Grace moments in our time of grief

Grace moments in our time of grief
by Dale Coad

Dealing with critical illness with the grave possibility of death in the family vividly reminds us: we desperately need God!  In those vulnerable moments God whispers His assurance and love.  Last month, Patti and I walked through the sickness and death of her mother.   God's love sustained us with precious grace moments and Holy Spirit nudges.

Here is the journey: Patti's sister called, "Mom's in the hospital and not expected to make it through her fourth surgery."   We were in Costa Rica and her mom in California.   Time and distance were not on our side, but God was.   Patti left Costa Rica to be with her mother in record time.

Meanwhile, I was perplexed about how and when to join Patti.   MT/MR in AGWM's busiest time of the year.   I was scheduled to be in Springfield while Patti was with her dying mother in California.   Should I fly out right away?  Should I wait?  Without knowing what would happen, how does one plan?   Byron Klaus, one of the featured speakers at the Compassion forum in Costa Rica prayed with me, "Jesus, Patti's mother's life and death are not only in your hands but also in your timing."  The Spirit used that phrase, "in God's timing" to encourage me to wait on God for His timing.

As Psalms 27:14 (NIV) says, "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."

By God's Grace, Patti's mom survived the surgery with enough clarity to determine the limits of her own medical treatment and to depart this life with family by her side.  She died in peace with Jesus and on her own terms.

In her mother's last days, Patti needed wisdom for the planning.   She did not know the area but sensed the Spirit's leading to call a local Assemblies of God church.   God gave us another grace moment.   Jill Valdez's response (the pastor's wife) was endued with such love and support that Patti knew God had pre-arranged this contact.   Within a short time, the church was offered for the memorial service.   What Patti did not know in making her "random phone call" was that Jill was also a hospice nurse!   These grace moments were not random but orchestrated by God.

The memorial service was far from our colleagues and missionary support group.   God's reminder that we were not alone instantly overwhelmed whatever feelings of remoteness that we may have had.   We walked into the church greeted by a dazzling array of flower arrangements from Cuba, Haiti, ChildHope, AGWM and the LAC offices, colleagues all.   Right then, a florist walked in with a curious expression on his face, "These flowers are all the way from the Dominican Republic.  I had to bring them in myself to see how someone from so far away knows this sweet lady."   In that very moment, our colleague were with us in spirit and we felt their love.

As we deal with grief and loss, let's be aware of those grace moments and the gentle nudging of the Holy Spirit.    We are not alone.   We are not left to our own decisions.   God is with us and He has a purpose for us.   As the Voice version of the Bible expresses it in 2 Corinthians 1:4,  "(God) consoles us as we endured the pain and hardship of life so that we may draw from His comfort and share it with others in their own struggles."

In our times of grief, let's look for those grace moments.  When others are grieving, let's be sensitive to be their grace moments.

Dale and Patti Coad

From Self-Reliance to Trust

From Self-Reliance to Trust by David Speer

One of the first verses I ever memorized as a young Royal Ranger was Proverbs 3:5-6: "Trust in the Lord with all you heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight."   I'm sure that many of you memorized the same verse early in your journey with the Lord.   However, more times than I would like to admit, I have trusted in my own ability and leaned on my own understanding.

Just like I did as a young Royal Ranger, King Hezekiah started out well.  1 Kings 18 says this about him: "Hezekiah trusted the Lord, the God of Israel.   There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before or after his time.  He remained faithful to the Lord in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands the Lord had given Moses.   So the Lord was with him, and Hezekiah was successful in everything he did."  But when he and his kingdom were threatened with destruction by the armies of Assyria, he sent emissaries to make a treaty with Egypt and purchase horses and chariots.  In a time of testing, he trusted in human strength and ingenuity to protect him (Isaiah 30).

If, like Hezekiah, you find yourself off on your own, Isaiah 30:15 shows us the path home.   This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel says: "Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved.  In quietness and confidence is your strength."

In Isaiah 37, we read that Hezekiah listened to the warning of the prophets.   Even though he could not see how God was going to protect them from the army of King Sennacherib, he chose to put his trust in the Lord instead of figuring it out himself (Isaiah 37).  The result?   "That night the angel of the Lord went out to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers.   When the surviving Assyrians woke up the next morning, they found corpses everywhere.   So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and returned to his own land.  He went home to his capital of Nineveh and stayed there."  (Isaiah 37:36-37)

If you find yourself in a difficult situation and cannot see a way forward and are tempted to respond from your own abilities, choose the path of quiet, confident trust.   I want to leave you with this thought from Isaiah 30;19, 21: "He will be gracious if you ask for help.  He will surely respond to the sound of your cries...Your own ears will hear him.   Right behind you a voice will say, 'This is the way you should go,' whether to the right or to the left."

