Pastor Allan's Blog

This week the funniest thing happened to Armona and me….go figure!! J  We usually have very humorous events happen very frequently but then laughter and joy are one of God’s greatest gifts.
 
We walked out together from church and each of us---at the same time—unlocked our cars.  I walked to her car and got in.  She walked to my car and got in.  Realizing that our keys wouldn’t work, we looked at each other and just started laughing.
 
Laughter is good for the soul.  It makes you feel better too.  Unless you do what we did.  Then, you need to question your sanity! J
 
How could we do that?  Her car is black.  My car is white!
 
Don’t even ask about changing our answering machine’s message as I attempted to make a new “recording.”  That’s a whole other story but extremely entertaining.
 
And then there’s the one about attempting to open the sun roof in my car---by the way, Armona typed the last two paragraphs and she’s still laughing!! J
 
I’m glad Jesus throws a little humor in my life every once in a while. 
 
Laughing and loving it!! J
 
Love in Christ,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

‘Tis the season—oh for sure it’s not Christmas time yet, but there are, if you want to know, 121 shopping days left until then.  No, the season I’m talking about is the beginning of another school year.
 
For me, I don’t remember too many early childhood “first-day-of-school” memories.  But I do remember not liking school at all.
 
My Dad once shared his “first-day-of-school” memory.  After riding his horse to school, the teachers sent him home.  Why?  He couldn’t speak or understand a word of English.  You see, his parents were immigrants from Germany.  So, at home, Dad and his parents spoke German.  I’m pretty sure the language of the house quickly moved from German to English after that first day of school.
 
I’m not an educator, but I know in today’s world, Dad would have had an English Second Language teacher to accommodate him.  That was unheard of back then, so he learned English at home.
 
I still remember Mom and Dad and both sets of grandparents often speaking more German than English.  I always thought they were speaking German to keep secrets from me.  Now today, I hear many foreigners speaking their native language, and I think, when I hear them, the same thing. J  Also, I think to myself that my ancestors learned English when they came to America, why shouldn’t everyone else?
 
But you know what?  I better get used to foreign languages because the Bible describes the people who will be in heaven with me.  From Revelations 7:9, “After this, I saw a vast crowd, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb.”  Yes, it’s going to a be diverse and colorful crowd.
 
Looking forward to that first day in heaven.
 
Love you,
 
Pastor Allan
P.S.  If you aren’t looking forward to the first day of school….I understand! J
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Some things just don’t make sense.  Here are some of my thoughts:

• It rains on your day off.   The days you work—well, the weather is beautiful.  How does that happen?
• When you are young, you have no money.  Yet the aged, who seem to have plenty of money, get all the discounts;
• As a youth, you think you will sleep late when you retire.  Then when you finally do retire, you’re up at the crack of dawn;
• The slow car in front of me seems to be following me.  Why does he have to turn right when I want to go right and left when I want to turn left?  He’s following me but I’m behind him….how does that happen?
• People pay good money to put their life at risk, just for the thrill of it;
• You go on vacation to rest and when you return, you’re more tired that when you left;
• We go outside to get some sun, then we smear sun tan lotion on to keep the sun off;
• Here’s another outside wonderment.  You go out to get a little fresh air and it smells like a hog lot;
• People buy an expensive recreational vehicle to go camping and get away from the crowded city.  Look at any campground and ask yourself, “Is that secluded living?”

Oh, the list could go on and on.  But, there is one more paradox for me to share.  It comes from Jesus words in Matthew 10:39.  “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”
 
Have you found yours yet?  Live your life for Jesus…now that makes sense!
Love,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

We’ve all heard the age old saying, “The difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.”  All of us seem to grasp the wisdom of that proverb.
 
This week, I’ve been pondering exactly when I put away my little toys.  It’s as though there is a magic invisible door we all must crawl through.  On one side of the door is the life of a carefree little child and on the other side, a grown up with all the stuff that goes along with being an adult.
 
