God is a Gardener! (And Come and See Our Christmas Program!)

I bought a spaghetti squash a few weeks ago. 

Upon finally deciding it was time to eat it, I found it was still in pretty good shape inside, but the seeds had been sprouting. In fact there were at least two dozen good little sprouts that were all saying “I want to live!” I didn’t have the heart to tell those survivors, “You know, it’s December. You will probably die.” 

So I threw them, entangled as they were, into a foil pan and covered them up with potting soil. Already once, the pan has been upended, when I bumped into the cooler on which it was sitting while chasing the dog out of the kitchen. So I threw the plants back into the pan, rearranged the potting soil, and told the young fools it was winter. Today, it’s snowing outside, a phenomenon that often does occur when it’s winter.

God is a gardener. 

Or maybe you could say He’s a vineyard keeper, or a farmer, or a fruit grower, but He really likes plants of different kinds. An exception might be pew potatoes, but I’ll come back to that. 

And this passage came to mind today, from Matthew 13:24-30:

Another parable He put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.

But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' 

He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' 

The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?'

But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn." ' "

The part about the enemy always puzzled me. I never knew anybody who had suffered a huge weed infestation that had been deliberately planted in their field by an enemy. But the principle is happening now. Organization by organization and institution by institution, those in whom we have trusted for many, many years have been exposed as corrupt, weeds as it were. 

I have had an image of the FBI that is embodied by Jimmy Stewart. I have had dear, dear teachers who cared about my education and had no other desire for me than that I should excel. I grew up in Girl Scouting and collected a good number of badges that taught me life skills. Our own children supported the candidacy of Joni Ernst for U.S. Senator in Iowa, and knocked on many a door on her behalf.

Now, you can’t even trust Kellogg’s of Battle Creek to be safe for your children, or Disney, or the FBI, the CIA, the DOJ, the Girl OR Boy Scouts of America, the American Library Association, the public school system … Many of these places used to be kind and good, but when allowed to mature, well, we can now see clearly that we had faith in a weed. 

Kellogg’s and Burger King and Legos all make products in rainbow colors or with names like “Pride Burgers.” Home Depot and Duke Energy sponsor pride events. Girl and Boy Scouts have lost their way, because if a Supreme Court justice can’t define “woman,” how can the youth of America define boys and girls? Children’s hospitals are healing children in one room and mutilating them in another room. Disney has a cartoon for children featuring a girl who is supposed to be the antichrist.

Joni Ernst is one of twelve Republicans who caved on the one-man, one-woman principle of marriage that God invented, along with our own Senator Todd Young. Because of their betrayal, the DisRespect for Marriage Act (same sex marriage) has now become the law of the land, and a drag queen such as those who have been reading books to little children in libraries, was on hand to watch Biden sign the legislation. I want to cry.

Need I say more? There are many very ugly weeds in this garden, sown deliberately by the Enemy of our Souls. That’s where they came from. They were disguised as good wheat, but they are a huge nothing-crop. I’m sure you can think of many more.

But what does Jesus say in His parable?

There is a Judgment Day, the day of the great Harvest. 

As we remember during the season of Advent, Jesus came the first time 2,000 years ago, and not many people were looking for Him. There will be a second Advent too.

There is no doubt about it. And when the Enemy’s weeds are showing their true colors so very clearly, that is the sign for us that there is also a Crop, and the Crop is us, and we’re just about to be gathered into the Father’s barns.

As do my little sprouts, so do I also want to live, even in the dead of winter when the sun isn’t shining. I want to live forever, in a new body without spots or wrinkles, that doesn’t get sick with flu or Covid or a sinus infection, and with a Perfect Spouse and a Loving Father. It won’t be long. For now, we just need to pray for the weeds around us, pray for stamina and wisdom, hold down the fort, hold back the evil as well as we can. 

But we can just know that the Day is near. And for the believer in Christ, that gives us hope.

Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing. 

~2 Timothy 4:8

If you are a pew potato my friend, someone who believes that just going to church sometimes will get you into Heaven, Jesus loves you too. But you must not listen to the enemy and become a weed. Are you ready for His return, when He comes to gather His crop? There is a critical decision you need to make, to follow Christ.

