71 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 12-14-16”

  2. Good morning. We’re having bipolar weather this week…. it’s supposed to be in the 70’s this afternoon and for the next few days, then we drop to the 30’s….Brrrr….

    Lindsey is in the midst of finals. Becca’s having a fun last week of school–yesterday they had Christmas sweater day and tomorrow is their fancy dress day along with their Christmas party.

    I’ve been interviewing people to clean my house once Connie goes home. I don’t like change and am going to miss her terribly.

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  4. Ah, the falling snow is appropriate for the header. That’s the bird often known as a snowbird. And it used to be known as the slate-colored junco, but is now just one of several color varieties of the dark-eyed junco. The other bird species go to the feeders, but this one nearly always feeds on the ground, digging through snow with its feet to find seeds the other birds dropped. So we sometimes sprinkle seed over the snow for him.

    His whole underside is white, tail feathers and all, and his whole upperside is dark, tail feathers and all. So when he flies, you see a flash of black-and-white tail. We’ve had as many as 20 or more of them in our yard at a time this week, the most we’ve ever seen. Considering that he comes to the Indiana snow to get warm, breeding in the arctic or northern Canada, he really should be at home in the snow!

    This year they’ve decided to try our suet feeders, and one or two have decided they like them. We’re seeing them on the other feeders occasionally, too, which is rare for this bird. (We don’t have any platform feeders.)

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  5. Finally, a day home to organize my life, finish writing the Christmas card (except, we may have that new job announcement by next week . . . ), figure out what gifts I’ve bought, write some blog posts and not run around.

    It starts up again tomorrow, of course, with our daughter’s return for the Cantata weekend (we’re all singing).

    In the midst of all of this, I’ve had blog posts to write about Advent which have been so very helpful for me, personally. Stopping to think, do a little research and then write about what each Advent candle means has been a blessing.

    My daughter-in-law/webmistress is now doing pinnables for Pinterest for each post and seeing her artistry has been so satisfying, as well.

    And this morning, I was thinking about Janice’s happiness at having Miss B in her life–and remembering the day Miss B arrived so unexpectedly on her doorstep.

    In Pastor Paul’s post above he includes this line which I love: “God’s miracles can masquerade behind “mistakes.” They also hide behind impossibilities.”

    Everything looks so much better when you get nine hours of sleep! LOL

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  6. Good morning! I remembered this week the older lady, now passed, from my former church and Art’s present church, who said she had not received any big miracles in her life, but she was very thankful to God for never putting her in a position of needing a major miracle.

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  7. What a cute header picture! I loved reading what you wrote about it, Cheryl.

    I just spoke to Karen for a few minutes. She sounded better. The fluids she was given by IV got her blood chemistry back in balance, and she lost seven pounds of fluid overnight. She is again out of A fib.

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  8. Advent – Day 14: This is a traditional French carol dating from the 1600s. It is sometimes translated as ‘What is that lovely fragrance’:

    What is this fragrance softly stealing?
    Shepherds! It sets my heart a-stir!
    Never was sweetness so appealing
    Never were flowers of spring so fair!
    What is this fragrance softly stealing?
    Shepherds! It sets my heart a-stir!

    What is this Light around us streaming?
    Out of the dark – with blinding ray –
    Purer than Star of Morning’s seeming –
    Showing our path as plain as day!
    What is this Light around us streaming?
    Out of the dark – with blinding ray!

    What is this Wonder all around us
    Filling the air with Music light!
    Shepherds! Some Magic here hath found us!
    Never mine ears knew such delight!
    What is this Wonder all around us
    Filling the air with Music light!

    ‘Be not affrighted, Shepherds lowly!
    Hearken the Angel of the Lord!
    Bearing a Message glad and Holy –
    Shedding a radience all abroad!
    ‘Be not affrighted, Shepherds lowly!
    Hearken the Angel of the Lord!

    There, in a Manger with His Mother,
    Lieth our Saviour, Born today!
    Come away Shepherds; Let none other
    Hinder thy coming now away!
    There, in a Manger with His Mother,
    Lieth our Saviour, Born today!

