Stories and other stuff

I wrote the other day about taking stock of my life.  I listed some realities and some of those became painfully obvious the past week or so. Today's Our Daily Bread  devotional was like having salt poured into an open wound.  It hurt.  It hit me right where I am because it's something I failed at, got a second chance at, and now have to let go of for a season. Sometimes when you follow God, you get hurt.  Over the past month, there have been a number of hurts, failures, and setbacks.  It's those things that caused me to look at the realities of my life.  Faith walks hand in hand with reality; they don't exist on different planes.  Here's what I mean by that... My back hurts.  I have every confidence that the One who created me is capable of healing me.  I am still seeing a doctor and a physical therapist.  Faith tells me God can.  Reality tells me that He's gonna use something other than Divine intervention to get the jo...

Sometimes even I can't believe what happens around me, let alone TO me.  Today, even though my back is killing me (couldn't hardly sit through church, but glad I did and will get to that by and by), I thought it wise to write some things down and kind of do a reality check. I'm reading a book called Daring  written by Paul Louis Cole.  I've met Mr. Cole on several occasions and he's an interesting man to know.  I like the book, but got stuck on page 131 this week because I needed to answer several of the questions he posed to the reader. The first one was an admonition to recognize the season of life you're in.  My life is in a rainy season.  God gave me someone to have in my life a few years back and He told me to love her.  He told me all about her (hence the meme about loving the broken, hard to love, etc...yesterday) and I loved her until....and because of the until, I decided I didn't need her in my life.  And then I fell in love with her...

So the key to understanding me is simply this..... You can't. Not even I understand how or why some of the things that happen to me do.  Today's story is one on my Facebook page from earlier this evening.  Long time readers of the blog will understand the connection between the meme, the inspirational post that was randomly in my news feed, and the story about the Rosies. That happened.  I shared it. And this:  As I was waiting to turn on to 193 from the South Gate, the car in front of me, leaving the base, waiting to turn left as well, and the only other car in the traffic lanes at eleven p.m. on a Saturday night had Oregon license plates. Of course it did.

I'm reading a book I've had for over a year.  Finally.  But I got stuck on a section of it I can't get past without actually taking the time to evaluate where I'm at in my life and my walk with Christ.  I've been kind of doing that the last couple of days; maybe not so much out of want, but out of need. One of the things I needed to do was evaluate what the season of life I'm in is.  Applying the principles of the four seasons didn't seem to work.  I would like to think I'm in the 3rd quarter of life physically and time-wise.  But what season? After careful thought it came to me:  The rainy season. It's been raining in my life for quite some time and sometimes it takes a toll on me.  Things happen that really hurt.  A lot of things happen I just don't understand.  A long talk with God whist walking around the duck pond last night kind of cleared things up for me. Sometimes God is going to use me in a situation and I'm gonna get h...

So I was having not the best day yesterday.  I never said my life was easy and sometimes living out my faith isn't as easy as I'd like it to be.  One of the things I write the blog for is to tell my story.  Earlier, I told you the front half.  Here's the back half. I don't do pity parties very well.  It's just not something God wants for, nor allows me to participate in.  A lot of times, that's my problem.  It's hard to empathize with someone who isn't strong.  So sometimes God has to introduce some strife into my life to make me realize that He's the strong one.  Not me. I took a nap today.  My body rested.  My mind didn't.  After that didn't work out so hot, I got up.  I went outside and noticed the curb needed sweeping.  There were weeds growing in my gutter that were tall.  It was full of leaves and pinecones.  Not anymore.  I took care of it.  My back has been hurting and the lawn has kind...

If you walk into my house, one of the first things you're greeted with is part of a Scripture verse from Joshua 24:15, which says "...as for me and my house, we will serve the L ORD. The entire verse reads this way: Joshua 24:15New International Version (NIV) 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. Do I mean it though?  I mean, really, do I mean it?  Especially when it's hard. I've had to do a lot of thinking about money (and mostly the lack thereof) this week and the reasons behind it.  I had a bit of an unexpected setback, through no fault of my own, and it forced me to stop and take a good long look at some of the things I believe about me, and about God's Word. I hate money.  I really mean that.  I hate ...

