Sometimes I get SO distracted. As I began creating a Fall arrangement for my dining room table I decided that I must have one of those large acorns for the arrangement that would go on my kitchen counter. I traveled to the kitchen and began arranging that bowl and soon realized that I needed one of the white pumpkins I’d placed there for the small terrarium on my kitchen table.
It didn’t stop there. From those three arrangements I took some velvet pumpkins up to our guest rooms and, lo and behold, I noticed that the tray in the blue room had tarnished handles!
Downstairs again , I pulled out the silver polish.
Note: This is seriously the best silver polish ever. It literally melts tarnish away.
Realizing the bottle was running low I decided to use it up. Thus began the gathering and polishing of more silver pieces, and then some more, and then some more, until I had polished every piece of silver on the main floor of my house!
In the end, my three Fall arrangements were still a shambles.
Last week I shared a bit of my heart with you HERE and honestly, I can’t begin to express how blessed I am to have readers like you, who responded with such an abundance of encouragement.
I shouldn’t be amazed . . . but I am . . . by how much God cares about our feelings. He made us for each other, to love one another, as a way of showing His love for us.
With all of the encouragement I received I honestly began to feel so bad that I had made y’all feel bad (especially since some of you are struggling with much harder things than I am) that I started to write something funny today to make everyone feel better! Then I realized that the right thing to do is to just say THANK YOU!
Can I brag on God a little more? Do you remember my mentioning that I miss having friends who live near enough to message and say, “Do you want to meet for a cuppa’ Joe?” Within a few hours of my post appearing on Facebook I received a comment asking that very question. That message came from an acquaintance, a friend-of-a-friend, someone I’d met only once at a lunch where we’d sat at opposite ends of the table.
So though I felt a little bit embarrassed, and a little nervous, and a little bad that I made anyone feel sorry for me, because honestly I’m not an attention seeking type of person, I said, “Yes”.
Do any of you remember how easy it was to make friends when we were little girls, when all of the complications of being grown women didn’t get in the way of connecting quickly? This was like that! I believe that this is just the beginning of a great good friendship.
Another way God encouraged me this week was at the grocery store where I was greeted warmly by a woman from the church we’ve attended these past two Sundays. After feeling like a stranger in our new town for the past year you can imagine how good it felt to see a familiar face and to be recognized by someone.
Within the last few days I feel like God has been stripping away sadness like tarnish from silver and I have renewed hope for this new adventure we’re on.
The last thing I want to tell you about is the most important, and what I believe was the catalyst for change. I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie War Room, but even before I penned my sad post, Mr. OTN spent time in his “war room” praying to God on my behalf. He prayed as hard as he’s ever prayed, even begging God for answers (begging God is not something he’s very comfortable with but he was desperate. You see, he has been feeling the sadness too and even wondering if he made the right decision in moving us here).
Shortly afterwards, while sitting on our screened porch, he received a very real (repeat VERY REAL) assurance from God that everything is going to be okay.
Hubby chose the church we would go to that very Sunday, saying that he had a good feeling about it. I must say that this is the friendliest church I’ve ever been to and after a couple of weeks there I’m feeling cautiously optimistic. I know, where’s my faith right? Lord???
As I sit on the screened porch this evening with the fragrance of Gardenias drifting across my yard, I’m aware of the many ways God works in our lives to encourage us. Sometimes it’s the little things, like the smell of flowers or hummingbirds at the feeder. Sometimes it’s through the people He sends our way.
In my sadness I think I may have missed some of His smiles lately. Like I said, sometimes I get SO distracted.
I HEART y’all VERY much!
P.S. You know life can’t be too bad when one has so much silver to polish. 😉
I have been know to link to the following Inspirational Parties:
Wednesdays A Wise Woman Builds Her Home Wednesday Prayer Girls Woman to Woman Word Filled Wednesdays A Little R & R Whole Hearted Home So Much at Home Mom’s Morning Coffee Women with Intention Coffee for Your Heart Capture Your Journey
Thursdays Serving Joyfully/Thriving Thursdays The Deliberate Mom/Shine Blog Hop I Choose Joy Live Free Thursday Thought Provoking Thursday Imparting Grace
Fridays A Look at the Book Christian Mommy Blogger Fellowship Fridays Blessing Counters Missional Women Faith Filled Fridays Faith & Fellowship Bloghop Grace & Truth Linkup Grace&TruthSharingRedemption’sStories Dance With Jesus The Weekend Brew
Saturdays Still Saturday The Weekend Brew Saturday Soiree Recommendation Saturday Make My Saturday Sweet
Sundays Spiritual Sundays Sunday Stillness
