Easy paths and an absence of trouble are not always the places where believers are called to travel. Often difficulty and struggle come to our lives, bringing heartache, disappointment, and pain. Sometimes those trials come at the most unsuspected time. But as we look back, we can see the hand of God and the guidance of His grace, in shaping and directing our lives.

Sixty-four years ago, just after my 16^th birthday, I remember my dad taking me for my driver’s license test.  Little did I know that within weeks he would be taken to heaven through an airplane crash.  Just before he died  I remember him telling me that a new college was opening that September in Owatonna, Minnesota. I was vaguely aware of the existence of the old Pillsbury Academy in that town because dad had served on the board of that institution when we lived in Minnesota.

These thoughts swirled in my head this September in 2021 when Connie and I returned to the Owatonna campus of the former Pillsbury College that closed in 2008. We had the privilege of joining about 450 folks who were former students, faculty, staff, and supporters of the college for a reunion. Together we remembered what God did on that campus where many of us were trained to be servants of the Lord. 

My college years were filled with wonderful experiences. There were friends, all kinds of activities, classroom learning, and opportunities to serve the Lord on weekends.  But I must confess I was not the most diligent student during those years. My lifelong friend Gordy Lovik, who was ultimately my seminary professor, had to deliver the message to me from the seminary faculty that they were not impressed with my college grades. Even that was a gift of God’s grace to motivate me to achieve a much improved academic record in my graduate studies. 

God meant all of this for good. Looking back it is easy now to see God’s grace evident through the entire process – even the painful parts. It was a special blessing this past September to join a grateful crowd at the Pillsbury campus to give glory to God. We remembered God’s goodness and recounted His faithfulness and sustaining grace. It is truly all about His grace.

During the trip, we passed through several states, cities, and smaller towns. I came away with some definite impressions and observations that led me to take notes and plan to write my reflections. Here are some of those thoughts:

PROSPERITY

Everywhere we traveled there seemed to be evidence of prosperity — at least the appearance, or “shell” of prosperity. The highways, shopping mall parking lots, entertainment venues, and vacation locations were teeming with vehicles and people. Americans were out — unmasked and masked — in droves, everywhere. Still, at a closer look, there were obvious cracks in the outer veneer.

Then the evidence of aging and deteriorating infrastructure were all over the place. City streets in the environs of the embattled Twin Cities seemed to be in especially bad shape. We steered clear of the problematic areas where violence previously erupted, but the signs of wear and tear on public roads highlighted the conundrum prevailing in cash-strapped municipalities.

People were out spending and enjoying their prosperity, but it seems to be only skin deep.

COMPLEXITY

Maybe I am showing signs of my age, but travel seems to be much more difficult than we’ve previously encountered. We drew on many years of experience traveling for Positive Action for Christ when we were still working. I believe right now things are much more complex all over the country. We visited familiar areas from the past and found expanded highway interchanges and roadway challenges. Metropolitan expressways were especially daunting.

UNCERTAINTY

We also encountered disappointing customer service situations where telephone personnel or online systems seemed incapable of helping at all. We continue to struggle with several issues after we have returned home. One thing we learned was that most companies are shorthanded and struggling to find workers, or to cover their customer service operations with the overworked and under-supported staff that they currently employ. The refrain seems to be: “Go to our app or website to get your problems solved,” and that medium just does not provide individualized solutions at all.  

There was an underlying feeling of uncertainty due to the possibility of civil unrest, continuing divisive politics, mixed messaging about Covid, and the unpredictable effects all of these things are having on a tenuous economy. In spite of all of this, people were going about the business of their daily lives.

ACTIVITY

Everywhere we went people were out enjoying summer to the fullest. Families were traveling the highways and jamming the fun places far and wide. And the truck traffic was abundant. I have a theory that trucking has increased on the interstates to supply the distribution points for the online ordering that then gets fulfilled through more truck and delivery traffic to the consumers. At the same time shopping areas seem to be alive with eateries, niche shopping enterprises, and creative entertainment ventures.

SPIRITUAL VITALITY

The most encouraging aspect of our trip was the ministry we were able to participate in among family and friends, and the churches that we were privileged to visit. All of the ministries we visited were vibrant and vital – even during these challenging times. We met, and heard, for the first time the new pastor at Calvary Baptist in Chattanooga, where our daughter and family worship and serve. Pastor Powell assumed the pastorate during the Pandemic and he is bringing blessing and leadership to that large work.

