Yesterday, Tomorrow

Yesterday was beautiful. Everything went well, the store, church, home. I have enjoyed home church more that I expected, and I expected to enjoy it. The other families that meet together are quality people. I will miss them while we are gone. Next week will be our last Sunday here and I hope to get a picture of everyone to post.

I had one disappointing experience yesterday while at the store. While in the checkout line, the clerk had a short conversation with another employee in passing. (I go early, 7AM, and there are not many customers.) They were talking about the price of land in the midwest. After the other employee had passed by, the clerk mentioned tornadoes. He lived in Arkansas for a year when he was young and his family lost two trailer homes to tornadoes during that time. He remembered the first time the wind blew the trailer onto its side with them inside. They were able to get out the front door, now facing the ground, and crawl under the house to go to the barn. When they came out from under the house the wind blew him up and into a barbed wire fence. His mother, whom he said thankfully weighed 300 pounds, grabbed his arm and pulled him to the barn while he blew like a rag in the wind. There was nothing left of the trailer after the storm. He said when he was little he thought God reached down and put his finger on all trailer homes. I was listening with interest to his story, along with another man, bagging groceries (at Winco), asked him some questions as he spoke, but said nothing about his reference to God. When I got out to the truck I remembered I was wearing a cross. I know I missed the opportunity to tell him that God loves him. I then felt strongly that he was desiring me to comment on his statement and I didn't hear it until it was too late.

How many opportunities will God give us to share His love with others on our trip? I hope there will be many. I hope and pray that He will open our eyes to those who are longing and needing to know Jesus loves them. Pray with us that He will fill us with discernment, boldness and courage to speak out at each opportunity.

And while I'm making requests, pray that we (Greg and I and our children) will always give glory to God. Everything that we do that is worth anything is a direct result of God working in us. When others compliment me on our children, or my advice, it is easy to feel proud of my wisdom. But it is not my wisdom. It is God's mercy. If He has seen fit to enable me to do anything good, it is all His enabling. The sins of my past were great, but God has washed them away. I am indeed a new creation, may God be glorified.