Tag Archives: Basement

Chapter-a-Day

Best of ’24: #10 Intentions & Realities

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For two weeks, while Wendy and I are away enjoying some warm weather, I’ll be counting down the top ten chapter-a-day posts of 2024 (based on total views and plays). It’ s always interesting which posts resonated with readers and listeners. The chapter for tomorrow’s post will be listed at the bottom.

Intentions and Realities (CaD Rom 15) – Wayfarer

But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.
Romans 15:23-24 (NIV)

Wendy and I have had one heck of a week. In another “Chain Reaction of Praise” moment, our basement flooded for the second time in a matter of a few weeks. It was even worse this time. We have had to juggle our schedule to move furniture, haul rugs out into the sun to dry, pull up carpeting, and cut out the carpet pad that is trapping water and will otherwise become a major mold problem. Oh, and we had guests staying with us from out of state. They happened to be staying in the downstairs guest room. Fortunately, we have another guest room upstairs.

Life happens. Oh, the joy.

In today’s chapter, Paul is wrapping up his letter to the believers in Rome. He tells them of his intention of going to Spain to share Jesus’ message there and tells them that he will stop in Rome for a while on his way. He plans to do this right after he takes a gracious and generous financial gift from the believers in Greece back to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem.

What I found fascinating in reading about Paul’s intentions is that I know he will never make it to Spain. He will return to Rome but as a prisoner of the Empire. The whole story is in Acts 20-28. Paul is warned multiple times not to return to Jerusalem where he remained a wanted man by the same Jewish religious leaders who had Jesus crucified. Paul bull-headedly proceeds with the trip. Once in Jerusalem, he is recognized, sparks a riot, and is arrested. When he is tried by the local Roman Governor, Paul leverages his Roman citizenship to appeal his case to Caesar in Rome (which was the right of any Roman citizen). So, he will not realize his intention to go to Spain. He will spend a lot of time in Rome and eventually be executed there.

Life happens.

Earlier this week I wrote about how we can respond, not react when encountering a heated topic in current events. Ironically, the post stirred some strong reactions. Along life’s road, I’ve also learned that I also have the same opportunity to respond, not react, when “life happens.” I can have all sorts of well-laid plans and intentions that, in a moment, are dashed by the unexpected. I can allow it to overwhelm me, or I can respond in faith and hope that we’ll get through it and probably learn some things along the way. I like what Paul wrote in today’s chapter:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

In the quiet this morning, I spent a few moments thinking back to other times when “Life Happened” along the journey. This is certainly not the first time I’ve dealt with water problems in the basement. It happened in the house I grew up in, and it happened in our previous home here in Pella. We’ve had homes broken into and robbed. I’ve had my hotel room robbed. There have been tragic deaths of family members, trees falling, and my parents once had a car drive through the wall of their house!

You know what? I’ve learned that in the midst of all of it, I can experience both peace and joy. I can respond with trust in God who gives me hope that I’ve learned I can faithfully count on. We’ll do the work. We’ll fix the problem. Eventually, we’ll look back on this week in the same way I’m looking back at all the other times that Life happened.

Tomorrow’s Chapter: Luke 21

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Intentions & Realities

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Intentions and Realities (CaD Rom 15) – Wayfarer

But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.
Romans 15:23-24 (NIV)

Wendy and I have had one heck of a week. In another “Chain Reaction of Praise” moment, our basement flooded for the second time in a matter of a few weeks. It was even worse this time. We have had to juggle our schedule to move furniture, haul rugs out into the sun to dry, pull up carpeting, and cut out the carpet pad that is trapping water and will otherwise become a major mold problem. Oh, and we had guests staying with us from out of state. They happened to be staying in the downstairs guest room. Fortunately, we have another guest room upstairs.

Life happens. Oh, the joy.

In today’s chapter, Paul is wrapping up his letter to the believers in Rome. He tells them of his intention of going to Spain to share Jesus’ message there and tells them that he will stop in Rome for a while on his way. He plans to do this right after he takes a gracious and generous financial gift from the believers in Greece back to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem.

What I found fascinating in reading about Paul’s intentions is that I know he will never make it to Spain. He will return to Rome but as a prisoner of the Empire. The whole story is in Acts 20-28. Paul is warned multiple times not to return to Jerusalem where he remained a wanted man by the same Jewish religious leaders who had Jesus crucified. Paul bull-headedly proceeds with the trip. Once in Jerusalem, he is recognized, sparks a riot, and is arrested. When he is tried by the local Roman Governor, Paul leverages his Roman citizenship to appeal his case to Caesar in Rome (which was the right of any Roman citizen). So, he will not realize his intention to go to Spain. He will spend a lot of time in Rome and eventually be executed there.

