Thursday, November 19, 2015

The Wedding

The wedding was simple.  No bridesmaids, groomsmen, ring bearer, candle lighter, or ushers.  Instead, family members read scripture; Andrea’s father and I prayed over the bride and groom.  My dear friend, Rev. Doug Helms presided and Selah Helms read a 10 year old letter from Jan written for this day.  While gazing at each other, David and Andrea shared from memory their self-written vows.  The ceremony glorified God in every way, as David and Andrea had purposed.  During the reception that followed, Sara, Hannah, Martha, and Jonathan sang “Welcome to the Family” to Andrea, then Andrea played “Happy Birthday” to me on her trumpet.

After their honeymoon in Costa Rica, the newlyweds will live in David’s house.  David will return to his job as a computer programmer at Texas Wesleyan University.  Andrea will tutor students in trumpet playing.  Sara continues her job as a graphic artist at the headquarters of Neiman Marcus, where she has worked for 7 years.  She has moved into the house of the secretary of Inglewood Baptist Church.  The house is less than 30 minutes driving distance to either David, Martha, or Jonathan. 

I spent one evening with Jonathan, who gave me a tour of his work place at the Dallas headquarters of Cisco – the world’s largest maker of networking equipment.  The lab Jonathan works in has nearly four-hundred 6 ft. tall racks of networking equipment arranged in long isles with bundled wiring running behind and overhead the units.  Jonathan works with engineers who are troubleshooting equipment problems at remote sites.  He is sharing a house with 2 other Christian men.

Martha is into her third month as a registered nurse at Baylor Hospital in Dallas.  She gave me a tour of the medical ICU unit where she works.  The technology amazed me.  Each nurse is assigned 2 patients who are usually in critical condition.  During each 12 hour shift, Martha monitors their equipment, dispenses medications, maintains records, and oversees patient care.  Last month, she moved into a nice little apartment not far from the hospital.  Martha plans to work at Baylor for the next 2 to 3 years, gaining needed experience, then setting her sight to overseas mission work.

After the wedding in Houston at Andrea’s home church, I spent 3 days with Hannah, who works just outside of Houston at the George Ranch, a living museum showcasing the lifestyle of Texans in the 1800’s.  The tour of the ranch takes about 4 hours, where one can explore restored homes, watch cowboys handle livestock, observe a working blacksmith shop, and learn about life in early Texas.  On Monday, Hannah’s day off, we toured NASA and enjoyed a seaside walk along Galveston’s shore.

It was a huge treat for me to spend time with each of my kids and to see where they live and work. I arrived back in the Philippines a couple of days ago.  For now I have no plans for another visit to the States.  The end of my term (if Southern Baptists provide enough support) is nearly 3 years away.  Until then, my focus is evangelizing the lost and discipling the saved, while depending on Skype to keep me connected with my kids.

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