This Pilgrim's Progress

11 Months Ago

The San Diego Union-Tribune had a big article in the Sunday edition on the air-crash from last February that caused the fire at our house.  Their bottom line is to put some blame on the Traffic Controllers at the regional facility at Miramar. None of this is official findings, which won't be final for awhile. They did get the details wrong about what set our house on fire. Nothing landed on our roof, the big hole that was visible in aerial shots was from fire-fighters ventilating the roof to get to the fire. The wing that landed in our front yard was full of burning fuel, which splashed the front of the house and set the attic on fire through the eave-vents.

The article is at: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20070114-9999-1n14collide.html

Christmas 2006

                                                            December 2006

Dear Family and Friends,

In 2006 we had a major upheaval in our lives but God used it to remind us of his gracious provisions and plan for our lives.  Here is an excerpt from an article Heidi wrote about our experience;

“On what was otherwise a very normal Wednesday, two small aircraft collided over my quiet Fletcher Hills neighborhood around 4:40 in the afternoon on February 8.  One plane scattered wreckage over about a square mile of our neighborhood.  An entire wing fell directly into our front yard, singeing the side of our house with burning fuel.  The flames traveled upward along the wall and entered our attic through vent holes in the eaves.  Over half the attic was charred black, but thanks to efforts of heroic neighbors and firefighters, and our new double pane windows, the fire was contained in the attic and put out before it could travel through the walls and destroy any of our more important belongings.

However, due to the water damage and extensive damage to the roof, our entire house has been gutted, and extensive remodeling will be done, including replacing the roof, new interior and exterior stucco and paint, and numerous other things.  The optimistic estimate is that we will return home in six months.  For the time being we’re renting nearby.  My mom likes to call it a blessing in disguise.  For months our house needed new paint and other improvements that we just didn’t have time for.  But with our insurance policy, the majority of expenses for the remodel will be covered, as well as cleaning, rental and replacement costs.

As I look back on these events, I cannot help but marvel at the innumerable ways God spared and watched over my family.  No one was in the house at the time of the collision.  Dad was at work, my brother had just left for swim practice, and I was returning home late with my mom from a violin lesson.  The firefighters even managed to save our animals.  We’ve run through the scenario in our minds countless times since the crash.  What if Andrew was home alone?  What would I have done?  What if neighbors had not been home to put out the flames?  Seeing black smoke pouring from my house was one of the most shocking and surreal things I’ve ever experienced, but even then God spared me from seeing the crash itself.  There are countless other incidences that amaze us, little things that show how God surrounded our family with protection.  Even the pictures on our walls were safely packed in boxes because I had painted the living room the week prior and hadn’t had time to put them back up yet. . .”

After 7 ½ months in a rental, we finally moved back into our newly rebuilt house. Recently, while Gerry and I were talking about how grateful we are to be in our own space again, we were inspired by the scripture that says, “Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.  Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling. . .” 2 Corinthians 5:1-2.  We now have a new understanding of what it means for our spirits to long for a place where they belong because we longed to get back into our physical house.  Daily we are reminded that God took care of us through the whole ordeal.  He provided family and friends to care for and comfort us.  He provided the means, through insurance, for us to live in a safe place and for us to rebuild and return in a timely manner.  Finally, he gave us a glimpse of heaven.  Just as our physical house feels familiar but new at the same time, that is how heaven will feel.  Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”

This has been a year that has deeply affected us and hopefully as the years go by we will continue to remember God’s gracious mercy to our family through it all.  In this Christmas season, we are reminded of God’s greatest gift to us of his son Jesus Christ.  Isaiah 9:6 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” May we seek to know him better every day.

Merry Christmas,

Debbie for the Seiferts                     

February 9, 2006

December 19, 2006

 

Life is good, God is Great!

We had a great weekend!  My son did very well in his swim meet cutting a bunch of time off most of his events. Daughter spent the weekend at Joshua Tree with her Biola Rock Climbing class. From the pictures it looks like she had a great time!! I mucked about doing yard work and planted some grass seed after reconnecting the sprinkler timer. Sunday I had a massive sinus headache (from mowing the lawn), but I largely recovered by the afternoon. We are looking forward to the Thanksgiving week. I'm taking some vacation time, and hopefully we can do some hiking in the mountains. Life seems to be especially sweet to me lately, I guess I am just appreciating what and how the Lord has blessed our family! 

Politics is getting crazier, and after being ignored by Bush and the Republican party as a traditional-values-conservative, I'm going to ignore current politics for awhile. I'll show THEM!!

Actually there is so much more important stuff in my life it just shoves politics aside for awhile. Like getting our beloved Lab, Toby, obedience trained!! He is a dominant male Lab, and so he tolerates our attempts at training with good humor. He is a sweet personality, but we really need to get him under our control or used to our control!?? Food motivates him pretty thoroughly, but it you don't have a treat in your hand, you might as well forget it!!

Finding a new job. I've got to get a resume together, the last one I have is 10 years old.

Finish designing my son's history and literature curriculum for this year. As usual, I'm behind on doing the research on this, but I need to buckle down and get it finalized.

