Until Then

The agony of waiting. I am convinced and convicted that just as sure as this world had a beginning, there shall be an end. And for those who have a relationship with the God of the universe--the Creator and Savior of this world--the end is a cherished event that ushers in a long-awaited reunion between God and man. In the meantime, we've got more than just waiting to do.

A couple weeks ago, we had the opportunity to do special music at the Ordot-Ypao SDA church. Since Mike & I sometimes feel our repertoire is limited (partly due to the paucity of piano skills between the 2 of us), we decided to call on the talent of Ken & Gizelle to help us present something different... A little variation on the husband-wife duet, you might say.

This particular hymn is one of my favorites, reminding me that despite the trials that we must endure before Christ comes again, He has put a song in our hearts that allows us to experience and sing of joy until His blessed return.

1000 Steps

This Sabbath afternoon, we ventured outdoors and finally went on our first "hike" on Guam! OK, so this particular picture reveals that the trail has several sets of steps with handrails... but for good reason!! The trail is a downward path that descends along the side of a ~150-foot cliff thriving with tropical foliage.

Mike & Ken took on the fatherly responsibility of bearing the weight of the little ones. What would we do without "Baby Bjorn"?? I must say that Mike had the most challenging workout having to carry an extra 20 lbs. and almost guessing where to place his feet! Thanks to Ken, we found out where NOT to step. :)

After the first 10 min of walking over broken steps and through overgrown bushes, we started to doubt whether the hike was such a good idea... especially since there were rain clouds following us all along the car drive to the path! When we caught a glimpse of the ocean over the trees, though, we were encouraged to press on and find out what awaited us at the end of the hike.

Ah, finally! Back on "level" ground. The ground that led to the water was actually a bed of coral rock with beautiful plant life and, believe it or not, pine trees! Greeted by the ocean spray and cool winds, I almost felt like I was back in Dana Pt., CA... it felt good to have a little taste of home.

The Baby Bjorn club

We made it!

The Pacific coast... thousands of miles from home.

Shaded by papaya trees

Despite the multiple mosquito bites and painfully sore legs, we were thankful that we didn't pass up the opportunity to see such majestic beauty. It was another reminder of how the path to Heaven, though arduous and daunting, allows us to enter into something more glorious than we ever imagined.

Live With Dr. Mike

I often laugh just thinking about it. I can't believe that I have my own health segment on an FM radio station on Guam! Just this past week I had the privilege of being a part of "Total Health" which is a weekly hour-long radio broadcast on KSDA 91.9 FM (or "Joy 92" as it is affectionately called). The goal of the broadcast is to educate people on a variety of health topics and to provide advice on how to maintain our bodies -- the "temples" that the Lord has blessed us with. Topics range from nutrition to women's health to diabetes to preventive care to just about any other health topic. It's surreal to think that hundreds (maybe thousands) of people are listening to me talk so I try and sound intelligent, and pretend that it's just me and the microphone. It really does blow me away to see how the Lord can use me well beyond the confines of the clinic.

Here's a clip that Gemma recorded while at home listening to my initial appearance as a guest on the show: