My testimony ended with "So much has happened in the intervening years. God as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit has become dearer and clearer to me with each passing adventure. I could go on for pages more with exciting stories of how Chris and I became filled with the Holy Spirit and how He has worked in our lives to give us more adventure than any two people deserve in a lifetime. But, alas, that, too, is for another time and place."

So here, as time allows me to add them, is that other place where some of the amazing events that occurred to Chris and me over the intervening years are described, in approximate chronological order.

The "Pinkham" Board

Many events pointed to or confirmed our decision to make the move back to Northfield.  Perhaps the most dramatic occurred when my wife, who had returned to look for a house to rent and provide interim care for her mother, was looking at a rental less than a half a mile up the country road from her parents when she discovered a board on a shelf with our last name burned into the end.  The landlords wanted only $300 a month for rent.  Needless to say, we rented that house!

Being Filled with the Holy Spirit

coming later

Col 2:6-7

coming later

The Founding of Norwich Christian Fellowship

In the late spring of 1982, Chris (my wife) and I had moved back to Northfield, our hometown (we are childhood sweethearts-the best kind!) to care for both sets of our ailing parents in obedience to God’s calling on our lives. We sensed that in addition, God was asking us to start an OCF ministry on campus. I had been trying to find some cadet who would be interested in doing so but was meeting with no success. Then one day, as I was walking on the upper parade ground, the Holy Spirit said to me, “See, that cadet coming toward you, I want you to tell him what we are trying to do.” Naturally, I said, “You want me to do WHAT?” But He persisted and knowing that this sort of thing had happened to Brother Andrew when he was looking to meet with members of the persecuted church in places where he had no contacts, I was encouraged to try. So, I stopped him and said, “you probably will not understand what I am about to say to you (I still couldn’t believe this was real), but the Holy Spirit just told me to stop you and tell you I am trying to start a Christian fellowship on campus.” Whereupon, he fell back in disbelief and said, “You’re kidding, the Holy Spirit was telling me I was supposed to stop you and ask you to help me start a Christian fellowship on campus!” Now, if that’s not a commission, I don’t know what is!!!

Col 3:21

One evening, a year or so after we returned to Northfield from Utah, Chris had gone to a Women's Aglow meeting and I was left at home to oversee our three boys who were now about 13, 11, and 5 years old.  I had lots to do to get ready for my teaching the next day and TerraCopia business, so I was not the most willing parent.  As brothers that age are inclined to do, they picked on each other mercilessly.  (To jump ahead 30 years, we are now blessed with three sons who are incredibly dedicated to each other.)  As the evening progressed, their rambunctiousness got worse and worse until I could take it no longer and in a fit of extreme anger sent them off packing to bed.  When Chris got home the first thing out of her mouth was, "Carl, on the way home the strangest thing happened.  I felt very strongly that the Lord was telling me that you should read Colossians 3:21." (As another aside, as I finished typing Colossians just now, I noticed the squiggly red underline indicating a misspelling.  I was pretty sure I had spelled it correctly, but I dutifully clicked on it to see what was suggested.  Much to my surprise, nothing like Colossians was indicated.  Apparently, some of the Books of the New Testament are not included in the default lexicon-hmm....) She went on to say, "I'm not even sure if there is a third chapter in Colossians, and if there is, if it has a 21st verse.  Let's check it out."  We did and here's what it says, "Fathers,^[a] do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged."  (NIV)  God was driving home His concern for the little ones as laid out by Jesus in Matthew 18:6, "If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." (NIV)

Getting My Prayer Language or Speaking in Tongues

coming later

The Good Shepherd Bookshop and the Romanian Bible

coming later

The Meeting of Kevin and His First Wife (This is one of the first questions I have for God when we meet face-to-face.)

coming later

The Building of our House.

We were faced with a dilemma.  The house we had been renting (See The "Pinkham" Board) since we came was not going to be available for rent after the summer of 1987.  We were forced to go out on a limb once again and trust the Lord to provide enough solid income to build a house.  Since she was a young girl, Chris had a favorite spot on her folk's property.  It was a short distance up the hill from her folks house at the top of the brow and it overlooked the valley below with a stunning view of Camel's Hump and Mount Mansfield.  As a child she had often said to the Lord that she wanted to have a house on that spot.  In response to our need, her dad deeded us the land we needed to build on.  It included Chris's spot and we found a prefabricated house that would be within our budget.  There was only one problem.  The brow of the hill was all ledges and we wouldn't have enough money to cover the blasting necessary to make a cellar hole for the house.  As we fretted over this problem, during her quiet time one day in early May, just before the excavation was to begin, she was led to 2 Chronicles 20:17, ^"'You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’” (NIV) So she said to the excavators, "This spot is where I sat as a young girl; this spot is to be the center of the cellar hole."  When excavated, the cellar hole encountered no ledge, only a few large boulders that were easily removed.  But all around the cellar hole was the ledge!

The Oxford Invitation

The story of how a little-know college professor got an invitation to speak at Oxford is found in the concluding paragraph of "How Astrobiology and Faith Came to be Woven together in Carl's Life."

My Brush with Death

One January Sunday morning around 2010 I was driving to church, which was in Duxbury, about 20 miles north of home.  I don't remember why, but Chris was at home, probably sick.  As usual, I was driving on the Interstate.  I approached the long hill on I-89 that takes the Interstate from the ridge-line to the Winooski Valley just before the Montpelier exit.  I noticed some flares that were mostly spent on the left side of the road, and assumed they must be signaling an accident ahead, so as I went down the hill at the speed limit, I scanned ahead for signs of an accident, but saw none.  I hit the bridge over route 12 which passed beneath about 100 feet below and began to loose traction.  I instantly did four things: I 1) recognized I was a fool for not thinking the flares meant the bridge was frozen over, 2) started reflexively to recall all my ice driving experiences, 3) recognized that if I crashed the car, at best, we would have no transportation for some of our children who were flying in from far away later that week, and at worst, I would plummet through the bridge abutment onto Route 12 far below, and 4) sent a telegram prayer to God.

I could feel the car getting less and less traction and beginning a slow 360 degree spin that increased in speed.  Three complete circles later, I had somehow miraculously managed to keep the car on the road without hitting any bridge abutments and to gently stop my motion in a snow bank after the bridge.  Once I caught my breath, I slowly backed out of the snow bank with no damage to the car.  It was then that I noticed the state trooper behind me, who, seeing that I had managed to avoid crashing or worse, took the U-turn to the southbound traffic so he could stop any others from making the foolish mistake I had just made.

To God be the glory!