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Sometimes people say there's a lot of bragging going on at Facebook, but my 108 friends don't seem to brag at all. They rejoice a lot though and I love it, all of it:
The photos of vacations to Hawaii or France or their new grandbabies or the big family reunions. Their new hairstyles and dresses and weight losses for the upcoming weddings or high school reunions or their childrens' graduations. Their daughters' handsome new husbands, the missions trips, the newly-built decks in the backyard. The great family dogs or additions on the houses or all the backpacks gathered by their churches for low-income children.
The Bible says to rejoice with those who rejoice and that is the intent of my friends--they're rejoicing over God's extreme goodness, not bragging. Facebook (and Blogland) are perfect places to practice rejoicing and they also reflect back to us like mirrors, as we read and view photos, exactly what's growing inside our own hearts.
Gulp.
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So while driving home this glorious morning from probably 8 yard sales where I bought absolutely nothing, I chose to be philosophical, repeating to myself, "Some yard sale days are like that," and reminded myself of the treasures I'd discovered yesterday. And not even knowing the way home, I just headed through a maze of old neighborhoods in the general direction of Hobbit Cottage when oh! I spied another sale.
And this is where it gets weird. I mean, that out-of-the-blue yard sale had a roll-around tea cart that (nearly) matches our cupboards and I'd told Tom weeks ago that I'd like to find just such a cart to use as a kitchen island.
(The top lifts off to become a tray. Update: Probably I'll spray paint it all a pale yellow or green to brighten things.)
Insert the Twilight Zone theme music here.
If you saw where I was (and where I live), in the middle of thousands of swing-you-back-to-the-1940's neighborhoods, literally, you'd agree that God must have led me there. Just one street over and I'd have missed it. Not only was the tea cart only $5, but the kind, happy-type-of-New-Yorker-that-I-love lady (and her 40-something son who placed the cart in my car) charged me only $1 for all of these remarkable things:
(The 1950's and 60's Ford Times magazines are awesome: someday I will show you their insides. And Dinner for Two has all that a perfect cookbook should have.)
Oh wow. Slowly I'm learning to never let disappointment bulldoze my faith that something remarkable could be waiting down the street. After all, God responds to faith, not whining.
Then as I continued to wind my way home, I glimpsed a sign for an estate sale so I followed the arrows and found myself the only person (for awhile) wandering through the old house and gasped, thinking, "Be still my built-in-loving heart," when I saw these in the dining room:
Can you believe all those shelves?(The house is for sale, so at home I looked it up online and got that photo for you.) At that sale, I found two nice hanging wooden shelves for only $1 each.
So there you go. Another weekend morning driving around with God and Grace and letting them take me on adventures they knew ahead of time that I'd enjoy. I would quip that old-fashioned line, "It's the only way to go!," except that no, we can always go our own way and miss out on the best of everything.
Heaven forbid.
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"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." ... James 1:17
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Speaking of those Ford magazines, last week at Netflix I watched a documentary about Henry Ford and was pretty much horrified. Oh dear--interesting, but so sad.
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Wow, special "God Treats" just for you. I remember walking into a flea market at a church and finding a Gladys Taber book in the first box I looked in. Talk about feeling blessed.
ReplyDeleteGod and Grace, a most wonderful combination. We live in this tiny town (60 people) in perfect house where for twenty plus years we farmed the land because where we thought we would be, was not for sale but the kind farmer pushed us in this direction and here we are. We are being nudged in another direction and I can't wait to see what God has for us
ReplyDeletenext.
Jan Maine
Don't you just love it when God finds ways to let us know that He's listening and He cares enough to give us the desires of our hearts?!!Just love your new tea cart and, especially the detachable top tray.
ReplyDeleteThat cart/island is going to be perfect. And what a steal. Many of the reviews of the Ford documentary agree with you. I owned a Ford once. It was a lemon. lol.
ReplyDeleteThose built in shelves are fabulous and I agree, I rejoice over happy news shared and do a lot of praying for folks having heart breaking times, on Facebook and here in blogland. The balance is good, some joy and some prayer support.
ReplyDeleteMore often than not of late, I will say, "Oh wouldn't it be nice to have..." some little object or another and in a day or two or three, there it is on a thrift store shelf, a store shelf always very affordable and absolutely the thing I wanted. I see it as God showing me he's listening. And if he hears all these little nothing things, then how much more he must be listening to the big hurtful things and the joyful things that make my heart overflow.
ReplyDeleteI just LOVE IT when that happens! That tea cart is just too TOO cute!
ReplyDeleteA few weeks back I quite by accident left my camera outside under the umbrella of our patio table. Sure enough, it rained- sideways. I brought it in as soon as I realized it was out there and it worked just fine. Until about an hour later. NOTHING. I followed all the tips for drying out a camera, but for weeks - NOTHING. After six weeks, when I was about to just throw it away (per my research comments) I was overwhelmed with the thought to try it again. And it WORKS! I couldn't stop dancing around saying "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
God knows us. I've no doubt.