Passages

Ralph and Carol Crouch are celebrating a wedding anniversary, Ralph's birthday, Carol's retirement and Ralph's retirement all within a two week period. The Mustard Seed class at FBC Richmond gathered at the Robin Inn on Sunday to honor them.


Ralph celebrates his 65th birthday this week. Ralph retires on Friday from Henrico County Government after almost twenty one-years. He started working for 911 and then moved to the Department of Community Revitalization. He is a man of many talents.

Ralph and Carol are also celebrating their forty-fifth anniversary. They actually eloped. Carol's dad was a Baptist pastor. Ralph says they were ready to get married after dating only four months. Her father felt that it was too quick. They said the ladies at her father's church were counting the months to see how long the marriage would last. I hope they are not still counting!

Ralph was a Methodist when they married. Four years later he became a Baptist.

Ultimately he was called into the ministry. He attended Southwestern Baptist Seminary and then pastored three churches here in Virginia. Ralph sees himself as a pastor at heart.

Lewis Meyers pronounced a blessing on the couple: "May the Lord bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and give you peace."

It is obvious that they love each other. What now? Well, they are not going to rush into anything. They want to travel some. They have thought about volunteering in some national parks. Ralph has been a part of a 'Campers on Mission Group' in the past and they may get involved in that ministry again.

We all go through significant passages. They include graduation from high school and college; beginning a new career; getting married; beginning a family and the loss of loved ones. Retirement is another rite of passage. A rite of passage means we complete one era of our lives and we begin another. In retirement we are freed up from many of the obligations and time commitments that come with our careers. At times like this I have heard many say, "I have been successful, now I want to be significant." The challenge is to live the next phase of our lives in a way that fulfills God's purpose for us. My prayer is that we will all fulfill God's purpose for our lives regardless of our phase of life.

Psalms 138: 8 "The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever--do not abandon the works of your hands."