Morning Mercies New

written 8.15.20 ish

(step into the past with me and forget everything that has happened since September. I wrote this blog post 2 weeks into our August 1st arrival in PA, but soon realized we didn’t have a platform for sharing… so we now have a blog! I’ll follow up with a more current post soon 🙂

{If you’re crunched for time, just read the bold portions and you’ll catch the “cliff-notes.”}

Have you ever had the feeling that external circumstances were occurring specifically for your individual benefit? Let me give an example:

A couple of weeks ago Justus and I (Nate) were playing with water on our tiny back patio while Katie took the car out to run errands. All of a sudden, a lightning storm approached with great power and velocity, striking quickly with only seconds of pause between blasts. We saw the lightning as if just on the other side of our neighborhood with a trajectory heading immediately toward our small strip of townhomes. So, the two of us ran inside with barely enough time to dry off, nuke some popcorn and set up front row seats at the window (what else does one do with no car, no basement, a confused child, and potentially only minutes left to live?). So I prayed. A lot. And to me, Justus was the naive, confused child I was posing tranquility for. To God, that child was me. I was scared. I was confused. But He wasn’t a scared dad faking poise. The lightning engaged a couple hundred feet away out to the right side of our window view, then 30 seconds later out the left. I could feel the vibrations tremble through my chest. Justus looked at me with shock, hoping to learn something from my words or reactions, so I acted excited and awe-struck at the wonder before us. But I was on the brink of terror! My heart began sinking with despair. Was I witnessing my last moments of life? And my sons? What about all the plans and preparations that the Lord had been making for our family to move to Pennsylvania for seminary? What about Katie? Would she come home to the horrific scene of some concentrated execution of judgment and be forced to raise our coming son on her own?

“Lord,” I prayed, “forgive me for my lack of faith, but please protect me and protect this child you’ve lended to me. Make good your promises to me,” I pleaded, “and the plans you are working out for our family! Remember the many times you’ve preserved my life from the grave (stories for another time) and remember your purposes for me!” The storm clouds hovered over our comparatively miniscule existence called ‘home,’ and I finished with “Not my will, but Yours be done, oh Lord. I will watch and wait.”

Silence.

Pure, utter silence as the clouds passed over our home. I moved our chair to the window at the opposite side of our townhouse and whispered small comments to the boy in my lap as he stuffed popcorn in his mouth and announced just what he had experienced out the other window: “Thunder BOOM!!” Over and over again. Katie arrived home just after the clouds passed over us, but the rain still beat down incessantly, so I shielded her with an umbrella and she joined us inside. Just after closing the screen door, lighting broke out again at the same pace as before, but this time a couple hundred feet on the other side of our house. So we pulled up a seat for Mama and shared our popcorn and stories with her while we watched, with contrastingly light and thankful hearts, as the storm departed.

There’s too much to unpack here in just a short time.. The number of lessons to learn from a moment’s experience is so vast! We could consider the practical nature of wiser things one could do in the event of a thunderstorm. We could explore the spiritual implications, like God’s faithfulness, or the benefits of watching and waiting prayerfully, or the nature of mercy, etc. Instead, I’ll utilize this story as an example of the kinds of ways the Lord has generously, and often miraculously provided for my family.

I try, daily, to remain aware of new mercies as God presents them. I like to keep track. Not for bragging rights or to sound holy, but simply to give God credit for what He’s done! “Yeah, Katie bought me this shirt,” or “Oh, Justus helped make these cupcakes!” we say when we want to praise others and bolster their reputation. Why shouldn’t we do so with God’s good gifts, too?

So, to end, I’ll share with you 10 mercies God has shown us over the past few months, and, in so doing, offer you an update as you worship God with me through these.

Mercy extended my employment an extra month- Coronavirus adjusted our plans to resign from my job at Mercy Presbyterian Church at the end of June, rather than May (providing us more time with our beloved church family, and one extra month of pay to smoothen our transition to PA).

We held the yard sale we needed for fundraising, and more- COVID also deterred our plans for an April yard sale- hoping to build funds for furnishing a new home while ridding ourselves of the unnecessaries. Then we received a notice in May that there would be a neighborhood yard sale the last weekend of June! (a huge success, especially in tandem with Katie running communications on Facebook Marketplace for better prices on more valuable items).