****************

Which reminds me: it’s almost Christmas! This Sunday, Dec. 18, as long as enough of us can stay well, the children of our church will be singing again about Jesus, Who is the reason for the Season. We invite you to tune in to our livestream at 10:30. 

Our program, something the Lord gave me this fall when we took our trip to New Mexico, is mostly about those Gentile wise men from the East, who decided to follow the Star, leading to The Bright and Morning Star, Jesus, who is:

The King of Kings

God of the Universe

And the Sacrifice for Our Sins.

We hope you will enjoy it!

What Didn’t Happen Yet and What May Lie Ahead

Happy All Saints Day! It’s been awhile, and I see I never finished my travelogue. So let me tell you what didn’t happen to cause this delay, with the caveat that some of it could possibly still happen in the near future.

No, we didn’t get stuck in Omaha, Nebraska or Salina, Kansas. We made it all the way back home before some people even knew we’d gone and before the gas prices started going back up again. The recent discovery that we had only about 25 days worth of diesel fuel reserves came after our trip, so that didn’t affect us. The nearly $7.00 / gallon that Californians are having to pay for gasoline didn’t affect us because we didn’t go all the way to California. We turned around in New Mexico. Turning around is like repenting. Repenting would be a real good thing for policy makers who are causing all the fuel shortages, but I’m not expecting it.

And, most of the wildfires had calmed down by the time we started on our trip, so global warming didn’t burn us alive while traveling the Santa Fe Trail. We passed through unscathed.

I promise I’ll get back to the travelogue eventually.

We also didn’t die of some dreaded disease yet, although the Boomer Remover (a.k.a. “Covid”) may have been back for a brief Round Two. I felt pretty rotten for a while, so I took my Ivermectin dutifully and had to miss some church. I was pretty sad about that, but when I got back the next week, I was able to reassure someone on the worship team that the cameras pointed at the stage weren’t such a great distraction. They represented real people like me, who even if they couldn’t be there in person, could still feel like they belonged. Eric was less sick, even though he was not really good at socially distancing himself from me (😁).

Now that we’re finally learning that we’ve been lied to about the effectiveness of the Covid shot and that it’s now actually the “vaxxed” who are dying, can we stop the mandates in the military, please? Some flight instructors have been permitted to fly again pending what happens in a lawsuit against the mandates, but our military leadership seems stuck on denying exemptions, especially religious ones.

We didn’t get “disappeared” by the FBI. Not yet. Although, some people I know have been brutally arrested and mistreated by the Biden (in)Justice Department. This is very concerning to me, since it is clear that the full power of the federal government has been unleashed against their political opponents. As President Trump has said, “They’re not coming for me, they’re coming for you. I’m just in the way.” The raid on Mar-a-Lago and the confiscation of his stuff is not just about Trump, but about the eleven peaceful pro-lifers, including heads of organizations and a Holocaust survivor. And it’s about others who disagree with them. It is not enough to stifle free speech. There must be no dissenting speech whatsoever. This is a tenet of Communism. This is where we are headed, like Venezuela, and like Brazil, who just in the last week elected a corrupt socialist convict for its leader.

The current trajectory must be stopped. Pastor Jack Hibbs makes reference to this in his powerful Happening Now broadcast, which was devoted fully to California’s Proposition One. He says that Gavin Newsom, Governor of California, is the Late Term Abortion King, that Proposition One (crafted to enshrine an absolute right to abortion in the California constitution) will push California over the edge into God’s judgment, and that he (Jack Hibbs) might get arrested for saying so. “Doesn’t matter, though,” he says. Pastors who know the truth but do not teach it will be judged harder, when it really does matter. So he says, very clearly, there’s no such thing as “pro-choice” when it comes to abortion. It is “pro-life” or “pro-death.”

In one week, we will have the Midterm General Election. Christians must vote and be wise about it. If you live in California, you’d better be looking out for Proposition One and Vote No. And if you don’t live in California, you’d better be looking out for governors who are copycats. Keep praying, because even here in Indiana, our pro-life law is on hold because of legal challenges. Babies’ lives are at stake.

