In my last post I mentioned the stony surround on the outside of our RBC building.  But what’s really fascinating to me are the rocks in the building.  I did just a brief survey of offices (okay, cubicles) and discovered that lots of folks who work here have “pet rocks” on their desks or counter-tops somewhere.  Some come with significant stories; most, however, are keepsake stones—reminders of enjoyable or important trips.

Have a look at some of these memorial stones:

Mart DeHaan’s rock (from the Lake Michigan shore by South Haven, Michigan).  Mart is the president of RBC.  It’s been a paperweight on his desk for as long as I can remember.  A fascinating stone.

This is one of Fred Hollis’ several rocks.  Fred is a producer and camera man with Day of  Discovery who has been here for ages and has done DOD programs all over the world.  Fred’s away, so I didn’t get the story on this rock, but my guess is that it is from the Dead Sea—with a crust of salt still on it:

Here is another of Fred’s rocks.  I’m pretty sure this is sandstone from Petra in Jordan.  Petra, of course was an ancient fortress in the rocks, carved out of rock, with a name that means “cleft in the rock.”  A fascinating aspect of Petra’s beauty is that the sandstone it is carved out of is striated with many different colors.  I’ll bet with the new baggage fees charged by the airlines that Fred won’t be carrying many rocks home any more!

Here is Ed Rock’s pocket rock.  Really!  Ed picked it up on the eastern shore of Lake Superior at Old Woman Bay years ago, and he’s kept it in his pocket ever since.  Ed has a Harley, and one day he forgot to carry his pocket rock, got on the bike, and without that balance, he fell right over (okay, that’s not true.)

Now Ed Rock’s wife, Carolyn Rock, has three rocks in her office that she keeps as rocks of remembrance from a trip to Colorado.  Ed handles RBC’s copyrights and Carolyn works in graphics and their offices are literally a stone’s throw from each other.  I’m telling the truth here!  The good news is that by all accounts Ed and Carolyn are happily married.  Now if that changed, Carolyn has the advantage: bigger rocks and higher walls on her cubicle!

And of course I have my own rock, a piece of galena (lead ore).  I got it at a rock shop in Cripple Creek, Colorado forty years ago, and have used it as a paperweight since then—in more offices than I can recount!  Cripple Creek is now a glittery casino town, but back then it was just coming out of its ghost-town stage.  We borrowed my brother’s jeep and picked up a couple of good friends who were actually on their honeymoon (now that’s friendship!) and took the rugged, one and a half lane, dirt Gold Camp Road from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek—parts of which were real white-knuckle adventures.  When we got there, we drove all over the old mining roads—until we almost drove into an old mine shaft lurking in the middle of the road.  We saw a dark small hole in the road, got out, and took a look. Leaning over the hole, we were greeted by the feel and sound of a chilly blast of air coming up from who knows how many feet down in the bowels of the mountain.  Four-wheel-drive was not needed at that point—just a quick shift into reverse!

Here’s my rock:

Because the rock has been with me all these year since my first ministry job in 1968, it has been a real Ebenezer stone.  You may remember the lyric from the hymn “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing“:  “Here I raise my Ebenezer; hither by Thy help I’m come.”

There’s no question in my mind that God’s hand has led me for these many years—sometimes willingly and sometimes having to be dragged along like a prospector’s mule.  I praise the Rock of Ages that His will is stronger than mine and that He has the persistence to put me in my place—which is a much better place when He chooses it!

See you outdoors!

Dean