An unexpected gift

This morning I came into work for our regular Monday morning staff meeting. There was a package waiting for me, and when I opened it I found an unexpected gift from some wonderful donors who have been supporting my work as a missionary since I first began. They sent Kathleen and I some beautiful embroidered towels as a wedding present.

I’ve spent a good bit of time today thinking about the phrase, “unexpected gift.” If you think about it, that’s exactly what the grace of God is. It’s not something we should expect, because what we should expect is death. God’s grace is a gift; it is the gift of life itself. I think of a couple of the unexpected gifts God has given me that I could very well have passed by, and I am overwhelmed by His grace:

– Almost 8 years ago I “accidentally” attended a Messianic congregation in San Antonio, TX. That visit was life-changing … the end result was that I came to know the Messiah of Israel, Y’shua (Jesus). Had I passed on that gift, who knows where I might be right now?

– 3 years or so ago, I made the acquaintance of a young woman in a Christian chatroom. We became friends, and a little over 2 years ago I invited her to come and hear me speak at a church close to her. Had I not asked her to do that, I would not have fallen in love with her at first sight, and wouldn’t be marrying her in 53 days. Kathleen is an unexpected gift, a gift that (with all due apologies to Jerry Macguire) completes me. She and I have always known that it was God’s grace that brought us together, and we praise Him for that daily.

I hope that God is sending unexpected gifts into your life. Maybe you feel that He isn’t, or hasn’t, or never will. I encourage you to open your eyes and — more importantly — your heart, and you will see His gifts all around you!

Countdown to a wedding

Well, as of today it is exactly 2 months until Our Wedding!! It seems almost unbelievable that Kat and I are actually going to be married in 60 days. The day suddenly seems to be rushing at us quicker than either of us thought possible, although we are both in agreement that the month of November is going to be the hardest month we’ve ever gone through.

This past weekend we worked together on the format of the actual wedding ceremony … the whole business of what happens and when. Mostly everything is in place at this point; we have the ketubah (see previous postings), we have the glass I will smash as part of the wedding, the movers are lined up to transport Kat’s stuff out to California after the wedding, and the invitations were mailed out this past week, and have already started to arrive.

For those who may be reading this that are ever planning to get married, a word of advice: never do this if you and your intended live on opposite sides of the continent. I am so grateful that the Kat and I have Jesus as the center of our relationship, because without Him we would never have made it this far.

Anniversary

Two years ago today, God changed the course of my life in an instant. On October 9, 2003 I was speaking on behalf of Jews for Jesus at a church in Apopka, Florida (near to Orlando). I was giving a presentation called Christ In The Feast of Tabernacles. Although I had given the presentation on numerous ocassions before and wasn’t a bit nervous, I had trouble that night getting through the presentation.

Not long before the start of the service, a young lady came in and sat down. It was one of those moments in life when you take a mental snapshot and carry it with you for years to come. I can still remember her smile, and the way the light caught her hair. I found that I had to force myself not to look in her direction, for fear I would just keep staring and the people at the church would know something was wrong.

I’m marrying Kathleen, the young woman in question,
in exactly 2 months and 1 week from today (see Our Wedding Webpage ). Although I had known her for some time before that night in Apopka, it was the first time I had been in the same room with her. We originally met and became friends in a chatroom for Christian singles on America Online, and had progressed from conversations online to talking on the phone. When I realized I was going to be speaking about 20 minutes from where she lived, I invited her to come hear me speak, and then get a cup of coffee or a bite to eat. I had no idea that God had different plans for our evening!

Proverbs 31:10 says, “Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.” I am so grateful that God has sent such a woman to me. The engagement ring I bought for Kat is a ruby ring, and she is worth far, far more to me than any jewel.