I'm looking forward to roasting a big turkey in our brand new Viking range!! And I'm looking forward to the potatoes and gravy, and to the fellowship of friends and family.

See, there's a lot more importance stuff going on in the world besides how our politicians are busy committing political mal-practice (that's where the nation dies instead of a patient)!!!

We have much to be thankful for.

Soli Deo Gloria!

The Other Shoe Dropped!

Well we've been back in our rebuilt house for 5 weeks now. Our family feels especially blessed to be back in our home.  So many people who lost their home in the Cedar Fire have still not recovered or rebuilt. My wife and I wondered what the Lord had in store for us for the future, since through His Grace we had weathered the reconstruction of our house. As a Christian you know life is not necessarily going to be trouble-free, in fact it is usually the opposite.  The Holy Spirit uses life's circumstances to mold us to Christ's image, both the good and the bad. 

Today my co-workers and I heard the news that the owner of the company was selling off major portions of the business and that most of us would be layed off in the next 8 months. The severance package is going to be very generous and it was very kind of him to let us know so far in advance. So, once more I will be in job-hunting mode. It's never very fun, and I'd hope that I wouldn't have to do it again so soon. I've been with the company nearly 8 years, and it was feeling like I could do this for another 8 years with no problem. But the Lord brings these challenges into our lives for a reason. He's always been very faithful to my family and provided the right job I need to support my family. I look forward to seeing what he has in store for me this time!!

Blessings

Well we are finally start to get settled down now at our rebuilt home!! We've gone through most of the 400 boxes we had and gave/sold most of the stuff we wanted to get rid of. I still need to go through my closet and weed through my clothes and get rid of the stuff I don't/won't wear.  I'm back at work, letting my body recover!! I'm still sort of sore all over from last week unpacking boxes.  My wife is going through our old records and getting rid of anything older than 7 years. She just about wore out our little shredder!!

Our daughter drove down from Biola last weekend, and she only got through a handful of boxes. The rest we just stacked up in her room!! It was good to see her, and she was quite pleased with her room and how the whole house turned out.

The yard and the roses really got hit hard by the construction. The stucco guys made a concerted effort to trample my roses and destroy the grass with leftover stucco!! So, I've got some work to do. Before the fire our precious Poochus Maximus, Toby, detroyed the drip system in the back yard, so all in all I've got enough stuff to fill a few months of weekends.  Our side fences need replacing too, so even though we are back in our almost-seems-like-new home, there's always some sort of maintenance or repair to do. But at least the work I'm doing is to improve OUR property and not someone else's!! That was the most difficult thing for me as a renter, was seeing stuff that needed to be done, but feeling constrained because I didn't own the property.

It is truly a blessing to have a home and be back in it!!

Home-coming

The month of September has been pretty much of a blur to us!! The contractors managed to pull it off and finish most everything by Friday Sept. 22. We moved in this past Monday, and we've spent the whole week unpacking about 400 boxes of stuff that had been in storage since the fire. We have been pretty picky about what things to keep and what to give away. By this past Friday we had 70 some boxes of stuff we were going to give away. Andrew wanted to have a yard sale, so we let him do it Saturday.  He managed to sell about half the boxes and earned a nice little sum for his hobbies.

Saturday we also went to a memorial service for one of our church's saints, Gordon Peterman, who passed away after a long battle with cancer.  He was a wonderful man, full of Christ's love and committed to the the gospel. He was much loved not only in our church but in the local reformed community as well. His example of not only running a good race but finishing well was an inspiration to all who knew him. I know that God was glorified by Gordon's life and by his death.

During the service it occurred to both my wife and I that we had a physical homecoming this week, and Gordon had a spiritual homecoming. And just as it has been a huge comfort to us emotionally and physically to return to our earthly home, how much more wonderful it must be for Gordon as he returned to his spiritual home and joined the saints to await the Resurrection. When we return to our spiritual home the joy and sense of complete fulfillment will be unsurpassed and the bounds and afflictions of this existence will no longer be a part of us. We will be with our King and our Savior in constant communion.  As time goes by I've become more and more aware how wearying this life is, and I'm beginning to really long for my spiritual homecoming. Evenso, I know that the Lord still has some plans in store for me and my family in this lifetime and we need to embrace Christ contantly in order to run a good race and finish well to God's Glory, just like our friend Gordon has.

Whew!!

I can't believe how long since I've posted! I've been very busy with life, so hobbies take a back seat!

Last weekend we sent our daughter off to college. She's going to Biola, and I think she'll really like it. It was a mad-house at the dorm, getting her situated, etc. She has two room-mates in a room designed for two people, so it was a really feat of engineering to get everything arranged to everyone's satisfaction.  She's had a couple of classes this week and seems to be on fire for them. She really likes the fact that her professors are Christian, and the general environment is very nurturing. We were relieved to see that, so my wife and I knew we made the right choice in selecting Biola.  My wife is having to go through an adjustment in having her daughter in college, she's had some tough moments, but I think she'll be fine in a few days. Of course I miss my daughter too, but it's different for a Dad!