    God in His charity and favour,
    Give of His grace to all a share!
    Grace that aboundeth, now and ever,
    Peace that abideth everywhere!
    God in His charity and favour,
    Give of His grace to all a share!

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  9. Thank you Janice for what you said about never being in a position of needing miracles. I have one major miracle in my life–BG. I was told I would never have her or more correctly I may could have a baby but it would not be it’s father’s biological child. She is.
    Sunday at Sunday school were were discussing angels in disguise. Chas has told us his story of a angel. A few were talking about angels that had appeared to help them. I dug around in my memory and couldn’t think of anything. I felt a little left out. Then I remembered this:
    I had driven home 16 hours from Norfolk, VA to Malbis, AL. It was a stupid thing to do. I had money to spend the night in a hotel and had planned to stay somewhere along the way, but in Atlanta I was only a couple of hours from Montgomery. I could spend the night there. In Montgomery, I was only a couple of hours from home. I got home around midnight to a father who slept soundly and also had a pistol in the nightstand. I honked my horn from the time I turned on to our cul de sac until I stopped in the drive way. I slammed the back door as hard as I could when I entered the house. When I went to my room, his was across the hall, he sat up in bed, asked if it was me and went back to sleep.
    The next day I decided to go to Mobile to visit my Mama Ruth. I was headed across the Bayway and two men in a car started honking and pointing at me. I ignored them. I had driven all that way the day before to have two men kidnap me on home turf? No way! Finally I decided to exit to the Causeway. They followed me and flashed their headlights. I pullled over, with locked doors, cracked my window and one told me something was wrong with my tire. They changed it for me on the side of the road and left.
    1. What would I have done about a flat or blow out the night before on a dark two lane road through the woods (Michelle, it would have been Hwy 225 that I sent you up).
    2. What if I had had a flat or blow out on the Bayway at 75 MPH?

    And I have just now remembered that an elderly black man who was fishing on the Causeway walked over and talked to me while the men changed my tire, so I had another level of protection. Angels? Probably not. Sent by God? Maybe. I choose to think so.

    Now for the REAL miracle of this story. 🙂
    I was 20 years old. I had spoken with my father the night before I left Norfolk telling him I would be leaving early the next morning. The night I arrived home he had not stayed awake worrying about my safety and he didn’t feel the need to get up and welcome me home at midnight. I didn’t have a cell phone to call anyone from the road. No one did. I wouldn’t let BG leave here and go to Norfolk trusting her to drive through major cities, get a hotel room, and not check in with me every couple of hours. Oh how times have changed.

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  10. Now, for a serious question that I cannot answer for myself. When a young man arrives at your home with your daughter for dinner, who should speak first? I answered the door and spoke. I always speak. I always assume that people don’t remember me in other social and business settings if we haven’t seen each other in a while. I speak and tell them I am Kim H. I never give it any thought.
    The more mature man in our home was upset that they young man didn’t speak to him last night. The argument is that the younger person should speak first. I would think the host or hostess would speak first and welcome anyone to the home. I personally take it as a challenge. If someone doesn’t speak to me I MAKE them. I ask a question they have to answer.
    The more mature man has some quirks about what is proper and what is not. He once got upset that an old acquaintance of mine asked me to dance and I accepted. The argument being that a man should ask the husband if it is OK to dance with his wife.

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  11. Kim, My mother almost always speaks first. Her customary flood of greetings, encouraging the visitors to leave their shoes on and to come in and sit down, seldom allows said visitors to get a word in edgewise in the first couple of minutes. Usually only after she has got the visitors in the house and seated in the most comfortable chairs, will she call down to my father, who has been oblivious to the fact the doorbell rang, and tell him company’s here. The funny thing is, my mother is an introvert, but she has learned to welcome people warmly into her home. Most people want to come back and have labeled my parents’ home a haven of peace.

