How Firm a Foundation

I may not have gotten to go to Gethsemani, but I still had a fantastic day. It started out slow. I stayed in bed for a while longer than normal. I felt so tired and a bit let down because I was not where I had wanted to be. After a few hours of lounging on the couch, I made my way to my secondary room in the attic and spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon up there.

I had decided that since I did not go to Gethsemani, I would spend some time gluing the pieces of the porcelain creamer Tori gave me for Christmas that I broke (on purpose) to go along with the book, Mended.

Before I started gluing, I read my daily devotional from "Jesus Calling". It was meant just for me and was a direct answer to my request to hear His voice loud and clear on my birthday. He was not going to give me exactly what I wanted the way I wanted it.

It read:

"Let me prepare you for the day that stretches out before you. I know exactly what this day will contain, whereas you have only vague ideas about it. You would like to see a map, showing all the twists and turns of your journey. You'd feel more prepared if you could somehow visualize what is on the road ahead. However, there is a better way to be prepared for whatever you will encounter today: Spend quality time with Me. I will not show you what is on the road ahead..."

"There's my answer!" I said, more amused than angry by the way God chooses to speak to us sometimes.

The second part of that last sentence read, "but I will thoroughly equip you for the journey."

I set the devotional aside and started assessing the broken pieces gathered in front of me. God told me to work on my foundation first. "Don't worry about going any further today. Make sure your foundation is strong and stable, that the glue has plenty of time to dry. If you try to rush it, the whole thing will end up crumbling in your hands."

The words, "how firm a foundation" came to mind. "Isn't that a song?" I wondered. What great spiritual truth comes from such a simple project.

I was enjoying the way God chose to speak to me today. In fun I said, "Well, since I didn't get the big gift I wanted, can you at least make the sore in my nose pop? I've been really good about not picking at it and trying to force it like I have with the others. That would make an excellent present, too!"

Later today and again this evening, the sucker popped on it's own! It wasn't nearly as gross as some of the other sores have been and my nose instantly felt better!

This morning my dad mentioned something about the way God speaks to me. I have been thinking about it for the past two days. He doesn't always speak. Sometimes I have to wait on Him. Sometimes, I think He does speak, but I'm too busy to hear or pay attention.

The way He speaks sometimes is what I find rather profound. It's not as humans speak, but it's just as clear. Like with my dream from the other night. He gave me the explanation, but He didn't explain it with words the way I had to do to describe it to others. I simply knew. But, it was as if He had explained it in words. But it took only one millisecond to tell me. I don't know if that makes any sense and I don't really know how to explain it any better than that.

I have been asked how I know it's God who is speaking to me and not just me speaking to myself, telling myself what I want to hear. At the time, I said I just know. It's faith. Besides, if I was talking to myself, I would tell myself only those things I want to hear. God does not always tell me what I want to hear. The more I think about it, the way He communicates is the reason I know it's Him speaking and not just me. It's as if my time stands still while He explains things to me. Time does not exist the way we understand time during those moments of clarity. I guess any way you look at it, the bottom line is that it is simple faith.

Anyway, later this afternoon, Mike and Morgan took me to dinner and a movie. I had thought about inviting other friends, but I wanted to keep this simple. I didn't want a big to-do, just spending a quiet evening with family. They are family to me. I didn't want to feel like I had to entertain anyone. Simplicity.

We went to Judge Beans for dinner. Judge Bean is a Texan who does BBQ Texas style. I haven't been there in years and I haven't been to his new place. I was a bit disappointed. The atmosphere was great! It was like being in a Texas dance hall. The food was not so great. He used to cook his food fresh outside in a pit. When they were out of food, they were out of food. This tasted run of the mill. I did not smell anything cooking outside. Either I got them on an off day or he's gotten a little too commercial.

After dinner, we went to see Les Miserables. My goodness! That was the best movie I have seen in a very long time, maybe ever! I do not remember the last time I was so emotionally moved by a movie. There has never been a time when I wanted to see it again immediately. I had tears running down my neck. I jokingly told Mike I wanted to stay for the next showing. Had it not already been close to my bedtime, I would have gladly stayed. I am beyond impressed by the acting and singing from all of the cast. Got me excited to start going to see live operas and plays again.

The part with Ann Hathaway singing after her hair was cut off really got to me. Her hair looked like mine. The emotion of the song and her performance reminded me of moments I had while undergoing treatment. How blessed I felt to be past all that pain.

To my surprise and delight, Morgan loved it just as much as we did. She also got emotional.

After the movie, I suggested Dairy Queen. I mainly wanted to go simply because I had not yet done my good deed for the day. I intended to buy someone a movie ticket, but since I did not pay for the movie, I forgot.

You see, my sister turned 40 on January 7th. On Christmas Eve, she told us that for her birthday, she wanted her family to do 40 random acts of kindness. I thought this was a neat idea. I told Mike and Morgan about it and the three of us are working together to do 40 random acts of kindness in 40 days in her honor.

It is really neat because it gets us all thinking about what we can do for others above and beyond what we already do. I love the influence it's having on Morgan. Even if Mike or I have something to offer, I use what she has done if she has something. It warms my heart to hear what she has to say! Turns out, it has been a great gift for all of us!

Anyway, we went inside and while I was waiting for my blizzard, I heard one of the workers take a drive thru order. He stood close to me. I got his attention and told him I wanted to pay for that order. He looked a little taken aback, but let me do it. He asked if I knew the guy or if I was just being nice. I said I didn't know him. The cashier, the one who took my order, said that was the coolest thing he ever saw.

I scooted behind a wall because I could tell the guy at the window was asking what was going on. I didn't want him to see me. As I later told Morgan, we do not do good deeds to be rewarded for them. Although, in a way, I suppose we are rewarded anyway. It's a great feeling.

Mike noticed the guy in the truck pull up and stop. Morgan stared as he got out of the car. I didn't notice him at first and I stood at the door as he came in. He looked at me and asked who paid for his blizzard. I looked at Morgan and her eyes got big and she grinned real big. I stifled a laugh, shrugged my shoulders and shook my head as if I had no idea what he was talking about. The guy was between me and Mike and Morgan. They faced his back. After the man asked this question, the two of them did a quick 180 and walked away, leaving me between him and the door.

He looked at me again and said, "I thought it was you." I told him I didn't know and bit my lip. Luckily, he believed me. He took one last look around the place and left with a bewildered look on his face.

Once he left, the three of us went outside to eat our ice cream. We all had a good laugh about what had happened. What an experience. The best part, though, was Morgan talking about what she planned to do for her good deed on Monday.

On top of all that fun, I got a lot of birthday greetings via facebook, text, and phone calls. While still at Dairy Queen, my mother-in-law called and sang me happy birthday. That is one call I look forward to every year. Something so special about her singing to me.

I also got a video of my nephews singing as well. That is especially sweet because I share my birthday with my nephew, Ryan. For him to sing to me on his birthday is quite special!

I may have missed out on my plans to go to Gethsemani, but I still ended up having a pretty great day. Choosing the mountain over the valley. Today it paid off!

The foundation pieced back together.

The rest of the broken pieces waiting to be put back together.