A Memory and A Story

Several years ago when we lived in East Tennessee, we were privileged to have Albert Barr as the evangelist at the church we were attending. As a matter of fact, we moved in on a Friday or Saturday and the revival started that following Monday I think. Talk about perfect timing! During this revival, Bro. Barr preached a message I don't think I will ever forget. He gave his text as Job 1 and he said, "The chapter begins with 'there was a man' and a few verses down it says 'there was a day' and it was a BAD day". He proceeded to preach one of the funniest messages I think I have ever heard. He told us that there were times in our lives when we just needed to laugh and I guess he thought that this was one of those times.

Well, time has passed and I have not forgotten that message. Last week I kept saying, "There was a family and there was a week and it was a BAD week". I tried to keep things in perspective though - there were a lot of people who were having weeks that were a whole lot worse than I mine! We had AWFUL weather! And I do mean AWFUL! We had ice everywhere and then snow - TONS of snow! My lovely place of employment was closed for a half day on Tuesday and all day Wednesday and for a bank, that should say something about the weather.

A family in our church had suffered a loss of their newborn daughter and since our Pastors were both gone, the family had asked Dave to preach the funeral Sunday afternoon. So, he was to preach at church Sunday morning, have the funeral Sunday afternoon and preach at church again on Sunday night. Now - just what do preachers need to do when they are scheduled to preach?? Yes - that would be study!! But no - Saturday was just not a good day! We woke up to - MORE snow! Again - this was no small amount of snow either! I had to work so I headed to the gas station first and guess what? I couldn't get the gas flap open!!!! So, I came on to work and called Dave who very kindly offered to bail me out of trouble and drive to the bank to get the car and put gas in it! Well, on his trip to the bank he discovered that the weather was a lot worse than he had originally thought so he offered to stick around and lead us all back to town so that if there were any problems - he would be able to help us out! Guess who ended up needing the help?? Yea - that would be me! Want to know why???? Well, as we were all creeping along the road through 3 or more inches of snow, this.................person decided to blow through a stop sign and plow into my car and send me spinning across the road where I slammed into a ditch!! My pretty green car!!! I was shaking (from fear of course) and trying to find my phone which had flown off my lap to call Dave who was just in front of me and was already on his way back! The above mentioned..........person came and opened my passenger door and said, "Man - you slid right into me"! EXCUSE ME?!?!?!?! Did I hear you correctly????? No - I didn't say it but I sure thought it!! :))) I pretty much ignored him and just started talking to Dave! A girl I worked with had been right behind me and saw the whole thing and she was quite determined to stick around and make SURE the cops knew that I was NOT a fault! That was kinda funny really! Anyway, the nice cop came and filled out the nice report on the not so nice........person. Then the nice wrecker driver came and got my not so nice car out of the ditch and took it to its potential final resting place. And yes, as of today, it is totaled. My pretty green car is no longer pretty thanks to that........person!! Suffice it to say, my poor husband did not get to spend Saturday like he was planning to! But - as I knew 'twould be - God stepped in and helped Dave through both church services and the funeral! Wow - he did such a good job and I was ever so proud of him!! Oh and for the record, my body hurt like it had been hit by a semi (and still hurts to be frank)!! And so begins the process of car shopping which is not one of my favorite activities but we will do it nonetheless!

Oh and let's brighten the week up by saying that tax time for those who are self-employed is absolutely NOT FUN!!!!

However, on a bright note - there have been some powerful songs going through my mind in recent days as I have survived this week and thought about those around me and close to me that are hurting so deeply. My husband has been going around the house singing a song and the one line that has been standing out to me is this - "For the Potter knows the clay". There is no greater reassurance than that my friend! THE Potter - MY Potter knows how much I can take and while I may think differently, HE knows what is best for me! And that - causes me to rest in Him!

Comfort

As I sit at the desk today (supposed to be doing school work), I am looking out the window at a very white world. Our little house has been surrounded by snow and not just ordinary snow either. This stuff is a hard mix of snow and sleet and is shoveled away in chunks. There is no work for me today, Dave is out shoveling for his boss and Ashley is still tucked in bed with her computer.

Last week, our church was in revival with John Parker. Needless to say, I was convicted every single night and from that has come some serious soul searching. Bro. Parker's first message was about not "quenching the Spirit" and it spoke volumes to me. Another message he preached was about "be BEING filled with the Spirit". This message helped me so much in this way. Now, this will call for some serious transparency but here goes anyway. For years, I felt that true Holiness was directly tied to how well I kept my house cleaned and perfect, how well I kept the laundry done up, how many delicious, "homemade", well-balanced meals I cooked for my family, how "perfect" my hair was done, how well-behaved and well-mannered and smart my kids were. You get the picture I am sure. Let's just say, I was one messed up in the head female. My dear husband and I have had many conversations on this topic and he has often told me that he loved my messed up female head but that I really needed to FIX my messed up head! Anyway, God spoke to me that night and helped me clear some of these messed up issues in my life. But through all that, I must admit that spiritual growth can be quite painful at times and not a bit comfortable. As God has shown me item after item in my life that He wants changed, it has caused me no small amount of pain as I have tried to commit each and every issue back into His hands. The awesome thing for me is this - I get the privilege of CONTINUING to grow in HIS time. See - BEING filled with the Spirit is an ongoing process and for me, I think I go at a total different pace than anyone else does and according to God, that is ok with Him!

This morning, I started reading a book by Max Lucado called "It's Not About Me". Within the first couple of pages, I ran across this statement and was rather shocked at its application to me right now. He says, "....the world does not revolve around us. Our comfort is not God's priority. If it is, something's gone awry". God does not intend for my life to be a bed of roses. Instead, growing and drawing close to Him can be painful but what I tend to lose sight of is the end result. So, my ongoing growth, while painful, is something I am willing to work through in order to become all about Him and nothing about me.