Mercy planned a sweet send-off- My last Sunday serving as the Music & Youth Director at Mercy Presbyterian was one of the most beautiful I’ve experienced in the 10 years we’d been attending. I led the music unplugged and simply let the Church’s voice maintain prominence for each song (something I regret not doing more frequently). The Church sent us off with prayers and well-wishes, allowing me to share, at both services, the Lord’s unfolding plans for us. Many planners, including the Toumala’s, the Ellsworths, the Rigg’s and others I didn’t know of, hosted an intermission between services, designed to allow church family to talk with us and say final goodbye’s. Our Mercy family offered many thanks, many love gifts, many hospitable events and meals and many more invitations than we could attend. Could we, of ourselves or our own volition, have prepared such an abundantly orchestrated send-off, bundled with comfort and encouragements like a toddler in a foam pit? Give glory to God!

July was vacation month with family and old friends- At the wise suggestion of our Pastor, Bryan Rigg, we decided to take July as a vacation month- visiting friends and family and spending time together just as a family of 3 before baby boy is born (due Oct. 25th). So we rented an AirBnb with a group of my high school besties (once a group of 5, now 14 with wives and children) for 4th of July weekend, and it was an absolute bucket-filler! The next week we visited with Katie’s family in South Carolina, and the following week mine in Maine. As always, many memories made, but not an abundance of “nothing-time.” Restful and memorable, but not particularly relaxing, I’ve decided. Nights in hotels were rough on the family, but we made it work. Justus struggled with the lack of routine, long hours in the car, and little control over his circumstances, but all in all he was such a champ throughout and we shared some beautiful memories with him (first swim, first time hearing a lion’s roar, first time kayaking, first time falling out of a kayak, first full ice cream cone (in SC and Bar Harbor and Bucksport- we went all out), first zipline (playground), first time in a “hootel,” first road trip up the east coast, first time feeding horses, and first family move!). After all this, we had one week in our old home and we packed to leave August 1st.

God provided the perfect apartment- Due to wise counsel in Virginia (particularly Moose Pierce), we switched our mindset from buying a house in PA to renting an apartment. The realtor we had chosen just so happened to be the mother of a prior Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) student and owned a couple apartments she and her husband like to rent to WTS students. And.. there was a spot opening up the summer before I started classes. Over mobile phone videos and on Google maps, the place seemed just right. The agent’s/owner’s reputation is flawless online, and her interactions with me were very loyal and considerate. But one can only be so sure. So we committed to faith, knowing Someone Else was looking out for us more than we could ourselves.When we moved in, we found that we live in one of the best areas (for our liking) around! We’re at the end of a cul-de-sac, 3 miles from the seminary, with the track of a large and beautiful catholic high school at our backs. It’s a quiet neighborhood, branching off an important road with abundant options for the necessities (groceries, doctors, eateries, banks, phone carriers, etc), but the traffic is relatively minimal and the road offers sidewalks on both sides. Across the street is a notable gas station with the lowest prices we’ve found anywhere, and a park less than half a mile away! We live in one of the most notable townships for quality education and everyone I’ve met, thus far, is SO NICE! How could we have planned all that out so perfectly?? The Lord’s kindness alone.

The Lord provided an excellent moving crew, both in Lynchburg and in Glenside (PA)- With the help of the Ellsworths, Whites, Hixs, Foxs, Ethan Davenport and Matt Morrison, we exited Lynchburg in our just-in-time UHaul truck (arrived on the lot 15 mins before we needed to pick it up for packing), with our favorite breakfast of Blue Ridge Bagel’s breakfast sandwiches and Joe Beans’ frappuccinos. Upon entering Glenside, the apartment owner showed us around, gave us our keys and then came my team of recruited laborers (mostly recruited by my good friend and prior pastor, Dr. Rob Edwards)- among whom were Rob, Josh Dempsey, Alden Groves, Joel Richards, Ben Thompson, Ben Picard, and Jen.. soon-to-be Picard, haha. A stunning crew on both ends, and an opportunity to meet some quality people on this side of the story. We are comforted to have a couple slices of our old home (Rob and Josh) here in our new one. Thanks, Lord.

