Euology for Lindsa MacDonald

Eulogy given on Oct. 29 at Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Annapolis.

Presented by her husband, Chuck MacDonald

Lindsa MacDonald loved Jesus, her family and the St. Louis Cardinals. She had a zest for living and a love of life that was contagious. People wanted to be around her to absorb some of that vitality.

I recall when we lived in S. California, we would frequently invite a bunch of singles over to our house on a Friday evening. Lindsa would whip up a meal for 10: French market soup and cornbread was a favorite. We might even all go to a local high school football game. After people left we would get enthusiastic thank you's for days, saying what a great time they had. We would look at each other and say, "What did we do, that was so special?" Just being around her made things special.

She had insight and a quick tongue that cut through emotions and feelings to get to the heart of the matter. And if someone was not serious about their relationship with the Lord or their talents that God had given them, she was quick to let them know about it. If she detected bad doctrine or squishy ethics she would correct them in a hurry.

I remember many times seeing her wrestle with a decision about what God wanted her to do or a lesson He was trying to teach her. She would converse with the Lord about the situation, meditate on it a bit, then converse with the Lord a bit more. She would not give up until she understood what the Lord had for her. No slackers around her!

One of Lindsa's favorite things to do was acting. She returned to college focused on getting her degree. even though she was 38 at the time with three small children. It meant some late hours and difficult commitments, but she hung in there and worked alongside "kids" 15 years younger. She was in several stage plays along the way to getting her theater arts degree from Cal State San Bernardino.

Lindsa loved to use those dramatic skills to have an influence for the Lord. Through our church in Redlands, Calif. and later in St. Louis, she was able to act in numerous skits and full-scale dramatic performances that highlighted faith in Christ and the outworking of faith toward personal godliness.

The most memorable ones were "Good News Scrooge," a production that put a Christian twist on Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," a dramatization of the life of Esther from the Bible, and a production called "Bethlehem Marketplace," that took visitors through the village of Bethlehem and confronted them personally with the claims of Christ.

One story that I remember from those days, showed how she used to get into situations, then see God get her out of them. We were living in St. Louis at the time and she flew back to California for a couple of weeks to be involved with "Bethlehem Marketplace" and was dressed in first-century garb guiding guests through the village. After a performance on a Friday night she was driving to the home of some friends where she was staying with. It was about 11:30 at night along a desolate stretch of road when the car conked out on her. Fortunately in California desolate and suburb are often in close proximity. This was before the days of cell phones and she wasn't even quite sure where she was. Incredibly an older couple was walking their dog across the wash from the street she was on. Lindsa (always the shy, retiring type) proceeded to ask for help and explain her outlandish clothes. The couple, instead of picking up their dog and running for their lives from this weird person, invited her into their house and let her use their phone. When nobody answered the phone, they volunteered to drive her (a person they just met 15 minutes ago) to where she needed to go. Lindsa tended to have that effect on people. When they got to where her friends house was they dropped her off and with a wave returned home. I can't even remember what happened to the car.

Fast forward a couple of decades to when she was in the last stages of her 4+ year battle with the insidious disease of cancer. She was in a lot of pain and the discomfort is hard to describe. Tough to watch a person that you love suffer. She woke up one morning and said with disappointment, "Why am I still here?"

She was ready to go to be with her Savior. To cast aside her worn out flesh and take on a new body, one capable of living forever and enjoying continuous fellowship with her master. She could say with Paul: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge will award to me on that day" 2 Timothy 4:8.

When you're married to a person for a long time -- we were married for 36 years -- there are times when we wish our spouse was different. More of this or more like that. But in the end, you can look back and see she was the perfect person for you. Praise God.

To close, let me leave with you a couple of enduring images of Lindsa:

Swimming a mile on her birthday. I used to call her the human torpedo in the water.

Going to the beach and riding the waves. Even in her 60's she loved the beach.

A cruise to Alaska to celebrate her 60th birthday. She loved it all, but especially playing with the dogs that compete in the Iditarod.

Her love of nicknames and catch phrases. When I was teasing her about something she might say, "Go bite the wall!" It always made me laugh when she said that.

She had pet names for people close to her: I was "The Dude!" Mark was "Tiger" Tracy was "The Munch" and Christy was "peanut" She used to call herself "Tomato face." because when she blushed (which was often in the earlier years of our marriage) she turned tomato red.

Her love for her new granddaughter Maggie Rose. Even in her final weeks, Lindsa would smile broadly when she heard Maggie's voice on the telephone.

Thanks for joining us today in celebrating Lindsa's life and legacy.

