Lost

Wow, I have really neglected this blog. Especially after stating that this was important to me. The problem is that I have neglected writing in general for quite some time -- but excuses are for a different venue. My last post was titled "Found." This one is "Lost." 

I grew up in one of those households where I never doubted God. I think I always believed in Jesus. We didn't attend church much because we were migrant workers during WWII -- Really! After the war, we settled in Bellflower and began to attend the First Baptist Church. We became quite active.My dad was the chairman of the building committee that built the sanctuary still in use today -- yet in the middle of the building program, he became enamored with another woman and left our family. I was president of the Jr. High School youth group and later president of the High School group. My mother was active with the women. When the money from my father dried up, she became the pastor's secretary at the princely salary of $40 a week -- not much even in the early 50s. 

One of the duties of my mom as the pastor's secretary was to attend cabinet meetings where the pastor, staff and major leaders of the church would gather. I can't remember whether this happened in 1953 or 1954 -- but I was in High School. In November, the cabinet was discussing how many Christmas Baskets they could purchase and distribute to the needy in town. My mom told them that we were really in need ourselves and that we could really use one of those baskets. She was told that that would be a conflict of interest -- they couldn't give such a gift to one of the people of the church, especially one involved in the meeting where this decision was made. Mom was devastated, but she was loyal to the pastor and the church; she kept at her post as secretary. I was pretty upset -- I thought, "Is this what church is supposed to be? Aren't we supposed to take care of one another?" I was beginning my descent into the Belly of the Whale.

Wait, the story doesn't end there. Guess what Mom and I did on Christmas eve? Yes, you guessed it! Mom and I traveled throughout the town with a car loaded with Christmas baskets. We spent most of the day distributing them. Certainly the leaders of the church couldn't be bothered with such a mundane matter. Mom was just an employee of the church -- after all she was getting well paid for doing such a thing. I personally was disgusted! We were able to get a little miniature Christmas tree and enjoyed hamburgers for Christmas dinner. Merry Christmas! Your church loves you. Do I sound bitter? I am not any more, but I was at the time. I would have probably left the church except for the fact that all of my social life was centered in the church.

One last thing that must be said is that First Baptist Church of Bellflower was a good church. The people were good people but they didn't really get it. They were locked into a certain way of thinking. There were many things that contributed to my slide into the Belly -- but this is probably the earliest one. Of course the lesson for the church is obvious. There is lesson there for those of us who feel mistreated. We have to learn to look to Jesus -- not always easy when one is just learning.

Found!

I was found early in 1971. I wasn't literally in the belly of a whale -- but I was lost. I was a Christian. Jonah was a prophet of the Lord, yet both us got lost. Linda and I were already members of First Baptist Church of Chula Vista. I left for a year in Danang, Vietnam on Dec. 26, 1969. My wife sent tapes to me (yes, that is how we communicated in those days.) She was trying to encourage me, but her news made me feel more lost than ever. First she told me that she had experienced the "baptism of the Spirit." This was good, but I still didn't know how I felt about all of this "tongues speaking" stuff. Second she said that the church was experiencing a revival among young people. Lots of young hippies were beginning to come to church. She mentioned the word, Jesus People. Now, I wasn't sure I wanted to attend with all of the long-haired, unwashed, anti-war hippies. They weren't my kind of people. Linda almost finished it off when she told me about people living in community households (aka communes.) These people were also commies!

I returned from Vietnam on Dec. 15, 1970. After Christmas at our parent's home in Bellflower, we returned to Chula Vista. Linda said that we could really see what was happening if we went to an evening service. I got dressed in my suit and tie -- of course with a military haircut -- and we went to church. I was impressed with the number of people coming to church, in spite of their long hair. I must confess that I was uncomfortable though. Then I looked toward the front of the church. I saw this guy with long hair looking somewhat like Sonny Bono and he was wearing a navy dungaree shirt complete with second class petty officer chevrons. The Lieutenant Commander in me was very agitated. I considered going up to him, but I held my peace. I was there to observe. Then he saw me and came right up to me and said, "You are Dick Hensgen aren't you?" I replied that I was (I was much nicer than I really felt in side.) Then he said, "I have been praying for you. I am a Vietnam vet also." He than threw his arms around me and said, "Welcome home." My hear melted. God found me. I was home and I have never been the same.

Note -- the picture is not directly involved with this story. It is one of the community household at FBCCV.

Jonah and Me

I have been thinking about this blog for a long time. I named it God in the Belly of the Whale because of the picture painted in the story of Jonah. Jonah was called by God to be a prophet to the city of Nineveh. He was to call them to repentance. This was something that Jonah didn't want to do. Why? Well Nineveh was seen as the arch enemy of Israel. As the capitol of the Assyrian Empire, they were trying to conquer Israel and take everyone into captivity. So, Jonah, being bright like many of us, decided to run from God. He caught a boat heading to the "ends of the earth," Tarshish. He really thought that he could run away from God.

Well, Jonah found out that God knew exactly where he was, what he was doing, and why he was doing it. When Jonah boarded the boat, he went down as low in the vessel as he could and went to sleep. Meanwhile, topside, the Lord sent a violent storm. The ship was tossed around and was in danger of sinking. The sailors were terrified. The captain went down and awakened Jonah with the plea, "Help, we are sinking, call on your god to see if he can help us." As a sailor myself, the thing that puzzles me here is how on earth Jonah was able to stay asleep down there -- and keep from getting seasick -- but that is really not part of the story. The sailors decided to cast lots to find out who was to blame for this storm. The lot singled out Jonah. "What did you do to offend your god," they asked. Jonah answered first by testifying to the power of Yahweh -- the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land Then he told the story. He told them that if they threw him overboard, the storm would calm down. They threw him overboard and the storm was over.

Then the story gets interesting. God created a large fish (actually not a whale -- even though that's how we usually picture it -- or title a blog for that matter) and that fish swallowed Jonah. He was in the fish for three days and nights. It was here that Jonah really found God. He prayed for deliverance and then surrendered. After his surrender, the fish spit him out on to dry land. Now Jonah was ready to do what God had told him to do in the first place. Of course the story of Jonah doesn't end there, but this is where the story stops in how this affects my life.

I am a lot like Jonah. This blog is my story. It is a story of a long time of running from God followed by some tough times leading to repentance. The repentance led to surrender and life change. Ever since this life change, I have walked in God's blessings. Of course, the story is not a fairy tale so I can't say that everything that has happened since this change of life has been good -- but I have grown and have become more of what God has called me to be. 

I intend to write regularly -- at least once per week. I will start with the call that God gave me while still a teenager. Then I will write stories out of my life to illustrate my run from God, the way God caught me, my dilemma, repentance, surrender followed by my change of life. The story is about God -- yet it is a very personal story for me for I was the one in the middle.