Gifts

It was a gift to happen upon this the other day.

"Do our prayers sometimes go wrong because we insist on trying to talk to God when He wants to talk to us. Joy tells me that once, years ago, she was haunted one morning by a feeling that God wanted something of her, a persistent pressure like the nag of a neglected duty. And till mid-morning she kept on wondering what it was. But the moment she stopped worrying, the answer came through as plain as a spoken voice. It was "I don't want you to do anything. I want to give you something"; and immediately her heart was full of peace and delight. St. Augustine says "God give where He finds empty hands." A man whose hands are full of parcels can't receive a gift. Perhaps these parcels are not always sins or earthly cares, but sometimes our own fussy attempts to worship Him in our way. Incidentally, what most often interrupts my own prayers is not great distractions but tiny ones--things one will have to do or avoid in the course of the next hour."

--C.S. Lewis, "Letters to an American Lady"

My New Favorite Website

I popped on facebook the other day to see if anything exciting was going on outside my walls and noticed a friend had posted this video.



I instantly became a fan, and naturally had to start stalking his website. Extremely super cool that you can choose from different playlists (left side of the screen), click listen, and have his amazing music play away. His music blessed our home most of the day Saturday.

You can even download a few of his songs for free, and print out some of his sheetmusic. I printed out "All of Me." Yah. Don't expect any concerts anytime soon. The five flats were scary, but then I read all these testimonials from 14 year olds that hated their piano lessons until they started playing Jon's music which they can now play to perfection and I figured if THEY can do it... I'll let you know, but give me a few years. While you're waiting, go listen to Jon play it. It's the first song that plays when you bring up the website.

I love one of the comments I read on his website - that they felt like they've heard his music before. Like in heaven.

Wisdom Knockin' At My Door

One of the byproducts of good weather is more door-to-door salespeople. I'm sure my neighbors shake their heads at me because I am not good at getting rid of them. I cringe when I see them, but I feel like I need to be considerate, nod happily, and be amazed at their miracle product, then kindly turn them down.

So this very nice older black gentleman from Houston, Texas came selling Advantage cleaner yesterday (the one you can eat but will give you diarrea. There is another you can eat that won't - a lady selling that came a couple weeks ago, $79/gallon!). He was so full of stories and wisdom I asked him at one point why he isn't in a classroom inspiring kids. He chuckled and said he just shares it freely wherever he goes, things he's learned on the road. I kept wishing I had a pencil and paper to take notes, but among the several he shared with the little girls about being good kids and good family members, here's one that stuck with me:

TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK

Snappy, isn't it? I even tried it out on the kids later, and the boys chuckled and thought it was cool. He also threw out that a team means Together Everyone Accomplishes More, but I already knew that one.

Bison vs. Wolves

A few weeks ago we watched a movie about Yellowstone, and there were a few lines that made me grab the laptop to get them down. They were talking about how things have been going since wolves were reintroduced, how the wolf packs hunt in their own very specific territories, and how one pack especially is very good at taking down bison.

Narrator: "If a bison stands it's ground it has a much better chance of survival."

Cool Cowboy Ranger: "It's actually easier for a wolf to kill an animal running away from it than if it stands its ground. It's very difficult if the prey faces the wolf. Wolves don't like that."

Very powerful imagery. Usually we hear about wolves in sheeps clothing, coming to slyly make away with their prey, and certainly that happens. Much of what deceives is not easy to spot, or enters so secretly that it's a problem before we hardly know it's there. But with so much in the world that IS easy to see, it was nice to watch how the hunt works in regards to bison, which stands its ground. Good reminder to put on the whole armor of God, and stand.