tipping point in our thought-process.

Shortly after signing the papers, we found out that Carmen had Tay Sachs. We moved across town into a rental 1.75 miles from our church.

God has proven himself faithful throughout our journey with Carmen and even now after she is gone. Yet when we look back at that particular time period and the specific decision we made to sell our house, it is so apparent that God was there, prompting us to do something that in many ways didn’t make much sense.

Needless to say, we are so happy with the results of that decision!

• We’ve been close to our main support system, our church
• We sold before the housing market crashed, likely “saving” thousands of dollars
• Lauren has had a great friend right in the neighborhood

God knew what was coming with Carmen’s diagnosis. I believe He granted us the wisdom to sell our home and the courage to do it.

***

Carmen is gone now. We are in the position to keep doing the same thing or do something different. We don’t own a house and our lease is up this summer. So, what are we going to do?

Well…Dave’s company has an office in San Diego and he has the opportunity to transfer to that office. Pretty much the same job he has now, only in a different location.

In many respects, this feels similar to the summer of 2007. We have no concrete reasons to move to California. Yet there are a lot of little things or signs that seem to be pointing us in that direction, a direction we wouldn’t have considered just a few months ago.

Perhaps we’re just looking for a fresh start. A new direction. An adventure. Maybe we’re just California Dreamin’. Or perhaps there’s something there for us that will be revealed after we go. We don’t know…but we know Who does.

Part of me is very excited about the possibilities. Part of me is scared. So, we continue to do what we’ve been doing for the past year and a half. We are also praying that God will grant us the wisdom to know what to do and the courage to do it.

Will you please pray along with us and for us?