Here’s the problem with growing up and going through that door.  You can’t go back.  It’s as if you’re skinny going through but fat trying to go back through that same narrow door.  Maybe that’s what Paul means in 1st Corinthians 13:11.  “When I was a child I spoke and thought like a child.  But when I became a man, my thoughts grew far beyond those of my childhood, and now I have put away my childish things.”
 
So does that mean I can’t play with my grandson’s Hot Wheels on Friday night anymore?  Oh well, I’ll just go to the races.  See what I mean by the price of the toys?
 
In my growing up, I think my Dad pulled me through that skinny on one side, fat on the other side, door.  One day at age thirteen, I was playing in the sandbox.  My Dad said that I was too old to be doing such childish things.  The next week, I had thirty-two lawns to mow and an early morning paper route.  No going back for me.
 
You know, as I think about it, over my life time, I’ve come through many doors wishing I had never pushed on them to see if they would open.  Then again, had I never pushed on any door, I’d still be in the sandbox.
 
Here’s another door you can’t go back through once you enter through it---the door to heaven!  The one place that, once you are there, you wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!
 
Love you,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Last month, my three sisters with their families and our family met for a “family reunion.”  Actually, I had three sisters, one died, and her husband remarried.  His new wife is a wonderful Christian lady and I have adopted her as a sister.  We love that she is a very beautiful part of our family!
 
We were to meet in Estes Park, Colorado but as we Iowans were standing on the side of the road in Rocky Mountain National Park taking in the scenery, suddenly a car roared up beside us with screaming people hollering, “Hawkeyes!  Hello, Iowa!”  What are the odds that we would see family within minutes of our arrival?
 
So lately, I’ve been reliving cherished family memories, or at least trying to.  How I wish I had kept a diary to record those special moments of times gone by.  Now reaching back into my memory is like reaching into the fog and grabbing a hold of something that just happened to be passing by.  Truth be known, these Reflections are really my personal diary that I share in a public forum.
 
Here is one of those family moments I so remember.  It involved my Dad and I as together we attended a Promise Keeper event in Des Moines, Iowa.  The preacher made an “altar call.”  Being the evangelist I am, I said to Dad, “Do you want to go down?  I’ll go with you.”  I was pretty sure, but not 100% certain of my Dad’s salvation.  This was his typical, don’t waste any words, two word reply, “I’m O.K.”  “I’m O.K.” have become cherished words in my memory.
 
If you have a loved one about whose salvation you are uncertain, ask the question!  Who knows but that you have not been born for just that moment?  You could make the difference between eternal life or death for the one you love.
 
I’m O.K.----are you?
Love in Him,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

So here I am walking around in a life size, Biblical proportion, honest to goodness, Noah’s Ark.  It’s one and one-half football fields long and seven stories high.  It wouldn’t fit in either Kinnick Stadium or the other football stadiums in the State.
 
Here’s some interesting facts about the Ark that, though not in the Bible, just make sense:
 

• Noah captured rain water on the deck of the Ark, stored it in water towers, and distributed it throughout the boat with hollow wooden tubes;
• The animals that boarded the boat were probably juveniles.  After all, they all stayed on the Ark for a very long time;
• Not only was there probably a waste disposal system, but there had to be a system to get fresh air into the boat.  Upwards of 38,000 animals all in one place probably didn’t smell too pretty;
• Noah had to be an agronomist, shipbuilder, and so many other things.  But the most important trait Noah possessed was this.  He loved the Lord and obeyed Him.

Oh, one other thing on the Ark that surprised me.  There was a gift shop and they served great coffee and a wonderful cookie (that Armona made me split with her.) J  Come on people---Noah had to take a break once in a while!! J
 
Noah’s Ark in Kentucky.  If you’re there, don’t miss it!
 
