Four Days Isn’t Long Enough but I’ll Take It

"Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble." (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT)

Next year my husband and I will celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary. Being in our early 20s when we tied the knot means we've known each other way longer than we haven't. Ed and I consider each other as our best friend. So to be apart for any length of time is not our favorite way to go. But the work situation has made it necessary. Thus when the opportunity arose for Ed to be here with me for four days last week, we took advantage of that. 

Grateful that the renovation job will come to an end and we will be together full time soon.

Having been introduced to Latte' Da, a local coffee shop, by my friend Kristia the week before, Ed and I made it our morning routine. Definitely enjoyed the atmosphere here and will return often.

 

Exploring our new-to-us environs included walking around in The Village at Meridian. It will be fun to visit again when all the holiday decorations are up.

Maybe Santa will reside here

I'd also like to see the fountain with its colored lights at night. Meanwhile the fall foliage is very eye-pleasing.

Fountain at The Village

Indian Creek reflections

Indian Creek is nearby in Kuna and we took our time meandering on the trail, filling our eyes with points of interest.

At Indian Creek

 

Meanwhile I have kept busy. Getting the house organized and finding places for everything is ongoing. And having some social time with friends, celebrating the 16th birthday of one of their four daughters on Saturday, was really nice. 

Then on Sunday visiting Rockharbor Church with my sister-in-law was quite an experience. It's a mega church in Meridian with several worship services every weekend and lots of ways they are serving the community. The music was fantastic, and the pastor's message on prayer based on 2 Timothy chapter 2 spoke to my heart. Parking might be a bit of a frustrating endeavor at this campus, but how I rejoice at the number of folks who are hearing God's word and being offered the free gift of salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

This way if you want to know more.

Although my desire is for a smaller church to connect with, I also want to follow the Lord's leading, so when Ed is home again, we plan to visit Rockharbor together, continue to pray for guidance and visit other churches in the area also.

I would appreciate your prayers for that as well. Thank you for taking the time to read about our progress. I'd be honored to have you follow my AniLouMinary blog and comment as you feel led.

Boxed In

 The living room looks like a storeroom. Who knew our life could be contained in that many boxes?! And there are more boxes to fill as we get ready to move. This is after loading up the back of the Subaru with "stuff" and donating it to Value Village, and depositing a work van load at the local dump. No photos to share of these events, which I'm sure you'll appreciate. 

Not everything in life can be fit into boxes. I'm glad we have spiritual freedom to live outside the box the world sometimes tries to cram us into. As I've mentioned previously, it's been an honor to have some of the devotions I've written published on various websites. Today I'd like to invite you to check this one out where my musings entitled "Spiritually Anorexic" was posted today.

Love Lines from God

Enjoy!

Let the Ice Cubes Fall Where They May

Although I’m an introvert, I like to fit in and feel included, and I understand it requires getting involved.

Calvary Community Church, Sumner, Washington

To that end I attended a women’s Bible study that began yesterday at a church nearby.

I love women’s Bible studies and this one is called Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer. I know I will enjoy the lessons and learning. And based on my previous experiences, it’s a good way to connect with other ladies especially if the group is small enough. The class had probably several dozen women attending but the church set it up so that women can sit in groups of eight or so at tables. I felt quite welcomed at the table I was escorted to by one of the ladies in charge and enjoyed a lovely conversation with another gal who was new to this event.

But then! It was ice-breaker time! I confess I am so not a fan of plunging into what could be a freezing environment via the Similarity Bingo game. You’ve probably played a version of it a time or two. You are given a list of likes, dislikes, activities, traits, etc, and the goal is to find one person in the room who shares a commonality with you for each item on the list.

Anyone born in Bellingham? Anyone? Anyone?