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  12. Kim, you are better at etiquette than I, and I don’t know the answer to all of that. But I do know that a woman is supposed to offer her hand to a man (when shaking hands), or if she doesn’t, then he doesn’t offer his . . . and I personally would think that a woman, the hostess, would indeed be the one to greet the young man (if there is a convention either way). If the father answered the door, then I don’t know. My hunch is, if the young man is supposed to speak first, he might not know that he is, and might be more at ease if the older man did. And remember if an older person is being introduced to a younger, it is “Mr. Smith, meet Tommy Jones”–I don’t know if that plays any role in such intros.

    When my daughter was beginning to court her now-husband, the first time he arrived to pick her up for a date, she didn’t wait for him to come to the door (and, presumably, have her father answer, if he chose); she went running out to him. She wasn’t really thinking; he had been an acquaintance for a long time. At the next meal we had together, I said, “By the way, when he comes, you need to wait for him to come to the door. That’s the proper thing to do.” Her younger sister said, aghast, “Did you just go running out there?” So I knew that she (the younger one) at least knew what was proper! But I quickly covered for her sister in saying, “I’m sure she just wasn’t thinking–he’s a friend.”

    I would think that a man should ask a husband to dance with his wife if the woman is married. And whether or not that is socially required, you know for next time that Paul wishes that.

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  13. We children would go running out all the time to greet well loved visitors, so it was only natural my siblings went out to greet their suitors. The whole idea of running out to greet visitors is very Biblical – such a welcome was the sign of the greatest honour to the visitor in Bible stories (Abraham running to greet the three visitors, the father running to greet the Prodigal Son, etc.). In my family culture, visitors are welcomed as guests and guests are to be served, not only with the most comfortable seating and the best food and drink we have to offer, but also with our time and our words. It was considered impolite if we children didn’t come to greet guests and give some time in speaking to them – the few times we children were so discourteous, my mother did not let us forget it, expressing her grief at our behaviour in no uncertain terms, so that we felt grieved at it too. The whole idea of hospitality is that the host serves the guest, not the guest serving the host.

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  15. We are always surprised, but we shouldn’t be.
    I didn’t remember that I told you about my encounter with what I think was a real angel.
    As I said:
    Psalm 34:7
    The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them

    As for who speaks first, I suspect it doesn’t rally matter. Depends on lots of things. If it’s a first date, the guy is nervous about parents. It helps if the parent of the girl says a welcoming word to start. “If you get her back one minute past eleven, you’re dead.” is not the best thing.

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  17. Kim, I think Roscuro’s comments should help with the question. Basically, a man is coming to your door, putting himself out there into unfamiliar territory, and once he does, you treat him in a way that helps him feel comfortable. There’s a place for a man saying (explicitly or implicitly), “I care about how you treat my daughter.” I think it’s fine for a father to choose to be the one to go to the door, to make it clear he is involved in his daughter’s life (but not in a “shotgun-wielding” way unless he really doesn’t trust the man). As a newly married woman, I understood my daughter’s eagerness to go to her date; as a mom, it was still my place to remind her of decorum–a young lady shouldn’t “throw herself” at a man, even when that isn’t what she’s intending by the action. And it’s a blessing for everyone if the young couple gets to know each other but also gets to know each other’s families. Our younger daughter sees her brother-in-law as the brother she never had. The three of them (the couple and the sister) actually went out together a few times during the courtship–it was a beautiful thing to watch the young man get to know all of us, not just his intended. Racing out to the car and doing all the dates outside the house would not have allowed the other family relationships to develop as well.

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  18. My logical thought is that the young bow down in respect which could be a quick nod of recognition that they are in the presence of a superior, and they wait for the older person, who is the higher authority in the house, to speak first. Compare it to saluting an officer and waiting for a command of, “At ease. Make yourself at home.”

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  19. I don’t think this young man has heard good things about the man in question. I think he is a little shy and intimidated. He was here at Thanksgiving and loosened up after a while.
    Personally I think the whole “getting your nose out of joint” because you weren’t spoken to is a little ridiculous. As I said, I take it as a challenge. You may not like me but you WILL speak to me. Some people are introverts and may think they don’t have anything to say. Some are extroverts and have lots to say. I feel if you are in my home it is my duty to make you comfortable.
    I just needed to check with others to make sure I am not being obtuse in this.