Love,
 Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

What an amazing week! In the pulpit preaching on Sunday and in Knoxville, TN by Monday to participate in the Covenant’s tri-annual CHIC (Covenanters High in Christ).  It is a gathering of some 5,000+ Covenant High School youth from around the country.
 
Just in case you think today’s youth are lost to the world, I’m here to tell you that I worshipped with the remnant about which God speaks.  In this case, the remnant is our youth.  Watch out world, because they are charged and ready to be a light unto the world.
 
During my time with them, I learned that many of them understand the prayer, “Break my heart, oh God, for things that break your heart.”  The whole conference theme was all about, “Unite.”  All of us are God’s people united in His Kingdom.  All of us are created in His image, from the refugees, to those trapped in human trafficking, to poverty and oppression.  Of course, there was an interactive encounter with Covenant Kids Congo (a passion of my own heart), but what took me by surprise was the extraordinary compassion and interest the kids had for human trafficking.
 
Not only did these young people experientially learn Biblical truths, they taught me something new about worship.  It’s called Hip-Hop.  Yep, I even got caught up in the dance---but only for a moment.  J  But then again, it was the ancient teaching of the Bible that moved many to commit their lives to Jesus for the very first time.
 
Jesus, what a beautiful name it is!  He can move mountains and the hearts of the young.  God is doing something new in them….and in me.  Is He moving in your life?  If not, I don’t think the problem is with God…..
 
In His Love,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Normally we all think of rubber as being soft and pliable….maybe even a little spongy.  So, it would make sense that, as a little boy growing up on the farm, thinking that the tires on the hayrack would be soft.  How often did I stand there as Dad slowly drove by with the tractor and wondered to myself, “If I quickly put my foot under the tire of the hayrack he was pulling, I could easily test out my theory.”  Now in my older years, I realize the flaw in my theory. 
 
Often it was my job to throw hay bales down from the hay-mow.  Just like thinking rubber tires over my foot wouldn’t hurt, so I thought jumping twenty feet onto the hay wouldn’t hurt either—more flawed thinking!
 
Fortunately, I didn’t put my foot under the rubber tire nor did I jump from the hay-mow.  Oh yes, there was plenty of other stupid stuff I did as a youth.  But, by God’s grace, I survived my own thoughts! J
 
Today, I know that even a lot of adults use flawed thinking.  Esau gave away his inheritance to Jacob for a bowl of soup.  He said he was “starving.”  He used flawed thinking because he was only hungry, not starving.
 
Flawed thinking leads people to reject Christ.  Put on your straight thinking hat and accept Jesus’ invitation to come to Him today.  I need to tell you something.  Tomorrow may never come…..
 
Love you all,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Why are there harmless things from your youth that haunt you the rest of your life?  I’ve told you of the Jurassic Park movie I went to in 1959.  Those movie dinosaurs went home with me and tormented me for over forty years.  Here’s a secret I haven’t shared before.
 
While attending grade school in Britt, Iowa (yes, along with being a Titonka Indian, I am also a Britt hobo) we were required to take swimming lessons in lieu of P.E. or gym.  Why would a school have a swimming pool in those early years?
 
You’re probably thinking, “Oh, that’s a great idea for the elementary school to teach kids how to swim.”  Now, I’m not going to disagree with that thought, but there was a problem with this particular swimming pool.  It had the biggest grate over the drain that you’ve ever seen.  Let me describe it for you.
 
Of course, the drain was in the deep end of the pool.  That alone is scary enough if you’re a beginner at swimming.  In my imagination, the grate covering the drain was at least four feet in circumference.  Big enough to swallow a skinny ten year old boy in one Jonah sized gulp.  The only difference was that this humongous drain would never spit you out.  It took a long time to let go of the side of the pool and sprint to the other side.  I see it even now.  The drain smiling as its next victim swam overhead.
 
