He provides...

In light of a seemingly disproportionate number of negative blogs that I’ve written, I have decided that I need to write on the positive aspect of enjoying God’s provision. To quote Paul, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4: 11-13)
When we arrived in Seattle, we had to decide how to visit the many friends that we have in the area. The first was our former Pastor and family in Bellevue – Pastor Jim and Pam Rehder. The Rehders introduced themselves to us when we arrived in Puyallup in 1998 within about 5 minutes of our pulling into the driveway after having driven across country from West Point. We ended up attending the Lutheran Church where Pastor Jim led the congregation. Anyway, when we got to Seattle they welcomed us with open arms and offered for us to take their van to use the entire duration that we’re here in the area. We eagerly took them up on their offer and used the van to go to Leavenworth, WA – a neat little “Bavarian village” in eastern WA that Bird claims she will describe in another blog.

Our second trip in the van was to Pike’s Market in Seattle. Pikes Market is a neat market that covers about three street levels across two or three blocks. Z-man, Kik and I did the Space Needle (above) while Mom and the girls did the market. After an enjoyable afternoon in sunny Seattle, we returned to our vehicle, fresh halibut in hand, to find a mounted officer standing by the van. My first thought was that our parking time limit had expired, but upon reaching the van, discovered that the passenger side window had been smashed and our GPS and Z’s I-pod had been taken along with the 3-way power splitter and the tuner to run the IPod thru the car stereo.

So how does this demonstrate the appreciation that Paul spoke in Philippians? Let me explain. First, the Rehder’s reaction to the fact that their van had a broken window and the cost to get it fixed was exactly what the deductible for their insurance. “Don’t worry about it – it’s about the third time it’s happened to this van.” They truly had compassion for our situation and were not the least bit bothered by the fact that they had to get their van fixed.

Second, how God has provided in our time of “loss.” This is another long story, so bear with me. While driving the Alcan, our bikes took a beating. I love the fact that we can ride our bikes all over the country and most of you know that I kind of like to bike, but the bikes have really been beaten up. One day I needed to true the rear wheel on my road bike. While doing that, the nipple broke thru which means that the whole wheel is shot. A new wheel is pricey – sending it to AK is especially so. When I described my dilemma to Mom’s brother Russ and asked him to check out a new strong wheel for me, he immediately offered to send me a new one that he had and did so immediately. Receiving that new wheel and being able to ride the road bike again was wonderful!

Another bike story…my mountain bike’s shocks have been “shot” since a very wet ride in Hyder, AK. I finally decided to bite the bullet and get the shocks fixed. The bike shop described the process of doing so and estimated two weeks and $250. While I went to pay, the technician started messing with the bike and hung it up by the front wheel whereupon water started coming out of the shocks. By continuing to push on them, they continued to “excrete” water. After putting out about a cup of water, the shocks seemed to work again. Turns out that the water was causing the shocks not to function correctly – money saved $250.Last, but not least, we decided that we needed to replace Z’s Ipod. With the connector that he has, we use it quite extensively to listen to his myriad of tunes thru the RV’s stereo. Z, in particular, was upset about losing his collection that he had painstakingly developed over the last couple of years. Once again, when we told the story to Mom’s other brother, he immediately offered to help pay for another Ipod. Without any prompting, we were again provided for.

So, in light of the frustrating break in of the van, we had enough funds to pay the cost of replacing the stolen items and an example of loving your neighbor. We are continuing to learn to live knowing that He will provide.

Peace...Dad