Lindsa Kay MacDonald
1949-2011

Lindsa Kay Johnson MacDonald, 62, died September 26 after battling colorectal cancer for more than four years. She is survived by her husband of 36 years Chuck MacDonald, of Bowie, Md.; her children Mark MacDonald of St. Charles, Mo., Tracy MacDonald of Bowie, Md., Christy MacDonald of Arlington, Va., and her granddaughter Maggie Rose MacDonald of St. Charles, Mo. Mrs. MacDonald's parents Bill and Virginia Johnson of New Martinsville, WV preceded her in death about 10 years ago.

Mrs. MacDonald was born July 6, 1949 in Morgantown, WV and graduated from high school in New Martinsville, WV. She decided to go back to college while she had three small children at home, graduating from California State University in San Bernardino, in 1992 with a degree in theater arts. She earned her way onto the Dean's List while there. For several years she assisted the drama programs at Parkway North High and Clayton Junior High in the St. Louis area. She designed and acquired costumes, supervised make up and assisted with staging of plays. She also coached drama students in Attleboro, Mass. She enjoyed the challenge of helping students develop their acting skills and shine at the productions.

She also acted in the plays "Good News Scrooge," "Esther" and "Bethlehem Marketplace," all Bible-centered productions performed in Redlands and Yucaipa, California during her 20 years in Southern California. She loved using her acting skills as a means to showcase her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Mrs. MacDonald worked for Campus Crusade for Christ for 20 years and for the Parkway and Clayton School Districts in administrative roles.

After moving to Bowie in 2003 her warm personality enabled her to develop many friendships in exercise classes, Bible studies and in the neighborhood. Mrs. MacDonald enjoyed exercising and regularly marked her birthday with a one-mile swim.

She was a member of the Osti Association of Anne Arundel County and a regular attendee at Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Annapolis. Her favorite Bible passages included John 15 and the story of Rahab in Genesis.

A memorial service will be held at Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 710 Ridgely Ave., Annapolis, MD on Saturday, October 29 at 2.

Donations can be sent to Hospice of the Chesapeake 8724 Jericho City Dr., Lanham, MD 20875

I had a great time this week talking to people about the value of Pre-Paid Legal for businesses. The first guy owned a business with about 30 employees. We talked about five things:

• Have you ever had someone not pay for services that you had done for them?
• Have you ever had a vendor or customer send you an agreement to sign that you didn't understand?
• How about a government contract or supplier contract that you had questions about?
• Have you ever thought about restructuring your business to add another income stream?
• Have you ever been audited by the IRS or concerned that you might be?

All of these issues are a part of the services a business receives with their Pre-Paid Legal membership. The first fellow is very eager to sign up and feels he can easily pay for the membership easily with the bad debts he's able to collect.

The second guy was shocked at the cost. He couldn't believe that it was so low. He kept trying to see if there was a catch somewhere. He couldn't believe that a small business working out of his home could get his family and his business covered with the expanded family plan and the home-based business rider for just over $40 per month.

Such a deal!

Get the law on your side with PrePaid Legal.

The Dip by Seth Godin

Published by The Penguin Group, New York, NY

(c) 2007

"Quitters never win and winners never quit." Bad advice. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.

Most people quit. They just don't do it successfully. If you learn about the systems that have been put in place that encourage quitting, you'll be more likely to beat them. And once you understand the common sinkhole that trips up so many people (I call it the Dip), you'll be one step closer to getting through it.

Almost everything in life worth doing is controlled by the Dip.

At the beginning, when you first start something, it's fun. You could be taking up golf, or acupuncture, or piloting a plane; it's interesting, and you get plenty of good feedback from the people around you. Over the next few days and weeks, the rapid learning you experience keeps you going. Whatever your new thing is, it's easy to stay engaged in. Then the Dip happens.

The Dip is the long slog between starting and mastery. A long slog that's actually a shortcut, because it gets you where you want to go faster than any other path.

Cul-de-sac

The cul-de-sac (French for dead end) is a situation where you work and work and work and nothing much changes. It doesn't get a lot better, it doesn't get a lot worse. It just is. That's why they call those jobs dead-end jobs. When you're caught in a cul-de-sac you need to get off it fast. That's because a dead end is keeping you from doing something better. The opportunity cost of investing your life in something that's not going to get better is just too high.

The Dip is the secret to your success. The people who set out to make it through the Dip--the people who invest the time and the energy and the effort to power through the Dip--those are the ones who become the best in the world. They are breaking the system, because instead of moving on to the next thing, instead of doing slightly above average, and settling for what they've got, they embrace the challenge. For whatever reason, they refuse to abandon the quest and they push through the Dip all the way to the next level.

Facing the Dip

You may be sure that your product is the best in the world, but no one outside a tiny group cares at all. The marketers who get rewarded are the ones who don't quit. They hunker down through the Dip and galvanize and insulate and perfect their product while others keep looking for another quick hit.

Getting off a cul-de-sace is not a moral failing. It's just smart. Seeing a cliff coming far in advance isn't a sign of weakness. Instead it represents real insight and bravery. It frees up your energy for the Dip.