Not only have I fought off the dinosaur demon and the drain that smiles, there was also a tiger who lived in the cottonwood tree under which I walked every night in order to shut the barn door.  Imaginative childhood memories that have shaped who I am.  Now you know what’s wrong with me! J
 
There is One Who does not live in my imagination.  He is my refuge and strength.  He rescues me even from myself.  His Name is Jesus!!
 
Loving God and praying you do too!!
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Every once in a while, I wonder if these Reflections are speaking to anyone.  So sometimes, I get discouraged.  But, often something unexpected happens to encourage me.  It’s as if God brings up a breeze to put wind in my sails.
 
This past week, I got a call from a man in California to whom I mail the weekly Reflection and Sermon!  He is a friend who has a storied past.  In years gone by, he played drums in the orchestra at the once famous Copa Cabana in New York City.  He was friends with Jimmy Durante, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and other well-known entertainers of that time.  That’s why I always ask a new acquaintance, “Tell me about yourself.”  You sometimes hear nuggets of interesting things.  (Thanks, Tom, for being my friend and sharing your story!)
 
Tom called just to tell me how much my reflections and sermons mean to him.  He went on to say that he looks for them in his mail box every week and they touch his heart.
 
Just when I think “what’s the point” of writing these, at the point of despair, God sends a message, “Keep going, keep writing” all from a friend 1,500 miles away.  Thanks God, I needed that!
 
I think that often we have a “just in time God.”  Just in time, He parted the Red Sea.  Just in time, God sent a great fish to deliver Jonah.  Just in time, God saved Isaac from death.  Galatians 4:4 tells us that Jesus was born “in the fullness of time.”  My interpretation is that Jesus was born just in time.  Just in time, God had my friend, Tom call me.
 
If you’re waiting on God for something, don’t get discouraged.  Just in time…..He will show up!
 
Praying for all of you,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

When I was a boy, I loved to fly kites.  I think my Dad must have too.  He was always buying string so the kite could go higher.  Once, I know, there was over a mile of string.  Even though one of my favorite songs is “Over the Rainbow,” I could never get the kite high enough to fly over the rainbow where blue birds fly.  Instead of going up higher with more string, the kite just went out further.
 
Once I had two kites.  After the first kite was airborne, I tied its string to a fence post.  With the second kite, I was the Ace German fighter pilot, the Red Baron of World War I fame.  Only problem was that when you collide two kites in mid-air, they both crash to the ground.  Like the Red Baron, that season of life was short-lived.  A pilot once told me, “there may be bold pilots, but there are no OLD bold pilots.”  Same applies to the survival rate of dueling kites.
 
Here’s something I learned about life from my kite flying experiences.  If the string to which the kite is attached breaks, it crashes to the ground.  So, even if you’re flying high and far, if you’re not attached to Jesus, eventually you’re going to crash.
 
Going it alone without the Lord in your life is a very bad idea.  Oh, the view might be great, the flight exhilarating….but without Jesus, the ground comes up pretty fast.
 
You want a safe landing?  Tie yourself to Jesus!!
 
Keep looking up---Jesus will soon be here!!
 
Love you all,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

This week, as school ends and summer vacations begin, I’m thinking of my boyhood summer days.  How I pine for those carefree days now.

One of my memories, is going to Vacation Bible School.  We lived on a farm and the church was a little over a mile away.  Mom packed my lunch, drove me to the church, dropped me off, and there I was not knowing anyone.

I’m certain my teachers had to tell me to pay attention more than once, but I know I learned about Jesus and His unwavering love for me.  That experience and so many other Jesus encounters made Him part of my DNA.  Maybe it would be better said, that I became part of His DNA.  After all, I am a son of the Most High God!

At VBS, I not only learned about Jesus, it was there I gave my first sermon.  At the end of the week, there was a parent program and I recited Psalm 23.
During recess, I learned how to play work-up softball.  Usually, I didn’t work-up. J  Most of my time was spent in the lonely right field.  That didn’t bother me, because soon the day would be over and I would be able to walk home.

