How did your day dawn?

                                              How did your day dawn?
        Many years ago when we were living in Puebla, Mexico for a semester, a lady there often would ask me the first thing in the morning, "¿Cómo amaneció?" meaning, "How did your day dawn?" I was just learning Spanish and seldom knew what to say so I would just tell her, "Bien, bien." meaning "Well, well–or ‘fine.’" And of course that is always accurate for a Christian, "All is well. All is well." 
     
        But I’m thinking this morning, "What are your very first thoughts in the morning?" Is it a day you are anticipating because of something you’re planning to do? Or perhaps dreading because you don’t want to take that examination or do some unpleasant chore or talk to someone about some responsibility that is not being met? Is the weather bad and you have to go somewhere? A lot of good thoughts are possible as you rejoice in the fact that you know the Lord and so do others in the family. Do you have food and clothing and shelter for today? Are you thankful for those gifts?

        What if you have terminal cancer or some other dread disease? [And we’re ALL "terminal cases" if you stop to think about it! . . . .]You’ve been asleep and all of that is out of your mind. And then when you wake up, the remembrance suddenly hits you again, "This cancer is literally killing me and I’m dying" and the consciousness of the pain and the somber reality floods back into your mind. How do you handle that??

         In my research for the book I’m writing I came across a letter from one person dying of cancer to a friend whom she was trying to comfort and help him live his last days with peace from the Lord and rejoicing in Him despite what was happening to his body. For those of you who know them, my wife Minnie wrote an e-mail to Billy Bennett on October 23, 2008. We didn’t know it at the time but Billy had less than two months left to live here on this earth (though he continues to live, of course, with the Lord in heaven.) But how was he going to make those last few weeks?

        Minnie told him. He must live it day by day, one day at a time, constantly looking to the Lord and rejoicing in Him. Here is how she concluded her letter, "My Daily verse is ‘This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.’ I try to live that way, not worrying about the future, but enjoying Him and the ones he has put in my life each day. This is my prayer for your sweet family. Love, Minnie"

         ". . . enjoying Him and the ones he has put in my life each day." People were more important to her than the outward circumstances. Jesus often told His disciples to love one another and to serve one another, doing even mundane things when necessary, including washing one another’s feet. And I can tell you as my testimony that being my wife’s care giver for three years was almost the greatest task God ever gave me in my life. And He poured His love into our hearts just as He promised, "God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us." Romans 5:5 Minnie said several times in her last few months, "I love him more now than even when we first got married." She wrote to our granddaughter Julie on September 25, 2008, "Tomorrow will be our 53rd anniversary. How wonderful to grow old with the love of your youth--and I love him more today than then. It just gets better and better." And we both knew where that love came from. God gave it to us and we were thankful for it.

         But don’t miss the first part of her statement, "enjoying Him . . . each day." It was in fellowship with the Lord that she found her strength. She went "from strength to strength in the Lord" "Wait on the Lord and He shall strengthen your heart." "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31

          Take your focus off what's causing you anxiety and worry and put your focus on the One who will either 1) bring a solution or 2) give you the grace to endure and go through the trial. As your day dawns with the Lord, so He goes with you through each valley, and in the end you know His promise, "Lo, I am with you always. . . even unto the end of the world." Mt. 28:20
                                                                   –Pastor Burnside

My Father's House--Part Three

The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament discusses this word, "Perhaps the most theologically interesting usage of laqah centers around the two clear contexts where the word describes bodily assumption into heaven. We refer to Enoch’s disappearance when God "took" him (Gen. 5:24) and Elijah’s assumption in a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:3, 10-11) Genesis 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took [laqach] him."
2 Kings 2:3 "And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take [laqach] away thy master from thy head to day? . . . 2 Kings 2:10-11

And he said, "Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. [11] And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up [ascended] by a whirlwind into heaven."

III. Real Life Application. These six verses comforted my wife a great deal as she faced death from pancreatic cancer. Less than two months before the Lord came to take her home to be with Him, she wrote these words to my sister:
"I will continue to pray that some night we go to sleep and even as we sleep that the Lord Jesus will come and take us home. Remember when Thomas asked Him, how can we go to you, we don't know the way and he said that he would come for us. What a beautiful thing. We don't have to fear the home going."And then she wrote, "I pray that the Lord will give you His Peace as only HE can give. I love you, Minnie"

"His peace"–that’s what Jesus left us as a legacy in that same chapter:
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27
                                                                       –Pastor Burnside
[Note: I preached this same message on July 19, 2009 at Oak Bay Baptist Church in Port Hadlock, Washington and my wife was present as she always tried to be when her failing strength allowed. This was the last formal sermon she ever heard me preach. I resigned from my pulpit the next month in order to have 24-hour days free to take care of her.

