Renate's Reflections

                       My father would have turned 84 today. He was born in late spring 1940 in the old university town of Marburg/Lahn in Germany. At the time, World War II was gaining traction in Europe. It was a precarious time in history.                   The citizens of Marburg were subjected to nightly bombing raids by allied aircraft and one of Papa’s earliest memories was of running with his mother and sister to the bomb shelter several blocks down the street. It was in that shelter where my father met his best friend — a friendship born in uncertainty, but one that would last a lifetime.           During the nightly air strikes, the allies destroyed the train station but were careful to steer clear of ancient landmarks such as the Schloss (castle) on the hill and the Elizabeth church. Both bui...

  This story has been running through my mind a lot lately. It's one of the funnier things that happened during our thirty-year marriage. Doug was . . . let's just say a bit overreactive at times. It seems to be a trait handed down by the Reiner men from generation to generation. All the Reiner women reading this will nod their heads in agreement. The Reiner men will snort and say, "Not me!" And then the Reiner women will remind the men of a particular instance . . . Well, you get the idea. It was Alex's senior year of high school and we were headed out to Fortaleza after a break. The trip was long and we had our Akita, Zeus, with us so we decided to split the trip into two days. To save a little money, and to have a place for the dog, we made arrangements to spend the night at the Iguatu camp which was right on the way.  Night had fallen by the time we arrived at the camp and there were only a few lights on. We were essentially unloading in the dark. The fi...

          Yesterday, May 2, 2024, marked the 7th anniversary of Doug's entering the presence of the Lord. Seven years. It seems like it was just the other day and so long ago at the same time. I think of him every day. My thoughts can be memories of our life and ministry in Brazil or of the time we were in Cleveland during treatment. Most often, I remember those last few days in the ICU of the hospital. The pain hits with that sweet tightness in my chest. It's familiar now and doesn't catch me by surprise. The tears still pool in my eyes at random thoughts and remembrance. They roll down my cheeks as I share them with the grief support group. Someone hands me a tissue from the ever-present box on the little round table in the middle of the circle. The others look at me nodding their heads in understanding. Some are teary as well. I feel arms embrace me from behind whispering, "I'm praying for you," in my ear. "Thank you," I say. We all sit there in...

            As I sit at my desk which faces the window to my front yard, I notice the grass needs cutting. Maybe I should call Daniel. Maybe I should just get the John Deere riding mower out and do it myself. I enjoy the alone time while I'm mowing so I'll do it later, in the afternoon. That little tractor reminds me of all the mowing I did when we were in Western New York. Doug's Dad owned five acres of land that had a tiny house and a big pond. He named it Woodpecker Hill and there was a large white sign at the road with that moniker and the name Reiner.  Many in the Reiner family called it home over the years. Those of us missionaries lived there during furloughs. Others stayed there when they were in transition from one home to another. Nobody ever paid rent, but we were expected to pay the utilities and care for the property.  Care of the property meant shoveling snow in winter and mowing the grass in summer. Summers were great. W...

            When driving the two-lane highways of northeast Brazil, it's not uncommon to see roadkill. A variety of animals lie on the side or in the middle of the road that range in size from cattle any time of the year to tarantulas after a heavy rain. The roads are unlit at night and if you find yourself driving during that time an animal can appear seemingly out of nowhere. Any dead animal on the road seems to send out a radio signal advertising fresh meat to all the vultures in the county. I've seen as many as ten feasting on a horse. The vultures pose as much a threat to your car as the other wildlife. The ugly, black carrion fowl are reluctant to leave the main course for the day as the car drives by. The gluttons want to tear off every last bit of flesh they can. When they're finished, a pristine skeleton remains. And yep, it's gross. Did I mention they're protected by law? It's illegal to kill the vultures because they're the garbage colle...

          The First Baptist Church of Hamburg, New York has a long history and heritage. Founded in 1810, the church has been a presence in the community for more than 200 years. It began with a small group of German believers and experienced consistent growth throughout the 19th century.            This growth resulted in the founding of three other churches in the area, all of which are still in existence. The First Baptist Churches of Eden and East Aurora are worshiping and impacting their communities in the village centers. Armor Baptist Church was established in a small community at a crossroad. It has since changed its name to Armor Bible Church. The 20th century brought about a burden for missions and several families called First Baptist their commissioning church. The Harold (Doug's father) Reiner family was commissioned and left for the field of Brazil in 1948. About 10 years later, Harold's brother, Ray also w...

       The sun had not yet risen on that first day of the week. It had been three days since they laid Jesus in the tomb. The women had prepared the necessary spices for the Lord's body. The spices would cover the odor that would surely be coming from the dark hole carved from the rock. After all, it had been three days. But when the women arrived at the Lord's burial site the stone had been rolled aside. What was going on? Mary Magdalene poked her head inside the tomb and saw two men in glowing garments and they asked her, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen." (Luke 24:5-6) At first, Mary thought Jesus' body had been stolen. Things still weren't clicking. It took several conversations and appearances for all the disciples to believe Jesus had indeed risen from the dead--just as he said he would. (Matthew 28:6) The crucifixion was an excruciatingly painful day for those who believed Jesus was the Messiah, the Savior of...