Now if you’re a nine year old boy, walking over a mile along a gravel road to get home is no big deal.  As a matter of fact, it was fun.  Once in a while, I would scare up a pheasant, pick pink wild roses for my Mom, and even collect tadpoles in the Tupperware bowl that once held my sandwich.  It’s a wonder I didn’t drown in the road ditch!

When I got home, the roses went to Mom and the tadpoles to the cow water tank.  There I would, day by day, watch them change from who they were to who they would become….a frog.  The process was fascinating to a little boy.  I even had the foresight to float a 2x4 in the water for the frogs to get on and eventually jump over the side of the tank to freedom.

Life is like those little tadpoles.  It is always changing.  Who are you changing into….a son or a daughter of the Most High God?
 
Just wondering….
 
Blessings,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

At the cemetery, as they were burying my sister in 2010, my two year old nephew (her son) asked his Daddy, “Daddy, can we take the green truck and drive to heaven to visit Mommy?”
 
Recently, one of our friends died.  His name was Matt.  We had gone to the funeral and our son picked up our youngest grandson from school.  Our grandson wondered where we were and our son explained that we had gone to the funeral of one of our friends.   After our grandson had thought this through with the innocence and wisdom of a six year old, listen to their conversation.
 
Our grandson asked, “Could I have Matt’s cell phone number?”  To which our son replied, “Why do you want Matt’s cell phone number?”  Here was his answer.  It so touched my heart and I know it will move yours’ as well.  “I want to call him to be sure he got to heaven O.K.”
 
In both my nephew and my grandson, I hear the voice of Jesus.  I hear the voice of hope in death.  No wonder Jesus challenges us to have a child-like faith. 
 
With a tear in my eye, I remain…..
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

When I was in practice as a C.P.A., guess what the most asked question might have been?  If you guessed, “How much tax can you save me?” you would be wrong.  The most likely question asked of me was, “Where can I invest my money?”
 
Did you know that the Bible gives advice about both of those questions?  Regarding taxes, Jesus said in Mark 12:17, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”  Then in Proverbs 22:7, this advice is given about investing.  “Neither a borrower or a lender be.”
 
Now in my life experience, I’ve learned this about paying tax.  If you’re not paying tax, you’re not making any money.  Pretty straight-forward thinking….I think.
 
About “neither a borrower or lender be,” I know this.  It has been my observation that those who generally make the most money have the nicest buildings.  Look around and notice that banks always have the nicest, newest buildings.  So if you are a borrower, the bank should send you a “thank-you.”  Instead, they send you a “payment due” notice.
 
If you are a lender, beware of this pitfall.  Loaning money to family or friends sometimes causes amnesia. J
 
What should you do with your money?  This is what God says in Malachi 3:10.  “Bring all the tithes (10%) into the Temple; if you do, I will open up the windows of heaven for you and pour out such a blessing so great you won’t have room enough to take it in.”
 
Can’t give you any better financial advice than what God already has done!!
 
Blessings,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

This weekend is Memorial Day.  So, today I drove back to my roots in my hometown, Titonka, Iowa.  There I went to the cemetery where my Mom and Dad are buried.  Like a dutiful son, I placed a bouquet of reusable plastic flowers on their grave.  Something about reusable and plastic takes away the lump in my throat and puts a smile on my face.
 
It was a time of several hours of nostalgia as I went to their graves and my grand-parents graves.  As I walked and looked at the names on the tombstones, I realized that there sure were a lot of people out there that I know.  I’m noticing that as I age, more and more of my friends are dying.
 
Before leaving, I drove around, what the locals call, Tyke.  The town where I once was a prince on a bicycle, now seemed empty.  The kingdom that once knew me so well, only stared back with a hollow gaze.  Indeed, I was a stranger in my own home town.
 
What’s the lesson I learned today?  Life goes on, even if you’re not there.
 
Oh well, the Bible says neither Tyke, nor my present residence, is my home.  In Ephesians 2:19 I am told, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household.”
 
