It has now been 5 days since we returned from HOT Branson to HOT Topeka! We had a fun while there and for some reason it is taking me the better part of a week to recover! I really did not think we had overdone it! On Tuesday of our vacation, we went to see Smoke on the Mountain. If you are ever in Branson, you should see this show. It is held in the Little Opry Theatre which makes it more interactive and personal. It is a simple little show. It is also unabashedly Christ-inspired! We laughed until there were tears streaming down our faces and our sides ached. B’Elanna sat beside me and I thought she was going to split a gut! It was even good, wholesome fun for the littler ones! The best part about the whole show, was the memories it evoked in me!
The Children of the World (Summer 1983)
While I was growing up, my family was known as The Children of the World. We traveled weekends to churches all over the Midwest holding “mini-revivals”. I remember coming home from school on Friday and packing up the bus so that when my father came home from work we could all pile in and drive up to 250 miles away. We started the weekend with a mens breakfast on Saturday morning, followed by a ladies luncheon and a teen event on Saturday evening. We then did both the Sunday morning and Sunday evening services. I remember lots of church potlucks. Yumm! I also remember many, many small churches filled with wonderful people in that 250 mile radius around Topeka. I cannot tell you how many times we drive through a small town now and I see a church that we went to at some point. I am the oldest in my family of 14 kids. I think that is why I am so hard on myself! (At the time that we traveled there were 11 kids. My youngest 3 siblings arrived to the Ruecker household after I was married. )
Mom and Reggie
One of my favorite memories is the sack lunches that were often provided for us as we packed up the bus on Sunday evening and pulled out of a church parking lot waving to the crowd of people we were leaving behind. We usually all had a different lunches as various families would make a lunch for one or two of us. It usually became a huge bartering session over the many treats and things that were in our lunches. “I’ll trade my egg salad sandwich for your Twinkie!” I really think those people thought we were starving. It seems like we had a LOT of food in each of those little brown paper bags. I also remember sitting on the bus steps while my father drove late into the night on Sunday night and talking with him while the rest of the family slept. He and I would have competitions to see who could name the most hymns! Once, when returning home at the crack of dawn, we decided to continue to sleep in the bus and go into the house when we all awakened. Dad pulled the bus onto the back patio slab and we all settled in. We ended up weathering out tornadic weather in the early morning light! I can tell you first hand that this is not something you want to wait in a bus for! When we emerged from the bus, the trees were all on the ground, but the house and the bus were intact!
The Smoke on the Mountain show starts with the family of singers arriving late to their own church service because they tipped over the bus looking out at all the cucumbers floating down the river. (Don’t ask!) I remember once when our bus broke down on the way to a service. Several members of the congregation came and “rescued” us in their cars. We loaded up 4 or 5 cars with all of our equipment and our clothes. Then we were parceled out 2 or 3 or 4 at a time to each car and toted to the church. As our caravan arrived, we were horrified to discover that not only was the church packed to the gills with what seemed like hundreds of people, but they had been there waiting for over an hour and a half. So, while the audience continued to wait, we set up and got ready and then held the service! God always prevails!
I think God used this little show in all its simplicity to remind me of the wonderful inheritance I received from my parents. And, to remind me that families should be making memories. He is working in the Smerchek household right now and this next school year holds many unknowns and new experiences. I don’t like to feel unsure and out of control (my “oldest child” disposition). I despise not having a plan in front of me! But, it seems that God is leading me along that path for a time right now. I know in my heart that all the pieces will fall into place. That is just the way God works. But, I struggle so to keep looking forward and let Him work! I want to glance back at what is safe and known. So pray for us, my dear friends, that God will continue to lead and that our hearts will be softened before Him and enable us to follow. And when the Smoke clears, may our lives reflect the glory of Him and what only He can do!
