August 25, 2014

A Day to Focus on Blessings

August 25, 2014

I am always glad to see this flash of color at the bird feeders.

A Facebook posting I saw early Monday morning from an author was: "Monday mornings are good for _________."  It took me a bit to come up with a way to fill in the blank.  How would you fill it in?  I ended up saying it was good for remembering what a great weekend I had just had.  It is often hard to think good thoughts about Monday mornings.  I went to the office earlier than usual for what we thought was a scheduled appointment, but the person never showed up.  Ron took my car in for a radiator leak so I was stuck at the office all day.  The car wasn't ready until after closing time for us.

At the office I spent the morning on paperwork and the afternoon at the sewing machine.  I was making log cabin blocks just for fun.  I am not sure what I will do with them, but I spent time sewing, cutting, and ironing.  The few customers that I waited on were easy to hear.  Lately, Mondays at the office have been slow.  Previously, Fridays were slow.  Now Fridays have been busy.  We just never know what a day will bring.

The section of my desk that I had cleaned on Friday was a blessing to see.  When I walked into the office and saw a cleaner desk than normal, it brought a smile to my face.  I restocked some displays that were empty.  I shredded papers and emptied trash cans.  There are always "house keeping" chores to be done at the office.

After work we went to pick up my car and it was out for a test drive.  It was a while before it was back, but once we got it, we hurried home and quickly left to go have supper with some friends in their home.  This is a precious young couple in our church with two little children.  It was fun to hold their baby and know that she is a miracle from God.  Their older child entertained us with exuberance and laughter.  The husband had cooked an excellent supper and we had a very nice, relaxing evening with a lot of laughter around the supper table.  This was such a treat.  These days fewer and fewer people invite others into their homes.  Everyone is so busy. 

Following supper the wife and I took a walk.  It was good to talk to her and hear her express her heart's desire to serve the Lord in some specific areas, and also to share prayer requests.  God has given them several miracles in their lives and they know what God can do.  This lady and I had both found helpful encouragements in Sunday's sermon which in part was on the purposes of suffering in our lives.

All of us suffer at one time of another.  Some suffer in silence, never letting anyone know what is going on in their life.  Some complain to everyone within earshot.  Some just seem to give up and become bogged down in the problems of their lives and never really return to their potential after that suffering is over, unable to move on or change direction.  But some seek God's comfort and direction as they go through those times, becoming compassionate to others, knowing that they too may be having a hard time.  They grow more Christ-like each day as they learn from those tough times.  I want to be like that.  I want God to show me what He wants to change in my life.  Sometimes a health issue can change the course of our lives. God's plan for our lives is the one we should be seeking.

When we got home, we were both tired.  I am not sure that I mentioned that over the weekend Ron cleaned out one of the ponds.  It had not been done in about a year and a half.  I have a net that I do some cleaning with but I had not drained and cleaned the pond in way too long.  Ron found a hole and patched that before refilling it Sunday afternoon.  He was sore from all that work and was in bed early.  I spent time reading before going to bed.  It was a good day, even it it was a Monday!  We had been blessed by a growing friendship with a precious family.