One day, my name will be on a tombstone.  Though my body might be six feet under, I’ll be home.
 
My home is in heaven.  Where is yours?
 
Praying for you all,
 
Pastor Allan

As I ride leisurely along on a pony called Wind, I see in front of me a lush valley floor covered with wild flowers of every color and hue.  Not too far ahead, the valley floor meets the ascent of the snow peaked mountains all around.  The sun warms my shoulders as I ride with He Who is Faithful and True.
 
The grass and flowers dance to and fro as the breeze bends them this way and that.  A gentle lion walks beside as if to guard against all that is not tranquil and calm.  Buffalo graze and have no alarm as the guardian predator walks by.  Instead, mighty as they might be, they bow down to the One Who rides beside me.
 
On the horizon, there is the sign of an approaching gentle rain.  The sound of distant thunder rumbles across the valley floor and echoes off the mountains all around.  In a moment, the rain is upon us, and yet we are not wet.  I hear the words of He Who rides with me, “I am your shelter in the storm.”
 
On up ahead, there is a city shining on a hill.  In all brilliance and luster does it shine.  He Who is with me says, “I’ll ride on ahead.”  My pony, Wind says, “I’ll care for him until then.”  To that I think to myself, “Until that day, I can only imagine.”
 
Thinking of what will be…..are you?
 
Blessings,
 
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

I recently went to the doctor for my annual check-up.  Apparently, as you get older, this annual safari is required!  I don’t know why.  Even when I pass with flying colors, the doctor refuses to give me a written guarantee of long life. J
 
There was one little hitch in my report—my weight.  Though I’ve lost weight since the last weigh-in, the doctor says there’s a ways to go yet---a long way!  At hearing this, I asked the doctor, “You know what I need?”  Of course the doctor said, “I don’t know.”  To which I responded, “I need a doctor who smokes and is fat.”  She laughed at my teasing…..
 
Then the doctor lowered the boom.  “Quit drinking so much coffee!”  “Now wait just a minute,” I responded.  “Coffee is just another way that God tells you that He loves you…..and He loves me a bunch!”  Here’s a secret for you.  Doctors need to get a tad bit more of a sense of humor. J
 
After I was dressed again and went into the lobby, Armona asked, “How did it go?”  I convinced her that it went well.  So, we went out for a chocolate turtle sundae and a cup of coffee.  Obviously, the doctor did not come along. ;-)
 
Seriously, I am thankful for good health.  But, it is my health with my God to which I pay most attention.  How goes it with your health?  With God that is…..
 
Blessings,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

Last week, I attended a brilliant musical production presented by the Fort Dodge Senior High School.  The musical was Disney’s, Beauty and the Beast.
 
As the plot unfolded, I could not help but think of its’ symbolism to our walk with Christ.  Indeed, there is an allegory, hidden meaning deep within the heart of this musical.  So let’s unpack it.
 
Everything was good in the world, until sin entered into the heart of man through a witch named Satan.  In the musical, a witch casts a spell upon a Prince.  The witch’s curse transformed the handsome prince into an unlovable beast.  Not only was the prince cursed but all the people who lived in his castle slowly transformed into a piece of furniture or an eating utensil.  When Satan cast his spell upon mankind, man too was transformed into something he was not meant to be.
 
The only way for the Prince, now beast, to overcome the curse was to fall in love with a woman who would love him in return.  So like mankind, the beast awaited such a deliverance.  In the musical, a redeemer named Belle did come along and she and the beast fell in love.  The curse was broken.  The beast reverted back to a handsome Prince.  All the people who were changing into a piece of furniture or eating utensil suddenly and joyously regained their humanity.
 
Just as the beast waited for a savior, so too all of mankind waited for its’ redeemer.  Without Jesus, sin lived within us.  A curse cast upon us by the witch Satan.  Slowly, but certainly without deliverance, we were all doomed to hell.  Then there arose one Who loved us.  One Who changed us from a sinner to a beautiful child of God.
 