Life Chain 2022

We didn’t die of starvation from a food shortage. Not yet. We have been able to increase our supply of stored food over the summer, just in case the self-fulfilling prophecy about a (manufactured) food shortage comes true and there is no food on the shelves this winter, or the inflation makes food too expensive to buy. We don’t know if it will be sufficient, but like Joseph in Egypt, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared. The Bible does talk about famines in the Last Days. Although, it also does happen to mention "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal …” Those pesky moths!

We didn’t die by freezing. Not yet. We’re still alive and well and wearing enough clothes to keep our blood circulating. We’re concerned about the Europeans who were relying on Russian natural gas coming through the sabotaged Nordstream pipelines, to heat their homes this winter. And likewise, we’re concerned about people still living in Ukraine who have had their utilities bombed with winter approaching. Not to mention, there are the people here in the U.S. who are facing record-high heating oil prices because those pesky Saudis won’t be bullied by the Alzheimer’s patient in the White House who killed our own pipeline and turned us into a beggar nation.

But right now, we’re just putting on extra layers and keeping our thermostats set lower than usual. Maybe we’ll stop making frozen protein shakes when January comes around. Perhaps that will be better used for hot chocolate.

We didn’t die of nuclear war. Not yet. As you are probably aware, such an earth shattering development would be on everyone’s radar and the Mainstream Media wouldn’t be able to spin it to be something it ain’t. It’s almost as if everyone is expecting World War III. Two years ago, that would have been unthinkable. Did everybody forget how terrible nuclear war really is? Is it okay if it only happens across the ocean? Because China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea all want to annihilate us, and nukes seem to be the way to go. Whether it’s “dirty bombs” or “tactical nuclear weapons” or multiple warheads on a hypersonic missile, it’s all very very bad. Nuclear war would devastate the environment, but Mankind in his struggle for power doesn’t seem to care.

And finally, we didn’t go to be with Jesus in the Rapture. Not yet. If this had caused the delay in writing my blog, I’m sure you would have excused me, because many of you would also be enjoying Marital Bliss with The Messiah.

Because we haven’t gone to be with Jesus in the Rapture yet, we have had some other news:

• We are still tasked with the Great Commission, and we are still covered by the promise that He (Jesus) is with us always, even till the end of the age. This Sunday, Eric is teaching at Vivi and Andrew’s church, Calvary Chapel Fellowship in LaGrange.

• Eric has found some relief in his knees through an over-the-counter supplement and regular P.T. He turned the blue bedroom into a workout room for stretching his hamstrings and exercising his back.

• We were able to go to the Pastors Conference, which we had not been able to attend for three years. The fall is one of the most beautiful we’ve seen in a very long time.

Calvary Chapel Midwest Pastors Conference 2022

• I have yet another opportunity to direct a children’s Sunday School program. Hurray! The kids are learning their parts and if they all come, what a wonderful thing that will be! We all just have to stay well this year. And we have a grandbaby coming who has volunteered to be our baby Jesus.

• We have (presumably) another Thanksgiving, to remember and celebrate God’s blessings. This year, we’ll go to my dad’s house, and I may have to bring some Puerto Rican dishes, just for him!

• We have (presumably) another Christmas coming up on a Sunday this time, to proclaim The Messiah to The World. So then Christmas Eve with our family’s Handel’s Messiah songs will be that Saturday night. As always, it could be our last chance. We’d better make it a good one!

Which brings me to The Messiah, the Savior.

Jesus was born as a King—even the Gentile astrologers knew that. When He returns to Planet Earth, no matter how shattered it is, He will have the power to clean it up. After all, He invented this world and built it according to His own detailed plan in only seven rotations of the planet. Certainly, He can rehabilitate it also, in very short order.

And He will rule and reign here as King of Kings and Lord of Lords for a thousand years. His judgment and His justice will be perfect. No matter what happens, no matter what we have ahead of us during our remaining time on earth (and it may be some of the above, and it doesn’t all sound pretty), God knows exactly what He is doing.

This is our promise and a blessing for a very dark time:

And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. 

~Romans 16:20

The Grand Grandchild Diaspora Tour, September 15-20, 2022, Part 1

You may have seen this poem before, by J.R.R. Tolkien.  It speaks of the mystery and mystique of The Road, and how we can enter it from just beyond our front door, see fascinating sights and endure hardships as we traverse it, reach our destination, and then come back again.  Which we did.