Life happens.

Earlier this week I wrote about how we can respond, not react when encountering a heated topic in current events. Ironically, the post stirred some strong reactions. Along life’s road, I’ve also learned that I also have the same opportunity to respond, not react, when “life happens.” I can have all sorts of well-laid plans and intentions that, in a moment, are dashed by the unexpected. I can allow it to overwhelm me, or I can respond in faith and hope that we’ll get through it and probably learn some things along the way. I like what Paul wrote in today’s chapter:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

In the quiet this morning, I spent a few moments thinking back to other times when “Life Happened” along the journey. This is certainly not the first time I’ve dealt with water problems in the basement. It happened in the house I grew up in, and it happened in our previous home here in Pella. We’ve had homes broken into and robbed. I’ve had my hotel room robbed. There have been tragic deaths of family members, trees falling, and my parents once had a car drive through the wall of their house!

You know what? I’ve learned that in the midst of all of it, I can experience both peace and joy. I can respond with trust in God who gives me hope that I’ve learned I can faithfully count on. We’ll do the work. We’ll fix the problem. Eventually, we’ll look back on this week in the same way I’m looking back at all the other times that Life happened.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

The Need for Struggle

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The Need for Struggle (CaD Rom 5) – Wayfarer

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.
Romans 5:3-4 (NIV)

Here in the Midwest, there has been a tremendous amount of rain this summer. Entire towns in northwest Iowa are underwater. We know individuals and businesses who have been significantly impacted.

A week ago Wendy and I were preparing to have our entire family with us for two days to celebrate the 4th of July. The day before everyone was scheduled to arrive we had a rainstorm that poured several inches of rain in a short period. Our sump pump couldn’t keep up. Our basement flooded. Suddenly we found ourselves in crisis mode as we scrambled to move things around and find a way to stem the tide. At one point, Wendy looked at me with tears running down her cheeks.

“This is not how I wanted this day to go,” she said.

Indeed.

At the same time, Wendy and I have been walking with multiple families who are in seasons of acute suffering. Not just the momentary pain of a flooded basement kind of suffering. We’re talking about the severe, agonizing circumstances that can rip lives and families apart type of suffering. The circumstances are uniquely different with each of these friends but the life struggles are equally difficult. It’s hard to witness. And, it puts a wet basement into perspective.

Along my life journey, I have observed that our culture struggles with suffering. It’s almost as if we believe no one should ever experience difficulty. We spend a lot of time, energy, and resources trying to avoid or alleviate suffering. There are plenty of televangelists who will promise you that God will provide a life of wealth and blessing if you simply send them a few bucks, and then a few more, and then a few more. And, to my point, many people do.

Wendy and I recently read an article by an expert who addressed the reality that we have a generation of young adults who have been overprotected by parents and a culture obsessed with safety. Now these kids can’t cope with the struggles of everyday adult life.

In today’s chapter, Paul tells the believers in Rome to “glory” in their suffering. This is not an isolated teaching. James wrote the same thing, as did Peter. The goal of being a disciple of Jesus is to follow His example. Jesus Himself said that following Him requires me to carry a cross. The cross was invented to make a person suffer an excruciating death. The bottom line is that spiritual maturity is forged through painful struggle. If there is no pain, there will be no spiritual progress.

In the quiet this morning I’m continuing to pray for our friends in their season of suffering. I’m going to once again reach out to encourage them. One of the things I’ve learned in my own seasons of suffering is that I don’t have to be alone. I have great friends. When I’m suffering, I need those friends the most. When they are suffering, they need me, even if it’s simply making them aware I am present. There are important aspects of maturity that one learns in this life only through struggle. It’s good to have good companions on the journey.

By the way, our basement is back to normal. Our family’s visit was wonderful. In the grand scheme of things, it was a rather minor event. It did teach us, however, that there are some things we need to do to avoid it happening again.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Sunday Summary

The Latest 12-6-2015

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After hosting Thanksgiving a few weeks ago, Wendy and I spent the rest of the weekend hunkering down at home. Thanksgiving evening was spent watching a family movie with Taylor and Suzanna (This is Where I Leave You). We enjoyed the movie, though Suzanna fell asleep, which is not unusual (see featured photo of this post).

One of the priorities on the honey-do list since moving into our house has been getting shelves built in the storage room downstairs. So, on Saturday I was up early finishing walls and beginning the task. It took me about 10 hours without break, but we have 24 feet of shelving for all of our “stuff” (and Taylor’s “stuff” and Madison’s “stuff” and Suzanna’s “stuff”).

