Jonathan

I was raised in a Christian home. My father, John, was a physics professor at Geneva College. Mom (Lois) stayed at home with the children. My family did not have a lot, but the Lord always provided what we needed.

I was the oldest of five children, followed by Deborah, Paul, David, and Mark. I remember my mom leading me to trust in Christ at an early age, but it wasn’t until much later that my faith became real and personal.

My family lived differently than my school friends. In the early days, it was not as noticeable; but, as I grew older, the differences seemed more pronounced. The biggest difference was the Lord’s Day. More often than not, that was the day friends wanted to play or go to a park. While I enjoyed my church family, I struggled on the Lord’s Day. I felt I was missing out and was more concerned with the opinions of my friends than my relationship with the Lord. The truth is, I was missing out, but not in the way I thought.

In high school, I started to rebel and live a double life. I hid this from my parents and church family. I talked with my friends in a coarse and vulgar way. I smoked and drank socially as a way to feel like one of the gang and to hide my insecurities.

After graduating from high school, I went to Geneva College. Initially I tried to turn over a new leaf; but, by the end of my freshman year, I was back to my two-faced ways. In spring 1984, I was traveling home from a dance club with two friends. We had been drinking, and we got into a serious car wreck. Though we all survived the accident by the Lord’s grace, there were challenging days ahead.

As my body was healing, I began contemplating what might have happened if I had died in the wreck. I had been holding God at arm’s length while I lived for myself. If I had died, where would I be? I was overwhelmed with guilt for what I had been doing with my life. Matthew 7:21–23 and James 4:13–17 were frightening and particularly convicting. God used this traumatic event to bring me back to Himself.

Through the ministry of faithful believers the Lord put in my path at Geneva College, I became convicted of my sins of lying and selfish pride. I confessed these to the Lord, and I asked Him to forgive me for the way I had been living the life He gave me. I asked Him to forgive me, make me a new creation, and help me to live for and walk with Him.

Near the end of the semester, I was eating lunch at Alexander Hall with my roommate, Dave Spear. I remember looking up from the table to see two beautiful blonde girls walking through the door and looking for a place to sit. “Wow! Who are they?” I asked. Dave said, “Those are my twin cousins, Dianne and Julie. They’re high school seniors here for my cousin Dave’s wedding. Do you want me to introduce you?” I declined, mostly because they were intimidatingly beautiful, and I didn’t want to embarrass myself.

During the summer, I grew in my faith through time with God in His Word and in prayer. I attended the Reformed Presbyterian International Conference at Carleton College (Northfield, Minn.) where I served as a high school counselor. I remember how full my heart was, but the Lord had an expansion in mind.

I do not remember any of the other counselees, but I do remember one…and his girlfriend, Dianne McCracken! Through the remaining days at camp, there were many interactions with Dianne: time swimming at the college pool, singing psalms on the steps of Skinner Chapel, and even a late-night game of hide-and-seek. However, when camp ended we went our separate ways as acquaintances.

Dianne

I’m grateful God put me in a Christian home. Ray and Mary McCracken raised me and my siblings to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ. My dad was a pastor in the RPCNA and my mom was a homemaker. I am an identical twin and have two older brothers. As a pastor’s family, we moved a few times. Each place we lived helped shape my understanding of loving the Lord, ministry, and commitment to His church.

I was born in Bloomington, Ind., where we only lived a few weeks. After leaving Bloomington, my dad ministered in: Fresno, Calif.; Orlando; Walnut, Calif.; Minneola, Kan.; and Coldenham, N.Y. My most memorable childhood years were in Minneola, where we moved halfway through my fourth-grade year, staying through my senior year of high school. After graduating from high school, my dad was called to Coldenham. My sister and I went to Geneva College, so we only went “home” to New York in the summers.

My dad and mom started a new church work in Walnut, so I remember having church in our home and many gatherings during the week. During these years, I learned from my parents about thinking of others, hospitality, and sacrificial ministry.