 The Lord came for her just as He promised on January 13, 2010 and she was guarded by the great peace He gave her even unto the end of her journey–and her entrance into eternal life. The truths taught by Jesus in these few verses were such a great comfort to her–and to me. And I pray they will be for you, too, because you, too, will face death, but if it’s really your home-going to be with the Lord, then there is both joy and peace awaiting you. "Fear not, neither be dismayed." "I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand, Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand." Isaiah 41:10]

Courtship and Marriage (from "Mimi's Journey" chapter 3) 1955

[I can't post the 8 pictures here, but if you write me a comment with your e-mail address or send me an e-mail, I'll send a .pdf attachment with the pictures.] 

Courtship and Marriage

           Our courtship was only seven weeks long. We met August 5, 1955 and were married

on September 26, 1955. This was the most important event in our lives after knowing Christ

as Savior and we were both well aware of it and joyful and thankful to the Lord for giving us to

each other: “What God hath joined together.” In fact, we took as our “life verse for our

marriage:” Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now unto him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above

all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the

church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” Many times in our

marriage we would tell each other that the Lord had done “exceeding abundantly” more than

we had even thought or asked for. Looking back after 54 years of marriage, I feel that more

strongly than ever. What an amazing privilege to be married to Minnie all those years. How

good and kind she was to me and such an excellent wife and mother. The heart of her

husband trusts in her. . . . She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.”

Proverbs 31:11-12 ESV That was so true of Minnie all her life. As beautiful as she was

physically, her inner beauty of character surpassed even her physical beauty. She knew that

scripture, “let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of

a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.” 1 Peter 3:4 ESV

           How did God in His providence bring the two of us together on August 5

finished my tour of duty in the United States Army on 31 January 1955 and returned to college at Howard Payne College in Brownwood, Texas. My brother was living in San Antonio and was the lay pastor of Alum Creek Baptist Church, a mission church of Richmond Avenue Baptist Church in San Antonio, Texas. Alum Creek was a small country church just a few miles north of Stockdale

on the road to Seguin. Minnie usually went to church in town at First Baptist but she had

relatives and friends who attended Alum Creek and they all decided to go to some special

meetings at Alum Creek. When those meetings ended, Minnie was still attending there temporarily and joined other young people from San Antonio for a church ice cream social the night she met me because I was one of those “young people from San Antonio.” I was staying with Bob and his wife Bernice and little 4-year old boy Kenny during the summer of 1955, intending to return to Howard Payne in the fall. I was working for my dad who was an accountant in San Antonio. Listen to how Minnie described our meeting:

"In August 1955 I went to a

church party with a group of girls.

It was a 'tacky' party--meaning

you wore jeans or something that

was not 'dress up.' We were all in

a backyard enjoying a cook out

and home-made ice cream."

"Suddenly I noticed a very

handsome young man standing

over in a part of the yard with no

one near him, so I went over and

introduced myself. He said his

name was Billy Burnside. Little

did I know that I had just

introduced myself to the love of my life!"

      "The following Sunday morning the pastor introduced him and said that Bill would be teaching the young people on Sunday evenings! All the girls were excited--

"After church I asked him what we would be studying. He told me and I went home to study and prepare some questions to ask Bill! I wanted to get his attention! [Note from "Bill": she already had my attention!--riveted on her!] It worked. He asked me to ride back to San Antonio with him and his brother so we could continue the discussion. . . ." [That discussioncontinued for 54 years!] J-88-89

       Minnie had dated other boys, of course, and had one steady boy friend as well as others she liked, but the kids in Stockdale did many things together and she was very sociable. She loved getting together with the other kids but she worked so many hours that those social occasions were all the more special to her. She wrote, “When you grow up in a small town of 1,000, life is pretty simple. We lived near a river so we would sometimes take a picnic and swim in the river. We also liked to go to the movies. Our little town had a movie theater. We also went to all the activities at the local Baptist church.”

       “We also liked to go to Seguin, a town about 23 miles away.Seguin had a big park with a swimming pool, minature gold and lovely walking trails. There was a drive-in restaurant called The

White House where we loved to go to eat. And we loved to go to rodeos and football games.” J-36

      Speaking of dating and boy-girl relationships, Minnie wrote, “I never felt that I was looking for love. God gave me lots of friends– both girls and guys. I was very young and very busy. We often did things as a group. You didn’t need to have a date to be part of things.” J-87 She said, “I dated one guy off and on for several years. From the beginning my mother didn’t like him. She tried to explain why she thought he was bad for me, but I didn’t want to hear her objections. She allowed me to go out with him but she was strict about where we went and what time I had to be home."   

