A Day of Surprises

This morning I went about my day in the usual way... Suction and feed my daughter, water the garden, feed the chickens...  I noticed something weird when I was out in the chicken yard. One of the chicks was missing.

It may be important to note that today is Sunday. On Sundays, I'm usually in a hurry so we can travel an hour to get to church by 10:30.  I don't notice much of anything as I dash around doing chores on this particular day, so it was strange that I notice one missing chick in a field full of birds.  I opened the gate and took a look around. No sign of the little critter. I began to wondered if we had some kind of monster sized gopher coming up at night and eating our young fowl. I turned to leave and then spotted it's little camouflaged body stuck under some wire at the edge of the coop. Apparently, the chick had reached under to grab some tasty morsel, just out of its reach, and got caught on the fence. There was no way of knowing how long it had been there, but it was splayed out flat and looked like it had put up a good fight for its life. I gently reached down and pulled the wire back to dislodge the tiny little thing. It was then I heard a sound come from its seemingly lifeless body. The chick was still alive.  As I said, it was Sunday and we were rushing. I brought the chick in, put it in a box, prayed for a full recovery, finished getting ready, and left for church.

My husband, and I, travel an hour to church because we've found something that we hadn't been seeing in our local area. We see power! We attend a school at this church that teaches us how to love others by demonstrating the love of Jesus to them in a way that changes their lives. Let me give you an example of what happened to us at lunch today.

Because we have such a long drive, it is our custom to go to lunch after the service. Jeff, Tiffany and I were enjoying the air-conditioned atmosphere at the restaurant, on this 104+ afternoon, when Jeff and I began to feel like there was something God wanted to do with our waitress. This may sound strange to most of you out there, but often times God will put a thought into the heart of his kids and it's an invitation to join Him in His work, just like Jesus did. This is what was happening to us. Jeff began by asking the waitress if she knew that she was a woman of integrity. She looked puzzled, but thanked him for the compliment. As soon as he said that to her, I remembered several things she had done with us that demonstrated that point. I shared them with her and she began to realize that it might be true. Our lunch went on and it began again. This time, I felt like I was hearing a still small voice say, "Ask her what she uses her tips for."

"I'm not about to pry into a stranger's personal business!"  You know those conversations you have when you're trying to talk yourself out of something?  "It's offensive.  You don't just ask people that kind of stuff. It's none of my business!!!"

I wonder if God thinks I'm funny when He talks to me and I respond like He's the idiot. The thought continued in my head until I was at the point of thinking abstract things like if I should tip her double what I usually do because she might have a need for it. I also thought, what if she used her tips for something I didn't approve of? What then? Do I withhold the blessing because I did think her cause was just? 

The still small voice echoed in my head again, "Ask her."

When she came back to our table, Jeff asked the girl if she prayed. I was so wrapped up in the conversation I was having in my spirit that I was shocked by his question.

The girl looked at him, and she answered, "Yes."

"God wants you to know that He hears your prayers," was his response to her.

She began to tear up.  That's when it happened... Out of my mouth came words I had never expected to say out loud, "What do you use your tips for?"

The young girl looked into my eyes with tears pouring down her cheeks and answered, "I use my tips for the thing I've been praying about.  My rent.  I'm coming up short this month and my hours were cut.  I don't know if I can make rent."

Isn't it fun when God hears your prayers and send someone into your life just to tell you it is so?  The conversation continued and we were able to truly care for this young, beautiful girl. She asked our names and we found out hers. When we were done eating, she came over to our table and told us that a couple of women in the table next to us had paid for our meal. What a wonderful surprise! This is something we often do for others when we go out to eat, but it is rarely done for us without our knowledge.  Suddenly it dawned on me. The conversation God was having with me about the tip wasn't only for our young waitress's benefit, it was for mine. God was preparing me. Our lunch had been covered, so we now had full freedom to just bless this girl. I asked her to bring me a bill so that I could leave her a tip. She told me the tip had already been paid as well. I told her we would like to bless her again.  I looked at Jeff and he told me the amount that had come to mind. It shouldn't have surprised me that it was the same amount that came to mine.  We left a huge monetary blessing, gave her hugs and went on our way.  We giggled all the way home about how much fun we had with God at lunch.

By the way, when we got home... the chick was standing and drinking and has since rejoined the flock outside. Now, this is the kind of Christian I love being. People with the heart of Jesus walking in the power He promised we would.

Rest

We live in a very busy day and age.  Families are spending their time with jobs, school, electronics, scouts, sports, friends and even ministries. By the time evening comes, everyone is exhausted, and rarely do they want to spend time together. After all, they've usually been with people all day.

In our life, we have all kinds of activities that eat up our day and energy. We have a 44 acre ranch with crops growing and animals to care for. My husband is a contractor. His time is spent bent over or driving long distances. I'm a caregiver. My day includes lots of lifting and time spent on another person's needs. Both, my husband and I, are in school, ministries, and have lots of hobbies and projects to fill whatever time is left over each day. Rest could be illusive if we didn't spend intentional time finding and treasuring it.

 One of the things Jeff and I do most every night is we spend about an hour or so, before dinner, talking about and sharing our day. For you, this kind of activity could be a great time to find out what interests the people you live with have. It's a wonderful opportunity to give yourself permission to be still, to pay attention to the surroundings you (and God) have spent so much time, energy and money creating. How many of us are so busy that we never even notice our own home until someone comes to visit?  How many of us truly know what makes each person in our family happy or fulfilled?  Do you even know what your family's favorite colors, desserts, or places to visit are?  It's no wonder we often feel discontented. Maybe we need to spend a little time finding out how we actually connect with each other and how to rest.

New Jacuzzi

Recently, we got a "wild hair". We live in an area that is very warm in the summer and cold in the winter. I thought a pool would be an ideal answer to the summer issues. The only problem... money.  Usually, we can do just about anything we want with a little time and planning, but a pool seemed to be an expense that rested just beyond my ability to imagine.  Jeff's answer, a jacuzzi.  He explained that it didn't have to be heated in the summer and would provide a great muscle relaxer for him in the winter.  To me, that was a great expense as well, but he found one on Craig's List and was able to pick it up even cheaper when he met the owner face to face. One jacuzzi, a few pavers and pieces of wood later... we had a new and creative way to relax.  After dinner jacuzzi. What a way to prepare for a night of sweet dreams.  I would encourage everyone to become a professional person of rest. You'd be surprised how much you can get done tomorrow when you wake up refreshed.