Roads Go Ever On

Roads go ever ever on,

Over rock and under tree,

By caves where never sun has shone,

By streams that never find the sea;

Over snow by winter sown,

And through the merry flowers of June,

Over grass and over stone,

And under mountains in the moon.

Roads go ever ever on,

Under cloud and under star.

Yet feet that wandering have gone

Turn at last to home afar.

Eyes that fire and sword have seen,

And horror in the halls of stone

Look at last on meadows green,

And trees and hills they long have known.

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way,

Where many paths and errands meet.

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with weary feet,

Until it joins some larger way,

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

The Road goes ever on and on

Out from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone.

Let others follow, if they can!

Let them a journey new begin.

But I at last with weary feet

Will turn towards the lighted inn,

My evening-rest and sleep to meet.

Still 'round the corner there may wait

A new road or secret gate;

And though I oft have passed them by,

A day will come at last when I

Shall take the hidden paths that run

West of the Moon, East of the Sun.

Yes, Eric and I did it -- we got away from the daily grind and made some memories.  There seemed to be a very short window of opportunity on the calendar, so we took a road trip.  Baby Ezekiel was born in August, and we needed to at least make it to New Mexico to see him!

Day One

After ignoring this blog and all the outrageous goings on in the world for a few weeks (as painful as that was), and instead spending the time carefully plotting out our trip on a Google map and making reservations in five different states, we set out mid-morning on Thursday, September 15, heading north and west, but refusing to use the Chicago toll roads.  There were a lot of twists and turns that way, but we stayed on the route, as did a lot of truckers, as we noticed that they didn’t much like Chicago either.

Our first lunch on the road was at Nelly’s in Wilmington, Illinois, which happened to be a cute Route 66 diner with people’s names on the walls and ceiling, and mostly burgers and fries on the plates.  We sent pictures to people we thought might care along the way, so the first ones we took were of this burger joint.  

Lisa had decided to travel Historic Route 66 on her honeymoon, but I hadn’t seen a map of it till … well, a few minutes ago.  We just kept encountering that route along the way, and embraced the adventure when we could.  

The main focus of the trip, though, was to find the Diaspora -- the dispersed Haley clans who had been driven from their home in Indiana for some reason -- actually all of them went forth because they had been moved there by their jobs.  We wanted to see them in their natural habitats, encourage them, and take their pictures.  All of The Dispersed that had guest rooms also owned miniature tigers that make Eric sneeze.  And those who owned no miniature tigers had no guest rooms.  So we booked a variety of hotels along the way.

That’s the route I mapped out.  It was kind of like a comet -- Haley’s Comet -- whizzing through the states at breakneck speed, in a roughly elliptical orbit.

Our first stop, after skirting Chicago, was Dubuque, Iowa, where the cliff-dwellers, five Phelps grandchildren and their mom Emily, poured out of the front door to give us hugs.  This ritual was more or less repeated throughout the trip, and it was always pleasant.  We found that the house the Phelps’s had purchased in Dubuque was very sufficient.  

The view from across the street, where the Phelps children’s daily soap bubble habit can be observed.

There used to be a general store in this location, long ago, but now, no longer is there a store, but a large newer house, along a road that leads down, down, down towards the Mississippi River.  You need to have good brakes to live in Dubuque.  

Matthew (the dad), made us his famous gourmet pizza, and I ate up roughly 80% of the salad to go with my pizza.  Somehow, someone must have mentioned my birthday, which is coming up in a week, so Emily promised the twins we could have chocolate cake.  We thought the twins were having a second birthday party for themselves so we brought them presents.  Emily, who works in the bakery at Sam’s Club, decorated cupcakes for us all and gave me a juicer.  (I’ve never owned a juicer!)

The count:

Five grandchildren:  Evangeline, Atticus, Caspian, Avonlea, and Aurelius.

One daughter:  Emily

One spouse:  Matt

Group picture taken with the new Bluetooth “selfie stick,” which only lasted for one stop.