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  20. I run out to meet the workmen. 🙂 I am always so glad to see someone here who is going to fix something.

    The cat, walking back and forth across on my shoulders this morning, just sneezed in my ear. Now that’s rude.

    I spent some time tossing and turning as I mentally rearranged my living room last night.

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  21. No, Kim, I don’t think you are.

    For what it’s worth, when our son-in-law first came to our church, I wondered if he would end up marrying our daughter. They already knew each other, though she being two years younger than he, she had taken more notice of him in high school than vice versa (they played clarinet together, and she had a crush on him). I thought it a good thing that he developed an affection and respect for my husband before the two ever dated.

    By their own choice, most of their dates took place in our home. They’d sit in the kitchen and talk, eat, play games. Or they’d go into the living room and watch a movie. Sometimes we’d play a game with him, or ask him to stay for supper and eat with all of us.

    He had to feel “welcome” here for that to happen. But I think it was very helpful to them. We allowed them freedom to talk, but they had some sense of accountability, he got to know the whole family, and it also saved them some money over always going out somewhere. It wouldn’t work well for every family. And I suspect her younger sister wouldn’t make the same choice. But being welcoming of the young man made it possible.

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  22. Re: Miracles – Every true Christian has experienced a major miracle. In fact, it is the biggest, greatest miracle ever: salvation. It is a miracle that a holy, just God would ever consider saving anyone. We are all deserving of nothing less than eternal punishment, yet God in his mercy chose to save some of us. What a miracle!

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  23. Company is here? Run out to meet them and walk them to their car when they leave.

    But, it also makes sense for the young man to grab some security and speak up to the dad.

    In our home, we have four happily married children who agreed that parents should be involved. and at least five with variously broken hearts who tried to be sneaky.

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  24. I love juncos!

    I experienced a miracle last week – I wasn’t going to share as I seem to be waiting for the other shoe to drop and the infection will come back. Last week at the Christian Camping conference one of the speakers prayed for healing (basically over the whole audience). I had a bad cold and a sinus infection. In over 12 years I have never had a sinus infection clear up without 10 to 21 days of heavy duty antibiotics. The morning after the prayer my sinus infection was gone – my cold was still there with all its issues (hah) but no more infection. I am grateful as I hate going on antibiotics, but I’m still wondering if it’s true but the infection hasn’t returned.

    I realize this isn’t a miracle like BG, but to me it’s pretty amazing.

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  25. Our running out to greet visitors was in order to bring them in – we just wanted to spend as much time as possible with them, beginning at the time they got out of the car. The reverse now happens with my young relatives who come for long visits. They often will tumble out of their vehicle and run into the house to greet us before we have realized they’ve arrived. Then they have to go back out and help their parents unload the car.

    All of my siblings suitors had to get to know the family. Eldest sibling’s future spouse out of necessity had to get to know us – his second visit to the family was over Christmas, much to we younger siblings’ disgust (now, Christmas wouldn’t be the same without him and his offspring). Second sibling’s spouse was a friend of the family long before he finally asked second sibling out (you see, second sibling liked him long before he asked her out and, since we cared about her, we made the effort to get to know him and ended up liking him ourselves). Youngest sibling had several young men interested in her – she has that type of magnetic personality. The first one, my father had no use for him, much to the relief of youngest sibling who was feeling pressured to be interested in him due to the fact our families attended church together. Another was interested in youngest sibling, but told her that her family scared him (the reported statement occasioned much merriment among us), prompting her to tell him that her family was very important to her. That ended that. The one who finally got her is an introvert and was quite shy of us, but the families knew each other from years past and he made the effort to become reacquainted with us. Now, my three siblings-in-law are effectively my brothers. Just as with my sisters, I have different relationships with each of them, but they are all good relationships. Two of my siblings-in-law address my mother using a maternal term of affection (one of them lives far away from his mother, who isn’t a Christian, and the other lost his mother before he was married). So, the running out to greet them certainly didn’t prevent them from getting to know us.