Prince to beast and back to Prince…..and everyone lived happily ever-after.  How is it with the story of your life…especially the “ever-after?”
 
Blessings and love in Him,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All rights Reserved

Well, as I see the grass turning greener, the buds on the trees getting fatter, the migrant birds flying through, people walking, jogging, and riding bicycles, I think we can make it official---SPRING IS HERE!!  It seems like we had a very long winter but at the same time, it also allows us to be even more grateful for sunshine, and the beauty God provides all around us!!
 
As I was watching my grandsons on their bikes and all their neighborhood friends zooming around on theirs’, it sort of reminded me of what our heavenly Father goes through with us.  Moms were saying, “Get on your helmets and for pity sakes---SLOW DOWN!”  The kids were flying down the sidewalks sometimes coming within inches of each other as they swerved around dogs, balls, and one another.  The phrase, “It’s really better if you don’t watch” came to mind! J
 
I am certain God watches over our lives in so much the same way as parents guard their children.  As we dodge in and out with our busy lives, sometimes narrowly missing a dangerous situation, all because we are focused on everything we are scheduled to do and not on what we are doing.  “Look out, the light is turning red!”  “Be careful, that car is stopping ahead of you!”  “Deer…there’s a deer!!” “Don’t trip on that curb!” The list goes on and on as God continues to surround us with His protection.  
 
However, sometimes---just as our own children and grandchildren don’t listen to us—we fail to heed the warnings of our heavenly Father.  We too need to “armor up” and get our protective gear on as we zig and zag through our daily lives.  Ephesians Chapter 6 reminds us of God’s instructions as He cares for us.   “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” 
 
Yes, we’ll fall, we’ll get skinned up, and God may even reprimand us for our own good, but through it all He molds us into exactly what He wants us to become.  He has a plan for each one of us and will reveal that plan to us as we stay centered in Him!
 
Enjoy God’s beauty as it unfolds all around us!  May He richly bless you this day and always….
 
In His Love,
Pastor Allan
© 2018 Allan Redenius, All Rights Reserved

I wish I could accurately describe it for you, but on my desk, sitting right in front of me is a picture of Jesus in an old scuffed up cardboard frame.  It was a gift to me from my fourth grade Sunday School teacher, Verla Brandt.  Did she even think her simple, inexpensive gift would stay with me for fifty plus years?  Her gift motivates me today.
 
The year was 1959.  I was ten years old.  My Grandparents gave me the gift of a Bible for Christmas.  Within it, they wrote memorable words for me to treasure throughout my life.  Indeed I do!  This Bible is one of my earthly treasures.  Grandpa and Grandma’s gift still motivates me every day.
 
As a freshman in high school, grades were not that important to me.  Mom and Dad went to a parent/ teacher conference with Mr. Patterson.  I was invited along.  That was an ominous sign. J  Though I dreaded the confrontation, I left with something Mr. Patterson said about me.  “He really works hard at it.”  Those words motivated me throughout my whole career.
 
I look around my office at some of my personal affects.  A clock, a John Wesley inscription, family pictures, a box of personal treasures, a rotating picture frame, family heirloom ink wells, and yes, even a real cannon, and more---all remind me of days gone by.  Each item with its own personal story.  Each story from the past, propels me into the unknown future of which I’m not certain.  Maybe the unknown motivates me forever forward to see what’s over the next hill.
 
As I reminisce about people in the past, I realize it’s the small things they did for me that have the greatest impact on my life.  A fifty cent picture of Jesus, kind words spoken, the gift of a Bible, and all the other small stuff speak volumes down the corridor of time.  Each small thing leaving a memorable impression.
 
Lord, in some small way, may my words and actions echo down the hallway of time.  May they motivate and lead someone to Christ.  If you’re reading these words, that is my gift to you.
 
AMEN……
 
Pastor Allan
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