Project 365- #4

Project 365 is hosted by Sara at ...make music from your heart to the Lord. Eph. 5:19. Those who began with her from the beginning are in their 37th week of this meme. The idea is to capture each day in a photo and on Sunday, post your week in pictures. This is only my 4th time participating. If you'd like to read more of these, go to Sara's blog and find Mr. Linky at the bottom of her 365-Week 37 post. He knows where the party is.


If anyone is wondering how the bathroom project is going over here:




These are the tools and stuff we use when we work on the bathroom project, but when we are not working on the bathroom project, the living room looks like this. I prefer non-chaos living, thus the neatly stacked and stowed stuff next to our sofa. It has been here since...um...about August 31st.


If your 22 year old son leaves for the wilderness in February, where he lives, eats and sleeps until May, then returns to your house for three weeks, before venturing to the mountains of New York, where he lives out of a canoe and does camping evangelism, until he gets a Skype interview and hired for a new job in Michigan, while he is still in New York, then drives to your house and begins his new job almost before he can unpack his jeep- you'll know it by the derangement throughout your home.


A bedroom where the boy is trying to make room to sleep:



Filing cabinet drawers piled in the family room:
(I'm betting blur is not equivalent in oooh and aahhh to bokeh)




That are supposed to be here:

(Please notice the computer nook has been painted a lovely shade of finch and has hardwood flooring- recently installed.)

However, there is an extra computer in the nook, with an extra keyboard atop it. This is because someone periodically unplugs my computer and rehooks our monitor to his own. I'm okay with this, as long as it is as it should be when I come down to read blogs. I am not an electrician, after all.


Large spare parts are lying randomly on end tables where cups of tea should rest.



There was a time, in the not so long ago past, when all of this would have sent me climbing up the walls to the ceiling like a mad woman- when I could not function in the midst of such disorder. But I can honestly say that, while I do not like computer printers sitting on my end tables, I am, at this time, able to not sweat the small stuff, focus on the greater and live in the joy of an almighty God, who does all things well. If you'd like to come over for a cup of coffee or tea, you are welcome. We will fellowship with plastering paraphernalia at our feet and rest our teacups on an upside down, plastic clothes basket. And it will not matter one little bit.


Moving on to Saturday's picture. I came around the end of a rack of sale clothes at Sears, while shopping with Fash and about had a heart attack when I first saw this, because I thought somebody else had just had a heart attack. But when I noticed the somebody had no head, my heart returned to it's normal beat and the sweat on my upper lip evaporated. It was merely a mannequin that had tired of standing. Or it was the new fall fashion for what to wear if you are planning to be laying around on the floor in public places. I'm not sure which, but I can say that noone was hurrying over to fix 'er back up.



(By this time Fash had left me for a group of her friends, who were going to a movie- she missed the heart attack mannequin.)

I did find a blouse on the sale rack and I did buy it. I was going to wear it to church on Sunday, but the friendly Sears salesman forgot to unlock the theft prevention doohickey. Outside the Box offered to saw it off for me, but you know if you mess up the procedure ink shoots out and ruins the shirt. It's what keeps me from stealing these $7 blouses.

Anyway. This is not a problem. I'll just run back over to Sears sometime soon and see a sales associate for removal.


Today is Sunday. I.T. was on a fishing trip with my uncles, cousins, dad and brother. Outside the Box couldn't go this time. He was busy preparing to help lead worship and read scripture at the church service, purchasing fish for the loser of a challenge to swallow at his first youth group event and battling a small head cold. Fash and I attended Outside the Box's new church. A Spanish speaking church uses the building for their service at 1pm, so the two church fellowships partnered for one big fall kick-off service today at a park nearby. The service was 1/2 in Spanish and 1/2 in English. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire service and understood fully 1/2. I loved seeing this handsome, young man tuning up his guitar in the band shell. We all ate lunch together picnic style after the service. The whole thing was wonderful.

This week I thought often of change and a little bit about suffering. Our circumstances change. Life moves on. That's just the way it is. Sometimes change is accompanied by pain. It makes your heart hurt to leave the good old days behind. But you take your memories with you and let them soothe your heartaches. Above all, you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the one and only true God of the universe, who created all things good and who has your best interest in mind- who loves you with an unchanging love and cares for you- will not fail or turn His back on you. He has been the same from the beginning of time, because He is the Beginning of time and He will be the same to the end of the ages. Call upon him. Lean upon Him. Trust Him. And. Obey. It frees your mind and allows you to rest- in all circumstances- to rest in Jesus.


Don't tell Fash, but I got these shoes at Sears.