12.06.2005

A strange paradox...

It is a strange paradox - this life I live. If you haven't followed this gig long enough, allow me to 'splain.

Serving at the International House of Prayer, we are first and foremost intercessory missionaries. This means we are a daily part of the prayer meeting that began in 1999 and continues today, 24 hrs/day, 7 days/week. Our schedule lists the hours that we will be there helping to carry on the sacred solemn assembly.

Our secondary assignment would be in the area of general leadership. IHOP is a world of young people, and as we're not getting any younger, we might as well lead. We have them in our home, have coffee with them, and razz them in the hallways (this last one, me more than Kels. She's always been the nice one).

Further down the list is the role of Marketing Czar for IHOP. This would be as glamorous as it sounds if I had a clue about marketing. I have no recollection of ever taking a marketing class in my life. I operate by gut instinct and with a very patient team.

I said all that to accentuate that first of all, we're missionaries. This means we raise our own funds. We send out newsletters, we travel when necessary (often not practical - could you drive 400 miles to pick up your check this week?), and we pray like crazy that it comes in. For 2 years, it has. We have been back against the wall a number of times, but each time God has whispered our name in someone's ear. It's been quite amazing.

So here's the deal...as a missionary, you need to get used to people giving you things. If you don't, you starve. But sometimes what they give you is sort of unexpected. Once, a good friend gave me his old used car. He was trading it in and the dealer said it was only worth a few hundred dollars. I turned it for a thousand bucks inside of a week. Good for him, good for me. But still, it's hard to get used to. I work hard...but people give me things and with that stuff I feed the kids and pay the mortgage and get haircuts. Well, 2 out of 3.

I was most surprised recently when someone told me that my iBook was not going to be sufficent in the days to come and gave me the provision for a new one. Not just a 'new one'...but the 17 inch Mac Daddy of laptops. I'm typing on it right now.

God knows I don't have a clue how to do this right. But at the same time, God knows my name.

Life it what it is, but it's not boring, that's for sure. Scroll down for photo of the latest miracle, minus the appearance of the virgin Mary.

6 comments:

Jenny Powell said...

hey... it's a good thing i clicked on your amazon wishlist to figure out what the 'fellowes body glove' was. if i hadn't found out it had to do with your brand spanking new mac.... i'd have thought you wanted a man purse! i was thinking, 'so that's what they call it these days... hmmmm... wouldn't have taken randy for a man purse type...' :)

Randy Bohlender said...

No man purse for me. But I did by this freakin' cool hardshell pack that makes me look strangely turtle-like.

Jenny Powell said...

you'd probably need a hardshell pack to carry around that new thing!! :) i wonder if i could even pick it up! i am pretty sure that your mac could eat mine for a mid-morning snack. :)

Randy Bohlender said...

Jen - yes, it two bites. It ate an iBook, two iPods and a pair of earbuds yesterday. It seems not to care for Dells. It said they taste fishy.

Farmer Family said...

BTW, does it prick you just the slightest to know that your laptop is now considered old--mine is ancient ... my, my how technology flies. See apple.com for further explanation. Sorry it had to be like this.

Josh

Randy Bohlender said...

Totally! With Apple's new release yesterday, mine is now a doorstop. Gorgeous doorstop though.