Bedlam ensues. Some people opt out of playing. Usually I’m one of them. I’m not afraid of approaching people I don’t know especially in a church setting. So it’s not fear that would make me choose to sit it out. If the end result is for people to get to know each other, I’m all for it. But this kind of activity, at least for me, feels like a waste of time in that regard. I knew I’d get names on my sheet of paper but I would likely not remember the people attached to those names. But yesterday I chose to interact and let the ice cubes fall where they may. Why?

Well, it’s been a month since we moved and the only people I’ve talked to, other than my husband, kids and grandkids, are the staff in the apartment leasing office, store personnel, and librarians. And those have been mostly just in passing. So it is time for me to break out of my own shell and move past any isolation I’ve put myself into. Even if I didn’t establish a long-time friendship with this activity, I felt like I came to understand myself a little better and it was what I needed to do for my own growth. 

When the game ended, I slipped back into my chair and was warmly greeted by the new friend I’d made earlier. She’d opted to sit out. That will be my choice next time.

Going in Circles

He described it as a funk and he didn’t know which way to go to get out of it. Where should his next step be?

A picture came into my mind. I saw him standing at the center of a circle.

In my best Kung Fu imitation—which isn’t recognizable as anything close to blind Master Po but still fun to try—I shared my wisdom.

“When you are in the middle of a funk, Grasshopper, and do not know which direction to go to move forward, it does not matter which way you step out,” I said. “The goal surrounds the circle you are in. You are in the middle so any step you take towards the periphery is forward towards the goal.”

He looked at me with furrowed brow, but he also nodded. I felt encouraged to continue.

“Indeed, Grasshopper, it is most awful to feel stuck, immobilized, trapped, where you cannot see a path.

“Sometimes just the act of moving your leg and sticking it out from under the blankets in the morning—or afternoon…or…whenever,” My Master Po imitation was faltering but I carried on. “So, um, yeah. Toes on the floor moves you forward from dead center of Funk Circle.”

Another picture formed in my imagination. “Oh! And Funk Circle might be like a big—uh—oh, what do you call it? A maze? No, that’s not it,” Master Po sounded more like a ditzy silver-haired dame. I recovered with a cleansing breath and went on.

“Nevermind. It will come to me. So you start taking steps forward and the path seems to curve in a circular direction. You come around and the same situations touch you over and over, but yet with each orbit of the—Oh! It’s called a labyrinth! Yeah! Anyway, with each orbit of the labyrinth, you are that much closer to the outer rim of the circle. Suddenly the path seems to loop back alongside where you were before or even taking you back towards the center of the circle.

“No worries, Grasshopper, you just keep taking those steps and eventually the path loops its way toward the periphery.” I paused to check if his eyes had glazed over yet. Nope, he was still with me!

I continued, “The even bigger picture, Grasshopper, shows the circle you are trudging along is sheltered by God.

“God sits above the circle of the earth.
    The people below seem like grasshoppers to him!
He spreads out the heavens like a curtain
    and makes his tent from them.” (Isaiah 40:22 NLT)

“It might feel like life is just going in circles. Keep trusting that the circle takes you to the goal. This is totally opposite of what happens when the drain plug gets pulled.” Okay, so Master Po wouldn’t have said that last sentence but hey, my personality is just as valid as Master Po’s.

I patted his knee. “So Grasshopper, is it not reassuring to know you are not circling the drain?”

It was quite evident to me my wisdom was well-received because my husband said, “Thank you.” Although that may have been because I stopped blathering, I’m not sure.

--I have made use of a little bit of creative license in my accounting of this incident. Quite a little bit.

--Photos taken by me at: Bellflower Library Garden Park, St. Andrews Lutheran Church in Whittier, Emanuel Episcopal Church in Fullerton—all in California. The quest for photos to illustrate this blog post turned into a fun little adventure for hubby and me. Until this week I had no idea how many labyrinths are near my locale. We took the time to walk the labyrinth at Emanuel Episcopal and I would like to visit there again. It’s in a little field off to the side of the church campus, and for me the rustic setting felt more conducive to introspection and communion.

