Locked In

This is a post just for fun - at the expense of two of my children and my husband (Don't worry...all three know it's being written!).  Some things are just so funny and odd, that you just have to laugh about them, even if they're not funny at the moment.

Saturday evening I made a cherry cobbler.  As soon as it was out of the oven, one of the kids mentioned that we might need more ice cream.  I asked our daughter and oldest son to go to the local convenience store (which thankfully sells our favorite - Blue Bell ice cream!) to get some.  Another son was helping his grandmother with a bulletin board at the church building, so it was just our youngest son, my husband and I at home. 

Minutes passed by and the two oldest still hadn't come back from the store.  I thought that it was taking a while, but just decided they were going slow and being careful - a good thing for a new driver.  But, then the minutes became several minutes - 30 minutes.  My husband tried calling our daughter's cell, but she didn't answer.  He wasn't very happy that she didn't have it with her.  I figured they didn't think about it since they were just going to be gone for a few minutes.  (We live in a town of less than 900 people....it doesn't take long to go anywhere!) Neither of us were very happy that they had been gone so long.

Since it was taking so long, I decided to go ahead and get in the shower thinking that they would be out when I was done.  As I showered, my mind shifted from being kind of aggravated about them taking so long to worry about WHY they might still be gone.  All sorts of terrible thoughts ran through my mind:  maybe the convenience store was robbed and they were in there hoping we'd come looking for them.....maybe they broke down or had a flat or even a wreck....maybe someone kidnapped them.......  As soon as I got out of the shower I told my husband I was going to look for them.  It had been 45 minutes then!

As I went out the door to get in the vehicle, I looked and saw the car my daughter typically drives.  I figured they had taken my husband's pickup, but it was there, too.  My heart sank, but just then I looked in the pickup.  There were our oldest two children sitting in the pickup with their mouths visibly yelling something and their arms flinging around.  I couldn't figure out what was wrong, but walked closer to the pickup.  They were locked inside the pickup and had been for 45 minutes!

I know it sounds strange and it is......  In fact, it's kind of straight from a "you might be a redneck if...." joke.

Apparently my husband's pickup doors get stuck and the windows have to be rolled down to open the doors.  I had heard that the passenger door was messed up, but had no idea both doors were bad.  But, the problem was that when the kids got into the pickup, not thinking about getting the key off the key holder. (She probably had her car key in her purse, but doesn't keep a pickup key.)  They couldn't roll down the windows and open the doors because they didn't have the key.  So, again understand....they were locked inside the pickup for 45 minutes. They had honked and honked and flashed their lights on and off, but we couldn't see it or hear it at all.  Surprisingly, they were pretty calm....but they were very relieved that I had come out looking for them!

Let's just say that mama wasn't happy right then that her "babies" (even if they are 16 and 14 they're still my babies!) had been locked in a vehicle for 45 minutes.  And let's just say that daddy didn't see it the same way.  No.  He couldn't understand why the daughter didn't have her cell phone with her.  He was thinking logically.  Mama was thinking with her heart!  Mama wasn't happy.  At all.....

Well, moments went by and all mama could think of was "if this was a goat's pen door or a pig's pen door or a calf's pen door these doors would have been fixed."  But, mama didn't say what she was thinking.  In fact, she didn't have to say it.  Daddy figured out soon that the doors were really desperately needing to be fixed without mama having to say that.

Daddy apologized about not getting the doors taken care of and the pickup has an appointment (tomorrow, I think) to be fixed.  Yeah, Daddy!  Mama did share her thoughts about the doors on the pens for the animals a few days later when the story was funny.....but not in anger at the moment of the "lock in".  Aren't you proud of me??? We all laughed about it....a few days later!

