The Heat is On
Summer has arrived here in Thunder Bay. Well, let me qualify that. Summer was here yes- terday. We are back to rainy and cool today. In some ways, the summer weather seems to be following the theme of the Davenport’s over the last few months. Let me explain.
We put our country home up for sale at the beginning of March. Since that time, life circum- stances have taken their pound of flesh in a variety of ways. Many of you know that I lost my dad in March. Dad had been deteriorating in his dementia since he suffered a stroke back in 2007. His recent passing put him in a better place and in some ways provided relief for our family. Circumstances surrounding that passing however added a dimension of stress on Karen and me. The months of April and May continued on without our house selling and causing us to question if we had made the right decision to sell. As we entered June we finally found ourselves with a buyer and although we needed to settle for less than what we were hoping, we felt that a move into town where we could be closer to our work and our kids to their schools was a good decision for us to make.
The good news to report is that we have found a home in the city that we are excited about and are going to be closing on that purchase at the end of this week. This will be followed with the closing on the sale of our current home at the end of the month. For sure this is great news but it hasn’t been accomplished without a significant degree of drama and MORE stress heaped on us in a situation too complex to speak of here. Are we excited? YES! However getting to this point has us feeling exhausted and spent almost to the point of breakdown.
During one of the lowest and traumatizing places that I found myself in last week, I cried out to the Lord for His peace and comfort. I became aware through the Spirit that my suffering was creating an opportunity for me to reach out to Jesus so that He could hold me and tell me it would be okay because I was with Him. As circumstances would dictate, when my daughter was suffering from her own crisis later that same day and I had the chance to hold her in my arms and tell her it would be okay, I was reminded that as her father, all I wanted was to bring her comfort and care just like Jesus wanted to do for me earlier in the day.
I have to say it’s been a while since I went through the kind of personal crisis that I’m de- scribing. However, what I’m continuing to discover now that I’m just barely on the other side of it is a sense of renewed desire and passion for Jesus not just because I want Him but because I NEED Him. “Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For you are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4 “Because he has set his love upon me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high because he has known my name. He shall call upon me and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Psalm 91: 14-16. I’m feeling well that the trajectory is heading up. But I’m even more confident about moving in that direction knowing Jesus is tracking right next to me all the way.
Getting Out of Jail??
In my last report to you I told you how excited I was to still be serving at the Thunder Bay Jail. Well, surprisingly, last month the full time chaplain who I have been filling in for as he recovered from leukemia made somewhat of a startling return. I have continued to serve while he has worked a modified schedule but that is due to come to an end the beginning of August. At the time of this writing, I have no idea whether they will continue to need me or if my time there is finished. I am hoping that there will still be opportunity for me to plug in but I’m afraid I won’t know anything till that last week of August.
Would you join me in praying that the jail will continue to need me in some capacity? It has been a joy and a privilege to interact with the staff and the “guests” who are there. Although it has meant I’ve been very busy, that busyness has paid off in spiritual dividends that I can’t begin to explain here. If my time there has been completed, I’m believing that God has new frontiers for me to explore. Somehow though, it doesn’t feel in my spirit as if I’m done. Please pray!
Youth With a Mission
August 17-22 all of YWAM Canada, including myself, will be coming together for it’s bi-annual national staff conference in Pinawa, Manitoba. This will be the sixth time that I have had the pleasure of gathering with my fellow YWAM staff to renew friendships and seek God for the direction of YWAM in Canada. Each time I go, I meet new friends and renew my connection with all of the “old-timers” which I guess I am one of now.
Family News
This section of our newsletter will proudly celebrate one Alexandra Davenport who graduated from St. Ignatius High School this past June. We are so very proud of our daughter and were so glad that Grandma was able to come up from Detroit to share in the joy! Alexandra is now preparing to enter Lakehead University here in Thunder Bay to study nursing.