Update 5/2/25: Leaving a Legacy

Psalm 116:15 “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.”

John 13:34-35 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Love. It is a simple four letter word, and yet it is something that the world needs more of…especially these days! The Bible said that if we love, we demonstrate that we are Jesus’ disciples. What does that look like in a practical, every day way? Does Jesus really want me to love my enemies too? Can’t I just love the nice people in my life?

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has had these thoughts. Loving an enemy or someone that is just plain difficult to get along with is challenging. Thankfully, if you have a personal relationship with Jesus and have the Holy Spirit, we have access to extra help for this difficult task. It may be too hard for us, but nothing is impossible with the help of the Lord.

My cousin, Heidi, recently told me a phrase that has left me reflecting and pondering the last few days. She proclaimed, “Love like Cori loves, and allow someone to love you like Cori loves me.” I just haven’t been able to shake that saying. In order for you to understand how powerful that short, but deeply meaningful statement is, I have to tell you more about my hero, my cousin Cori. He has left a lasting legacy for all of us to follow.

In my last post, I shared about flying out to California to see my cousin. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in February. When I found out, my world was rocked. Cori and I grew up together and we had a special bond. Not only that, since my cancer diagnosis, Cori was my biggest cheerleader and prayer warrior. We would chat on the phone and he would tell me that I’m going to be okay because he was praying for me. To some, that may seem cocky, but really what it was is real faith in action. My cousin had deep faith in what God could do! Cori loved God and told everyone he met about Jesus…he was a bold witness for Jesus. Cori lived a life that I pray that I can live…one filled with true, huge faith in God and a heart that loved everyone.

Cori never met a stranger. He would talk to anyone and the light of Jesus radiated his smile, his face, his every word…it was the center of who he was. God truly created a special man when He created Cori. From a young age, he was very attuned to the things of God. In fact, one of my favorite stories from when he was young was this one: one day he was looking outside and he asked his mom, “Hey mom, do you see all of them?” She was confused and said no one is out there Cori.” He emphatically responded, “Yes, there are all these angels outside!”

What brings my heart joy amongst the sadness of losing him is that I know he is in heaven with Jesus and our Opa and Oma. I know he heard, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” Because you know what, the world may have looked down on him for having an extra chromosome, but Jesus saw him as His perfect creation. 

Cori didn’t let anything get in his way in living on mission for God. He has left an impactful legacy…one I want to live up to. He loved Jesus and he loved people! And really, that is what we are all called by Jesus to do. Remember Matthew 22:36-39? When Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment, He responds with love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind…and love your neighbor as yourself. That is how Cori lived his life. 

How about you? What legacy do you want to leave? Many people think of money or fame when they think of leaving a legacy. But what better way then to have a legacy with eternal impact?!? That is Cori. His body may be buried in the ground, but he is completely healed in heaven and has left a huge banner to carry in his place…Love like Cori loves and allow someone to love you like Cori loves me.

Prayer Requests:

- Please pray for my family as they mourn Cori.

- Please pray for our upcoming trips. We are busy working on getting all the last minute details done. 

- Please also pray for Wayne and my upcoming appointments. 

Update 4/16/25: Whirlwind

Revelation 21:4 “and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain…”

Wayne and I took a last minute, whirlwind trip to California last week. We flew out to spend some precious time with my cousin. Although the trip was quick, we managed to squeeze a lot in the few days away. 

Wayne and I flew to Chicago and then on to Sacramento. We both enjoyed seeing Chicago from the air. We realized that we visited Chicago the first time about 25 years ago to tour Moody Bible Institute. 

I forgot how huge O’Hare Airport is! Crazy to think that we will be flying out from here in a few weeks. 

While in California, we found Naomi a new to her car. She was able to snag this 2004 beauty for a great price! But that meant we then had a 3 day drive home. 

First stop in California is always In’n’Out. 

We stayed with Wayne’s sister and her family Wednesday night. It was a short, but amazing time with them. Lots of laughter! We miss our CA family.