We were privileged to hear Caspian playing the piano, Atticus playing his cornet, and Evangeline practicing her violin.  We met a tiny robot and cuddled with the twins.  We heard that the kids were now taking archery lessons but weren’t really interested in anything like bow fishing (which I thought would be a practical idea since they live near the river) because it would cause the death of fish.  And we saw many walls full of family pictures -- everywhere -- including one of Eric and myself sitting in our wardrobe upon our return from Narnia.

The take-away:  Family is important.  You betcha it’s important!  We took out the family Bible that we had packed in our luggage, but found that everybody was already properly entered in it, so we were caught up, though we kind of forgot the rest of the way.  Before we left, we gave them our seal of approval, prayed for this family, and gave them all hugs and smooches.

Then, we climbed up the side of the cliff in our trusty rental car, to a bed and breakfast in an 1890s home on the National Historic Register, called “Hancock House.”  

We stayed in Courtney’s Room, on the second floor.  

This home had an observation tower that we couldn’t really enter, but there was a brass telescope in the parlor, through which you could view the river and all the approaching riverboat traffic, as well as the city down below.  

Life along the Mississippi

The whole place was full of antiques, with a book called “Dubuque -- Birthplace of Iowa” on a stand.  The dining room was lovely, but the full breakfast was only served on weekends, so we thought we wouldn’t have anything to eat there -- till we found the pastries and other food items that had been left in the kitchenette for our enjoyment.  Ahhh, yes, we were discovering it was going to be a little difficult to keep our weight down!

Day Two

Getting back on The Road Friday morning, we headed across Iowa.  Matt sent us a 48-second summary video of the scenery to expect along the route, and it was very accurate.  Mostly, it was corn.

Eventually we landed in Omaha, Nebraska, where our eldest grandson lives with his wife and our youngest great grandkid.  Jay is a staff sergeant in the Air Force, stationed at Offutt AFB.  Unfortunately, we weren’t able to see the base or anything like that, but we saw Jay and Mary’s house in Omaha, the patio they had poured, the beautiful flowers they had planted  …

Missing the selfie stick here.  But the company was worth the trip.  

We’ve really gotta spend longer with these folks, before they deploy! 

… and the main attraction:  Felix.  This kid has such a happy laugh that I mostly just hung out with him whenever I could.  Sure, little boys like Felix do make messes in restaurants and throw all their fries on the floor, but silly old grandma’s like to sit next to the car seat, tickle feet, make funny faces, and take videos of the dear boy driving his truck on the table.  And, they get a real kick out of doing so.

The count:  

1 great grandson: Felix.  Total so far:  1

1 grandson:  Jay.  Total so far:  6

1 spouse:  Mary.  Total so far:  2

I was surprised to find Omaha was full of Black Lives Matter signs in store windows, and a couple of the waitresses who served tables at the nice downtown restaurant were not women.  This was explained later by a Nebraska resident at the next hotel.  Nebraska is a “Red State,” except for Omaha.  Its electoral votes are split in Presidential elections.  Only one of Nebraska’s votes in 2020 went to the Democrat -- the one from Omaha.  The rest of the state is solidly Republican.  I am convinced that most of the residents of Nebraska, like the guy with the “Bikers for Trump” shirt, have a lot more common sense than the city folks.

But many people, including our grandchildren, live in the cities.  We must pray for them.

I had some of that famous Omaha beef while I was there, but couldn’t finish the meal, even a child’s serving!  Then Jay took us all to a place where the gigantic meal could be topped off with homemade ice cream.

Soon after the food encounter, we had to continue on down The Road so we could make it to Salina, Kansas that evening and be closer to our destination in New Mexico.  So we bade Jay and his family adieu and headed westward, towards the setting sun.  (That’s not so fun for one’s eyes!)

The La Quinta in Salina was serviceable -- not “cute” like the Hancock House, but all we needed that night was a good sleep in a comfortable bed, and that we had, along with good conversation in the breakfast area in the morning.

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The chatting during this part of the trip on Messenger was about “A” names, of which a great percentage of our grandchildren have at least one.  Truly, even Caspian has an “A” name -- his middle name is “Amadeus.”  So I decided my middle name must be “Ambitious,” for planning this crazy trip in the first place.  For any of our kids who didn’t get the memo, “Atanacio” is still unused, and is available.  Its equivalent is “Athanasius,” which means “No death,” and ties directly to my wish for all our grandkids, that they will be able to pass directly from this life to the next, where there is no more death.  The way to do that is through Jesus Christ, who died for our sins.