(Later I was very glad that Minnie’s mother approved of me. She proved to be a very good mother-in-law!)

th and 6th 1955? I

Bob's son Kenny, age 4,

with Uncle Bill & Aunt

Minnie in 1956

        One interesting dating incidenttells something about Minnie’s theological knowledge even as a teenager: “A friend once arranged a blind date with a friend of his. I don’t remember the guy’s name but I remember a conversation. I asked him if he was a Christian and he said, “No.” Then he proceeded to tell me that God was just an idea in my head so it didn’t matter whether we agreed

about it or not. I remember telling him that God was real and that Jesus showed us what God is like. I agreed that if God was only an idea in my head, it wouldn’t matter, but I knew that was false as I know the Lord.” J-87

       When I realized that I had already quickly “fallen in love” with Minnie, I also realized “how can two walk together except they be agreed” [as to where they’re going] Amos 3:3 so I knew I needed to find out what Minnie believed about life and God and the Bible and her purposes in life and what she thought about children and work and a whole host of beliefs. So one night after we began going out together, I stopped at a roadside park and began asking her a lot of questions about her beliefs. I hadn’t intended it as an oral exam, but several years later she asked me one night if I remembered that particular night and of course I did. She told me then, “Do you know what I almost asked you when we drove away from that roadside park? I wanted to ask you, “Did I pass?!” Obviously she did! And I’ve always been thankful, too, that I “passed” in her evaluation and decision to marry me.

        Many years later Minnie mentioned our courtship in a talk on Worship that she gave to

the women’s group “Heart and Hand” at Sequim Bible Church, Sequim, Washington on Oct.

9, 2003. These are her verbatim comments: “And then I had various boyfriends of course as

all girls do and then I met one boy friend that was very different because on every date he

wanted to read the Bible together. And I thought, “Oh, this guy is really neat!” And we did. I

don’t think we ever went out that we didn’t read the Bible and pray together. And we’re still

doing that. [She said that with a sweet smile and approving laughter from the audience.] So

the pattern from the time I met Bill of our relationship together was very much centered

around the Lord.”

         Indeed it was because we both knew the words of Jesus, “Whoever loves father or

mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me

is not worthy of me.” Matthew 10:37 Obviously the same would apply to husband or wife so

our love for Jesus had to be greater than for each other. In some ways that is difficult to

comprehend because of the intense love we had for each other. But we knew what God

required of us and we sought to be obedient and we taught those same truths to our children.

Minnie posing on car for picture about age 17

“We both loved the Lord Jesus,” Minnie wrote in her journal, and wanted to serve Him. Our mutual love of the Lord and our desire to serve Him drew us very close to each other.” “From the beginning we had very long discussions about our views of the world, what we wanted in life and how our lives could bring glory to God.”

       “We became engaged in early September and were married on September 26–same summer we met! [1955] My roommate [Janet Chappel] had moved out and so we decided to change our wedding date from December to September. God has richly blessed our lives together.” J-88 Minnie was 18 and I was 22.

      In her journal Minnie went into more detail:

“Bill and I were engaged with plans to get married during the Christmas vacation of

1955 but my roommate decided she needed to move back with her parents, so I was left with

an apartment and no transportation. This was on a Friday evening. I told Bill the problem

and we tried to figure something out. Finally he said, ‘Well, I could cut class on Monday night

and we could get married on Monday.’ Sounded like a good idea, but I told him we would

need to talk to Mother. We drove to Stockdale and she agreed to help us get a one-day

license on Monday. We planned to have just our families, but my Aunt put an invitation on the

restaurant bulletin board and the little church [Alum Creek Baptist Church] was full. Bill’s

brother, Bob, married us–his first wedding! We did not have a honeymoon at that time, but I

spent a night in a motel for the first time!” J-90

Illustration1955 September 26 Wedding Picture--taken

a few days later  1955 September 26 Wedding Picture--taken a few days  later

        The church was full and it was a simple, but sweet wedding–although I missed the cue to

come in on the wedding march and Janet had to start playing it a second time. An old couple

who were friends of Minnie’s let us hide our car in their garage so that the boys wouldn’t be

able to tie cans on it. And after all the ceremony my brother Bob followed us in a procession

enroute to San Antonio and then when we got to a narrow section of the highway he began

going very, very slowly, blocking the highway from the other cars behind him. Minnie and I

took off quite fast towards San Antonio and none of them ever saw us again that night. We

stayed in a motel in Alamo Heights and then rented our own apartment the next day. And we

both had to go back to work the next day. My dad arranged for a friend to take this wedding

picture the Friday following our Monday wedding. I took Minnie on what amounted to a

delayed honeymoon to Colorado the next summer. [She was such a cute bride! She has on

her wedding dress while we were wading in that cold Colorado river.]

Minnie 1956 in Colorado wading in the river

wearing her wedding dress

Minnie 1956 Continental Divide in Colorado

Minnie in the Colorado Rockies on our

"Honeymoon" Summer 1956