Problems are for Solving

Theresa and I are pleased to announce that, around Thanksgiving Day, we are expecting another child to arrive here in Ebenezer House. Here’s a picture and something I wrote right before I got the pic last Wednesday:

Seven of the last eight pregnancies have not ended with a baby in our arms. They’ve ended with tears and sadness and a bitter tasting cup to drink. We have not gotten to hear those hearts beat. Not heard the cries of a newborn. A laugh, a first word–all outside of even my dreams.

It may be too early today. We may have to wait to know. Like I wait right now for them to call me in to possibly know nothing new.

I long right now to hear that patPATpatpat of the quick fetal hearttones- faster than even my old out of shape heart is on a treadmill. It is a beautiful sound- I know this because I can remember what it sounded like roughly two years ago when we sat in a room not knowing if we were going to get a baby after six consecutive miscarriages.

And there it was: Margary’s heartbeat. A sound of certain life that brought tears to our eyes. I’m not sure I’ve ever had a moment on this earth where a sound was that sweet.

And now I long once more, another child gone to be with God last October, to hear those sweet beats of a tiny tiny heart.

Yesterday, though, I realized something. While I cannot imagine a sweeter sound than those heartbeats right now, there is a sweeter sound that goes beyond my imagination that I know I will hear. And that is the voice of Jesus. It will be a sweeter sound than these earthly ears have ever heard as He welcomes me Home.

They called me in and there it is. A little sac in TC’s uterus. Inside? Our baby. And then there it was. a blinking pulse from there in the sac.

“Are there speakers?”

And she turned them on and I heard a sound that still leaves tears of joy in my eyes. That sound we’ve prayed to hear for the last two weeks. That sweet, sweet sound of a baby’s heart.

Thank You, Lord Jesus. Thank you! I praise Your name for this sweet sweet sound of a tiny heart in a tiny child. Thank you.

“Holy, holy Lord God Almighty!
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain!
“Highest praises, honor and glory
“Be unto Your Name!”

We’ve never miscarried after hearing the heartbeat- but many women do. Please do stay in prayer for our little one.

We’ve chosen a good Calvinist pet name for this little one: baby Lucky. We hope he will be number seven in our home- arriving sometime around Thanksgiving, making that a sweet, sweet day of thanks for us.

Last night I ate at Two25, a new restaurant at the Mark Twain.

It was a freebee, a chance to go as a local blogger and review the restaurant for advertising purposes. Before I get into the review proper, let me say that Shane, a manger there, made a brilliant move having a group of local bloggers come out and eat there for free and write reviews. It shows that the management there understands that the way of the future is the web, and that local bloggers are a great source of positive publicity.

Of course it could have backfired. We could have hated it.

<backtrack to 2003>

My wife and I had a favorite restaurant in Peoria. We loved it. When we wanted something special, we went there, to Dominick’s. It was great. Pasta, steak, great service, beautiful decor. We loved it. And it closed.

Since then, we’ve found local places we liked at different times, and in different moods. But we’ve not found a place that I considered “fine dining” in all the ways I liked to replace Dominick’s since it closed.

Until last night.

I showed up a little before 7 and sat down and there were already a half dozen bloggers there. I’ve met quite a few local bloggers at blogger bashes and such before the evening, but none of them were there. Another 3-4 showed up before we got started and it was a good group.

I have this habit of sitting in the middle of a group and trying to take part in all the conversations. It never works but I keep trying. I didn’t write down the names or the blogs represented, but the ones I remember are Morton Malaise and Keep Passing the Open Windows (I’ll add more when I remember them).

I ordered an IPA to start out and looked over the menu. After some discussion with my neighbors at the table two of us decided to split the Calmari, which was the best I’ve had to date. It often is a little too chewy for me, but this was just perfect. I also got to try some of the Crab & Artichoke Au Gratin and some of the Escargot.

All of the appetizers I tried were fantastic. I would try any of them again, and I would have loved to try the Mushrooms or the Brie.

Then the salad came. I ventured out and had the Pear Salad, which came with dried cranberries, bleu cheese, walnuts and a strawberry vinaigrette.

I wasn’t sure how the tastes were going to work together, but since it was the most out of the ordinary, I had to try it. They had a house salad, and a spinach salad, and a Caesar–but I had to try the Pear.

I wasn’t disappointed. The amount of dressing on the salad was just right for my taste, and the flavors of the varied ingredients were just fantastic together.

With dinner I ordered a bottle of the Ridge vineyard Geyserville (2006 vintage) Zinfandel. We shared it around the table, and it was one of the finest Zins I have had–ever. They mentioned changing the wine list soon, and I hope that they keep the wines from that vineyard.

After a great deal of deliberation (they had veal and duck on the menu which I have a hard time turning down) I ordered the Rack of Lamb. It was cooked exactly as I had asked and served with asparagus and their 30 Layer Potato Au Gratin (a specialty) and everything was just beautiful. And flavorful. And delicious. And…. I loved it. I saved some to bring home (the wife couldn’t come) but I enjoyed every bite.

