Smokin'!!

Father's Day 2007 has come and gone, it was a wonderful day. My own father (and mother) surprised us by showing up at our church and joining us for worship. But, Father's Day is always a little bittersweet as it also includes a trip to the cemetery to visit the grave of Lon's dad, Loren Packard, who died of cancer in November 1993, just about 6wks before our son Barrett was born. But, this year, I had special surprise planned for Lon. For the longest time now, Lon has wanted a Tiernan Son of Brisket smoker, but they are sooo expensive, and Lon always says that isn't something we should spend money on right now. If it was something I wanted, he would not hesitate to get it, but, being the awesome husband and father he is, he always puts himself last. So, I wanted to surprise him with one, by paying for it on my own (no easy task since they cost over $900!) without him realizing why I never had any money the last month or so!! I had it delivered on Fri. afternoon and had them put it on the side of the house, hoping and praying that he wouldn't go over there before Sunday. The kids and I could barely contain our excitement for those 2 days and I was also praying that they would be able to keep our secret! Well, they did. Sun morn rolled around and I wrapped up some babyback ribs, a sauce mop and the ultimate grilling cookbook (according to the people at Tiernan) for him to open, then we led him out, blindfolded, to the smoker. The look on his face was worth every penny of that $900!! He was like a little kid, so excited, he couldn't wait to get to church to tell all his buddies. And it was so gratifying for me to finally do something nice for him like he has done many, many times for me. Did I mention that I absolutely ADORE my husband? He works so hard and like I said, always puts himself last. He loves me and the kids in such a sacrificial way, I still marvel at God's blessing when he sent me Lon Packard. They say that a girl will usually marry a man like her father, and every day i pray that God is grooming a man like Lon for Gracen. Anyway, this weekend we are going to christen the smoker, by smoking those ribs.....yummo! (as rachel would say!)

About worship at Central on Sunday, I have heard many poignant sermons about Mothers on Mother's Day, but Sunday was one of the few poignant sermons I have heard on Fathers, in fact, it was the MOST touching, relevant sermon I have ever heard on Fathers. To hear Dan speak about his own father in such a moving way and relate that to how our Father in Heaven loves us......very emotional. And to cap it off, our worship minister led the most poignant (sorry I keep using that word, but it is the perfect description) heart tugging prayer about fathers I have ever heard, there couldn't have been a dry eye in the house. I would highly recommend listening to both the sermon and the prayer here: http://centralcofc.com