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  26. This new picture is a song sparrow. It is surrounded by fragments of sunflower seeds and other birdseed, but I thought the dead winter leaf also belonged in the seasonal photo. Both of these photos are from previous winters, though we do now have the first big snowfall of the year on the ground and I sent AJ a few pix from this year too.

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  27. I suppose it will not be a surprise, but I am still dealing with my attempt to get health insurance. La La Land!!!

    My application is not showing up as submitted. Tomorrow is the deadline. La La la la la lahlahlahlah lah!
    Oh, fiddlesticks! I’ll think about that tomorrow! I have an agent earning her commission ❤

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  28. Well, Phos, we did not run to greet them and take them straight back to the car, we escort them in and talk with them until they are ready to leave and then escort them to their car. And generally wave until they pass the mailbox. It’s tradition.

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  29. Mumsee, we did the same thing when visitors were leaving. There was a rail fence along the front hedge that we children would climb to wave at our visitors until they turned the corner. Now, my parents don’t climb the fence of course, but they still accompany visitors to their cars and may even walk to the end of the drive to wave. For my mother, that is a real difficulty, as she walks so painfully now, but she doesn’t even consider her debilitating pain when it comes to showing hospitality.

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  30. Oh what a difference a few years make. Easter of 2010 I had all of my father’s family for Family Easter. I was appalled at several of my aunts who brought plastic containers to take food home. How RUDE? They just started packing leftovers!!! One was especially bad and at the time was still running an in home day care so I had my suspicions….
    I just got back from picking up BG’s prescription at the pharmacy. They had knock off plastic containers, 4 for a $1. I bought 3 packs. I don’t want all the leftovers hanging around my house for me to deal with. 🙂

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  31. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/foster-children-need-the-church

    ___________________

    … Orphan and foster care in America actually began as a Christian effort. In the early 1850s, a minister named Charles Loring Brace made efforts to help thousands of homeless children in New York City. He’s known as the father of the foster care movement, and went great lengths to place children in Christian families.

    As Christians, we have a God who cares for the orphan and for those who cannot help themselves (Ps. 68:5; James 1:27). Foster children are essentially orphans, some only temporarily, but the results can be tragic if they’re left to grow up in the system without a family. …
    _____________________

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  33. Husband was on his break and made the two mile walk to a sports bar to watch a football game. A couple came in. He, of course, started conversation. Turns out one was raised in my home town a little younger than me and the other was raised in a nearby logging town. They have two birth children and two adopted children, one from Ethiopia and one from the Colorado foster system. His folks have a ranch a few miles from here, so they will stop by when they come up next. Small world. This was in Ft Collins, Colorado.

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  34. Oh, I wasn’t really familiar with the song sparrow (beyond having heard the term) before moving here. We don’t see them terribly often, a few times a year but not regularly. But I find them rather fascinating, because they are really determined singers. They will fly from one branch to another, singing on each one. I once saw one that was doing its thing when a wren was trying to defend the tree from other birds. The sparrow would fly to a branch and quickly sing a few notes, and by then the wren would have caught up with it, so it would quickly fly away and sing on another branch. The whole scene was humorous–the wren is a fraction of the song sparrow’s size, and the song sparrow’s need to sing was so intense that he had to find a way to finish his song, pesky little bird attacking him or not.

    I’ve heard that song sparrows can begin to sing while they themselves are fledglings in the nest. Now, that’s a born singer!

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  37. I just can’t imagine Mr. Mumsee starting a conversation with him. I talked to him from Fairhope to Orando and from your house to Boise. That doesn’t include airports and planes. I think in all we had about 17 hours of talk time and never ran out of conversation. 😉

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  39. I read once that the main goal of etiquette is to make others comfortable. When everyone knows everyone else (as when my beloved grandparents came to visit us or vice versa) nobody cared who spoke first. We kids always ran out eagerly when they arrived, and walked them to their car, and mom and dad would stand on the porch and wave to them.