“So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."

~1 Corinthians 15:54

Still 'round the corner there may wait

A new road or secret gate;

And though I oft have passed them by,

A day will come at last when I

Shall take the hidden paths that run

West of the Moon, East of the Sun.

Take the right road, my grandchildren!  Jesus Himself is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Don’t miss your turn!

We made some beautiful memories on this ambitious trip, and I will be glad to share more of it next week.  But meanwhile, ponder this:  Eric and I were Gentile wise guys, on a long pilgrimage from the East bearing blessings and gifts, to see a newborn baby.  Sound vaguely familiar?  I’m really glad we didn’t have to take a camel!

”We Did It, Jackie!” Jackie Walorski: 1963-2022

This week two very important things happened. I’ll start with the first one.

1. On Wednesday, August 3, 2022, Indiana Congresswoman Jackie Walorski went to be with Jesus. 

There is no doubt in anyone’s mind about that. She spoke openly of her relationship with Jesus Christ. She spoke in churches, giving her testimony. And, she and her husband spent four years of their married life in Romania as missionaries.

According to the Elkhart County sheriff's office, the most current information is that the SUV in which Jackie and two of her staff members were traveling crossed the center line and collided head-on with an oncoming vehicle. All the occupants of both cars died quickly from the grievous wounds they sustained in the crash.

I was heartbroken by the news. It didn’t help that Eric and I led the worship that night at church and Eric had picked out “Just a Closer Walk with Thee.” Thankfully, I could just mostly play my drum and not sing, because I could not sing the verse about “when this feeble life is o’er” without crying and I knew it.

President Trump offered his condolences on Truth Social and mentioned that she was a good friend. Immediately, vigilante Democrat trolls called him a liar because he probably had no idea who she was, and of course he couldn’t have been her friend.

But Jackie was everybody’s friend. She was very tall, and probably could almost look him in the eye. She was knowledgeable, intelligent, beautiful, and very energetic. I’ve never known any politician I liked as well.

People on social media have offered me condolences, saying they knew she was my friend because of what I posted. Again, if you just knew Jackie, she was your friend.

Jackie was a hugger. She just was.

In 2010, four of our kids, from Robyn on down to Vivian, were signed up for Student Action Teams (SAT’s) with Generation Joshua (GenJ)—an arm of Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). We worked on Jackie’s first Congressional campaign that year, in South Bend*. That suited us just fine—it was our own district. I also brought several grandkids, who were a little too young for the job but could come as long as they stayed with Grandma. We only worked part of the time and then had to come home so I could work the polls in Liberty Township. Robyn took the grandkids on Sunday to see Jackie speak at the Delphi First Assembly instead of having them go to our own church, but she heard Jackie give her Christian testimony.

*Note for non-Hoosiers: South Bend is up north.

Joe Donnelly was our Congressman at the time, and he had presented himself as a “moderate Democrat” who was pro-life. We knew better and desired to see him ousted. We knew he was a corrupt politician, and it showed that year when his campaign pumped megabucks into the third party candidate’s campaign, which siphoned off potential voters for Jackie. The Libertarian garnered far more votes than he ever would have, advertising that he was the only true conservative in the race. Jackie lost by a slim 1% margin.

Fortunately for us, Donnelly had greater aspirations and he vacated his Congressional seat in 2012 so he could run for a fancier one in the Senate.

Then, as Senator, when it came to Obamacare, Donnelly was infamously part of a group of supposedly pro-life Democrats who held out against it because it would fund abortion. At the last minute, Donnelly caved along with the others, just like Joe Manchin with “Build Back Better,” betraying the pro-life cause and making socialist healthcare the law of the land. Obamacare did fund abortion—everywhere you looked. Donnelly only lasted one term as a U.S. Senator. The voters did not forget.

But with Donnelly out of the way, and after the Congressional districts were all rearranged, Jackie ran again in 2012 and the GenJ’ers were once again deployed to her campaign. Robyn was too old now, but I still had Valerie, David, and Vivian. At the same time, I was able to also bring with me four of Lisa’s kids: Jay, Joy, Sarah, and Abby. Our family unit was an entire team. 

