Our own acts. For Harold Tanner.

In case you haven't heard, Pastor Clark's dad, Harold Tanner, was called home about 2:00am Sunday morning, February 4, 2007. Clark and Glennie are back in Kansas and will be staying for the memorial service, to be held Wednesday, February 7, 2007 at 10:30am CST at the Westmoreland Christian Church. Further details here.

The actions of the church, empowered by the Holy Spirit, only began in Acts. There is an unbroken line from the days we've been reading about to the present. Sometimes that line was pretty thin, or pretty jagged, or followed a wide detour from Jesus' command to be witnesses to the ends of the earth, to make disciples. At other times, we see the church as the shining bride of Christ, powerful in its witness, and obedient to His will. For each one of us, at least one someone acted in obedience to Jesus' command, and joined that long, unbroken line of people sharing the gospel, and shared it with us.

From our pastor, we know that his heritage includes life growing up on the farm, son of Christian parents, Harold and Virginia, and an influential grandmother, Kellsy. Clark has shared how he went to a Christian college, mainly to play basketball, and discovered his calling to speak to others about Christ. In this man that we know, we can see the influence of his family, and maybe especially the disciplines and routines of life on the farm, and a farmer dad, who knew the bounty of good harvests and the difficulties of poor ones.

For those of us who had the pleasure of meeting Harold, a straightforward, plain-spoken man, we share just a bit in his family's grief. For those of us who know Clark and Glennie, we draw closer to that shared grief, and have some understanding of Harold's life and how it has touched others. We can also rejoice with Harold's family that he is present this day, with the Lord.

Acts... actions. We're called to Acts just as the first members of the church were. Whether it's simply praying for Clark and Glennie, for Harold's widow, Anna Marie, and his family; or a special touch for Clark and Glennie when they return; or holding the hand of someone close to you today because Harold's death reminds you of the brief time we have together now; or the boldness to speak to someone about eternity and the time you want to spend together with them; today is a day when we can make our actions count.

We're praying for Clark and for Glennie, for Anna Marie, and all of Harold's family as they suffer the pain of separation, and for their hope and joy of reunion in heaven.

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