THANKFUL TUESDAY

 

Stories transform. Stories help people

believe that change is possible. ... The

setbacks. The failures. The disappoint-

ments. The moments you wanted to 

quit. Those become the bridges that 

help someone else cross over.

(Les Brown)

Today (actually yesterday, since I am writing this in the wee hours of the morning) was a cross over day. for me. A day with so many unexpected little God winks in it, my heart feels full to overflowing. Little things like following the Lord's prompt to text a  friend I had gone to school with and who I hadn't been in touch with for a long time. I did not realize she was going through a very difficult time, but He did, and He gave me just the right words to send her. Her response about how wonderful it is when an old old friend reappears in one's life when they need it the most and  how I had done that for her, made my heart skip with happy beats.

Today it is my own story that has helped me believe that change is possible. I was reading some of the posts I shared on my other blog--At the Foot of the Cross--when I was feeling discouraged and ready to give up.  But mixed in with the frustration there were many blessings as well (some of which I've shared on this blog too).

It reminded me of  another quote from one of my devotionals about how man's disappoint-ments are often God's appointments, and the things we think are  tragic are often the doors through which He chooses to exhibit His love and grace. How true!

Today was a day that had me thanking God for all my many blessings and singing this song which has now become embedded in my mind. 

 

IS BLOGGER DEAD?

 Is Blogger dead? 

I had been using my Blogger Reading List to get notified when people I follow write a new post, but then I noticed that it had started listing posts out of sequence. Like posts that were written days ago and posts written only hours ago were all mixed up, so there were posts I missed because I thought I was all caught up and didn't realize there were more recent posts further down the list.

And now, as of last night, I'm not seeing anything new--not even when I look up a specific blogger. The only way I can see new posts is if I look up a  specific person, scroll down to the end of the old post that comes up, click on Newer Post at the bottom of it, and then keep repeating that until there are no more newer post links. to click on 

How about you? What do you all use to see what your blog friends are posting?

I honestly don't have it in me to switch to a different blogging venue at this point, and am seriously considering whether or not it's worth continuing to blog if it's going to be such a hassle, and AI and algorithms are going to decide who if anyone gets to see the post. That's how it is on Facebook and Instagram, but I didn't think Blogger did that as well. 

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

BOUNDARY

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--BOUNDARY

Five minutes to free-write about it

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This summer was a mix of unexpected frustrations and unexpected blessings,.

The word prompt, boundary, got me to thinking of the times I felt frustrated because something I expected didn't turn out the way I expected it to, or afraid because I had to face something scary that caught me by surprise (like my unexpected trip to the hospital in May). It also had me thinking of the times when things happened I did not expect--often as a result of what did not look so good at first--that were like huge God winks reminding me that He is the God of the impossible, and there are no boundaries around what He can do.

It was a time of learning to trust Him more  and to let go and rest in Him instead of trying to be in control. A time of learning to look up instead of around, and not try to put Him in a box. A time to accept that His ways and His timing are always best.  

And then, before I even had a chance to write down my thoughts, came the test. The test to see how real my trust really was when I was pressed. Would I cave under the pressure, or would I have peace knowing that my God, who has no boundaries, is truly in total control. 

The test was in the form of a phone call about a very frustrating issue that I had been unable to resolve, and I failed it miserably. Instead of turning it over to God, I tried once again for the umpteenth time, to try and take care of it myself, only to get so frustrated I had a huge meltdown on the phone. 

I am so grateful that God did not treat me the way I deserved. I am so grateful for His mercy and grace, that He is so longsuffering, and that instead of giving up on me  He extended unmerited favor by using a very kind, caring, empathetic lady to come up with an alternate plan that although it didn't right the wrong, circumvented it, and wound up being an even better plan than the original one I was trying  so hard to enforce.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

 

WHAT HAVE WE HERE?

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--HERE

Five minutes to free-write about it

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What have we here? Here we have what I thought was a giant weed that had crowded out all the rest of the wildflowers in one of the pots on my balcony.

I was wrong. If you look close, you should be able to see two large buds near the top. 

And what have we here?  Here we have what looks like a tomato plant, but I thought was a dud, because although it continued to grow, it had no tomato smell such as the leaves of growing tomato plants usually have, nor did it have any fuzz on its stalks, nor did it show any evidence that it would be producing any kind of fruit. 

I was about to dump it, but when I went out to water the plants this morning I was surprised to notice that not only was it looking quite a bit taller, but there was some fuzz on several of the stalks, and I could actually detect a faint tomato aroma.

Looks like I was wrong again, which led to a rush of thoughts such as the ones listed here:

* Don't be deceived by outward appearances.

* First appearances can be deceiving.

* Don't be too quick to discount someone or something.

* All is not always what it seems.

* Don't jump to conclusions.

So for now, the tomato plant has been spared from getting dumped. 

I'm guessing it's probably way too late in the season for it to grow any tomatoes, but then again, who can know for sure? Stranger things than that have happened out on my balcony before.

Stay tuned!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

 

HALF

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--HALF

Five minutes to free-write about it

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This week's prompt showed up just as I was pondering a bizarre (at least to me) display I had seen at Costco yesterday.  Proportionately, to the eye, it does not look half and half because the Christmas trees are so tiny, but that's what it is. A combination of two very mismatched holidays--Halloween and Christmas.

On the other hand, this container of Half-&-Half may seem like a more balanced combination, but the result is a mixture of milk and cream that lacks the distinct identity of either one.

These musings got me completely off track and instead of focusing on the word prompt, half, I found myself considering an analogy between Half-&-Half, and the church of Laodicea who Jesus rebuked in the book of Revelation for being lukewarm and indifferent.

I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth (Revelation 3:15-16, ESV).

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

 

DISRUPT

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--DISRUPT

Five minutes to free-write about it

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When I look at the word "disrupt," it is more than just a word prompt for this week's challenge. Add an "ions" to the end of it, and it becomes the perfect word to define what my last several days have been like--full of disruptions.

Pressing issues that require immediate attention keep popping up at the most inopportune times, disrupting my schedule and interfering with my ability to get my work done timely, or accomplish other priority items on my to-do list. 

This morning, for instance, I was shocked by an email (a legitimate one) from Amazon notifying me that my account had been blocked because the bank that issued the credit card I had used to purchase my new computer with in July refused to honor the charge. They flagged it as a fraudulent transaction. 

The e-mail went on to inform me that if this was not the case and it had been an authorized purchase, I needed to contact customer service and make a payment using a different card.

Contacting Amazon customer service is always a time-consuming nightmare that also disrupts my day. Trying to get past the robot that answers the phone and refuses to connect me to a live person has to be one of the most frustrating challenges ever. Not until I am shaking and screaming, "live repesentative right now," do I finally  get to speak to one.

The one I spoke to today was not much help and kept telling me I needed to speak to the bank--not Amazon--even though the e-mail clearly said if I had a problem I needed to contact Amazon. He also asked for information I was unable to provide, because my account really was blocked and I could not even access it to look something up. 

Anyway, after I managed to calm down, I did call the bank and explain the situation. Details of why I had used that particular card to make the purchase and why the bank thought someone had used it illegitimately. are too lengthy for a five-minute post, but at the end of the conversation, I was told I needed to go back to Amazon customer service and have them process the purchase again.

Now you may be wondering about the picture I posted, and how this could really have been a good day to have a good day. Well, as it turned out, it was. I asked the bank if they had a customer service number that would enable me to bypass the robot, and they did, and now I will never ever have to deal with that annoying robot when calling Amazon customer service again.