    On the other hand, when a relative stranger comes to your house for the first time, I think the host’s job is to put the guest at ease and welcome them, so I would not expect the guest to speak first, regardless of who was senior.

    I would not expect a young male friend of my daughter to speak to me first when visiting us. I would expect him to speak to me some time. I’d also do my part to make it easier for him to do so, showing interest in him and trying to draw him out if he’s the quiet type.

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  40. Today is the day to pack for my adventure in Oz.
    Just heard the planes go off for today so looking good for us getting off in time tomorrow.
    I am going straight through, though our aviation dept. does say it is better to wait a day in Port Moresby in case your flight is late.

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  41. I am terrible at starting conversations, so I let someone else start. I can keep one going, but starting one is difficult, as Kim can verify. At least, i think she started our conversation when we met for lunch last year.

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  42. Got the Angel Tree gifts wrapped and delivered to the church, just under the deadline this year. But it’s good to have all that done — and I haven’t lost too much of my wrapping ability.

    It’s supposed to rain on Thursday and Friday so the LA Sanitation Dept is sending out alerts and advice on how to cope with the rain. 🙂 I guess they figure we’re out of practice.

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  47. Kevin, my point exactly. I like to talk to strangers. You never know what you may find out. People tell me the oddest things. Like that they have AIDS,(customer at a bank) or their mother is dying (random woman in a deli).
    As I said before if someone doesn’t speak to me it is a challenge and accepted. You WILL speak to me even if I have to ask you the price of something or make up a question. I recently saw where women of color were offended when a sales clerk spoke to them because they perceived the clerk thought they were going to steal something. I am offended if they don’t speak. I am here to spend my money and I may need some help doing it and I want to you recognize I am there.
    I especially like to talk to new people who haven’t heard all my stories yet. 😉

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  48. I thought some parents around here might appreciate this…
    My children each year ask me the same question. After thinking about it, I decided I’d give them my real answer:
    What do I want for Christmas? I want you. I want you to keep coming around, I want you to bring your kids around, I want you to ask me questions, ask my advice, tell me your problems, ask for my opinion, ask for my help. I want you to come over and rant about your problems, rant about life, whatever. Tell me about your job, your worries, your spouse, your kids, your fur babies. I want you to continue sharing your life with me. Come over and laugh with me, or laugh at me, I don’t care. Hearing you laugh is music to me.
    I spent the better part of my life raising you the best way i knew how, and I’m not bragging, but i did a pretty darn good job. Now, give me time to sit back and admire my work, I’m pretty proud of it.
    Raid my refrigerator, help yourself, I really don’t mind. In fact, I wouldn’t want it any other way.
    I want you to spend your money making a better life for you and your family, I have the things I need. I want to see you happy and healthy. When you ask me what I want for Christmas, I say “nothing” because you’ve already been giving me my gift all year. I want you.
    If you feel the same way, feel free to copy and paste… I did!

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  51. Cheryl how I love the photos of the birds…I always worry about them in the snow and cold, but somehow they seem quite happy 🙂
    When guests arrive at our home, we always greet them warmly and welcome them in…it’s part of being hospitable….we tend to also wave them off as they drive down the driveway upon leaving….we even do such when the grandkids visit with their parents. My dear brother in law once said it had appeared we hadn’t seen our daughter and family in ages as we stood in the drive waving to them until they were out of sight….the kids enjoy it….they shout their good byes, honk the horn, hands waving, heads hanging out of the car windows…it’s just what we do 🙂
    I do believe a husband should be asked for his ok upon wanting a dance with the wife however 🙂

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  52. Does it matter that the dancing man in question had danced with ever other woman there and I told him it was my turn? I have known him for 20+ years. I didn’t think anything about it and HIS wife shooed us away to the dance floor.

    I have to remember that my husband was raised by parents born in the 1920’s, early 30’s. Even though he grew up in the 70’s and 80’s his was a very formal household. Sometimes it amazes me the statements he makes about what is socially acceptable.