Then we were greatly blessed to share in an unusual and thoroughly encouraging Sunday morning at Pastor Bruce Cournoyer’s church in Madison, Wisconsin. Our son Kirk joined us as we participated in an outdoor service followed by a cookout with the folks of Calvary Bible Fellowship. This warm and growing body of believers was not able to use their usual rented facilities on that morning, and so one of their members hosted the church family at their beautiful home and yard in the country. What a delightful group!

The next Sunday found us at the historic Fourth Baptist Church in suburban Minneapolis. This is the church body where Connie grew up. It is where we met and were married and served before launching out into ministry 55 years ago. However, today Fourth is growing and prospering in their relocated facilities in the expanding western suburbs, while their sister church Family Baptist continues a vital urban ministry in the city neighborhood. Both bodies of believers are serving and showing evidence of health and effective ministry. We were especially struck by the large attendance and marvelous congregational singing on a summer weekend. Pastor Morrell’s expositional message was so practical and it is easy to see why the Lord is blessing that work.

Our final church opportunity was unusual because it was the annual meeting of Calvary Baptist Church in Watertown, Wisconsin, where we attended for a time when serving at Maranatha Baptist Bible College. What a blessing that service was to us! Our dear friend, and faithful tax accountant, Corey Pfaffe gave a stellar church treasurer’s report with great news and spiritual discernment. His presentation was a testimony to the goodness of God during the last year and a half of faithfulness on the part of the Lord and His people. Pastor Bob Loggans gave a wonderful challenge in the service and then treated us to fellowship at Culver’s with his wife and dear friend Char Cedarholm.

We also spent time with many treasured friends and family members along the way and shared memories of past ministry experiences with them. They were all a great blessing to us. What a joy in each one of these experiences to see how God is faithfully sustaining and using His people to declare His glory.     

In January of 1984, Bud Weniger let me know he was taking the presidency of Maranatha Baptist Bible College. I instinctively knew our family would need to move to the Washington D.C. area so that I could fulfill the next step in the ministry where God had placed me. Our home in 1984, and the office for the American Association of Christian Schools, was in Normal, Illinois, where Bud was my boss at AACS, but more importantly pastor of Calvary Baptist Church.

It was not practical to keep the office in Normal long term because I would continue to work under Bud after he moved to Wisconsin. AACS needed to either move to Watertown, Wisconsin, or to the area of the nation’s capital where a good bit of my work activity was focused. I realized right away that the D.C. area was the only logical choice. Thus began a year and a half journey to Northern Virginia.

By the summer plans were beginning to take shape and so we took a family vacation to the Washington area to introduce our kids to the beauty and historical significance of our nation’s capital. We also intended to begin house hunting.

The move exposed our family to the “fast-lane” lifestyle of the sprawling Washington-Baltimore metroplex area. Our house, in the suburb of Chantilly, was 30 miles straight west of the U.S. Capitol, but 20 miles outside of the Capital Beltway. For three exciting and taxing years, we became very familiar with living and struggling in the “outside the Beltway” environment.

Several years before moving Connie and I began to take evening walks due to the example of her parents following her father’s heart attack. In Pleasant Valley, Virginia, the walks through our subdivision became a regular exercise in receiving God’s grace. Looking back we see how God taught us the sufficiency of grace during that time of struggle. In remarking about modern day advertising a current Bible commentator observers that marketers preach the, “power to escape weakness in leisure, but Christianity offers power to endure weakness in love.” We found that to be true.

Today every time we watch a newscast reporting on the political struggles and tensions in Washington, D.C., we hark back in memory to our three years living outside the Beltway. We enjoyed immensely the beauty and history of the area, but we remember the suffocating traffic and congestion, plus the pressures of a fast-lane lifestyle. It took its toll on our health and family.

Was it worth it? Absolutely. During those years we were privileged to participate in the growth and maturing of the Christian School movement. We met many fine Christian educators, valued leaders, and servants of the Lord. We also rubbed shoulders with many hard-working politicians and dedicated public servants. The Lord allowed us to make life long friendships with wonderful Christian people who live and survive in the Washington area. We realize now that God was gracious to help us survive that environment, and after three years escape to Wisconsin. We learned to trust God and walk with Him in a deeper way.  

