Baby Come Back

I am waiting for Brenda to get home from work. It's her last day at a job she took when, Betsy, our youngest, graduated from High School in '06. For the 21 years preceding I had the blessing of a stay-at-home job. Brenda, Josh, Betsy and I were together all the time. As a writer and a musician, most of what I do can be done from my home office. I will never regret the time I spent with my kids when they were young. The dividends are great and I am already reaping the benefits.

Since both the kids flew the coop, and are now on their own, we both work outside of the home. I lead worship at a church in Murfreesboro, TN and my office days, beside the weekend services, are Monday and Tuesday. We used to have at least somebody here at the house throughout the day. But now we lock it up tight, throw a ribeye out to our fierce guard dog in the backyard (just kidding!), and set the alarm (not kidding!).

Its amazing how much the food bill plummets and the water bill shrinks when the kids are gone. The carpet shows less wear and the cleanup before bedtime is as simple as a few dirty dishes- evidence of meals eaten in front of the TV instead of at the table. I do miss the kids but I am very happy that after almost 25 years together Brenda and I can get back to our together time.

So, Brenda comes home tonight with no need to turn back around tomorrow and head north on I-65 for work in Franklin. She is going to help me with my new consulting venture. I am excited that she'll be home again. The great part of her job of the last four years is that she has become very talented in administration. I really don't deserve the level of professional ability she brings to our business; I am blessed to have her as my wife, period!

By the way, she leaves on a mission trip to Guatemala on Saturday and she won't be home for over a week. I will really, really miss her. But she deserves the opportunity to go because she has always wanted to be on the mission field. She will bless those people going on the trip with her and certainly the children in Guatemala . I know that the toughest mission field will be right here when she gets back, helping me in this new adventure called Worship Consultants and Song Schools. Thanks for your prayers! We'll keep you posted...