Milestones

So, Miss Elizabeth is one month old now. What a milestone! Seems like the first year has so many of them from birth to feeding to rolling over to sitting to walking. It's truly amazing.

Today I saw the son of the pastor of our little church in Chandler, AZ. Steve and I went through high school together. His dad, Don Reed, was a "milestone" person in my life. From time to time I reminisce about the people God has placed in my life along the way. They have impacted my life in such a profound way that it caused me to make some kind of decision or direction change that the Lord ultimately used to get me where I am. These "milestone" people are Mom & Pop who not only took me to church, they went with me. My pastor Don Reed, who saw potential for ministry in me and pointed me to Baylor. My youth minister, Bill Nakahira, who heard the voice for praise God gave me. Ron Bowles, who directed the BRH choir where Diane and I met, who also gave me my first love for Christian music. Buster Pray, my friend from seminary days who started Diane and I on the road to singing Christian music as a full time ministry. Dick Baker, the first Minister of Music at Prestonwood who brought Diane and me to Prestonwood which became our "base church" for over 25 years. I think of Bill Taylor who saw that I was restless as student minister and needed desperately to sing my praise to God. I also think of Robert Sterling, who saw the potential to write songs in me and helped me dig out of the clay the gift that the Lord placed there. And most of all, my sweet Diane who altered and "altared" my life when she agreed to marry me. 30 years she's been on this rollercoaster with me and we're about to go up and down again. She's the very best!

There certainly are more "milestone" people and will be more to come. As I look at Elizabeth, I pray that the Lord will bring those "milestone" people into her life to set her on the incredible journey of following Christ.

Look for those people and bless God for them.

Love you all,

Chris