Shortly after we arrived, we were rerouted. It seemed some of the GenJ’ers who had been assigned to work for Governor Mike Pence’s reelection team had been no-show’s. So, since Governor Pence said in no uncertain terms that he needed his GenJ’ers, we went to Indy. How could we argue with the Governor?

Rather self-explanatory—That’s Mike Pence in the blue shirt.

We did campaign for him, and stood in line for the pizza that night… and the next day… until it became apparent that campaigning for Mike Pence meant a LOT of pizza. Meanwhile, the Walorski team was really short-handed. They just needed about 8-10 people. I said, “We are 8.” So we were pulled, along with a couple of teenage boys, and deployed back to South Bend in my pretty rusty van.

SAT’s are intense, very hard work, hours and hours of phone banking and lit (literature) drops. GenJ’ers are known for not doing the “walk lists” while walking, but by running. It’s a friendly competition—like “Team A made 2,021 phone contacts and 450 door knocks today. Team B only made 1,076 phone contacts and 437 door knocks. Team A wins the prize! Yay!” This last-minute GOTV (Get Out The Vote) effort is usually one week, including Election Day itself and any victory parties afterwards (that are decent and non-alcoholic). Nobody gets results like GenJ, a.k.a. “Teenage Mutant Ninja Campaigners.” 

A particularly efficient GenJ’er, working two phones at the same time.

As a mom there among the troops, I tried to also keep an eye on the health of the kids in my charge. I had all the band-aids, cough drops, and such. I strongly advised some of them to cut back on the Mountain Dews and candy bars (which seemed to be unlimited and eternal). Some of the kids got sun-burned, some got chewed out on the phone and suffered mental anguish, and I got pushed down in the parking lot by an over-exuberant grandkid hugger. But that’s the hazards of war.

Above all of the normal GenJ experience and adrenaline, we knew in our hearts that Jackie was different. She was not just any old politician who was pretty good, at least better than the Democrat. Jackie was for real. And Jackie cared about us. Her mom, Martha, made us home cooked meals for dinner every day, and they were REALLY tasty meals.

Jackie checked up on us, bragged on us, talked with us about the issues, and hugged us. There was nothing as motivational as just seeing her walk through the door at campaign headquarters, pose with us for pictures, and give us high five’s. 

Picture taken by Jackie herself, in Kokomo, with Robyn and grandkids above my head.

Not one of our group, but the camaraderie was infectious.

This was Jackie with all of us on the GenJ team in 2012. Somehow I always end up on the front row.

If we started to go stir-crazy from sitting too long at the phone bank, we did something crazy like standing on a major street corner and waving signs at the cars. 

And then, on Election Night, we found out that Jackie had won, and we were pretty choked up about it. It finally worked! Praise the Lord!

The sights and sounds of the Victory Party are still fresh in my mind because I stumbled onto a video David took that night. Sarah was always the dancer grandkid and she had some good moves. Vivian and I got into the act too, when we could. 

Yes, we were excited! But when Jackie showed up to the victory party and gave her acceptance speech, well, I won’t give you a cliché’ like “there was not a dry eye” but I know there were some tears. 

Dear Jackie! Dear, dear Jackie! We were so honored to help you succeed Joe Donnelly! We knew that you were truly pro-life, and we so desperately needed you!

After campaigning, I was always invited to march with Jackie at parades via email, and I did once in Logansport since it was close. She was just as personable at a parade as anywhere else, and you loved doing it for her, no matter how sweaty you were or how tired you got from so much walking. And when she gave her first speech in Congress, we watched that. 

Speaking of Congressional speeches, here was her speech in Congress on January 21 of this year: Don’t let anybody tell you she was a moderate. Click on the picture and listen to our Jackie!

A few months later, in May, a pro-abortion activist nearly ran over her as she was meeting with prolifers praying outside the abortion mill in her hometown. 

Jackie won that night in 2012, but so also did Governor Pence, and another young man was re-elected: a homeschooler, who had spoken with the GenJ’ers in a training session and motivated us as well: Timothy Wesco had first won Jackie’s seat in the Indiana House of Representatives the year Jackie lost her race. When he first ran, it seemed like he was barely old enough to do it, and he came from a family even larger than ours. His whole family was there to cheer him on and so did Jackie. I know a few of our daughters had a crush on him too.

