In Rejoicing

Hi friends. Happy Saturday to ya.

The August air is warm and lovely here in Northeast Ohio.

And since it has been a "minute" since I've sat with you all in a Panera this called for extra foam and raw sugar on top.

I find my thoughts wandering when I hear the older woman nearby say, "That's exactly why I fell for John..." and then her voice trails off and I for one want to know just why she did fall for John and how long they have been carving a life together.

She has no idea near the window enjoying lunch with a friend that she has just made an indelible mark on the blog.

These Summer days I spend some mornings trying to find something new and wonderful to stick into my oldest daughter's lunch bag.

It's like a game of " who can find the thing we forgot was hanging out in the fridge that will remind you that being an EMT is a wonderful thing?"

There's a snickers bar I was hiding from the kids that I sneak in there because patients getting up off the gurney and RUNNING down the road in a hospital gown can leave you needing a bit of a "pick-me-up."

Goodness just begets goodness, does it not?

You see someone just faithfully doing their thing and you gotta find a snickers to thank them for being, well, them.

For those reading who at this point in the game are shaking their heads because goodness doesn't need rewarded, mumbling under their breath over their phone as they read this that, "Goodness is it's own reward," I say "I'm sorry."

I'm enough-years-old to know that if you responded this way after hearing of goodness given it's because you haven't had someone sneak you a snickers in way too long.

Please stop by ( preferably after nine) and I will stick one in your lunch.

No questions asked. Just ring the bell and hold out your lunch box.

We can make it a new holiday of sorts.

We can replace "Trick or Treat" with "Bless and Eat," or something or other.

Frankly some days I'm aghast at the power we hold as women to bless other women.

Have you seen the guy on Instagram that dresses super sharp and just walks the city streets and compliments people passing by?

I LOVE THIS.

THIS is one of 80 jobs I want to have when the kids all leave the nest.

The reactions he gets from just one genuine, perfectly phrased kind word make me smile all the way down to my toes.

I've tried to make more of a habit of giving compliments to strangers out and about as I notice a woman with the fluffiest, whitest hair or the cutest shoes on another shopper.

How wonderful it is to share in someone's happiness for a moment.

Recently I was gifted such a lavish gift as an anniversary present from my sweetheart.

Have you had something like this? Embarrassingly lavish?

So lavish that you feel excited and completely unworthy at the same time?

Where you want to show everyone and absolutely no one at the same time?

One year we were at a Pastor's conference and there was a drawing for a ginormous office chair.

The kids and I got a "wild hair" to pray for this chair to land in my husband's lap.

Or for his lap to land in it.... well, you get the idea!

It was like we all needed to see the Lord bless him in a tangible way.

When I say the anticipation in that pew was palpable that's an understatement.

We were praying and hanging on the back of the seats next to us when the host pastor began pulling names out of an old offering basket.

When they called my husband's name the most wonderful electric blessing filled us all the way to our toes- the six littles and I.

We behaved in such a way that would make one think we had just won an all-inclusive Disney vacation or a new home.

To our needy hearts- needy to see the Lord bless not us but one we just loved to pieces it broke our own hearts wide-open to the possibilities of a God who delights to pour out lavishness.

Because we were all invested in the praying we were united in enjoying the blessing of such an event.

Somehow it felt "holy" to us. Yes, an armchair on wheels.

Not five minutes after winning such a gift my husband tried to give it away - in true husband-like fashion - but we were not having any of it.

We pushed and pulled and willed that chair to fit in our vehicle and if I remember right barely had enough gas money to attend the out-of-town meeting, but we had a chair by golly and that was enough for us.

We were so excited we would've ridden the chair home if the need arose.

Another time my husband and I were at a bible conference and there was a calfskin bible that caught his eye.

I was so tickled to purchase it before the next session and leave it for him with a little sticky note on top that said, "God lavishly loves you."

The cost was just a number on the debit card receipt to me.

I was giddy with excitement to just see his eyes find it and realize how loved he was by me and truly saw that as a way for me to deliver a little love for the Lord.

Fast forward to our anniversary trip when my husband wanted to get me a new band, or something to mark our 25 trips around the sun together.

I thought we could just add something to our wedding set but my engagement ring is so unique that it would need a make-over and I just was too sentimental for that.

It seemed like the door closed to that idea and that was okay by me.

And then what could only be attributed to the Lord's leading, my daughter and I took an afternoon drive to a local jewelry store.

And not three steps in (no exaggeration here) my eyes fell on an antique wedding set that had to be from around the 1940's.

It was special for many reasons but one being that this was the exact kind of setting I always wanted that wasn't available in the late 90's unless someone in your family left it to you to enjoy.

You probably guessed by now that it fit like it was made for my slightly chubby left hand.

I really couldn't hide the utter surprise and joy that came over me.

I'm not one for the latest and greatest and biggest and shiniest.

My daughter saw exactly what was going on and her share in my excitement was just what my spirit needed.

We left the shop and I called my husband who was just getting back into town.

I hardly knew what to say.

The next day found us visiting the shop so my husband could get his eyes on this treasure.

We had saved some anniversary money but it would not cover the expense of the rings.

I tried it on once more and left with a receipt saying we would soon pay-off the balance. I was now the new owner of this beautiful piece of history.

Soon I would add our "history" of living and loving to that of another dear couple's.

I was amazed and humbled at the idea. Truly.

We went home and a few hours later my husband came in from the church and found me elbow-deep in dishes.

He pulled out a black box and got down on his knee right there in the kitchen in front of the kids and asked me to spend 25 more years with him.

And as the box opened before my soapy hands there were the rings we just saw a few hours earlier!

Of course I couldn't hardly contain the entire sight for a minute!

I'm a pretty hard one to catch off-guard and this took the cake!

When I asked my dear husband why he went back and got the rings he said he didn't want to leave them there, "They just needed to stay on your finger."

I hope beyond hope that each of you readers has your own story of such lavishness that simultaneously brings a lump in your throat while taking your breath away for a moment.

Immediately I wanted to share my unexpected joy with someone.

How do you begin a conversation about such a lavish gift? An undeserved heap of blessing?

I didn't quite know how to share my excitement until I found a dear friend at church.

I grabbed her arm and had to begin with all the reasons this was wild and crazy and she, being the dear that she is was ready for them all.

Her rejoicing over each detail made my heart just swell with the goodness of God who loves and loves and loves some more.

I just couldn't thank her enough for rejoicing WITH me.

For coming alongside and grasping each moment of God's goodness WITH me.

So often it's easy to find a friend to grieve a loss or disappointment with us.

One that will sit in the sadness and soak up the difficulty before us.

But finding a friend who takes your own joy as her own is a bit more difficult.

One who sees a blessing and multiplies it right before your eyes.

I want to be that kind of friend so badly.

A friend for difficulty but also for great rejoicing as well.