there are so many titles i could write for this post...............

NOTE: this is a very long post, but please read to the very end. you will not be disappointed!! sorry, there are no pictures either :o(


1. my life is a circus & God is the Ringmaster
2. i'm changing my name..............to Job
3. for a good laugh, call me
4. what i thought was going to be a 30 min. trip, took 4 hours
5. be careful what you ask for
6. anyone want a dog?
7. what's next, God, boils?
8. i need to write a book
9. 99 cent slush ends up costing $125
10. i had a whole bunch more, but since my sick mind (sick with the flu) is getting so old, i've forgotten them!!!


what happened to me today is so bizarre that i couldn't possibly have made it up!!!

y'all know that i've been on a real prayer mission lately & have also been asking God to mold me & make me more like Christ; that i've wanted Him to have total control. He's really been working on me & doing some good things. even this week that i've had the flu, i've prayed & trusted Him. (in all honesty, i did ask Him a couple times to take me HOME, but i think He's gonna leave me here awhile longer!!)

yesterday morning i was feeling good but by the afternoon things had gone bad. last night was not a good night. this morning i was feeling better & decided to just rest. i've spent the whole week in bed in my dark bedroom or on the couch with the blinds closed. i needed sunshine. and i was craving a lime slush. so i thought i'd go to sonic, stop at kroger's & pick up a couple things, come home & sit in the backyard in the bluebonnets & read & pray. so at about 2:00 i took a shower, put on a little makeup (didn't want to scare the poor people at sonic or krogers!) & just a shirt & jeans. i didn't even dry my hair! (note to self: always dry your hair & roll it. your hair DOES NOT look good not rolled!!! even though your hair won't stay curled for long, it's worth it!!) now you can tell i'm still not feeling real good, because this whole getting ready process took about an hour & a 1/2. i can do it on a well work day in about 45 minutes!!!

so i go to sonic, shut off the car so i won't waste gas, & order. now the last song i heard on the radio was Mandisa's "Stronger" which played at 3:39, right before i ordered. this song has become a favorite of mine the past few weeks & i know this is what God's doing to me, so i had this song playing in my head while i was waiting. here are the lyrics to the song. this really was my "last night"..............

Stronger
Artist: Mandisa
Album: What If We Were Real?


Hey, heard you were up all night
Thinking about how your world ain't right
And you wonder if things will ever get better
And you're asking why is it always raining on you
When all you want is just a little good news
Instead of standing there stuck out in the weather

Oh, don't hang your head
It's gonna end
God's right there
Even if it's hard to see Him
I promise you that He still cares

When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
And things can only get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger
Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger
Believe me, this is gonna make you ...

Try and do the best you can
Hold on and let Him hold your hand
And go on and fall into the arms of Jesus
Oh, lift your head it's gonna end
God's right there
Even when you just can't feel Him
I promise you that He still cares

'Cause if He started this work in your life
He will be faithful to complete it
If only you believe it
He knows how much it hurts
And I'm sure that He's gonna help you get through this

When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
In time it's gonna get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger



so the carhop comes, i pay her, i turn the key in the ignition........click, click, click. try again......click, click, click. try again...................click. try again............. .

i said, outloud, "oh crap!" "no, wait God, i mean, 'consider it all JOY my brethren when you encounter various trials, knowing that the TESTING of your FAITH produces ENDURANCE. and let ENDURANCE have its perfect result that you may be perfect & complete lacking in NOTHING. but if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all generously & without reproach and it WILL be given to him. but he must ask in FAITH without ANY doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven & tossed by the wind. for that man ought not to expect ANYTHING from the Lord, being a DOUBLE-MINDED MAN, UNSTABLE IN ALL HIS WAYS.' OH GOD, HELP ME TRUST YOU, I DON'T WANT TO BE A DOUBLE-MINDED MAN! I DON'T WANT TO BE UNSTABLE. CALM ME, HELP ME TO TRUST YOU. I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE CHARGED MY PHONE & BLUETOOTH THIS MORNING BECAUSE THEY'RE ABOUT TO DIE TOO! GOD I FEEL LIKE JOB......WHAT'S NEXT? BOILS?????????????? BUT I TRUST YOU GOD!" (capitals emphasis mine - & believe me, i was emphasizing those words!!!!) (i was challenged in SS a couple weeks ago to learn these verses. believe me, i have LEARNED them, LIVED them, LOVE them!!!! i think these are now my "life verses"!!

so i turn the key one more time - after praying, "please, God, all things are possible with YOU... just let it start so i'm not stuck here at sonic." - .

nothing.

so i think, "ok, these are the people i can call for help, in order of distance from this sonic..............." kevin & sarah are closest, they win!!! .....i call their house. sometimes they're out running errands, so i didn't expect to get them, but after what seemed like a 100 rings, sarah answered. she wasn't feeling good - allergies, she didn't have jumper cables in the van. what about kevin? kevin's in california at the shepherd's conference! well, his car is in the driveway, can you go check his trunk? kevin has jumper cables!!!! sarah says she will get the kids ready & come rescue me!