Living in Minneola was a place of opportunity and blessing—in spite of the wind! Growing up in a small town gave me many opportunities for sports, music, friendships, and learning. I learned where bread comes from. And, where else can you learn to drive at 14?

God gave me a few pivotal experiences in Minneola that deepened my faith in and commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. The congregation in Minneola was kind and loving to our family. I learned so much from them about hospitality. Families had us over to their houses regularly for meals and Bible studies.

I remember Pastor Denny Prutow came to our church and spoke about witnessing. He gave everyone in the congregation the assignment of sharing a three-minute testimony in front of the congregation. I also learned to lead singing. On Sunday evenings, after our own gathering, we joined other churches for youth group in what was called Joy Explosion. Being part of that group helped us experience the bigger body of Christ and provided great fellowship.

I remember in junior high thinking about what commitment to Jesus Christ really looked like. During a Larry Jones crusade in Minneola, I “recommitted” my life to the Lord. I realized I needed to be more serious about spending time in God’s Word and taking a stand for my faith. Joni Erickson Tada’s devotional books were a great aid to my spiritual growth.

In high school, God gave me a friend who led a Monday morning prayer group before school, which I attended. After he graduated, I helped keep it going. I’m grateful God gave me an example of genuine Christianity.

The summer after I graduated from high school, our family attended the RP International Conference at Carleton College in Minnesota. I took my boyfriend at the time. As it turned out, his counselor was a guy named Jonathan Schaefer. (RP church camps really do bring people together!)

Us

Jonathan began the fall semester at Geneva serving as a proctor, and he spent a lot of time helping three McCracken girls (Dianne, Julie, and Jill) get adjusted to life at Geneva. The first two weeks we ate together at almost every meal. Gradually, Julie and Jill migrated to other tables, leaving us alone together.

Eventually, we started dating. After graduating from Geneva, Jonathan moved to Orlando to become part of the Orlando RPC and to find work in engineering. The following year we were married, and Dianne joined Jonathan in Orlando.

The Lord placed us in a loving community of believers. Early years of marriage were filled with great joy as we grew closer together and spent time with several other young couples in our congregation. Shortly after getting established in Orlando, we were joined by Todd and Julie (McCracken) Robinson. Todd and Jonathan had known each other since Little League in seventh grade, and with Dianne and Julie being twins we had the best playmates and friends. A few years later, we were also joined by Dianne’s parents, Ray and Mary McCracken.

Our first big trial as a couple was infertility. Dianne was a skillful elementary school teacher, but her heart’s desire was to be a mom. The monthly reminder of not being pregnant was emotionally painful. We prayed earnestly for a baby, but the Lord answered, “Not yet.” After four years, the Lord was gracious and answered our prayers for a child with a yes! That yes was Erin Elizabeth. In the years following, God brought us joy beyond our expectations with the addition of three more children.

Other early challenges to our faith included Dianne’s mom’s battle with breast cancer and her dad’s death. Ray was a lovely Christian man. He loved music, sports, and family; but, more than anything, he wanted people to love Jesus. Shortness of breath on the racquetball court led to testing and diagnosis of aplastic anemia, which, after initial treatments, became acute myelogenous leukemia. Further treatment was ineffective, and on July 26, 2000, Ray McCracken went to be with the Lord.

Our world was shaken to its core. It was a loss of both a dad and a pastor at the same time, since Ray was our pastor in Orlando. Dianne was 34 years old and had young children. She struggled with God’s no to her earnest and faithful prayers for healing. God brought new meaning to Romans 5:8, which has become her favorite verse. The fact that God demonstrated His love for her this way was the answer to her deep ache and need to understand how this could happen.

In the years following, there were many more challenges to our faith. Through it all, the Lord has been faithful, and today we stand as witnesses that He does all things well. His plans are for His glory and our benefit, and even traumatic accidents are used by Him to accomplish His purposes.

Jonathan and Dianne are members of Orlando, Fla., RPC and are celebrating 30 years of marriage this year. They have four children: Erin married Andrew Wilson in October 2017; Jessica graduated from Geneva College in May; Karl is attending Valencia College; and Joel is a freshman at Boone High School.