Finding that elusive thing called Peace

Finding that elusive thing called peace by Dale Coad

I am a child of the 60s.  My ordinary childhood in the "Father's Knows best" years were over-taken by the radical anti-Vietnam war years of my youth.   Hippies, flower children, beatnicks were all looking for an elusive thing call peace, a peace that never came.  For some it never would.

Where is peace?  Some wait till everything in their life aligns to an imaginary state of ecstasy with no pain or challenges.    It never comes.  Others, like Jerusalem under siege, deny the severity of the moment.   Disaster is imminent yet they console themselves by denying its reality.   Jeremiah affirms, "They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious.  "'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace." (Jeremiah 6:14 NIV)

So where is peace?   Peace is not found in some euphoric state of bliss or denying the existence of pain and sorrow.   Peace is only found in centering our lives, emotions and dreams in Jesus, the Prince of Peace.   Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give you as the world gives.   Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."  (John 14:27 NIV)

Jesus' peace is not based on our surroundings all lining up.   Peace is rooting our circumstances in His unfailing love.    His perfect love casts out fear.   This past week, with a mother-in-law and my own mother's health failing, I had ample reasons to be troubled and afraid.   In the midst of receiving hospice notices for both, our Faithful High Priest Jesus made His Peace know.  (Hebrews 4:14).  

He understands.   He truly does.   I found that elusive thing called peace in Him.....Again.  Have you?

20 meters to great success or failure

20 meters to great success or absolute failure by Dale Coad

USA 4X100 relays teams in the 2008 Olympics-both disqualified!

Great runner failed to pass the batons-everyone loses.

I take you back in time where a hero of the faith was facing imminent danger.   The praying folks back home are crying out to God for his release from solitary confinement in a military prison.   The year if 1963.   The place is Cuba.   The hero's name is Floyd Woodworth.   His Call to serve God and the National Church is being tested by the political upheaval of a revolution and his fate is unknown.

After 20 days of incarceration, on April 5th, he is released.   The new government monitors his reaction.   He bravely proclaims, "I have no complaints of my treatment."   That is all he disclosed about his detainment although there is so much more he could have alleged.   His heart to shield his host church from any secondary backlash authenticated Floyd's deep love of God and His Church.   He carried this level of commitment all of his life.

On March 23, 2017, Floyd was released once again, this time from the captivity of his failing health.   Our great loss is heaven's gain.   But what of Floyd's intense burden he carried for God's work and the church?   He effectively passed on this legacy to National Leaders and to his own children, including two of our LAC Area Directors, David Woodworth and Sandy (Woodworth) Kazim.   Their lives testify to the reality of Floyd's legacy being passed on.   As 2 Thessalonians 2:15 (TLB) says, "With all these things in mind, dear brothers, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the truth that we taught you in our letters and during the time we were with you."

If living out our Call is likened to a great race (2 Timothy 4:7), Floyd successfully passed on the baton to his next generation.   We can never take this marvelous handoff for granted.   The passing of the baton is crucial to winning the race.    Take for an example the 4X100 meter relay.   Few events in the Olympics give athletes more chances to fail than this race.

The basic structure of the 4X100 relay involves four sprinters per team running one at a time in a single lane, with each athlete doing a 100-meter leg.   There's a special area on the track where they're required to hand off the baton to the next runner.   This area is known as the "changeover box."   The handoff in the 20-meter changeover box makes or breaks the race.

In the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, the men and women's relay teams from the USA were strong but both dropped the baton on the final handoffs in their preliminaries, disqualifying them from the race.   The passing of the baton is a non-visual exchange.   The responsibility of the incoming runner is to place the baton firmly in the hand of the outgoing runner.   No matter how strong each individual sprinter was in 2008, the entire team lost the race when one of the team members fumbled and dropped the baton.

Much like the 4X100 meter race, we all have a baton to pass.   The 20-meter pass zone gives the previous generation a limited space to bring the next sprinter up to speed and to ensure that the baton is firmly in their hands.   Floyd's race is over.   He ran it well.   He passed on the baton.   He can rest now.   He should also rest assured that his next generation will be intentional about doing the same for the Glory of God.