Storage Room Before Shelves
Before

After!
After!

Needless to say, I was fairly tired and sore, so Sunday would have been a day of rest and routine. It started out routine: Breakfast with CBS Sunday Morning and church, but then we headed to the Community Center to sell tickets for USP’s production of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Wendy and I stepped down from our Board positions, but we’re continuing to volunteer our time in other ways. Wendy heads up ticket sales and I am doing web and social media. Once ticket sales were done we headed home to watch the Vikings (they won!). In the evening we walked down the street to McQuade Pub for cocktails and conversation which was the perfect cap to the holiday weekend.

Aslan is on the loose!

The weather continues to be unseasonably warm. Highs have been in the 50’s the past few days. Wendy and I continued to sell tickets for the USP show on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evenings. We stayed to watch the show on Thursday.

On Friday night we were invited over to the Burch’s for a late dinner and stayed late into the evening. On Saturday morning I drove to Des Moines for the funeral of Doug Appleby. Doug’s brother Dan was in my class at Hoover. We and our siblings were all in the youth group together at First Federated Church back in the day. It was a bit of a sober homecoming of sorts with friends I hadn’t seen in many years. Doug was a great kid, a veteran, a family man, and a man of faith. There was a lot of love and hope at the funeral.

Wendy and Beck at V-Dub Pub

Kev, Beck and the kids came to Pella last night. The kids went to the play with grandma and grandpa while we adults enjoyed dinner together. After the kids returned we all hung out downstairs in V-Dub Pub and watched the Iowa Hawkeyes blow their lead and lose the Big10 championship game.

We’ll help with tickets for the closing USP performance this afternoon. It’s a sell-out. We’re hosting the cast party here at Vander Well Manor. Looking forward to celebrating with the cast and crew.

Sunday Summary

The Latest 10-04-15

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Summer has turned to autumn. The mornings are crisp and cool. The late summer sun is strong, but tempered with the cool fall breeze. The trees are changing color and looking increasingly bare. Here in the Iowa heartland the combines are out and the landscape changes daily as fields full of tall corn are laid bare with the harvest.

The Latest 10 04 2015 - 3

A few weeks ago we returned from our fall weekend at the lake with Kevin and Becky. While we were in Missouri there had been a big rain back here at home. And, I had been watering our fledgling lawn religiously. Early that week I was sitting in Vander Well Pub with Taylor talking about her day when I looked into the basement family room and noticed that a big pillow sitting on the floor was discolored. It was then that I discovered our sump pump had not been working and our storage room and family room were flooded. When our contractor came over to inspect the issue, he found that at some point the sump pump plug was not flush in the outlet. All he did was push it in and the sump started to work. It was not a good evening.

We had a lot of damaged photos, artwork and other belongings that were still boxed in the storage room from the move. Fortunately, our friend Brad responded to my text and brought over huge fans and a special machine for sucking up water out of the carpet/pad. I was up until the wee hours trying to dry things out. Ugh.

The Latest 10 04 2015 - 1The Latest 10 04 2015 - 4Wendy has been planning a new tat for a long time now, and had vowed to put it off until after the summer (You’re supposed to keep new tattoos out of the sunlight). She finally pulled the trigger and had a gorgeous phoenix inked onto her upper left arm. It’s a gorgeous tat. The phoenix, a symbol of rebirth and glory from ashes, has long held special significance for Wendy. I’m happy that she finally got it done.

The Latest 10 04 2015 - 5

Last weekend was Pella’s Marching Band Festival. Des Moines Christian was marching, so Jody and my folks drove down for it. Wendy and I met them at the field to watch the band, then came back to the house for a quick bite. It was great to have them here and to see both Emma and Harry Roose marching.

The Latest 10 04 2015 - 9

This past week Taylor received word that her Master’s dissertation had been accepted by Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. We uncorked a nice bottle of wine, made a special dinner of grilled salmon, and toasted her acheivement!

Yesterday we were in Ames. My dear friend, Megan, asked me to be honorary dad at ISU Dad’s Weekend. Her mom picked Wendy and me up early in the morning and we drove up to the campus. Megan has pledged to a sorority, so after picking her up at her dorm we went to the house for tailgating and games. We then walked to Jack Trice stadium and sat in the student section to watch the Cyclones beat Kansas. It was a cloudless day and one half of my face got nicely burned! It was great to see Megan and, as always, it was a privilege to be honorary dad.