Connie and I took many day trips to well-known and lesser-known historical sites, and I always loved seeing families enjoying the Capitol Mall – which I think of as America’s “Main Street.” I am afraid the area is even much more stressful today, but I know the ability to survive from 1985-88 was due to God’s grace. We found that truly, “God’s grace is sufficient” for our every need. To repeat an old gospel song, “We wouldn’t take nothing for our journey now.”

The good old days are gone. But many good lessons of the past have been profitably passed on. Likewise, valuable wisdom skills are transmitted from generation to generation. These legacies are worth treasuring. Most of us do not disparage the influence of our grandparents – but we often thoughtlessly discount the past. The cherished personal memories we have received from those who influenced us and guided us often transcend the latest whiz-bang fads or eye-popping technology.

Dennis L. Peterson is a friend of mine who is an author and historian and a former editor and educator. He blogs and passes on many valuable insights from lessons that a study of history affords and the wisdom that can be gleaned from family heritage.

Recently Dennis wrote an article entitled The Ring. Here are some interesting and excellent excerpts from that thoughtful and engaging piece.

You can read the whole story at https://dlpedit.wordpress.com/2021/04/30/the-ring/. You can also profit from Dennis’s finely honed craft of writing – especially his careful telling of stories and the wisdom that he gleans from digging into the fuller lessons found in historic events, things, and most of all, people.

I wrote the following to him.

As I remember a guy by the name of Charlie Hermann recruited me for that job. It was through my association with the Owatonna Parks & Rec director that Charlie was directed to me. I only worked a few times each month, but the experience had a profound influence on me at the time. Many years later I learned that Charlie rose to be a Vice President in the huge corporation that Jostens has grown to be in the business of publishing and recognition products. The ministry Connie and I retired from – Positive Action Bible Curriculum – had books printed by the Jostens company.

I’ve learned that Charlie Hermann became a legend in Jostens’ organization. He was a super motivational speaker and dynamic personality. The Jostens website recorded this about Charlie:

Some people have super personalities like Charlie, and others are faithful and consistent influencers like Dennis Peterson’s dad. Their contributions to our lives are like beacon lights to illuminate our paths and guide us in our quest to find God’s truth and gain a helpful understanding of life. Jesus said: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16.

Not sure how I discovered the game, but I quickly became hooked. The game’s creator, Ethan Allen, was a former major leaguer who became the head baseball coach at Yale University for many years. He was George H. W. Bush’s (the future president) baseball coach at Yale and was a respected teacher of the game.  ASB used real players and real statistics and produced very realistic results.

The game consisted of a mock ball diamond, a spinner, and a series of round disks representing individual major league players. A current website (https://baseballgames.dreamhosters.com/CadacoASB.htm) explains how the game worked: “The disks, with a die-cut rectangular center hole, punched out, were placed over a small cardboard block mounted on the game-board, a spinner spun over it, and the wedge number — 1 through 14 — at which the spinner stopped indicated the result of each at-bat.” The spinner would land on a number indicating a walk, single, double triple, home run — or an out via strikeout, ground out, or fly out.

The number “one” indicated a home run. A home run hitter like Mickey Mantle would have a much larger slot for a homer than speedster Richie Ashburn. Mantle was the all-star centerfielder for the Yankees in 1952, and Ashburn was the all-star centerfielder for the Phillies, my favorite player at that time. Ashburn was not a power hitter, so his home run slot was slim, but his singles and doubles were large because he was a consistent hitter who beat out bunts and stretched singles into doubles. I was captivated by the accuracy and realism of the statistical results.

My neighbor Steve joined my excitement, and we organized so that each of us conducted a 50+ game schedule with two separate leagues. Then we had a world series of our own at the end of our season. We had a great time keeping all of the statistics just like we read in the sports pages of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. But this was our league, and to us, it was not fantasy — it was real.

Butch and Pat weren’t too interested in my game adventure, but they agreed to go if we could stop at the magic shop on Randolph Street, a few steps west of State Street. I can’t believe my mother allowed me as a 13-year-old kid to go with two friends downtown Chicago via the Elevated/Subway train. We had a ball on the “L” — running back and forth between cars and acting like typical jerks. Then they introduced me to The Treasure Chest that I’ve recently learned was owned by a famous Chicago magician who hosted a local TV magic show. We had a great time traipsing up and down the Chicago streets, exploring The Treasure Chest and running the stairways of the Merchandise Mart. Those were truly different days.

