Randomness

Yesterday was a special day at church.  Our pastor is preaching a sermon series on Christianity 101, and yesterday's topic was Trust Jesus.  The message was very encouraging and uplifting to me personally.  At the end of the service, a man went forward and asked to speak a few words to the congregation.  He grew up at CBCFC and has been a member there all his life.  His wife has fought aggressive cancer for quite a while, and after being in remission last spring, has had a recurrence requiring radiation that is potentially harmful to her heart.  The man thanked the church for their prayers and support and tearfully asked for continuing prayers as she begins the next step in her treatment regimen.  His words were poignant, moving, heart-wrenching, sweet...The sermon he had just heard was PERFECT for his situation.  God is so good, in hearing and speaking to our every need.  Trusting Jesus is exactly what we all need, everyday but especially in our greatest hours of need.  His timing is perfect, as well.  He spoke, through our pastor, exactly what Ray needed to hear.

On another subject, I spend part of my Monday mornning updating security on our old desktop computer.  It is rarely used, but it's needs to be secure.  Because it is old, it runs slowly; it seemed to take forever to do what it needed to do, in the update.  I used the time, as I waited, to go through some old files I had inherited from my parents:  old letters, to and from their parents...old pictures, one of my dad's college projects in the school of engineering, etc.  It was fun and intriguing to read what was going on, from the letters.  One told of some of my high school escapades...one about my skiing adventures at Camp Sequoyah...one about my brother's search for a summer job in Birmingham...one about his awaiting orders from the Air Force as he was being called up...All these things happened 40-50+ years ago.  In ways it seems like yesterday; in ways an eternity ago.  I'm glad I have these blasts-from-the-past.  They are like mini-history books of our family's past.  One day they'll need to be discarded; but for now, they are back to "sleep" in the trusty old filing cabinet.

Lastly, a friend of ours challenged the readers of her blog to ask God for a word for the year...The one He gave her is "Hope."  When I asked Him for mine, almost immediately I heard "Quiet."  It could mean many things...and probably does...but what I hear Him saying to me is, "Be still and know that I am God."  And listen to His "still, small voice."  I spend lots of time reading and writing and talking and visiting.  But how much time do I spend just being still and quiet and listening?  When we do set aside that time to be absolutely quiet...to turn off all our distracting technology and devices, the ability to listen and to hear, in our spirits, is so abundantly enhanced.  We live in a busy and noisy world, full of so many loud and disrupting distractions, that rarely do we take time to go to our quiet places to be still and listen.  I think the allure of such quiet times is what makes meditation so appealing.  So...now that I have my word, I intend to do just what it says and means.  2012 will be a quieter year...and hopefully a very meaningful one.  I'll let you know!