Dessert was the only mildly disappointing part–and only because I didn’t ask my questions before I ordered. I had the Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie, which isn’t made on site. For a dessert purchased off site, it was still pretty good, but had I asked before I ordered, I would have had the chocolate mousse with Chambord glaze. I tasted my neighbor’s and it was just lovely. Definitely getting that next time. Enjoyed the dessert nonetheless and ordered a Booker’s (neat) to go with it. This is a small batch bourbon not often found in local restaurants, and I enjoyed it greatly.

I was thoroughly impressed with everything (and the decor was nice too!) last night, and will certainly be back. Probably next month for my anniversary.

Thanks for the invite, Shane! It is one of the finest meals I’ve had, and rivals some of the restaurants in big cities like DC. I’ll be back as often as I can afford it.

And you bloggers that didn’t take him up on the invite–Shame on you! You missed out on a great meal and a great time.

Two25 is a great local restaurant and a credit to Peoria. Be sure to check it out soon!

This morning I worked out for the first time for over a month. While I was on the treadmill, after figuring out where I was in my podcast playlist (refer back to the over a month part), I listened to one of the newer Rabbit Room podcasts. It’s a fairly new podcast, and this one was episode six, and there were only seven so far (maybe a short-lived podcast?).

My grandmother died last night, the last of my grandparents to do so (my wife still has two grandparents living), and so it marks the end of an era in my family as well as a time of sadness. Curt McLey, in this podcast, reflects on Lewis’ The Problem of Pain and on his own suffering–a great deal of which God brought into his life in a short time.

He aptly reminds us that suffering is a gift. I won’t even try to duplicate the podcast’s wonderful messages here. It is more than worth the 10 minutes of your time it’ll take to listen.

You can download it here.

Last night was our annual celebration that we call The Night of the Burning Plum. There is history behind this (you can read more here), and this is our fourth celebration of the night.

We had a big ham, horseradish spiced mashed potatoes and a raspberry/walnut/gorganzola salad with a vinegrette. It were all *delicious*. Accompanying dinner was a mixture of plum wine and homemade sparkling mead. Also quite tasty.

For dessert we had our traditional Flaming Plums and Cherries served over vanilla ice cream and 8 year old Plum Brandy. It was lovely. Ralph brought some cream Sherry from the winery near where many of used to live in Pennsylvania which was also quite tasty.

After dessert and conversation we adjourned into the newly painted Plum Living Room for our tradition of telling stories. The children told many stories, including one from Toby that had Cthulu, Agent X, and Dr. Frankenstein. Their story telling has vastly improved over the four years and I’m glad for this tradition. Seth told his usual three stories, and we all shared in a lovely time (you can read Gabrielle’s story from last night here).

After all this we did a little cleaning up and then most went to bed and a few of us wandered down to Seth & Crystal’s for some Jungle Speed (which I won more times than I usually do against Seth and Ralph!).

Of the family traditions we’ve begun since our family was founded, this is by far my favorite. Next year, the 5th annual Night of the Burning Plum promises to be even better. I’m already starting to think of changes to the evening (minor, improving changes!) in preparation.

All in all, another lovely night, and a grand annual celebration of friendship. Hopefully those who couldn’t make it this year will be available in 2009.

This morning, on my way home from the gym, I plan to stop and vote. Later tonight someone on the news will tell us one of three things, which most of you have probably heard by the time you read this. Either John McCain or Barack Obama will be elected to serve a first term beginning in January, or the election (for whatever reason) will not be over and we will have to wait to find out who will sit in the White House from January, 2009 through January 2013.

Every four years many Christians seem to forget that what matters most is not who is in the White House, but Who is on the throne. We will have a president, one way or another. More importantly, we have a King. His Name is Jesus.

Daniel 2:20-21, says:

“Daniel answered and said, ‘Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons, he removes kings and sets up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;”

Most of us understand that Daniel was living in exile when he spoke these words. As we approach this year’s election many of us may hearken back to the 2000 presidential election. The election that didn’t seem to end.

As I write this I do not know who will be elected president. I don’t know whether he will prove to, in hindsight, be a good man or an evil man. But I do know, as Daniel did, that God alone removes kings and sets up kings.

When Daniel said this, he may have hearkened back himself to Isaiah’s words, when God calls the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar His servant. Daniel had no way of knowing when he said these words that Nebuchadnezzar would become a believer. But he did know what you and I can know-that God sets up kings.

We need not fear what lies ahead-because God knows and has promised that that gates of Hades will not prevail against His Church. We can bless the Name of God for ever and ever because He alone sets up kings. He alone gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. And He has promised to care for us.

Tomorrow morning many Christians may be fretting over the election of Barack Obama. The Republicans may lose even more ground in the Senate. No one expects them to even make up ground in the House of Representatives. But no matter who is ruling inside the DC beltway-Jesus rules from Heaven without fail.