I’ve not been a big game person the rest of my life but was enticed by Connie about three years ago to join the monthly Mexican Train Tournament conducted here in Maranatha Village. This event draws around 100 or more every month to play in six-person table configurations of this challenging and competitive game. Some strategy and thinking are required — which I like — but lots of luck is needed. I am amazed that we have a handful of octogenarians, and beyond, that are so sharp and have so much luck. Several of these ladies win over and over. We’ve dragged our kids into Mexican Train, and the granddaughters were overjoyed this Christmas to get their own set.

But we are also still adventuring. The Lord has allowed Connie and me to travel extensively in ministry for many years. During those trips, we continued to explore new places and new experiences. And we are still doing it today as we have launched out over the past seven years to explore the adventures of Florida. This coming summer Connie and I are praying about a new adventure…stay tuned.

I’m not sure why they accepted my youthful decision, which I admit was partly motivated by taking the easy road. I was always the guy that wanted to figure out the easier way to do something. That just made sense to me. So I elected to take three courses that would be academically less demanding – and they have made my life so much more productive. God was gracious in guiding an immature kid to make decisions that would have a profound effect for good on my learning and subsequently on my life serving the Lord.

Second, I took Spanish. Again, I don’t remember the precise reason. Perhaps the other choice before me was Latin, and I thought Spanish would be easier. Or, maybe the options included an English literature class with Mrs. Rule that I would avoid at any cost. Not sure, but I learned to understand English grammar much better by studying Spanish. But most importantly, my brief excursion into Spanish prepared me for later studies in Greek and Hebrew during my post-graduate studies in seminary.

Finally, I chose a semester of Journalism as an English credit. That was my most significant decision – and I can’t take credit for the life-shaping impact that single semester experience has had on my life and ministry. Today it is evident that God’s grace was setting me on a course to prepare me for tasks in the years to come.

In that class, I was exposed to all the facets of newspaper writing and production. A domineering lady was the teacher and served as the sponsor for The Lindblom Leader, the school’s large eight-page broadsheet newspaper. She assigned students in her class to write articles for The Leader and called us reporters. Then she recruited, or appointed, individuals (usually her pets) to become the editorial leaders for the next year – as Seniors.

I was quite pleased when she chose me to be the Front Page News Editor. That meant I could direct the reporters, design layout, create headlines, and run everything about the first page of the paper.

This went along smoothly at first, and then our overbearing advisor changed from being flattering to controlling. I would later learn this was her method of operation every year. She would recruit with sweetness, and then she would change to become dictatorial and controlling. She wanted the editors to spend all their time in her newspaper office under her fiefdom. But some of us had another life too.

At first, I humored her, but then started to realize she was grooming me to be the Editor-in-Chief for my final semester. I determined I could put up with the aggravation, but balked when she wanted to dictate who would take my place as News Editor.

Ultimately she told me that she was making the decisions and that was that. I said, fine, but then she didn’t need me and I resigned. That was it. I never went back and my career with The Leader was over. My relationship with the rest of the staff was not harmed; they were glad that finally, someone stood up to her.

Years later at our 50th Class Reunion, I had the opportunity to talk with the female classmate who wound up taking the Editor-in-Chief position. She said the sponsor was still her old self for that last semester, but my stand helped the staff to gain a little more respect from the old gal. But I have to take my hat off to that teacher. She taught me the basics of writing news stories and “putting the paper to bed” in the parlance of old newspaper layout jargon.

In all of my ministry positions, it has been my responsibility to lead or contribute to organizational publications. During my time with AACS I edited four different publications. Now with the wonders of technology, I write copy and within minutes have it whisked away electronically to spread information around the world in literally seconds. And that makes my job easier – just like I worked so hard at so many years ago. 

Prior to the Second World War private education was generally associated with Catholic and Lutheran religious schools that were known as parochial schools.  There was a small group of Christian schools serving the Reformed denominations, and then an even smaller smattering of independent Christian schools. I believe the current Christian school movement received its impetus in the early 1970s spurred by the development of the curriculum publishers A Beka Books and Accelerated Christian Education. From that time Christian schools, and ministries to support Christian education, grew dramatically.

