You know how when you're desperate you pray and read the Bible like crazy?

Yeah.
So that's what I've been doing.

The Message. I've been reading The Message version. I rather like it.

Like, take this for instance:
(Isaiah 42 something)
"I am GOD. That's my name. I don't franchise my glory."
I love that.... hehe, "I don't franchise my glory..." beautiful.

And this! This! This hit me square between the eyes.
I wear black tops all the time. Most all of the time. I have about 7 of them. Tank tops, sleeveless tops, short sleeve tops. And I wear brown or black pants. Cords lately. (Other than my late night Walmart shopping trip the day before I left for Puerto Vallarta for pajamas, I haven't bought one single article of clothing since Saturday Nov 3. How come I'm so certain of the date? I was paying for 2 black tops and a pair of brown cords when my sister called me about my mom. Nothing in my life has been the same since.)

Anyway, so here I sit in my black and brown garb reading my Message Bible and guess what Ecclesiastes 9 says:
"Seize life! Eat bread with gusto.
God takes pleasure in your pleasure!
Drew festively every morning.
Don't skimp on colours or scarves.
Each day is God's gift."

And again, in Proverbs 31:
"She makes her own clothing;
and dresses in colourful linens and silks...
She doesn't worry about her family when it snows."

HONEST! It said that. "She doesn't worry about her family when it snows."
She might have if she lived in BC this winter.
Come to think of it, is there even snow in Proverbs-31-land?


Anyway. If ever I get a moment to go shopping again, I think I'll consider some brightly colored articles of clothing.

Something else I read last night that was profound. In Proverbs 30...
"Four things I'll never understand:
how an eagle flies so high in the sky
how a snake glides over a rock
how a ship navigates the ocean
why adolescents act the way they do.

Amen, brother. Gimme 5...
Why DO they act that way?

Lastly, I got some hope last night from these two passages:
Jeremiah 33 - at the beginning:
"This is God's message, the God who made the earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as GOD... this is His message; Call to me and I will answer you. I'll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own."

OK, so His message starts with "CALL TO ME"... Not talk to me. Not whisper to me. Not ask me gently. It's CALL. Like when I call my kids? And tell them it's suppertime? Call? Like in a loud voice? Expecting a response? OK. I can do that.

and then it goes on to "AND I WILL ANSWER YOU"... God will do the answering. He Himself. "I" will answer you. So when that answer comes, it'll be from Him. And He "WILL" answer. The verse says so. Call to me and I will answer you. Very clear.

the nice part is, "I WILL TELL YOU MARVELOUS AND WONDROUS THINGS ...". You know, I can't imagine what marvelous or wondrous things He might tell me. What is marvelous? What is wondrous? Especially in this month's situation... I don't know. I just don't know.

which is, I guess, the whole point: the marvelous and wondrous things He will tell me are 'THINGS THAT YOU COULD NEVER FIGURE OUT ON YOUR OWN". So, if I DID figure out something on my own, it wouldn't be the 'things' that God wants to tell me.

So, here goes:

Hey! God? I need You. I must hear from You. Could you give me a word of hope? Can You tell me something marvelous and wonderful? The Bible says You WILL answer; but it doesn't say when. Will I hear from You today? This week? Sometime?
Can I ask You to tell me something TODAY? Something I wouldn't be able to think up on my own? Something wonderful? Will it fill me with joy? Or cover me with peace? Doesn't matter which... I just want to hear from You. Thanks. Amen.


And then this, in Lamentations 3, near the end:

GOD proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,
to the woman who diligently seeks.
It's a good thing to quietly hope,
quietly hope for help from GOD.
It's a good thing when you're young
to stick it out through the hard times.

When life is heavy and hard to take,
go off by yourself. Enter the silence.
Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions:
Wait for hope to appear.
Don't run from trouble. Take it full face.
The "worst" is never the worst.

Why? Because the Master won't ever
walk out and fail to return.

Three things I'm thankful for:
1. The Bible
2. Arrow. For giving me the freedom to care for my folks and work around their needs.
3. God's promises. He knows what dad and mom need. And He has a plan... one that I could never figure out on my own.

Thanks, friends and family for your prayers, food, phone calls and expressions of love. Are we the neediest family on the planet these days? I think so.

Shalom,