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Wendy and I have spent the past couple of weeks finalizing our transition out of leadership with Union Street Players. There have been files to transfer, final reports to prepare, meetings with the new Board. Last night was the 2015 USP Award’s Night which was essentially our final major responsibility. Wendy planned the event and made several cheesecakes. I put together the year-in-review video and emcee’d the event. Suzanna came back from school to attend. Our friend Heather MacClennan came down from Des Moines with her trio to provide entertainment. Good time had by all (despite some maddening technical difficulties that just about fubar’d the entire evening for me).

Chapter-a-Day

Words in My Heart

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You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart.
Deuteronomy 6:5-6 (NRSV)

I’m posting a little late today because, I’ll be honest with you, it’s been a really rough couple of weeks. I don’t want to whine and I’m not complaining. It just is what it is. There has been unexpected trials in business. There has been unforeseen relational conflict with friends that hit like a blind-side tackle. Then last night we discovered our basement flooded. Somehow the electrical plug to our sump pump got pulled a tiny bit out of the outlet. The heavy rains of last week and the watering of our newly seeded lawn backed up into our storage room and family room. I’ve spent much of the past 24 hours in Noah mode.

As I was working the wet-vac into the wee hours last night, I found myself thinking about Job, for whom things were much worse than a wet basement, and yet he said, “The Lord gives and takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” I had other verses come to mind like those from James when he wrote “Consider it pure joy when you encounter various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” Or, the prophet Isaiah who said, “Don’t fear for I am with you. Do not look anxiously about you, for I am your God. Surely I will strengthen you. Surely I will help you.” Or the prophet Jeremiah who while looking over the desolation of his home town said, “This I recall to mind. Therefore I have hope. God’s love never ceases. His compassion does not fail. His mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.”

These various words are not just in my head. They are in my heart. And, as I read Moses command this afternoon to keep God’s Message in our heart, it struck me that the difference between having these words in your head and having them in your heart is all the difference in the world. When they are in your head they affect your thinking. When they are in your heart they affect your life.

Last night was a long evening of sorting through our ruined belongings. Many of them were irreplaceable and with priceless sentimental value. We had a very short night’s rest and woke sore and worn but got right back to the clean up. Mid-morning, Wendy and I took a breather. We found ourselves laughing. We hugged, and between the two of us we found a few silver linings for which to be grateful. Among the things for which we are grateful are God, His promises, and His mercies that are new each morning – even when that morning calls you back to the clean up.

Wayfarer's Journal

We’re In Hot Water

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Old things pass away, new things come.
Old things pass away, new things come.

Over the past few years Wendy and I have been slowly trying to update and renovate our cozy little tudor style home. We have worked with an architect on a master plan that includes some really cool changes inside and out. Before we get to that, however, there have been a lot of necessary, but not so sexy, updates we’ve needed to make to the infrastructure of our house. We’ve sort of taken it at a pace of one major project per year. Roof needed to be replaced. Gutters needed to be replaced. Windows needed to be replaced. Siding on the 2nd floor needed to be replaced. Last year we needed to deal with waterproofing the basement and shoring up the foundation.

We actually accelerated things this year with two major projects and a minor project. This past spring we tore out the old concrete steps in our front yard and poured a new front patio. Just a few weeks ago we replaced the green monster. Our home came complete with an ancient green boiler about the size of a small Sherman tank. Estimates of its age put it somewhere in the 50-70 year range. It was terribly inefficient and the heat escaping out of it turned our bedroom (on the floor right above it) into a virtual sauna each winter.

We replaced it a few weeks ago along with our hot water heater with new, high-tech units. The new boiler is a fraction of the size and looks like a jet engine. We can already tell the difference. It still keeps the house nice and warm but heat escaping off the old boiler used to make it nice and toasty in the basement boiler room. Now it’s like a typical chilly basement.

The old boiler is still sitting in the basement. The contractor discovered upon trying to tear it out that the core of the old boiler is made of steel and weighs a ton (pretty literally). They’ve spent weeks trying to get someone here to cut it in pieces and haul it out. Looks like that will finally be completed next week.

Wayfarer's Journal

“He Who Has Ears to Hear…”

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A self-portrait by Vincent van Gogh with a ban...
A self-portrait by Vincent van Gogh with a bandaged ear. On display in the Courtauld Gallery. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I know I haven’t been posting much lately other than my chapter a day. I’ve kind of dropped off Facebook and Twitter as well. It’s not necessarily intentional.

It’s been a busy spring. Wendy and I were busy with USP’s spring production. I’m in a busy season of work, the busiest I’ve experienced in many years which has included a hectic business travel schedule. At the same time, we’ve been through a large home project in which the foundation of our house was shored up and the basement completely waterproofed. Now we have a basement piled with all our “stuff” covered in a thick layer of fine cement dust which has to be sorted, cleaned, organized and put away. It all feels pretty mundane and overwhelming at the same time.