Jackie with Timothy Wesco

Now, the other important thing that happened this week was this:

2. On Friday night, August 5, 2022, Indiana became the first state in the nation to hold a special session and successfully enact an abortion ban after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. 

The Indiana legislature was under a LOT of pressure and was very weary of folks on both sides who were making demands of them. But they got something passed and signed by Governor Holcomb, that will be a framework for bringing the abortion cartel in Indiana to a halt at last.

SB-1 was not a complete abortion ban—there are still some tweaks that should be made in the future: for instance, there don’t seem to be any meaningful punishments for transgressing the law. So, in the Indianapolis area, the word is, law enforcement doesn’t intend to enforce it. There are exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother, all of which can be interpreted broadly and allow for too many abortions. Some of this needs to be tightened, but it’s a better bill than when it started. Of course the media is quoting far more pro-abortion people and entities than pro-lifers.

The very good thing is, all abortion that come under the exceptions have to be done in a hospital or in a clinic affiliated with a hospital. That means, free-standing abortion mills, particularly Planned Parenthood ones, will have to close next month. That will be the answer to prayer we’ve been looking forward to for a long time.

So, we are rejoicing! God has done a wonderful work in Indiana. This time last year, we weren’t clear how He would do it, but we just prayed every day at 3:00 that God would shut down the Lafayette Planned Parenthood. Now, with the overturning of Roe v. Wade and this special session, He has shut down all of them!

Our dear Jackie would have loved to have seen this day…

Timothy Wesco wrote this poignant memorial on his Facebook page on Saturday:

“On July 1, I attended the grand opening of the beautiful new facility of RETA, a pregnancy resource center in Elkhart. I spotted my Congresswoman, Jackie Walorski and went over to greet her. She gave me a hug as she always did, and we talked enthusiastically about the recent Supreme Court Dobbs decision and the upcoming Special Session of the Indiana General Assembly. She then leaned in, and said to me, “Whatever you do, just shut down that abortion clinic in my district.”

“Yesterday, I resolutely voted for Senate Bill 1, which was passed by the Indiana General Assembly, and signed by the Governor.

“Senate Bill 1 will shut down the abortion clinic in South Bend.

“We did it, Jackie.”

Yes, we did it. This was a team effort. We needed Jackie in the Congress. We needed Timothy Wesco in the State House. Timothy needed his homeschooling family, and both of them needed my kids and grandkids in Generation Joshua to help them across the finish line. We needed Hoosier Amy Coney Barrett and her Notre Dame Law School training and experience. We needed President Trump to put ACB on the Supreme Court.

And when it was all said and done, we needed to know we had a network of unassuming but caring crisis pregnancy centers alive, growing, and flourishing, to care for all those moms who don’t know (because the abortion cartel wants them ignorant) that they have a real good option in giving birth to the child God has blessed them with.

So it was a long time in coming, but God knew His answer was on the way. It was just way too complex for Him to explain it to us. Everything had to be in place. We just needed to trust Him.

We had heard for so long: “The Bible says ‘If my people who are called by My Name will humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven, and will forgive, and I will heal their land.’ That means, Christians, it’s up to us! We need to pray!’”

And in my heart, I thought, “But we do, and we have been. How could we pray any more feverishly and effectively than we have been already?”

But He did hear. He really did!

That is not to say the work is over. The goal still is, to make abortion—not “safe legal, and rare,” which was lying rhetoric from the pro-aborts—but totally unheard of and unthinkable.

Ah, Lord, our hearts were heavy to lose such a great warrior in Congress. We do not understand Your plans, never have. But we know that this accident did not take You by surprise. We pray now for Jackie’s family, and for the families of Emma Thompson, Zach Potts, and Edith too, who was in the other car. Help them to find healing and comfort in You.

Show us who can fill Jackie’s shoes. That will be a very hard task, so the Republican leadership needs great wisdom.

And we pray that we as Christians would not stop doing pro-life work… ever. Help us make a difference in people’s lives by showing them Jesus.

It is in His Name we pray, Amen.