The Lord provided a job for me within 1st week!- A good friend from Maine, Seth Dorman, whom I sat with in classes from 7th-12th grade frequently debating theological arguments, just graduated from WTS this spring. He left behind an open position at a small business called “JHandyman,” helping people around the area finish their home ‘punch lists’ (any job from hanging curtain rods to building a deck, and much more). He offered me his boss’ contact information and I had kept up with Mr. Waggoner a few times with some externally foiled plans for meeting. Thankfully, by the Lord’s grace, this reputable man was returning to a full pace of work and needed a hire to fill Seth’s shoes (big shoes to fill- I think he’s a 12 and I’m a 10), so he offered me breakfast and made comfortable conversation, then hired me on the spot! I’ll be working full-time until classes start, then scale back as needed. Wow, Father! Thank You!

Katie found an OB doctor- After much thoughtful research and inquiry, the names of a few particular hospitals and a few particular doctors passed through our/Katie’s ears and Katie made the jump. Her OB in Lynchburg, Dr. Pierce, is phenomenal and we have been so grateful for His counsel over the years. After many phone calls to various doctor’s offices, gathering information, yet not locating the exact office where recommended OB’s were providers, Katie has found a hospital and a doctor. When the first appointment was scheduled, the only OB available was with the same highly recommended OB, by a WTS wife, who is quickly becoming one of Katie’s friends. This is only the Lord’s doing!

We got new phones and a new/old stroller (story)- Katie and I have intentionally stayed 4-5 years behind the current trends on most things, but specifically phones. Prior to our new phones, I had an iPhone 5 and Katie an iPhone 6. Since our travels (and possibly a dip in the lake), our phones have been burning up while in use, killing any semblance of battery life, especially in times of greatest need. . . (pull out the paper map!) so we bought new phones! This has been on our to-do list for the last 6 months or so, and we just have not found the time, nor wanted to spend the money. Soon after, an amazing deal popped up on our Verizon account for a necessary upgrade. Sadly, the upgrade only applied to my phone, but I trudged on for a glorious deal! So, interestingly enough, the day that I decided would be fully devoted to purchasing new phones for us, the nearest store was closed due to power outages (Katie had the car, so I rode my bike). Also, recently half-ish of Verizon customer service employees were laid off since COVID, so wait times were deathly long. And the phone reception at our apartment is very spotty. And so.. I spent an entire workday trying to contact customer support, or really anyone who could help, to no avail. So… I guess it was the next day that was truly devoted to buying new phones- and it was like a dream… I walked in to a warm greeting from the area operations manager and he set me up with some amazing deals, both on phones and internet options. I was done in an hour. Then, on my way back home, I remembered a double stroller I had previously seen waiting, roadside, for trash day (This was an important item on our ‘nesting’ list). So I put my hand out to signal a left turn, angled my handle bars in the right direction and there was the trash truck, two stops away from the stroller. I raced to the scene and made it with time to spare. I folded up the stroller, plopped it on my bike seat and walked home a very, very proud and grateful man 🙂 I took great joy from the hymn “I Stand Amazed in the Presence,” on my walk home. Thank You, thank You, thank You, Father.

Thank you, reader, for taking the time to worship with me through our June, July and August stories. Thank you for lifting up praises and requests for the Lord’s favor on us, His servants.

I will end with a few prayer requests.

-Please pray for our baby boy’s health and a smooth delivery (due Oct. 25th). So far he has proven to be very healthy and active.

-Please pray for Katie, anticipating labor and considering some form of part-time work in December/January?

-Please pray that I’ll be responsible with my studies (as I tend to favor the practical/physical project over the academic one)

-Please pray for a new Church home (a new Mercy, so to speak, haha) while we miss our cherished, prior one.

To God be the Glory. May His peace and joy follow you all the days of your life as He continues to do for us.

Our sincerest regards to you,

The Fowlers

P.s. Be on the lookout for a newer post soon!