Connie and I served in and around the Christian school movement for 40 years. Initially Connie taught at all levels from kindergarten to high school and then at the college level. Then she joined me in administrating a national Christian school organization, two Christian colleges, and finally we served side-by-side in a Bible curriculum publishing ministry. In that final ministry we traveled to teacher’s convention and interacted with Christian school teachers and administrators. Ultimately we also exhibited at home-school conferences and interacted with several thousand home-school parents. In all of these years one could say that we saw the good and the not-so-good aspects of Christian Education and the Christian school movement.

Unfortunately not every school that opened during the boom years was an adequately conceived and supported educational institution. Many schools operated in less than ideal facilities, and were underfunded and understaffed. Still, we can attest to the fact that we’ve met thousands of bright, resourceful and dedicated servants of the Lord who labored in Christian education. And we know countless adults today who are products of Christian schools and home-school education who are very productive and impressive members of society.

During the presidency of Ronald Regan I served on the U.S. Department of Education’s Exemplary Private School Recognition Project committee for four years. This group of educational leaders represented all facets of the private school universe at that time. We reviewed dozens of school nominations and then voted to reward the most “exemplary” schools each year for their effort.

During that experience our entire group of participants learned some important things about effective schools. The most notable schools were not marked by financial prowess, or magnificent facilities, or faculties with distinguished intellectual accomplishments. Instead, in every case there was a head of the school who was a respected, caring, and strong leader in the institution. Faculty members were enthusiastic teachers who relished the focus and commitment of their leader, and poured themselves into their student’s lives. This was true in financially deprived urban schools or in well endowed suburban institutions. People made the difference. Leadership was essential, and caring instructors followed their leader in impacting students in the classrooms.  

Early in the 1980s I began to give a convention workshop that addressed the three greatest challenges that confronted the Christian school movement at that time. I said they were:

• The challenge of governmental interference that was an ever-present reality facing Christian schools in the early days of the movement.
• The challenge of demonstrating educational legitimacy and ultimately proving academic competency by student outcomes.
• The final challenge mentioned in that workshop remains a persistent struggle for the movement today.  That challenge is the mission to produce godly young people, who are the products of the Christian school movement. 

Even though great strides have been accomplished in securing legitimacy and liberty the spiritual battle has not yet been won; the task has not been finished.  Perhaps because our battle with sin will never be completed until Christ returns.  Perhaps it is because we have not placed as much emphasis upon the spiritual dimension as we have upon the educational program.   Perhaps it is because ungodly societal influences have become more powerful and pervasive.  Nevertheless, this is still our greatest challenge in our schools, churches and homes.

In 1986, the late Alan Peshkin, a professor of comparative education from the University of Illinois, wrote a book entitled God’s Choice: The Total World of a Fundamentalist Christian School.  I participated extensively with Dr. Peshkin during his research and became a personal friend. He was a renowned ethnographer who wrote penetrating studies about varied educational experiences all over the world based on extensive fieldwork.

Alan spent many hours in Connie’s classroom, as well as those of other teachers in the school. He told me that the level of education was excellent, and he was deeply impacted by the commitment and convictions of the faculty, staff, and students. Being a secular Jew, he was troubled by the evangelistic commitment of Bible believing Christians, but he did not doubt the sincerity of everyone involved. Perhaps his most penetrating analysis was his comment that the Christian school’s “total institution is imperfectly total, perhaps inevitably so, because unlike the Amish, its adherents live mainly within the world it rejects.” That was an astute observation, but I would disagree with his use of the word “rejects.” As believers we do not reject the world – but we are called to minister in the world. The Christian school may be an imperfect world, and it is, but the ministry of impacting lives for time and eternity is a blessed privilege.

Recently, in our retirement community, Connie and I attended the memorial service for one of our residents, who had been a shut-in since we came to Maranatha Village. We knew her only from Facebook posts and some email interaction. But at the service where her life and service for the Lord was celebrated, we learned that she had been a classroom teacher in two Christian schools for 39 years. It became apparent early in the service, from the testimonies of her family members, that Linda Bond had touched hundreds of lives. Her legacy was that of a “life well lived” in pouring herself into students. That testimony has been repeated over and over in the hundreds and hundreds of classrooms in Christian schools over the years. That is the blessing of Christian Education.

After reviewing records of the Exemplary Private School Recognition Project, I discovered that Linda Bond’s school, Arlington Baptist High School, was listed as one of the recognized schools among the 1984-85 recipients. That was the first year of the project and Arlington would have been presented their recognition certificate by then Secretary of Education William Bennett. Linda taught Spanish for 25 years at Arlington Baptist.