Wow . . . It’s a good thing we had the last weekend in March off. Dad ended up with a bad cold and completely lost his voice. We were all sure it would be back by the first weekend of April when we were scheduled to sing at a Gospel Music Sing in Sioux Falls, SD . . .
Dad’s voice was improving very slowly and we contemplated canceling our trip south. Thankfully we came to our senses before making any such decisions! We decided to go, offer what we had and trust the Lord to do something in spite of all of the complications.
Friday afternoon, April 2, we all piled into the van and made our way towards Fargo, ND. It was an added bonus to have Ron and Cathy’s youngest son, Carl, with us on this trip, as well as Mom and Gabrielle. It’s always extra special to have our families with us!
We spent Friday night in Pelican Rapids, MN with my grandparents. They’re always gracious to open their home to us and we love to have time with them. On Saturday morning we went the last stretch to Sioux Falls, SD. We met Charlie and Erika (my brother and his wife) for lunch when we got into town. They came up from Albia, IA to spend the weekend with us. Like I already said, we LOVE to involve our families in these events. 🙂
Dad’s voice was still barely audible and we were scheduled to sing that evening. We racked our brains to come up with songs that Cathy and I could do as duets. In the midst of all of that we also managed to come up with a couple of songs that would give Dad a good work-out on the guitar since he had the night off vocally. 🙂 We were reminded that evening that sometimes the Lord does things differently than we want Him to . . . but also that He knows better than we do. We believe that if we are seeking the Lord’s direction He will orchestrate circumstances for many reasons that we may or may not know. I think this truth helped us all enjoy the evening a little more.
As is usually the case with these types of events we saw many old friends . . . and whether we have voices or not, that is always a pleasure.
We celebrated Palm Sunday at the Reformed Church in Dell Rapids, SD. We enjoyed singing and spending the morning with the folks there. It’s always amazing to walk into a place where you’ve never been and meet people you’ve never seen and yet feel right at home. Thinking about it now I remember lots of smiles and laughing . . . lots of joy there.
Sunday evening we geared up for Round 3 of duets . . . still no voice for Dad, but lots of prayers and encouragement from those around us. Cathy and I sang and Dad concentrated on the guitar. It was humbling for us to watch the Lord touch people as we worshipped through music. The Lord is so gracious to speak through broken vessels, isn’t He? When we are weak He is strong . . .
Needless to say when the weekend was all said and done we were so thankful for the reminders of the Lord’s faithfulness. It’s not about us being perfect . . . it’s not even about us having voices . . . It’s all about offering what little we have—whatever that may be—and watching as the Lord takes over from there.
Praying that you, too, are amazed today at how the Lord uses whatever you willingly surrender to Him. NJD
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