In addition, my tinnitus has had periods of being markedly worse this spring. (Side note: There is one school of thought that Vincent Van Gogh went crazy, in part, because of tinnitus and he cut off his ear to rid himself of the incessant ringing. If so, I sympathize with him.) Because of the difficulty I have hearing in places with a lot of ambient noise, I’ve found myself struggling with large social situations and public places. I hate having to ask people to repeat themselves two or three times, or just sitting there hearing the din of conversation but not being able to make out what people are saying. I finally went to the ENT doc to get things checked out only to find that the hearing in my “good” ear has declined rapidly in the past year. The doc suggested I give up caffeine and get fitted for a hearing aid in that ear as well. [sigh] Going through caffeine withdrawal on top of everything else was a barrel of fun.

I’m whining. I know, and I beg your forgiveness. I’m blessed that technology and available resources mean I can get what I need to help me hear. Nevertheless, I admit that the reality of my auditory decline has left me feeling a little sad even as I prepare to celebrate my 46th birthday on Monday. Wendy and I will, however, be at the (blessedly quiet) lake with my folks, Taylor, and Clayton. I’m really looking forward to being there, even if it is only for a day or two.

Wayfarer's Journal

Easter 2012

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Panorama of our basement walls covered in protective waterproof sheeting. Sump pump can be seen along with edge of a pile of our stuff on the left.

I feel like I haven’t posted much but my chapter-a-day for a while. To be honest, it’s been a little crazy around the Vander Well household. We’re experiencing the busiest season of work we’ve had in several years (that’s a good thing) and trying to keep up. We were crazy busy with the play. And then, a construction crew showed up to accomplish a long due project of waterproofing our basement which necessitated us moving everything in our basement into piles in the center of the room, taking anything off the exterior walls (like paneling, insulation, etc. Last week was phase one and it went really well, but now we have everything in piles that has to be put back, and our entire house is covered in a thin layer of concrete dust from the jack hammering and cement pouring, etc. More of that to come in two weeks when phase two shores up the foundation.

Easter Worship from my camera perch at the back of the sanctuary.

Easter services at our church were great. Wendy and I once again helped out on the tech crew. Easter worship at our church is actually a bit of a technological challenge. We have people in two different rooms. Half the worship band is on one stage in the sanctuary and the other half of the band is on the stage in the auditorium on the other side of the building. So, from my camera in the sanctuary I could hear the lead guitar and bass player, but they were actually playing from another room. The rhythm guitar and keyboard were on stage in front of me, but the folks in the auditorium couldn’t see them other than the video feeds going back and forth. Everything is simulcast between the two rooms. For anybody who’s an audio-video geek it’s a pretty cool thing to be part of and it makes for an interesting experience to pull it off.

L-R: Clay, Tay, Emma, Wendy, Jody, Scott, Grandpa Dean, Grandma Jeanne

After worship Wendy and I headed to Des Moines for Easter dinner with my family. It was blissfully low key feast this year. Tay and Clay were there, though we missed Maddy Kate. We got to see her when I called her with FaceTime and she got to see everyone. She got a little taste of home by having Easter dinner with Brett and Micki Strait and the Diehls who just moved to Colorado Springs from Pella. It was nephew Sol’s birthday, so a little birthday cake and pie were in order after dinner.

In the evening we headed downtown to celebrate two more birthdays. Wendy’s friends Shay and Sarah are both celebrating birthdays so we gathered with friends at Django for a wonderful meal and conversation.

It was a wonderful Easter Sunday. The tulips here in Pella are in full bloom about a month earlier than normal. The cloudless, perfect sunny Easter Sunday could not have been more beautiful.

Wayfarer's Journal

St. Patrick’s Day Demolition & Dinner

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One of the on-going struggles of owning a humble, old house is the never ending need for repair and renovation. Each year Wendy and I have some major update that we’re doing. Last year it was residing the upper level. Before that we needed to replace most of the windows in the main floor. Before that it was the roof. You get the picture.

Over the past few years we’ve known that we need to deal with the water issues in our basement. So, this past Saturday we combined Project with Paddy’s Day. My faithful friends came over on Saturday morning and helped me tear out old paneling, a shower, a stool, and a set of shelves. We had to uncover the walls and make way for Midwest Basement Systems to come and waterproof everything.

Fortunately, it was a beautiful day and we had a lot of fun as we labored. In the evening, the guys returned with wives and little ones to enjoy some of Wendy’s homemade pizza and Guinness Cupcakes as we celebrated the wearin’ o’ the green.