November 1 – “Pouring and pixie sticks”

Welcome to November.  Great day in Galveston.  It means that hurricane season is pretty much over.  Of course today we had a band of thunderstorms come through that drenched us.  Several times over.  Want to know why?  Yep.  Chris got up first thing this morning and started watering the grass.  That'll do it.  Maybe this will encourage the real grass to push out those evil stickerburs.    We did a recount of the people who were here last night for our party.  I actually fell asleep at least four times while trying to type my journal.  I was tired.  Guess my sugar rush from all those pixie sticks wore off.  Anyway, there was so much coming and going that it was hard to tell, but we came up with 43 names of people we actually knew who came by.  It didn't feel like there were as many trick-or-treaters as in years past, but there were still tons.    Back to the rain.  So much came down so quickly in the first hour or so that we were watching our back yard.  The west side of our house is apparently the drainage flow for half of the neighborhood.  That means we have to be careful to keep that area unobstructed.   We also have a flower bed right next to the house that has to somehow drain into that rushing torrent that is our west side.  That little opening has to be kept obstruction free as well.  When it rains that hard the gates sometimes get clogged up.  When that happens, the water pools and accumulates right outside our back door.  So far it hasn't made it in, what with our new back door and all.  And the flower bed becomes a mini-lake.  And if it doesn't soak in right away, the water gets stagnant and mosquitoes multiply.  Never a fun situation.  We watch it closely, because the waters will go somewhere if the right way is unavailable.   Kind of like with God.  He's at work all around and he has a plan of what he is going to do.  If our access way is open, then we can join him and flow freely in his will.  If that path is blocked for whatever reason (pride, selfishness, depression), all that can happen is pooling up and eventually stagnation of our spiritual life.  With no access to the life of God, we look more and more inward, and like the good ol' Dead Sea, our life becomes worthless for growing green, exciting, joyful things.  All kinds of critters are spawned, though.  None of which result in happiness or joy: bitterness, resentment, hatred, complacency, mistrust.    That's enough of that.  I want to think about joy again.   Job 5:9-10 says, "He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted. He bestows rain on the earth; he sends water upon the countryside."     Father, thanks for pixie sticks and Nestle's Crunch bars.  And for Chris and Mom.  And for your people who are called by you name.  Amen