The Time Has Come

“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “to talk of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and of Kings and why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs have wings.” – Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking Glass.

The time has come – time to move from this leaky house which God so graciously provided in August 2004. Many thanks to the United Methodist Church of Hedrick, IA for renting me their unused parsonage for a cost far less than market value. In so doing, they have subsidized my ministry for the past 7+ years! Now they’ve sold the house and it’s time to move on.

Talk about a lot of things! The house I’ll be moving to won’t be ready for several weeks but it is about one-third the space. I’ve spent hours sorting, purging, and paring down. Trying to determine what is a true priority. And some of the discoveries have brought back sweet memories of Lois and the 34 years of God-directed partnership.

Shoes, ships, and sealing wax.  Yes, I’ve found shoes hidden away – even a pair of wooden shoes from my Dutch ancestry – a string-art ship, and a box of Gulf sealing wax used in canning many years ago.

Cabbages. Trying to figure out how to deal with perishable food . . .

Kings. Although things have a tendency to become kings, packing and sorting has been a good reminder that things don’t rule me nor do they occupy a place of honor in my life.  Christ is King – Lord, Master, and Leader of my life.

I wish the sea were boiling hot. Instead I woke to several inches of snow this morning. Moving on Saturday will be a mess.

Pigs do have wings. Sound impossible? But sometimes we do the impossible. I am getting ready to take apart computers, shut down the internet connection, turn off the land-land phone, and live out of suitcases for the next month. Impossible – but it’s still going to happen!

The toll-free number will be discontinued and the only phone number I will have will be 641.799.0010 – the one most people have been using for several years. I do see email on my smart-phone. My new snail-mail address is: 13975 247th St., Delta, IA  52550.

6 thoughts on “The Time Has Come”

  1. Jim, May God bless you many times over in your new house. May you find peace, rest and comfort there. Will be remembering you tomorrow as you move.
    Sherry

  2. May you be as strong as Samson as you move…he too moved structures. Enjoy the new chapter dawning on your ministry. I know you have helped me and Grace Chapel start one!!!

  3. Jim, Our prayers are with you. Spring will soon be here and this season will be a passing memory. Be strong and couragious!
    Blessings,
    Amy
    “The Lord, the Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.”
    Isa 12:2

  4. Jim, we are so glad you found a place to live. There will be a time in the future when you’ll be glad all the sorting and downsizing is behind you. Don’t be reluctant to let friends and family help you with all the details & heavy work. We are praying for all of you this weekend. Thanks for including your new address.
    Pauline & Ron

  5. Thanks for the update, Jim. Tracy and I will be sure to pray for you with our boys as you continue this time of transition. I copied over your contact info and would love to have coffee when we are back in the US in June. It will be great to catch up with you face to face.

  6. Hope the move goes well! Sounds like it will be/has been a whole lotta work. As has been said – may God continue to give you strength! 🙂

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