After getting the tower up on Monday we were all rejoicing. It was really energizing. But we were still facing the formidable task of putting up the antennas and connecting them to the transmission cable. So, Tuesday we made plans and installed some preparatory rigging so we would be ready on Wednesday to start lifting the hardware. Wednesday was a full day for Peter up on the tower. Frederick and I hoisted the 40′ long aluminum rails up to Peter so he could bolt them into place. (How many station managers do that sort of thing?!) The purpose of the rails is to hold the antennas in a straight vertical line on the tapered tower. Then Peter lined up the horizontal pipes to which the rails mount so that the rails would be as straight as we could get them.
Peter did not have proper work boots for standing very long on the tower and, by the end of the day, his feet were killing him. He knocked off a little early to go boot shopping. It turns out that there is no such thing on this island as a good work boot – at least in size 11. None of us wanted to stop work, but Peter finally decided it would be worth it to go to La Ceiba to find some good boots. So, while Peter was away, Frederick and I worked on air conditioning and lighting and, on Thursday night, Peter returned triumphantly with his new boots.
On Friday we got all eight antennas in place and pointed roughly in the right direction. Part way through the day Peter said that the trip to La Ceiba had been well worth it. Once the antennas were close to their final position, Peter connected the cables from the power divider to the antennas and then connected the transmission cable to the power divider. The power divider takes the signal from the transmitter and distributes it evenly to the antennas.
Once Peter started connecting cables, I wasn’t needed on the ground. So I went back to work on the electrical installation inside the transmitter building. I’m now in the midst of getting conduit and wires to the air conditioner.
The week wasn’t all work either. I mentioned last time that we planned to go to a concert in Flowers Bay Tuesday night. We don’t usually go out after supper. We are almost always too worn out by that time and events tend to start and end much later than advertised around here. Since I get up at 5:30 most days, it has to be a real special occasion to drag me out at night. Well, this was really special. Those high school kids did a beautiful job and it was a treat to see so many of our listener friends as well as meeting the choir. They even picked me to be a kid! They wanted kids to go up and shake the shakers for percussion during one song. They ran out of kids before they ran out of shakers. One of the choir members was so persistent in asking me (in spite of my protests that I have no sense of rhythm) that I finally joined the other kids up front. My gray beard among the younglings sure brought some chuckles. All in all, it was a great evening praising the Lord with many of our favorite songs. Mildred and I were blessed and I hope Jesus was blessed too.
Here are some shots of the week’s activities.
Mildred has been experiencing a challenging week as she begins to take on the financial duties of Radio HRGS. In just a few more weeks, the Hendersons will no longer be with us, so Mildred needs to learn the ropes thoroughly and quickly. Mildred is a real detail person, so that is good. But she has no accounting experience and that makes this job a real stretch for her. I hope you will pray for her for grace, peace, and a nimble mind.
It seems that while we here have been facing one adversity after another, something similar – and sometimes far more serious – has been going on in the lives of many of our friends. I can’t even count the number of our friends either currently or recently dealing with cancer. Some friends are going through marital, financial, or other challenges. There is a lot of stress in this life. So, while you are praying for us and for this ministry, don’t forget that we are praying for you as well. C. S. Lewis, in The Problem Of Pain, described how pain or the fear of pain can assault us and make all our happiness look like broken toys. Then, perhaps we succeed in becoming consciously dependent on Him for our strength and courage. But the moment the pain or threat is removed, we go right back to our toys. Lewis wrote, “Let Him but sheathe the sword for a minute, and I behave like a puppy when the hated bath is over – I shake myself as dry as I can and race off to reacquire my comfortable dirtiness in the nearest flower bed. And that is why tribulation cannot cease until God sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless.” May the Lord help us to see our tribulations as part of the process He uses to conform us to His image. And may He also remind us to give Him the glory for every victory He brings our way.
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