2007 November » Jarretts Ministry

Rejoice in the Lord always.

Dear Friends and Family:

Wednesday, November 1 was Rachel’s twentieth birthday. I was doing my morning devotions in the living room when I heard her voice shouting,â€WhoooHoo!â€ A few minutes later, she danced into the room with a big smile on her face. Rachel usually greets the day with a smile, but this day was extra special.
However, as I was in prayer, the Lord convicted me that I don’t always greet the day with rejoicing. His word says, â€œThis is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.â€ I’m more often greeting the day with an â€œUnhhhhhhâ€ rather than a â€œWhoooHoo.â€
As I think about it, I have plenty of reasons everyday to rejoice. Most importantly, I am a child of Godâ€”I know who I am and where I’m going. I have no reason to worry about anything, because God has promised to meet all my needs. Even though circumstances in my life have changed radically in the past year, God is still in control and will work out everything for the best. It hurts to watch Marty suffer some days, but Jesus is weeping with me and giving me comfort. I’m not alone at any time.
My scripture reading this morning included Psalm 12 and Luke 15. It reminded me about rejoicing and of the events of yesterdayâ€”not only the news from the doctor that we may take the Hawaiian cruise, but also the other events I didn’t share. Luke 15 contains three well known parables of Jesus: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the Prodigal Son. Each focuses on rejoicing over finding something of value that was lost and then foundâ€”and the repetition of the parallel of Heaven’s rejoicing over the salvation of those who were lost to God.
Friday began, as reported, with the trip to the doctor. When I started to pay the bill, someone could well have asked me the question â€œWhat’s in Your wallet?â€ Certainly, my credit card wasn’t. I had used it the night before at a nearby restaurant. I racked my brainâ€”did I get my card back? We had a confusing transaction with a coupon, a gift card, and the credit card that took three attempts to straighten out an initial error. And I was very tired with my cold symptoms which were at their zenith.
We went to the grocery and then arrived at the restaurant as it opened at 11 am. I spoke with the day manager, but mine was not among the stack of forgotten credit cards. We went home and briefly searched the house, but I was doubtful of finding the card. I called MasterCard to report the lost or stolen credit card.
The clerk began to read the list of charges for the day: Hematology-Oncology (yes, I used Marty’s card), O’Reilly’s Auto Parts ($10.59â€”no) and Target ($646.57-no)â€”15 minutes ago. Someone was having a very busy shopping spree this morning! The security department immediately cancelled the card; the clerk reassured me I had no liability and would receive a new card in five days. I tried to question her about what else I should do, but it seemed like their interest was limited to stopping the lossâ€”not recovery or apprehension. Psalm 12:8 says, â€œthe wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.â€
I called the corporate headquarters of the restaurant chain and spoke with the head of security. She encouraged me to file a police report as the transactions would likely be on video surveillance, but only the local police would investigate. I was suspicious of our waiter or the night manager, but she pointed out another guest could have found the card or another server.
I got the information from the credit card company of the locations of the stores since both chains had several locations in Indianapolis. With a partial store number and a zip code, which is all they knew, I found the stores on the internet located a few blocks apart. I called O’Reilly’s and spoke to â€œCueâ€ who remembered the man as a regular customer who bought some antifreeze using, as it turns out, my credit card. His description matched that of the waiter. Target’s security department head wasn’t available, but the assistant confirmed they had surveillance cameras.
With this information and the name of the waiter from my receipt, I filed a police report with our Boone County Sheriff. Even though the crimes were in Marion County, they were willing to take the report; the deputy felt there was a good chance of finding the crook. The district manager of the restaurant even promised to send me a gift card. Luke 15:9 says, â€œAnd when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, â€˜Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’â€ Let’s pray the sinner repents, so that the angels can rejoice.
Last night we rejoiced as a family with a celebration of our October and November birthdays [eight all together]. We worshiped God with praise songs and shed a few tears with a family commissioning of Alicia for her ministry in Japan. We rejoice in the knowledge that God has plans to use her in furthering His kingdom; the tears are a reminder of the temporary loss of fellowship we will all feel deeply.
Finally, I rejoice in reporting to you that God has provided $4,000 for the construction projects and other needs of the orphans at our Bosto Children’s Home through supporters of Mike and Julie Ganey at Tenwek. Sometimes it seems that God answers prayers faster than I can report them to you.
Phil 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Paul, for the Jarretts rejoicing in Indiana

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