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January 23, 2009

I am back home from Denver

I returned home last night from Denver, Colorado where I attended the OMF USA’s annual Mobilization Conference. It was good to reconnect with the other OMF mobilizers from around the country and a few from Asia. I find that I always enjoy and learn from hearing what others are doing and to get updated by our colleagues working in the US headquarters. I came away encouraged and challenged to keep on praying for and looking for those that God is leading toward service for him in East Asia.

In another way it was difficult attending this conference for the first time without Karen. But the love and concern expressed by everyone there was very encouraging. On Thursday morning we had a remembrance service to commemorate the 14 members of the OMF family from the US that had passed away in 2008. Most were elderly retired workers but others were younger; like Andrew Prak (age 17), a young appointee working as a policeman who was killed in the line of duty, and of course, Karen. We viewed the photo tribute of Karen that was shown at her memorial service here. I am so thankful for the caring ‘family’ that I have in OMF.

This morning I was reading a prayer in a devotional book entitled, “Valley of Vision”, which is a collection of Puritan prayers and devotions. I’d like to share part of it with you as it expresses well what I feel was Karen’s heart and devotion to her Lord.

Thou art my divine treasury, in whom all fullness dwells,
my life, hope, joy, peace, glory, end;
May I be daily more and more conformed to thee,
with the meekness and calmness of the Lamb in my soul,
and a feeling sense of the felicity of heaven,
where I long to join angels free from imperfections,
where in me the image of my adored Savior will be completely restored,
so that I may be fit for his enjoyments and employments.
I am not afraid to look the king of terrors in the face,
for I know I shall be drawn, not driven, out of the world.
Until then let me continually glow and burn out for thee,
and when the last great change shall come
let me awake in thy likeness,
leaving behind me an example that will glorify thee
while my spirit rejoices in heaven,
and my memory is blessed upon earth,
with those who follow me praising thee for my life.

I think I could truly say that I am not the only one who is praising God for Karen’s life.
I am making this prayer my own.
May it become yours as well.

Posted by David at 12:39 PM

January 7, 2009

January Prayer Bulletin

KAREN MARY (DRULINER) LAMPINEN –January 14, 1948 to December 9, 2008

A little over a month short of reaching her 61st birthday. One month short, exactly, of celebrating our 21st wedding anniversary. To us it seems that Karen’s life was cut short. But not to God. He knew exactly the number of her days. He had determined that before she was born. And he was probably as excited about her coming to join him in heaven as we were dreading her leaving us her on earth. Pray that I won’t be shortsighted as I grieve but have my eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith…so that I will not grow weary or lose heart. Pray the same for Wil. He seems to be handling the loss of his mother well, is kept busy with studies and other school activities and snowboarding whenever possible.

I was snowed in here at our home for several days around Christmas. Wil managed to get out and about with his friends but I enjoyed the enforced seclusion. I worked on a jigsaw puzzle part of the time which was very therapeutic for me. Facing the New Year for me now is a lot like working on a jigsaw puzzle, only it feels like there are many pieces missing and I don’t have the picture on the cover of the box to show me what the finished puzzle will look like. Without Karen in the picture life will be very different and the pieces won’t go together the way I would have wanted them to. But God has a picture and design in mind that he will slowly reveal in his way and in his time. I have asked him to fill in the empty spaces with himself and he is doing that day by day.

The part of the picture that looks clear to me is that I will continue on in my role as an OMF representative for Oregon and southwest Washington, seeking to challenge people with the spiritual needs of East Asia, recruit new workers and promote prayer for our missionaries and the people they are reaching. January 16 & 17 are the dates for Mission Connexion Northwest, the annual city-wide missions conference here in Portland, Oregon. Pray for good contacts with those who will attend this event. Then on Jan. 18th I fly to Denver for OMF’s annual Mobilization Conference at our U.S. headquarters in Littleton, Colorado. This is always a good time of interacting with all the others involved in mobilizing the personnel, prayer and resources needed to reach East Asia’s millions. It will be different and probably difficult for me to be there without Karen. Pray for God’s persistent grace to be my portion during both of these events. Pray too for Wil who will be on his own for the 5 days that I will be away.

I want to thank all of you once again for your faithful prayers over the years. I realize that many of you who are getting this monthly prayer letter have a closer link to Karen than me. If at any time you would wish to stop receiving this prayer bulletin please feel free to let me or the OMF office know and we can take your name off the mailing list.

God bless you. Let’s all keep our eyes on Jesus, Dave

Posted by David at 9:05 PM

January 3, 2009

Snow, sorrow and psalms...

Sorry for the long silence. How do I sum up the past two weeks? Snow, sorrow and psalms. We had a lot of snow. More than most people in the Portland, Oregon area can ever remember having. I rather enjoyed being ‘snowed in’. We had about 18 inches of snow here at our house. Wil on the other hand enjoyed getting out, either on foot or in his 4-wheel drive vehicle to spend time with his friends and on Mt. Hood snowboarding. We both got out on Christmas Eve and went to a church family’s home for a time of fellowship, food and fun. On Christmas day we went to another church family for Christmas dinner and in the evening to a Portland Trailblazer basketball game. Sadly the Blazers lost but it was a fun time for Wil and me and for Wil’s two friends Seth and Alex who came with us. On New Years Eve we went to different friend’s homes. We both enjoyed being with our friends and I especially was encouraged by a time of sharing and prayer as we approached the midnight hour.

The reality of Karen’s absence from our lives has meant experiencing sorrow. Tears flow often each day as I remember her, as I have sorted out her belongings, and try to pick up the pieces of our life that she handled in our home and in our family. New Years Day was especially difficult as it was a dreary, cold and rainy day here and Wil had spent the night with friends and was not at home.

That brings me to the Psalms. God’s Word has a wonderful way of lifting me out of my self absorbed sorrow and turns my focus onto the Lord and his great and unfailing love for me as his child. Each morning as I open my Bible, God has a special passage ready for me; word of comfort, a promise, a reminder of who He is and who I am in Christ, that stirs up hope and joy in my heart and the strength to face the new day.

Thank you to all who have sent cards, e-mails or left messages on our Lampinenlog website. These have all been a real encouragement to me.

Posted by David at 8:51 AM