Those who fail to plan - - - plan to fail!

Yeah. That’s right. I have a plan (dream) and it is on my mind on this Friday, December 5, 2008. We are working our fingers to the bone, figuratively and to a certain extent literally speaking, to allow us to move back into the inside of our home one of the days during that week before Thursday, December 25th. We now have laid out the final ordering and schedules required to make this happen. We will not be able to host our family Christmas time there but our eldest son and his wife have graciously invited everyone to their home for that. However, to be able to get back to where we have hung our hats for nearly twenty-five years will be such a great blessing. In order to make this happen everything will have to fall into place including the on time delivery and installation of carpet, flooring, and other associated items. Lord willing we may have to do without some conveniences temporarily but we will be back in our home, back in our bed, and back to a sense of normalcy. There is some truth to that old adage that you don’t miss the water until the well runs dry and we have certainly missed our routine and it being operated from our home base.

I have been very little involved in many of the minute details about a variety of the decisions on fabrics, colors, and many other important issues. However, this doesn’t mean that I haven’t been kept in the loop. The other day I accompanied my wife to the building supply store and blessed her selections. She has insisted that I pay more attention since I will have to live with her choices but I have insisted on resisting since getting back home is my main objective and how it all looks is not that much of a huge concern for me. I do know this. It will be much better than it was! The house is nearly 40 years old and will have undergone a face lift that would make Joan Rivers proud. While I have not paid attention to many details, nonetheless, I will be most happy to no longer be noticing how other people’s walls and trim, carpet, floors, and accessories were done. I also am so much looking forward to getting back into MY OFFICE even if it’s working off of tables until we replace furniture, it will be in the place where I’ve produced literally thousands of pages of materials surrounded by the artwork of my grandchildren spanning at least 20 years.

It’s only a plan and I would be remiss if I didn’t always pause to give God thanks for how He has provided for us during this time of transition and change. We continue to live in a beautiful furnished home loaned to us by a dear lady named Pattie. How all that came about is one of those things we believers call a GOD-THING, and we feel so blessed to have been the recipients of this act of gracious kindness. We have a fellow here at our company that actually just this week finally got his insurance company to his home to review damage from Hurricane Ike. Have I been frustrated and overwrought at times? A hundred times over. But compared to so many we at least see progress towards a completion as a soon coming attraction. So many have stood with us throughout this ordeal and we would have to build a catalog to recognize them all. We can, however, commend them all to God and our thanks to Him on their behalf for all they have done to help out as we have made our way through this difficult time. It’s only a plan but with God’s help we hope to see it realized the week of Christmas. I told one lady at our Church about this being our plan and she said, “Well, okay then, we will just begin praying that God will make this plan a reality for you folks.” Feel free to join the prayer bus and ride along with us as we seek to honor Him in all that He has done, is doing, and will do as we go forward. Have a wonderful Saturday and Sunday. Thanks and Amen. ….More later.