Work has been challenging too, as I have been struggling to learn Sql Server 2005, especially SSIS which will be one of my main tools. The learning curve is steep, but I'm making some progress.  But at the end of the day I'm quite tired from all of the intense mental concentration.

On top of that, things are starting to wind up quickly with our house. The contractor says we should be in by the middle of September, so we are giving our 30 days notice to our landlord.  The house is looking very good. There a thousand little details to take care of and decisions to be made, but it is sure nice to see that we might actually be in our house soon. It's been tough for us, but the Lord has sustained us.

We have a busy weekend coming up. My wife and I will spend Saturday at a local bluegrass festival. I've never been to one, so I'm really looking forward to hearing some great live music. Sunday our son and his uncle are competing in a sprint triathlon down in IB. They've been training hard for the last few months, so we will be there to cheer them on!!

The Lord has blessed us in so many ways, and we are very thankful for our family and friends.  It will be nice to get back into our own home and sort of pick up our life from where it was before the accident. We've felt like we have been sort of camping out the last 6 months, so we are looking forward to seeing this chapter in our life close!!

"Wedded Bliss"

Tomorrow my wife and I celebrate our 26th wedding anniversary. It has been a incredible life for us together, and I'm very blessed to be married to Debbie.  We both have been thankful that we are going through the year's events together, and we can't imagine enduring it without a partner.  We have much to celebrate and thank God for!

Is it a crime to murder your contractor?*

You can tell from the post title that things are not going so good lately with our home rebuilding.  The progress has slowed to a crawl the last 6 weeks, and we are getting a little frustrated by it all.  It's hard to tell from our perspective if the contractor is being negligent, or if it's just the nature of the building process. So, we are trying hard not to be angry and to be patient. But we need God's grace, because it's really beyond us sometimes.

At the same time we are getting our daughter ready to go off to Biola in August. We think we are just about there. I ordered a new desktop from Dell, so we can let Heidi take the laptop to school. But then I found out it might take 2 months to get it because Dell was backordered on some parts!! They are checking with their suppliers, and they are supposed to get back to me by Thursday to let me know if there's any possibility of getting it sooner. If we can't get it sooner, I'll either have to get a cheap laptop to use in the meantime, or try to resurrect our old PC.  (sigh) Well, I can't complain about being bored with life!! It's been pretty action-packed lately.

*The consensus at work is that it is a crime, but no jury would convict you!!!

Father's Day 2006

I get pretty reflective this time of year due to Father's Day and my birthday coming around within the same month.

Some thoughts I have this year are on what me and my family have gone through the past six months.  I'm mostly thankful that none of us was injured by the fire, and we've weathered the stress and strain of living in a rental house and dealing with the issues that have come up. 

I'm also realizing that with our oldest child getting ready to go off to college this fall and our youngest having just a few more years of high school, that my role as a father is going through a rather significant change.

My children don't need me quite in the same way they used to, yet in some ways they need me even more. I'm finding that it's important for me to be an affirming and positive influence, encouraging them more than directing them. They don't need me to tell them what to do, or even how to do things. As they both make the first tentative "flights out of the nest", they just need to know that their parents are there for them and love and support them no matter what. Adulthood is kind of a scarey thing (even for a 54 year old), and they just need some encouragement as they approach it and it's rocky shoals.

I look back over the past as a parent and I just want to encourage parents to devote themselves to nuturing their children when they are young. Those years are so important, and yet so fleeting. Sometimes you fail as a parent, but if you have your eye on God and seek his counsel, the Holy Spirit fills in where you are weak.  The worse sin is to not be engaged and involved as a parent. Too many professionals get wrapped up in their career and neglect their families. You can't "outsource" your role as a parent.

Some things I've learned (imperfectly) over the years as a father:

• Humility is important, pride is not.
• A sense of humor is a vital resource.
• Don't neglect your marriage, a good marriage requires effort,  self-sacrifice, and humility.
• Let your anger cool before you discipline your children. Do it out of love, rather than out of pique.
• Heed the loving counsel of your wife. Mothers have a special insight into your children and have a lot of wisdom in that area.
• Take the lead on financial matters, don't let it default to your wife.  You are much more capable of dealing with it unemotionally, and it's your job as a provider to deal with the finances.
• Soft words are better than loud ones. I'm still learning this one. Women and children are frightened by loud and violent speech. Don't speak in anger, but hold your peace until your emotions are calm. This is harder than it sounds, but also very important.
• Trust the Lord. Plan for the future but don't worry or fret over those plans. The Lord will direct your path as long as you are in motion.  Failure to act or plan is not a decision, if you are "waiting on the Lord", you are wasting time.
• Put your family's welfare ahead of your personal interests or ambitions. Don't let your wants, desires, ambitions, weakenesses prevent you from doing your duty as a Christian husband and father. Be the protector, the Knight so to speak of your household.
• Pride is worthless, humility is priceless, and Humor makes light the heavy burdens of life.

Well, God Bless all you Fathers, Grandfathers, and Fathers-to-be out there!  And God Bless your families!!