Well, you guessed it… this is the first official blog post from my new home in northeast Broken Arrow, OK! The Five and I were awoken early this morning around 4:45 by a rather loud peal of thunder followed by a deluge of frozen rain. We weren’t expecting the thunder so the boom took both of us by surprise.
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
That I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
Being as we’ve barely been in the house a week, I haven’t yet familiarized myself with the unique sounds of the home and neighborhood and to be perfectly honest… my first thought was that the water heater blew up! So, there I am, with the dog in tow (brave of him to stay tucked behind me…right?) running into the dark kitchen, shirtless in my pajama bottoms and flinging open the garage door! Smart move eh? Like what was I gonna do if I found what I was thinking in my half-dazed, sleepy mind?
By the time I opened the door from the kitchen to the garage, some more thunder sounded and I finally figured out what was happening! I closed the door and took a quick peek out the kitchen window out to the front yard and didn’t observe,
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Giving the lustre of mid-day to objects below, in fact it was quite dark and overcast outside.
And thank God that to my wondering eyes there didn’t appear,
A miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer… I think that I might have lost it if I saw anything like that!
So, the big brave Fiver and I plopped back into bed… me in mine and him on his on the floor and twisted and turned for another hour or so. When I took him out back at 7:00 the ground was wet and there were ice pebbles lining the wooden framing on the fence. When we went out for a walk a few hours later, the temperature was still sitting at 30 degrees with 19 mph winds from the north. That equated to a wind chill of 19 degrees. By the time we got back from our walk, I thought my face had frozen!
And that my dear readers is the state of the union or of the neighborhood from my new neck of the woods! I spent a good amount of time yesterday praying for the plans and the purposes of those plans that the good Lord has for me to passionately pursue in the final weeks of this year and throughout what I firmly believe to be a brand-new frontier of faith for me in 2020.
I was reading in James 2:23 this morning that, “The full meaning of ‘believe’ in the Scripture sentence, ‘Abraham believed God and was set right with God," includes his action. It's that mesh of believing and acting that got Abraham named ‘God's friend.’" (The Message) I couldn’t help but to stop and nod my head in agreement to that statement. I strongly sense that this new year is going to include a lot of new and at times… out-of-my-normal-comfort-zone actions on my behalf, if I am to accomplish the plans that God has for me in this new land and new life without Piper at my side!
But hey… that’s the way Piper and I lived our life in the past, so there’s no reason to stop now right? What’s that saying… “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it!” I keep thinking about and confirming in the Word, the need to stick to my unique Christian roots… and that’s exactly what I aim to do!
I hope everyone who reads this is joyfully getting into the Christmas spirit and is able to pass HIS joy onto someone else as you endeavor to navigate the hustle and bustle all around you! Then, as you fly out the door and jump in the car to grab that last-minute present, someone might just hear you say as you drive away:
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!
One last thought: What are you expecting this Christmas and New Year?
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your thoughts are welcomed. Please keep them within the context and flavor of this blog.