A Joyous Answered Prayer

One of the hardest days of my life was putting my only grandson, my daughter and wife on a plane to fly to my daughter and son-in-law’s new church out in North Carolina, some 14 hours away from us. I remember sitting here in my living room and watching the sun sink on the wall, and my own spirits sinking right along with it. They were sooooo far away. Things got slightly better a few years ago: my son-in-law accepted a call to a dual parish in northern Wisconsin. It was 8 hours away, which was much closer than the 14! But still so very far. And BRRRRR. Northern Wisconsin. We visited one Christmas holiday and I don’t think I’ve ever seen such bitter temperatures and snow. Well, today Dean announced that he’d accepted a call to Dieterich, Illinois, a mere 90 minutes away from us and from Dean’s family. We’re over the moon! Family holidays become a possibility again for the whole extended clan. And the parishes are both beautiful (one of them is home to our friends Candy Esch and Heather Goeckner) and instead of squeezing into a parsonage that really was never meant to accommodate a family their size (WI), they’ll be in a nice sized parsonage like they had in NC with plenty of bedrooms. Thanks be to God. We are so, so thankful that this call came their way and we pray God’s richest blessings upon Dean as he ministers there. Welcome back to Illinois, Herberts!!! And grandkids, when you coming for a visit???