Psalm 2 says that kings rage against the Messiah-but that the One in the Heavens laughs at them. He knows. He knows that they must stand on His lap to slap Him in the face. He knows that they are not mighty-and that they will fall at His command.

In 1997 I was diagnosed with adult onset asthma. Several times over the past years I have come close to death because I could not bring that next breath into my lungs. I have lived for years now with the ever present awareness that God holds every breath that we take-both for me and you.

Sparrows don’t fall to the ground without God’s knowledge. God knows when we sit down and rise up. He knows the words we speak before they are on our tongues. God’s thoughts for each of us outnumber the sand! Do we need to fear what man can do to us?

Psalm 118:6-9-”The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is for me among those who help me; Therefore I will look with satisfaction on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.”

Is our trust in princes? May it never be! Our help comes from the Lord on high-and He has not ceased to sit upon His throne for one nano second since He ascended on high almost 2000 years ago.

Whether our President be John McCain or Barack Obama-Jesus is our King. Let us live today and every day trusting in Him alone. Let us worship Him with every breath that is in us and glory in His providence every moment.

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good. For His lovingkindness is everlasting.” (Ps. 118:29)

Nothing has changed with Theresa since the last update. Good news today, though, is that the dishwasher is finally working again, with a new pump! Clean dishes all around. Raise a glass and toast the dishwasher repairman.

The other day when I was searching around for something to be thankful for I got caught up on my travel numbers. September was the second month this year where I didn’t travel at all. And in August I came home from a business trip and had some small trips, including Toby’s birthday trip but put very few miles on.

Through September 30th I am at about 12,000 miles. That’s compared to just over 30,000 miles this time last year. 2,000 fewer miles per month. That’s something to be very thankful for as I enter a season of more travel over the last quarter. And a good deal of the travel this year has been personal and non-emergency.

I am thankful to God for the comparative rest from last year’s heavy travels.

I’ve been writing a lot about abortion and the theme could be called: “babies are people too.”

And yesterday morning we found out that there’s a little people growing inside TC. Best guess is due date mid-May next year.

Wahoo! Praise God for this blessing. And please be praying for TC and our little one as he grows.

Last night’s supper included salad made with romaine lettuce, fresh diced tomatoes (from a garden of a friend), feta cheese and black olives. Oh, and topped with homemade creamy garlic and dill dressing made by Raquel.

I had four helpings of salad. Usually I pass on it.

Fresh vegetables make a huge difference, and I’m glad to have friends who share their gardening surplus with us. We’ve not been home at the right times and ambitious enough to get veggies of our own, but have enjoyed greatly the generosity of others in that.

Mmmm. Fresh tomatoes.

Oh and there’s fresh salsa in the fridge too. Mmmm.

I’m in the car (Seth is driving) on the way home from Indianapolis. I have some thoughts on the whole experience, but I probably won’t get any flesh on them, at least in written form, anytime soon. Here are some extremely brief (possibly overly simplified) reflections from my week, in no particular order:

1. If I come again I want to figure out a way to bring more of my family, in particular my wife and oldest son. My wife because I have missed her horribly (and she, me) and three nights is just a long time to be away when I’m taking vacation. My oldest son because he missed his brother terribly and would have loved to share the experience. This, however, was Toby’s 10 year old trip and as it ought to be was just him and me.
2. I got some good time to talk with Toby and get to know him a little better as he’s growing. And I’m looking forward to our friendship growing as I pursue things with him that he takes interest in.
3. Everyone in the known universe is a geek. Some people are geeks about sports (quoting batting averages, etc.), some about fast engines, some about games, some about music, ad infinitum. And among different types of geeks there are geek specialties. And this week I got to see many of the sub-specialties of gamer geeks. And some of them were quite interesting, others disturbing.
4. While I consider myself to be normal (don’t we all) I did not feel as out of place among gamers as I thought I would. Certainly there were times when I thought, “do I really belong here?” but most of the time I thought “except for some morality issues that separate us, Toby is a lot like people here.” And since I like hanging out with Toby and Seth and Ralph, there was no feeling of non-belonging despite various differences.
5. I like playing games. I also like games to keep moving. I found myself losing patience with the slowness of moving by our opponents in the massive heroscape scenario we took part in this week. (See my FB account for some pretty cool (and some awfully taken) pictures of the event. Some of this is my need for more patience, and some of it is my desire to have things moving, and some of it is my lack of desire (possibly to a sinful extent) to stop and enjoy the moment when the next moment is more attractive to me.
6. Gamers need Jesus. I overheard just enough conversations sitting around while Toby talked with the homestead to realize that there are hurting, self-centered people just like me that just happen to be immsersed in stuff that I am not. And in that context, Christians need to engage this subset of people who need Jesus just as we need to engage the stockbrokers who need Jesus and the street people who need Jesus and the people on our street who need Jesus.

I’m sure I”m forgetting something, but if I didn’t write this down right away I’m sure I’d forget it. I’ll close the post with a nice picture of Toby doing what Toby does well–concentrating on a visually pleasing art project. I’m thankful for this time with him.