One thing I never got over from being a kid.  I never learned how to order chinese food properly. When I was little, this was chinese food: A container of sweet and sour spare ribs A container of ham fried rice A container of chicken chow mein--with crunchy noodles A container of ham fried rice A container of egg foo yung A container of fried shrimp That to me was how you ordered chinese food.  Until some friends of mine made me understand you order the dinner, or your order the combo. When you got sweet and sour from the Oriental you got little bites of meat on the bone still, and there were chunks of pineapple and green pepper in the sauce.  They didn't mess around.  And there was nice layer of grease that separated from the sauce when the leftovers were refrigerated.  The sauce used to kind of congeal like jello when cold.  It was so good! There is one place in Salt Lake that you can still find sweet and sour spare ribs:  The Kowloon ...

My youngest is living the working-man's life.  He didn't get to take today off and he missed out on a decent fishing trip.  Here's the story. My son and I went fishing today.  He showed up at my house at ten till five.  Usually I pick him up but today he drove up because the destination was a little further north.  He didn't want to meet me in Kamas.  Now he knows where the meeting place in Kamas is so maybe next time.  It's a shorter drive for both of us if we meet there.  Today though, I'm thankful he didn't meet me there. We talked on the way to the lake.  He asked if we could change the oil in his car when we got home.  I said yes.  He wanted to learn how to do it himself.  I wanted to teach him.  It worked out great for both of us. When we got to the lake it was still dark, so we just kind of sat there until the sun came up, just enjoying the time and the company.  When it was light enough to see, well, tha...

One of my favorite things in the fall isn't in existence this fall.   I really looked forward to being able to afford a bag of coffee beans this year.  I haven't been able to the last couple, but I found out this morning that Einstein's isn't offering their fall coffee. I have my little fall rituals.  Around Labor day, the Brach's mellowcreme pumpkins and autumn mix come out.  Jonathan apples are also an annual fall thing for me.  They sell another Brach's mellowcreme mix I like but the only place I can find it is Walgreen's so I make a stop there to pick it up.  And Einstein's for coffee. I had one cup last year.  I was thankful to have it. Things change.  People change.  Tastes change.  And sometimes I think that change is good so our little "things" don't define who we are.  I've been doing the same things for so long that they just become habit.  I think having "traditions" in your family is a good thing bec...

I took a little road trip to Tooele the other day.  It was a divine appointment with a young man who doesn't now, but will someday, have a part in my story.  It was two hours in a car, a conversation with someone who, from past experiences, could relate to a younger man facing a lot of stuff nobody should have to at 25. I didn't have my snow globe shaken until I turned 45 and like this young man, it was dumb choices of my own doing.  I understand addiction so much better than I ever thought I could because I had one, and it's one of those things, that by God's grace, He's taken from me.  The desire still rears its' ugly head from time to time, but I have better tools to deal with it.  Oddly, one came from a very odd source:  an old movie on TCM I saw from the 1930's, where a singer was singing about being tempted.  The title lyric was "Get the behind me, Satan." Power in those words, folks.  Let me tell you.  Jesus spoke them to Peter. ...

My life is never boring.  For a week now, I've been bugging the old lady to call her daughter.  Not really sure why; mostly because I had to explain to her for the umpteenth time that her daughter is in love with someone and she needs to accept it. I did several years ago. Anyway, she's been kinda hem-hawing about it but after today, she decided she ought to. You've heard these stories a bazillion times.  I'm someplace I'm not usually at, and something unusual happens.  Today's goes like this:  My mom came up and wanted some salsa made (thanks for helping me make it, mom!).  We ran up to the fruit highway and bought what we needed.  Usually, I just drive home the way I came because I like Highway 89.  It's a neat road to travel.  One day, I'm gonna drive the whole thing, but not time for that rabbit trail.  This time, though, I decided to take the freeway home, so while driving through Brigham City, by the Walmart, and stopped for ...