Seriously, I didn't think I would blog about this story.  I was sooooo upset that night.  Thankfully the weather wasn't too hot or too cold.  Thankfully the two teens had discussed that if they had to wait too much longer they could always break a window to get out.  They had looked around for tools in the vehicle that would have worked.  Thankfully they didn't have to do that and thankfully nothing more serious happened.  And, thankfully, after I rescued them, the convenience store was still open and they had time to go get the Blue Bell! :)

On this Gratituesday, I am grateful that this story had a happy ending and one that we could laugh at a few days later!  Join us for Gratetuesday on Heavenly Homemakers.

The Chronicles of Biscuit - Gettin' Into Trouble

The Chronicles of Biscuit - Stories about our youngest son whose nickname is Biscuit.

This morning Biscuit was getting his clothes ready for Sunday Bible class and worship.  I ironed his shirt and he put it on.  He put his pants on. Then, I told him to go find his socks, shoes and belt.  He replied, "This is the part where I always get into trouble," and headed the other direction.

My husband and I laughed about Biscuits statement.  It was funny how he said it, but it is also funny because it's so true.  We were also pleased because Biscuit admitted there was a problem.  The first step of dealing with a problem is admitting that there really is one, right?  Biscuit realized the problem he had - and consistantly has - with Sunday socks, shoes, and belt. 

I thought about Biscuit's response and how he knew that there were three things that would "get him into trouble", meaning they would cause him trouble for not finding them.  What are some things in my life that I know will get me into trouble?  What are some things in your life that you know will get you into trouble?  Bring it a little more personal.....what is it that tempts me to sin?  What tempts you to sin?

Maybe gossip is my problem.  Maybe there is a certain person - that when I am around he/she - I will be tempted to gossip.  Is it safe to assume that this person is someone that may "get me into trouble"?  Perhaps I'm an alcoholic and I've gone through the steps to stay sober and have stayed that way for a while.  Now, what if a group of friends invite me to go with them to a club or a party and there will be drinking?  Should I go?  Is there a possibility that this is where I'm going to "get into trouble"?  I would think it would be a huge possibility, wouldn't you?

Satan will use whatever he can to tempt us.  He will use things.  He will use pleasure.  He will use people.  He will use power and prestige.  He will tempt us for the rest of our lives.  But, Satan cannot make us sin.  God doesn't allow him that power, just as God doesn't make us follow Him.  But, God gives us a way out and a way out - a way to not sin when we are tempted. 

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,  he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

1 Corinthians 10:13

Biscuit faced his challenge this morning and found his "trouble".  He found his socks, shoes, and belt. He had some help finding the socks from one of his brothers. 

When facing our own "troublesome" situations, we can accept the challenge, too.  We can accept it by knowing that we have a helper.  God is there and ready to help us resist and escape.  We don't have to face "trouble" alone!

Treasures from the Past

I'm very sentimental when it comes to certain things, such as pictures, letters, or things that involve my family now or those who have passed on.  Yesterday, as I was looking around the house for some missing personal documents, I came across an envelope that said, "Keep - Wedding Ceremony".  I recognized it to be my maternal Grandpa's writing. 

Grandpa had done part of our wedding ceremony in 1988, and I could tell that it was his typed-out portion of the wedding vows. There was also a copy of the very detailed wedding "schedule" I had made (Yes, at 19 years old I was my own wedding planner before I ever knew there were wedding planners.) I vaguely remembered finding the wedding envelope in a drawer in Grandpa's house after he passed away.

As I dug deeper into the envelope, I found some other papers that I had no idea were there.  There was a small calendar from the grocery store he and Grandma owned for 30 plus years in Hollis, OK.  It was from the year, 1969, and had never been used.  That was the year I was born!  Apparently he and Grandma had kept it for me, but I never knew about it!

I opened up another letter, written in cursive.  It was actually two letters and I guess they had stapled them together and kept them for me, yet never said anything about them. These letters were written by me, and I'm assuming I was in 3rd or 4th grade, just since it was in cursive and because of some of the things I said.

My own children have gotten a kick out of hearing what I wrote in the letters to my grandparents.  They think it's pretty neat for me to have found something from my childhood.  I do, too!  I'm so glad they kept that letter and that I'm reading it all these years later.

