Just Fun

I'm one of those people who will go to work, even if I should stay home when I'm sick. Taking a personal day off seems weird to me, but I believe I discovered the advantage this week. I had a doctor's appointment on Wednesday morning and I needed a haircut three weeks ago. My hairdresser  could only fit me in during the afternoon. My solution? Take the whole day off. 

What a wonderful day! It was sunny, low 80s and my BFF made herself available most of the day. We went shopping, listened to a new CD, had a great lunch outside on a patio and laughed most of the time. It will be remembered as one of our best days together!

Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4b, 4d. To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: ...And a time to laugh; ...And a time to dance;

I'm still on a happy high from just giving myself a chance to play and relax in the middle of the week.  You should try it sometime. :)

A Time to Keep

Last Thursday I spent my lunch break selling tickets for a region track and field meet at my son's high school. I saw him briefly and told him that his race time conflicted with a meeting I had that afternoon. On my way back to work, I decided that no meeting was worth missing my son's race, even if it was only exhibition. I swung by my house, picked up my good camera and returned to work. I made plans to miss the meeting and left a few hours later.

I got to see him shine. He ran the second leg of a 4-man race, running two of the eight laps. His time for the 1/2 mile was 12 min, 36 sec. He was the second fastest on the team. I took lots of photos and got several nice shots.

After the race, I tracked him down and we sat talking for a few minutes. I asked if he knew I was there. Yes, he had seen me in the stands. He asked, "Didn't you have a meeting?" To which I replied, "Yeah, but I blew it off. You're more important." He gave my a nod, a half smile and a fist bump. That was worth it all.

Ecclesiastes 3:6 A time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away;

I may have had to take some vacation time and miss work, but I gained an unforgettable moment with my son.

Perfection

For 12 hours yesterday, I worked outside. My dad had sawed up the broken limbs from last week and mom had helped by piling them up. I spent all morning transferring them to our burn pile. That afternoon, I raked leaves, mowed the lawn, did the trim work, and had the yard looking good by nightfall. It was finally finished.

Easter morning the weather was wonderful and my yard looked almost perfect. Later I thought, I'll have to do all of this again in a week or two. Then I thought about Jesus and giving His life for us. 

John 19:30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head He gave up His spirit.

Through one single perfect act, He paid our debts for now and forever. He will never need to do it again and it will always remain perfect.

Happy Easter!

Spring Break

As usual, I took off last week because the kids were on spring break. The only plans included a couple of visits to the doctors for checkups. Little did I know that the week would be absolutely bizarre.

On Monday a lady ran out of the road and hit a tree in my yard. That's not so unusual, except for the fact that the tree is not next to the road and she actually drove through a fairly deep ditch about 20 yards away and still hit the tree head on. 

On Tuesday I was weeding my flower beds and dugs up two rabbits that were only weeks old. They scared me silly. I placed them back in their little burrow and I'm hopeful that their mom moved them late Wednesday night. 

On Wednesday we had lots of stormy weather, so I stayed inside and was mostly lazy. Around 11:15 p.m. we were hit with a sudden thunderstorm with hail and extraordinarily high, sustained winds. Lots of prayers were spoken then.

Proverbs 18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. 

That was scary. It wasn't long until my mom called to tell me about all of the damage next door at my aunts house. The shed had been ripped away, windows on the car and house broken and two trees were down.

On Thursday I ventured out into the blustery cold weather to survey our home. Broken siding, missing trampoline, and three large broken limbs were the results of the storm. I couldn't believe the damage done next door. The front of the chicken house is now twisted and the huge oak had split and fallen,  we were all very thankful no one was hurt.

Perseverance

Last Tuesday I went to see my son run a 3200m race (2 miles or 8 laps). I spoke with him before the race and he said not to expect much because he would be running against some varsity team members. I noticed his voice sounded funny and asked him about his breathing. He just shrugged his shoulders. The race began and he looked great in both form and pace. At the end of his 5th lap, he was clutching his side with a grimace of pain etched on his face. He kept running. His teammates were shouting advice and I was praying for the pain to subside. He kept running. One teammate passed him, but then he lapped another runner. He kept running. He finished the race placing 6 out of 8.

Later I asked why he thought there were problems. He confessed that he probably had not eaten enough that day, nor had enough water. It made me think about how we can start something with all good intentions, look really strong at the onset but weaken halfway through because of lack of preparation. It's not easy to finish in these situations, but credit must go to those who persevere against difficulties.

Romans 5:3-4 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.

I must say that although I wanted him to stop for him own comfort, I was ever so proud that he hung in and completed the race.