God's Choice For Me (and You)

This is YOUR grandfather! I suppose he didn't think much about being a grandfather back then. But he certainly became a good one for you.

I always figured I would grow up in Littleton and marry a farmer from somewhere around town -- a Christian farmer, for sure.  I wanted to take the agriculture course in high school so that I could be a GOOD and well-informed wife for a farmer. I didn't have one picked out but just figured that is the way it was going to be. God had different plans, though.

While I was growing up in Aroostook County, the boy God chose for me was growing up all over the place! He was born in Saugerties, New York on December 5, 1943. He did some growing up in places like Guatemala, CA, Custer Park, Illinois, South Owego, New York, and other towns where Grandpa Buza was pastor or missionary. During his high school years, he was living in Union Center, New York -- near Endicott -- and the Susquehanna River (a river that would play a role in our lives from 1963 to 1965 after we were married).

The adorable picture of him from 1945 was snatched from the family's US passport. Don't you think he was just a cute little guy? Even back then, he looked like a boy who could win your heart. Look at the EYES. It was ALWAYS his eyes -- still is. I love to look into his eyes. They are warm and approving of me and that makes me very happy.

So here he is: This is your grandfather as a toddler, a cub scout, a junior high kid, and a teenager. He was involved in his share of mischief (like going swimming in the creek without permission and digging for dinosaur bones in a mid-western corn field). But he lived a good and moral life and was more often than not an obedient son to his parents. I am very PROUD of the boy that he was way back before I met him.

More than anything, though, I am thankful that he is a devoted Christian. I am happy that he has always set a good example for our children. ("Do the right thing BECAUSE it is RIGHT.") He has always provided spiritual leadership in our home and worked hard to take care of us. I am SO PROUD of the man that I married.

It is impossible to understand why GOD was so good in giving Wayne to ME -- it is clearly by His grace and His grace alone. I cannot thank Him enough! I hope you thank the Lord, too, for giving you a grandfather who loves God and loves you with all of his heart.