It's an amazing morning here. We've had some rain showers, but the sun is shining outside my window as I type and the temperature is nearing 70 degrees. What a gift for the middle of November!
We spent most of Saturday morning and part of the afternoon delivering the pies I had sold for the church fundraiser. It was a gorgeous day and Tim didn't have to work so we had a nice time driving, enjoying the scenery and visiting friends as we handed them their pies.
We invited one couple to visit us that evening to play cards and after we left them, we got to talking about their situation....he has been under-going treatment for colon cancer for over a year now and continues to have a lot of problems, which in turn, prevent him from working. They do foster parenting and get the children who are at the end of their chances. They had two boys, brothers, but the agency came and took them last week for placement in a theraputic home. It will be (hopefully) better for the boys, who had deep emotional scars and behavioral issues in the extreme. Physically, it will be better for our friends who don't really need the stress of dealing with that right now, but having the boys removed also removed a big chunk of income. Their financial situation is dire and they are discouraged and battling depression.
Neither of them is a Christian or has any faith to talk about, but I had such a sense that this is the time to act...at least with the husband and Tim agreed. I called them and invited them to go to church with us that night. I made it as non-threatening as I could, emphasizing the dinner we always have after the service, saying they could get a nice meal before coming to the house. We were so excited when they accepted and we were so proud of our little church for welcoming them with open arms and making them feel a part of things. Our little space was filled to over-flowing Saturday night and God was there. An invitation was given more than once, so though I don't know if our friends accepted, I pray the seed was planted and they seemed to have a good time and told our minister they'd probably be back. Praise God!
Yesterday morning I locked myself in the bedroom for several hours and had a spiritual retreat of sorts. It was a requirement for my Spiritual Formation class. I have to write a paper about the experience. I took my laptop with me so I could look up praise and worship songs on YouTube and I proceeded to shut out the world with all its noises and distractions and focus on praising God. It was such an amazing time. An hour flew by before I realized it. I "lost" another hour reading the Word. And another 2 in contemplating it and thinking about what God was saying to me and what my reaction was to that. How wonderful it would be if I could start every day with 4 hours in His presence!
Wow! There is just so much to be grateful for today. I felt God at work so many times this weekend. I don't know where to begin, so I guess I will just pick something that stands out....
Today, I am thankful that God allowed us to give our friends a break, to get them out of the house and take their minds off their situation for a little while....and maybe plant a seed.
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