so i wait....& pray.....pray that no one parks on either side of me because i don't know which side sarah's battery is on or how long the cables are! and LAUGH!!! i guess that was the JOY part of the trial!!!

ok, so neither of us has ever done this before & the instructions on the cable bag don't match the diagram & we're supposed to put one of the cables on my engine block.........what the heck's an engine block????? i'm worried that we're not doing it right & i've heard you can make sparks - would those be dangerous? - or blow the thing up. not wanting to get us all hurt, i say, sarah, i don't think we did this right - & her's keeps popping off. there is a red truck with a guy in it & a guy on a motorcycle just drove in. sarah says we need to ask a guy, but she doesn't want to because she's sick. i say, "well, i've only got the flu & it's my car, so i'll do it." the guy in the red truck is ordering, so motorcycle man wins!!! in my cutest little damsel in distress voice i tell him "i've got a dead battery & a friend has come with jumper cables but we can't figure out how to do it, can you(ohpleasekindsir)help us?" he very politely tells me, "well, i can tell you what to do, but i can't get off my bike to help you because i have no legs." OHMYGOODNESS!!!! my hands immediately cover my mouth & i gasp! i look down & the poor 30-something man has metal posts from the knees down. he lifts his left leg so i can see it too! i say, "oh i am so sorry, i didn't even notice." he tells me what order to attach the cables & says, "now repeat it to me." so i repeat it & he says, "yes, that's right. now after you get them attached, start the van & let it run for about 5 minutes then start your car." so we do what he says & sarah says "that's not the way the diagram says." motorcycle man yells across the parking lot, "did you get them on?" i say, "repeat the order again" - he so graciously & patiently does. (if he was thinking "you stupid women", he never let it show!!!!) sarah started her van & MM drove up beside the van, told her to give the van some gas & hold it. i thanked him so much for being so kind & he said he would stay with us til he was sure my car had started. i asked him how he lost his legs. he said "skydiving. lost the left one 4 years ago & the right one 3 weeks ago. just got the new "leg" today! had to wait til his wife got home from work to help him get off the bike into his wheelchair because he wasn't able to put any weight on it yet." WOW!!!! then he said to start my car & let it run for a little while & not shut it off until i was where i wanted to end up!

there were so many questions i wanted to ask him - his name, if he goes to church anywhere, if he's a believer............but he waved & drove off & was GONE JUST LIKE THAT!

so i ended up at john eagle honda & got a brand spankin' new battery. i'm sure if i had gone elsewhere i could have saved a few bucks, but by this time i wasn't feeling good & didn't care. i left there at 6 & stopped at krogers for a couple things. there must have been 80,000 people at the krogers on barker cypress......and only 1 checkout lane open.....& they were training high school kids on it!!!....& they were having troubles so the mouthy bossy person in charge came to help. by this time i was having a pain in my side that has come & gone all week....(i need to read the book of Job again to recall if the boils start with a pain in the side!) by the time it's my turn, mouthy bossy person in charge says to me, "i'm sorry ma'am. don't be mad." i tell her "i'm not mad, i'm sick" & i'm thinking, "OH GREAT! she thinks i look mad! why do i always look mad? i try so hard not to look mad. i need to wear a bag over my head. God, give me a new face! OMG! my hair!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i'll never be able to shop here again!! God, take me home!!!!!"

so 4 hours later, i'm home, completely exhausted. with a pain in my side. 

i have the flu! & i'm just not totally over it yet!!

butchaknowwhat?? God taught me a lot of things today:

1. trust HIM, always trust HIM
2. it's good to know lots of scripture so you can recall it at any moment
3. i can have joy even in trials - i have laughed about this so many times since it all happened
4. always dry & roll your hair when you go out
5. keep lots of grape juice in your pantry & some emergency frozen dinners in the freezer because you just never know when or if you'll get the flu
6. get a flu shot
7. it's good to just take it easy & do nothing sometimes
8. thank God for special friends who love you & are always there for you & willing to do anything for you, at any time of day
9. thank God for legless motorcycle men who are kind & patient & willing to help total strangers. i will pray for this man & his wife every day for the rest of my life. if i never see him again on this earth, i pray that we will meet again in heaven. but God's gonna have to introduce us, because i'm sure i will have gorgeous hair there & he will have 2 legs!!!!!
10. keep your camera with you so you can take pictures of legless motorcycle men so people will believe you!
11. about the dog - she is really on my nerves lately. when she's out, she barks to come in; when she's in, she whines to go out (so she can bark) plus she's got gas, & all she wants to do is lick her bu**, & lay on my bed. i HATE her laying on my bed!!!! she thinks i don't know it when i'm sleeping, but i know it & can kick her off without even thinking about it!!! she's not my dog - she belongs to my kids but i have custody!
12. God hasn't taught me anything about the dog yet. i'm sure He's got something in store........help me!!!!

13. God really does love me - a lot!! & i love Him a lot!!!


y'all be blessed!!!!