March 1 – “Leave me alone”

Church today was kind of fun.  The teaching was about the battle between the Philistines and Israelites where King Saul ended up killing himself.  Not funny in itself, I know.  But when I was setting the scene for the battle, it occurred to me that the center section of the room was almost empty, but both side sections were quite full.  Not one to pass up that kind of opportunity, every time I talked about the Philistines, I moved to the north side of the room.  When the Israelites were the focus, I moved to the south side.  It didn't take long for the rivalry to catch on.   After church we took the stuff out of the storeroom behind the kitchen in anticipation of the shower build to take place next weekend.  We took the stuff to Mike's house, so it is nearby if we decide we need anything.  It was great to see people getting excited.  Robert was excited about having a place for ministry groups to stay.  Mike and Cory were excited about replacing the lights in the building.  I was excited about people being excited.   Believe it or not we went to a Chinese food place for lunch.  We met the Boyer clan (and Cory and Melissa).  Chris and I were so late that we didn't even order.  We just finished off everybody else's leftovers.  There was something they called steak, but it was cut really thin and had onions and bell peppers and some kind of dark sauce all over it.  Why did they have to ruin a perfectly good steak?  My "favorite" was some kind of chicken that tasted like dessert.    We swung by Kel's to deliver some dog food and check on the patient.  Kel's face was kind of puffy, but he seemed to be feeling better.    When we left there we stopped by the house.  We even made yet another list of things to ask our contractor about.  There is a gas pipe that used to be a site for a gas space heater in what will be my office.  We'd like that to disappear into the wall.  We found some doors we liked at Home Depot.  Now we need to know if we should buy them pre-hung or not.  We realized that the Amish cabinet guy is coming Wednesday for final measurements.  There is part of the kitchen floor that needs to be built up with concrete.  That will affect the cabinet measurements.   Chris is beginning to look at paint colors.  And we really need to mow the grass or pull weeds.  I wonder if our contractor really thinks we're helping or if he wishes we'd just leave him alone.   When Jesus was on the cross he cried out that he was thirsty.  Someone brought him vinegar.  The rest said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him."  (Matthew 27:49).   Father, thank you for not leaving me alone.  Amen.