Today's brain dump is brought to you by the letters K and B.
a. Psalm 91:11 => He has put his angels in charge of you to watch over you wherever you go. I saw this verse acted out this evening in slow motion as a car slammed on brakes to keep from t-boning Cetelia and the girls on a ridiculously busy off-ramp.
a. Psalm 91:11 => He has put his angels in charge of you to watch over you wherever you go. I saw this verse acted out this evening in slow motion as a car slammed on brakes to keep from t-boning Cetelia and the girls on a ridiculously busy off-ramp.
b. Max and I were pulled over in a parking lot waiting on Cetelia to arrive. When I came up the ramp and crossed into the parking lot, no cars were coming. When Cetelia came up the ramp and attempted to cross, at least eight cars were coming at speeds of 40-50 MPH. I watched it all unfold, and felt helpless as the car came inches away from hitting my wife and daughters.
c. Aside from being grateful for God's protection, my next thought was that it would have been my fault for having Cetelia meet me in a parking lot that required crossing a busy street from a ramp (hard to imagine if you can't see it, I know). I thought about how spiritually I can lead my wife into perilous situations if I do not abide in the vine. This physical incident had deep spiritual connotations for me.
d. For the past two mornings I have opened my eyes, and immediately heard Psalm 119:133a, "Order my steps in your word." I'm taking this verse to heart, and reading the bible expecting God to direct our steps regarding a home and what's next. "Can that happen?" you might ask. Sure it can. God leads us by his word. And even what we hear in our heart should mirror what's in God's word. That's how we keep from getting into error by following urges, feelings, and leanings that may not be God.
e. We put all our belongings into a 10x30 storage today, including the 5x9 trailer we bought before leaving Greensboro. The movers were two good guys, and were super helpful. Darryl, one of the movers, backed our trailer into the storage area. It took a while, and we lost a little paint on the bumper, but he got it done. Considering he was getting paid to move my stuff, and not drive my car, I'm grateful.
f. It was hot as a mug today. I felt badly that the guys were moving my stuff. Then I remembered that I had already paid them, so I got over it. ;-)
g. Our restaurant exploration continued today with a trip to In-N-Out. It was okay.
h. My GPS took me along an odd path on the way home today, and I'm glad it did. We went through Arlington, so I got to see the Cowboys' little football stadium from the highway.
i. The friends we're staying with have a dog that probably weighs more than me. He licked me on my mouth this morning during my God time. It was clearly the devil trying to interrupt my time with God. ;-) (note: that same dog is barking a deep, throaty bark right now ... at 1:22 AM). Somehow, my entire clan is sleeping through the noise.
j. We've decided to slow down the house hunt. Cetelia and I are planners by nature, and we pressured ourselves into being in a house by today (Enter Proverbs 16:1 & 9 => People may make plans in their minds, but only the Lord can make them come true. People may make plans in their minds, but the Lord decides what they will do.).
k. We realized by Wednesday we wouldn't be in a house by Friday, and it caused the stress & dis-ease I dumped about a few days ago. We have peace about slowing down, and will keep looking for houses next week.
l. We turned in an application on a house, but the owner chose to process another person's application instead of ours. So be it. We'll continue to follow God. He didn't lead us 20 hours away from home to have us homeless in Dallas (the long-awaited sequel to Sleepless in Seattle).
m. We finally turned in the Behometh -- the 16-foot truck I drove that pulled an 18-ft car trailer. That dude was HUGE! It was so big, I was nervous to drive it on these busy highways down here. Changing lanes on I-635, 12 Loop, 114, I-30, and 75 will either make you cling tightly to Jesus or cuss like you've never met him. (In case you're wondering, I chose the former).
n. When I turned the truck in, I went in through the unlocked, open door, which had the lit-up "Open" sign above the unlocked, open door. I asked the guy behind the counter if someone could help me get my car off the trailer, and mentioned that I was told that someone would help me when I called earlier. This wise acre, as the old folks would say, said, "Yeah, but that was if you didn't come in 10 minutes after we closed." To be continued in letter O.
o. I just about lost it. I had been in the hot sun for 2 hours with movers, driven that doggone, too-big, gas-drunk, smoke-smelling, comfort-missing truck more than an hour and a half to his store on these insane highways, gassed it up to full, AND turned it in a day early. And that was his remark? I said, "Well, the door is unlocked." I wanted to say more, especially since I was in a new town and no one knew me. But, I walked out instead (all the angels in heaven cheered ... I heard them!).
p. Cetelia calmed me down, and out of nowhere, I said, "Show Christ." Fortunately, the dude who came out to help me was much nicer than the guy behind the counter (although that wasn't hard), and helped me push back thoughts of posting a nasty review or telling the guy off. When I sent back in, I just avoided the guy. I was in the mood for a good spat, but it would not have helped at all.
q. Kuria Joy and Caitlin just woke up withing 90 seconds of one another. They both popped straight up. Kuria Joy looked around, rubbed her eyes, and laid down. Caitlin spoke some gibberish. Unfortunately, she stopped before I could get a video. Too bad -- it would have been great theater for you DRs (Dump Readers out there.
r. We went walking tonight, and one of our friends' neighbors stopped us and chatted for nearly 30 minutes. She works at TCU, and her husband is a church consultant and minister of music.
s. She and her husband moved to Fort Worth 30 years ago by faith on a word from God. Hmmmm ... that sounds really familiar. She was so encouraging. I really believe God had us walking, and her coming home late from work at the perfect time so we could meet.
t. We're going to Waco tomorrow (enter David Koresh comments here) to visit a dear friend who works at Baylor.
u. It's been a long five days that feels like 5 months, but in the words of Hezekiah Walker, "We Made It."
v. While I keep trying to get out of my friends' house (for fear of overstaying my welcome), it's becoming abundantly clear that I'm stunting a blessing of peace, rest, and preparation that God is giving our family by being here. I need to be humble, and accept their generosity as a gift from God.