We couldn’t leave Santa Rosa without seeing a couple people who live near Karen. This amazing friend, Jennifer, has sent me numerous laminated scripture cards to encourage me over the years. She has even stopped by with special gifts as she traveled to West Virginia.  

Rachael has a special place in our heart. Rachael was in my small group years ago when Wayne and I helped out with youth group. She was such an encouragement to us through our cancer journeys. Rachael is also a cancer survivor and loves Jesus. This was a great way to start Thursday. 

Wayne made sure that he ate Tans donuts on our way to Lake County!

California put on a show for us. It had rained and all the foothills were vibrant green. We forget what a beautiful we lived and grew up!

Wayne and I traveled to Kelseyville/Lakeport, where I grew up the first 14 years of my life. It’s crazy that we never ran into each other before we met in college. Wayne had family in Kelseyville that lived close to family friends. All in God’s timing!

 Wayne and I decided to visit the cemetery so I could see my grandparent’s graves as well as Wayne’s grandparents. Small world we live in that both of our grandparents are in the same cemetery!

Wayne’s family section at the cemetery. 

We were able to visit my uncle and aunt for a quick visit since they live near the cemetery. So many fun memories were relived! It’s amazing what comes to mind when you go back to where you lived. So many memories!!

My mom’s brother, Cor. 

Where I grew up. 

This is my cousin Cori! We grew up together and have a special relationship. We would spend hours watching Star Wars and Hulk Hogan, which were two of his favorite things. He attended school up the road from me. I remember that we would walk to get the mail so that I would have an excuse to see Cori at school. Spending the day with him made my year!!

Bonus: my cousin, Heidi, was there for the day too. It was fun to hug them in person and not just visit on FaceTime. I love my family and miss them!!

My cousin is a HUGE 49ers fan. My Opa managed to make all his grandkids lovers of the Niners. He would watch every game and cheer them on. I grew up loving them during the days of Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, and Steve Young. My Opa definitely impacted all of us. 49ers for life!! 

Special bond and a deep love!

My dad use to take us on “dates”. He would go to the lumber store and then would treat us to a candy bar from Fastop. It was fun to see this place that is a core memory!

Friday morning, we started early in the morning our 2400 mile drive home. We were able to complete the drive in 3 days. We passed through California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, clipped Kansas and Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, and then home to Kentucky. We see wild horses, prairie dogs, ground hogs, antelope, elk, deer, and a bald eagle. 

Salt flats (we were on the wrong side, but it wasn’t worth going to the other side since we’ve been here before). Below was my co-pilot. Overall, he did a fabulous job keeping me awake and going on the long drive. He did manage to pass out this one time. Crime podcasts kept me alert!

We made this same stop when we moved to Chicago 25 years ago. 

Our friends, Matt and Catherine, drove to Lincoln, NE to meet up with us. We had a wonderful visit with them. These two have been amazing friends over the years and have been such an encouragement to us! 

I insisted on stopping at the Arch to take a picture. We’ve driven by it, but have never stopped. 

Our last night we stayed in Kansas so I could do my “race” and get another state completed. I have 43 states done. Unfortunately, Wayne fell that morning when he was getting breakfast. I was upstairs getting dressed when I heard a knock at the door. They had to come grab me. He shook us all up, but is okay. He did have a headache for a few days. I think he might have had a concussion, but we will never know since he didn’t get examined. 

I kept an eye on him after his fall!

Our last stop Sunday was to visit the Graves. Jeff and Jody were our college leaders when Wayne and I met. We had an amazing time with them and Jody’s parents, who were also leaders when we were in college. Time is a weird thing. 

Prayer Requests:

- Please pray for Wayne as he recovers from his fall and he continues his therapy.

- Please pray for me. I woke up Tuesday morning covered head to toe in a rash. The Doctor believers I had a viral response to antibiotics I had been on. It’s quite miserable. Lots of Benadryl and a steroid shot today. 

- Praise: my CT scan showed everything is stable. Because of my rash, I saw a different doctor and not my pulmonologist. I will follow up with him in two weeks to see what the next step is. 

- Pray for a special person in my life who needs some extra prayers!