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  54. Kim, I was raised by parents born in the teens and twenties, who were in some ways conservative for their generation. My dad would be 100 four months from now, if it wasn’t for the inconvenience of his death back in the mid-80s. So if I sometimes seem stodgy, blame them. 🙂

    My hunch is, if somehow my husband and I were at a dance, and I was asked to dance by someone he knew, especially if the request was in front of him, he wouldn’t think anything of it. But I would feel better asking him if it was OK–unless it was a relative who asked me, in which case neither of us would think anything of it.

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  56. Doesn’t Mrs. Cardinal look a little grumpy?

    Until I started taking photos of cardinals four years ago or so, I had never realized how greatly female cardinals vary in their coloring. Their feathers can be dark or light, they have varying amounts of red, and they have varying amounts of black on their masks. Two years ago I could distinctly pick out three different female cardinals that were visiting our yards, and I think we have another new one this year. Experts might be able to tell the males apart, too; I can’t. To me the males are stunning, one of the prettiest birds ever, but the female is a beautiful bird in her own right.

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  58. I can’t imagine Art and me at a dance unless it was an exercise class which we have done together in the past. We have danced a few times, but it is not really our thing to do. We are more the type to sit and enjoy a symphony and stand up at the end to applaud.

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  62. Blessings to you, Janice, you’re a faithful friend. Prayers for Karen.

    Got a call from the real estate pal who says roofers are coming Saturday morning and a tile guy is coming Sunday morning to take a look … I’d definitely rather it not be a Sunday morning, of course, but he comes a ways and thinks Sunday traffic might be lighter, which is probably true.

    Flexibility is the key in all this house work, unfortunately. It’s possible he’ll look and be gone by 10 or so and I can show up at church late, but we’ll see.

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  63. Roofers will be starting on the foundation fixes on Saturday, but that’ll take a while, off and on — that needs to be done before the window people can realign and restore my windows, though.

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  64. You are such a cherished friend Janice….praying for Karen and you as you sit by her side ❤
    Hoping the foundation work goes smoothly for you Donna…there is a light at the end of the tunnel….hoping they do not find an actual tunnel under your foundation however 🙂

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  66. We have a ‘report’ on the foundation conditions from several months ago, so that helps — just around the northwest corner where repairs are needed, thankfully

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  67. DJ, can you not tell them that you are unavailable between such and such a time Sunday (including your driving time)? That’s what I’d be inclined to do.

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  68. Friend has gone to a lot of effort to try to line up affordable workers for me so I’m inclined more to accommodate them (they’re driving in from quite a distance). For setting up work schedules, then, yes, I’d prefer to work around Sunday mornings although I’d probably be ok leaving them here to work alone as well.

    This Sunday sounds like an initial meeting to see the space & tile, design etc to see if he wants to take the job

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  69. No, I get that, DJ. It’s just that they have no way of knowing you have a conflict at all, if you don’t at least say “If possible, we need to work around these hours.”

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  70. Actually real estate guy knows and I’m sure he mentioned that to them, which is why he needed to check with me — he said they felt Sunday morning was the most feasible time for them to make the drive out here (it’s an hour’s drive from where they live). Unfortunately, but I understand their end of it as well.

    I felt compelled to answer someone on FB (a Christian of the more liberal persuasion) who posted a column that seemed to call into question God’s sovereignty, saying “God” did not elect Donald Trump, we did … and woe to us, don’t ‘blame’ God, etc.

    Hopefully my comment will be taken in the spirit in which it was meant, putting aside politics but pointing out that God’s sovereignty, while a mystery, is simply all over Scripture, from big events to the tiniest.

    I tend not to engage her as she’s very opinionated in politics and liberal religion, but I felt like I just couldn’t let that one go … God isn’t sovereign? Really?

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  71. It somewhat surprises me the lack of theological depth I see in some posts and columns, things are said that just aren’t biblically thought out at all, it seems.

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