Letters from the past are certainly a treasure, aren't they? They connect us to people.  They help us remember things from the past.  They contain memories about special people and special events.

Actually, we all have a letter from the past that is a treasure.  Do you know what it is?  The Bible!  It's from the past, but it's God's letter to us for the present and for the future.  The problem is that sometimes we're not quite as excited about the Bible as we are a letter from a friend or loved one.  Sometimes we don't have the same feeling about digging into God's Word as we do digging into other things.

Finding that letter that I wrote years ago is special to me and I'll treasure it always....but, may I treasure the Bible - God's letter to me even more so.

Chips and Boulders

I'm sure you've heard the saying about someone having a "chip on their shoulder".  By definition, it describes people "who nurse a grudge or grievance which readily provokes fury or disputation". 

In reality we would think of someone who is feeling sorry for themselves or someone who seems to be mad at the world.  These kinds of people aren't fun to be around.  Instead of lighting up a room when the enter it, they dim it.  Instead of being a "breath of fresh air" to the lives of others, they suck all of the air out. 

Eventually, if a chip is left too long, it becomes a boulder on the shoulder.  The weight of the boulder gets heavier and heavier the longer it stays.  While it was a chip and was smaller, it would have been easier to manage or knock off.  So, what can you and I do if we first recognize that we have a chip on our shoulder?

  We can quit looking at our shoulder.  We can quit looking at the chip.  We can quit looking inward.

Instead, we have to look upward.  We have to look to God. We must pray to God. 

He'll help us knock that chip off the shoulder!

We can C.H.I.P: 

Can Hurry Into Prayer

I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;

turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.

Psalm 17:6

Hooked on Words

Recently my children would laugh any time someone used the word focus.  I eventually had to put a stop to the laughter when I began seeing them look at each other and almost break out in hysteria when the preacher would happen to use the word - which sometimes the preacher was their daddy!

I asked about why the word "focus" was so funny.  They explained that one of their teachers, Mr. G.,  would use that word a lot and always had hand motions to go with the word.  His hands would be on either side of his head and as he said the word, he would thrust his hands forward, thus causing laughter (hopefully contained laughter) from his students. I kind of get the humor in that, don't you??

This whole scenario made me think of my own school days.  In 6th grade, my three best friends and I sat in four seats on the two back rows of math class.  The teacher called us the "four corner girls".  He used the word "simply" all of the time.  In fact, we began to keep track of how many times a day he used it.  My mom happened to teach on the other end of the school - the grade school end (it was a very small school - K through 12th grade in one building - end to end.).  I had told my mom about how we were keeping track of Mr. M and apparently she mentioned to him - all in fun, I'm sure.  One day, as he lectured and used his favorite word, 'simply', Mr. M asked us, "Girls, did you get that one?"  We we shocked and embarrassed!  He knew we were counting his uses of  'simply'!  It seems like after that we didn't count as much any more.  Maybe he didn't use it as much any more, either.

Do you ever get hooked on words?  Certain words?  I think we probably all do at times.  My children point out to me if I over-use a word.  I think the last one they mentioned was "really"!  Really?  Do I really use 'really' that often??? :)

Jesus seemed to be hooked on a certain word in the Bible.  I think it seems like Jesus was hooked on the word 'love', don't you?  But, I don't think Jesus would be laughed at for using the word 'love' so much.  I don't think he would be mocked by demonstrating how to love.  I don't think a tally would have been kept on how many times he used the word.  No, I think his abundant usage of the word, 'love', shows us just how important it is in our Christian walk.  Jesus himself is love.  He gave his whole life of service and then even his life in death - because of love.

What would the world be like if every one of us were hooked on the word 'love'?  Let's give it a try.  Let's, you and I:

SIMPLY (Mr. M's word)......FOCUS (Mr. G's word).........

ON LOVE (Jesus' word).

Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' – Matthew 22:37-39