I’m adding this bonus photo from my sister Robyn Burke, who sent this shot she took of the labyrinth at Tall Timber Ranch, a church camp in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State.

Not That One

My delight is five-fold in hosting a guest blogger today.

·        Delight #1:  She is the granddaughter of Francine Arnold, author of Not My Will, one of the first Christian novels I ever read and loved.

·        Delight #2:  Her talent as a fictional writer, in her own right, earns my high admiration.

·        Delight #3:  She offered to lend her exceptional talent to a post over here in my little corner.

·        Delight #4:  After giving her a few topical options, she chose hats (ecstatic sigh).

·        Delight #5:  Although not having read my Mad Hatter post, her fictional story reflects a glimmer of that experience, so to me this is a divinely-inspired piece.

Please help me welcome the one-and-only Jan Ackerson. And would you do me the honor of showing her your appreciation by visiting her blog One Hundred Words as soon as you can. Thank you and enjoy.

Not That One

On Sunday mornings, Betty stood with her mother at her closet, watching as she picked the hat she’d wear to church. There were four hat boxes—a white one, a blue striped one, a yellow one, and one with a red ribbon. Mother never picked the yellow one.

“Which hat today, Little Bee?”

Betty took her mother’s gloved hand and played with the pearl button at her wrist. “Mama, the yellow one?”

Her mother laughed. “Not that one, Bee.” She took the hat from the striped box.

“Why not, mama?”

Her mother paused, her hand at her throat. “Not that one.”

(Aaagh! Embarrassing update: I misspelled Jan's grandmother's name. It's actually Francena H. Arnold. I knew that; the book is on my bookshelf. Apologies galore.)

Can’t Drive Out the Way We Drove in

Ezekiel is a fascinating book in the Old Testament. Hey, you might call it weird. I call it fascinating. There’s room for all of us here.

I love that it is full of imagery and instructions for building the Jewish temple and lots of the religious activities. The other day as I was reading I was reminded of the car license plate holder my daughter used to have. Okay, so you’re right. That is weird.

But not totally weird—hear me out. See, there was this band she liked called They Might Be Giants and she liked one of their songs so much that a friend had the license plate holder custom made for her with the title of that song on it. “Can’t Drive Out the Way We Drove in”.

There were cars in the Old Testament, you’re asking? No, of course not. Although there was a Honda in the New Testament. You know, where it says the disciples were all together in one Accord. 

(crickets chirping loudly)

But seriously, I believe everything in the Bible means something. God gave those instructions for a reason. Most of His reasons may be beyond my comprehension in this world but I am seeing a little picture here that reminded me of that song title. The people are told in chapter 46 verse nine that when they come to the temple to sacrifice, they weren’t to go out the same way they came in. Literally in by the north door and exit through the south and vice versa. I wonder, did those people consider why God gave those instructions? I imagine some of them did. I’m talking more than just crowd control measures, although that's certainly necessary at times. I mean, here they were bringing sacrifices in worship. That had to be pretty significant. After all, sacrifice indicates giving up something valuable. So going out a different door than the one they came in seems more meaningful to me than just some weird thing.

What does it mean for me thousands of years later? Could this also be a foreshadowing of when God gave up something more valuable than anything we could ever give?

Is it possible that when we meet God at that ultimate sacrifice—His son, Jesus, giving up his life on the cross, who counted everything loss for our gain, we receive something even more valuable? I think so. In the victory Jesus Christ had when He exited the tomb, we experience the change from living death to living life. We leave that encounter a different way than we came in.

Having pretty much avoided the church scene for a couple of years and now starting to get back into it, I don’t want to go in the door of a building and come back out, same old same old. It’s my desire that my life exhibit that encounter even better than having it written on my license plate holder. Not in my physical appearance or what I wear or how many church programs I get involved in. But in how I view myself and others and God. Hope that’s not too weird.

Have you had that encounter? In what ways are you different as a result?

                                          An open gate invitation.