Skip to main content

(You Want To) Make A Memory

I thank my God every time I remember you. (Philippians 1:3)

Every once in awhile a song will come out that really hits home; Bon Jovi’s latest single “(You Want To) Make A Memory” is one of those songs.  From the first time I heard it, I couldn’t help but think back to last year, when I spent a lot of time trying to do just that.  A day that really sticks with me was my birthday last April, when my Dad played the keyboard and my family sang me Happy Birthday in both English and Polish (an annual tradition).  When I blew out the candles on that birthday cake, I had a feeling it was going to be the last time I did so with my Dad and Grandmother.  I cherished every moment of that song and that night, and tried to “make a memory” that would last a lifetime.

Unfortunately, this April 15th, the seat at the keyboard was empty and there were two less voices in the chorus.  But thankfully the good Lord Jesus was by my side again that day, and I had the rest of my family “sing the melody to me”, led this time by my little nephew.

Thankfully there are a lot of great memories that I can cling to, where that seat at the keyboard will forever be filled…and if I try just hard enough I can still hear the music.

Popular posts from this blog

Farewell Mike

  “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16)   Last September, Dee and I made an extremely difficult decision to switch churches. The toughest part was leaving behind our “small group” made up of people that have become like family.  For decades, biweekly between the months of September and May, we’d get together to worship and pray with and for one another.  The prayers offered up there I firmly believe changed the trajectory of many lives for the better.     Back in 2015, an older gentleman, Mike, joined our group and we hit it off right from the start.  Mike was a prayer warrior – if I knew Mike was praying for us, I just had a deeper peace that whatever the situation was, it was going to work out for the best.  Mike also had the best memory I’ve ever been around – he even came to know my schedule...

The 25th Wedding Anniversary

“He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.” (Proverbs 18:22)   July 1st marks Dee and my 25 th  wedding anniversary.  How could time have gone so quickly?  It seems like just yesterday Dee was walking down the aisle, and here we are looking back at so many years gone by.     Those years have been filled with not only many mountain-top moments, but also times of hardship and sorrow.  Thankfully, those difficult times have helped bring us only closer.  As time has gone by, we’ve navigated toward doing almost everything together – we’ve found through times of separation, we simply work better together as a team.     The success of that team is not a mystery to us – on day one we put Jesus at the center of our marriage and there He shall always remain.  Oh, the many times He’s been there to right and steady our ship as its sailed thru stormy seas.    I’d be remi...

The Christmas Shoebox

  “And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.     Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6:7-8)   Two Saturdays ago, I had one of those non-stop days.  I got up early and had hours of intense office work to do.  After that, I took a break from that to help Dee get the Christmas decorations up.  After that, I switched to get some urgent outdoor items done before the Minnesota frozen tundra took over for the winter.  I capped the day by switching back to the intense office work for a couple hours.   At about 9 pm I was ready to collapse in a heap when Dee said, “we have to get the Christmas shoeboxes put together so we can take them to church tomorrow”.  After thinking about it for a minute, I reluctantly agreed.   Thankfully, Dee had taken the lead on buying everything for 4 boxes (...