How Great is Our God

What an awesome afternoon!  After winning tickets on our local Christian radio station, I attended a concert by Chris Tomlin to celebrate the release of his new CD.  He has written many wonderful praise and worship songs, including "How Great is Our God."  It was so cool to sit in the lobby of a movie theatre listening to and singing praises to God with other Christians!  Chris sang many of the songs on his new CD and shared some of the backstories - how the songs came to be written.  All the attendees also received a free CD which he autographed after the concert!!  It was a wonderful transition from a relaxing summer to a new school year.

Good Friends

This past April my next-door neighbors got a black lab puppy.  It's been fun watching her grow, and Tosca is thrilled to have a new friend.  The dogs get along so well and love to chase each other around our yards.  In fact, the first thing they do when they go outside is look to see if the other dog is out.  Once, the neighbor dog even came right up to my back slider door as if to say, "Can Tosca come out to play?"  I love watching them run and play together, and it's also great exercise which tires them out!

Pedicure

This afternoon I treated myself to something wonderful - a spa pedicure!  After a week of backpacking in June I decided my feet deserved to be pampered a little.  About an hour total: first soaking in warm, bubbly water followed by lotion and massaging and finally trimming and applying new nail polish, my feet now look and feel brand new!  If you've never had a pedicure, I definitely recommend it!

LOST . . . and Found

Usually I love a good mystery.  The only TV show I watch regularly is LOST, which began as a show about a group of survivors from a plane crash on an island, but has turned into a show about faith, science, and relationships, with lots of questions and mysteries.  I'm even spending time this summer re-watching the past four seasons (24 hours plus each season) to try to solve some of the mysteries and figure out the clues before the new season begins.

I've found, however, during the last few weeks that Lost mysteries can be quite frustrating when they apply to me personally.  They can also show evidence of God's faithfulness - even in the little things.  Either I'm getting older and more forgetful or  ? ? ?  (there has to be another explanation; I just can't think of it yet) because I keep losing things lately.

The first item to disappear was my summer reading chart from our local library.  I've been reading a variety of books this summer in the hopes of snagging one of the $50 reward gift cards and was ready to record the final (16th) book, but the chart paper wasn't in the kitchen drawer where it's been all summer.  I checked and rechecked that drawer and then every other place in the house, but it was nowhere to be found.  Now I know it's not real important in the scheme of life, but since I worked so hard on this all summer I really wanted to turn it in, so I prayed and asked God to show me where it was.  I woke up several times that night and each time asked where the paper was. Early in the morning the thought came to me:  maybe it slipped out the back of the drawer and is in the cupboard beneath.  When I got up to check, there it was, sitting so nicely on top of my pots and pans!  I definitely believe it was God giving me the thought to look under the drawer.

I also lost a library book - again checked over and over all throughout the house.  This one actually went on for over a week.   I guess God was teaching me patience and persistence.  The sad part was that I never even read it; so I really didn't want to have to pay for it.  This afternoon, after praying again, I thought to check under the front seat of my car - there it was. It never even made it into the house!!  (I have 2 days to actually read it before it's due).  I now will have much more sympathy for my students who misplace library books.  :)

But it never ends!  This morning, while working at school, I couldn't find my calendar pocket chart.  Last June I stuffed things all over because my classroom was going to be painted; the tricky part now is remembering where I put everything.  After checking every cupboard and closet, I gave up.  But my mom didn't, and she thought (with a little Godly direction) to check in the bookshelves.  Why I put it there, I'll never know.  

And finally, while rushing out the door this morning to get to an appointment with an optician, I couldn't find my car keys.  As I was praying, I wondered what the Lord was thinking about all my forgetfulness!  I eventually found the keys in the bottom of my purse and was only a few minutes late.

I'm very thankful that God answers prayers for even these little things that are Lost.  Every time I (finally) find something again, it reminds me of God's love and faithfulness.  And - 

If God cares enough to help me find my little lost things, how much more does He care about saving Me:  I once was Lost, but now am Found.

Tosca's 10th Birthday

Ten years ago on August 8, 1998, I got my dog, Tosca, from an animal rescue organization.  She was about a year old then, so she's really 11 now, but I'm counting our years together.  She's gone from a dog who was uneasy around strangers (and terrified of men) to a friendly dog who thinks everyone wants to say hi to her.  She loves to run and be chased by other dogs as well as go for walks and receive her nightly bedtime treat in her Kong toy.

We had a great day together.  We first spent time at the local dog park where she could run and jump off her leash.  After a quick stop to school we went to Lake Macatawa for a swim - well, she doesn't really swim, but she loves running and splashing (and drinking) in the water.  We ended our special birthday time with a trip to our favorite ice cream place, Captain Sundae.  I got the hot fudge sundae; thankfully, Tosca was happy with an empty cone.  I also bought her two new bandanas - she is definitely a "girly" dog and loves her bandanas!  Plus, she'll get an extra special bednight treat tonight.