July 7 - “High Prius T”

My notes for the sermon consisted of a picture this time. A car - specifically a Prius with the “T” package - was floating high in the sky as two tiny stick men watched and pointed. See? It is obvious. Jesus is the High Prius T. Still need help? High Priest, of course!

We stopped by good ol’ Little Caesar’s for some pizza on the way home. The cousins were descending - I suppose to hang out for a while with Zak and Lindsay. It was a great lunch, and then we all watched the next episode of the Ryan and Haley Show. Great stuff. 

After everyone left, we were watching the Astros sweep the Dodgers. After a while we realized that it was getting uncomfortably warm. Sure enough, our unit was running, but no cool air. I checked the condenser outside, and the fan wasn’t spinning at all. That didn’t seem right. I texted our AC guy to see when they could come check it out. The plan is for them to come while we are at the hospital for Chris’ procedure, and for us to come home to a cool house. 

Surprisingly, however, at about 8 p.m. w there came a knock at the door. It was the AC guy. See, his boss is a member of seaside, and he didn’t want us to be without AC for any period of time. The guy found the problem right away and replaced the bad part. We had to pay for an off-hours repair, but I guess it was worth it. Sure was a cool night. 

Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭6‬ says, For the mind-set of the flesh is death, but the mind-set of the Spirit is life and peace.

Father, please be with Chris and her docs during her procedure this morning. Amen. 

July 6 - “Braving the Texas traffic”

We pulled a three miler again. The “highlight” of this one was when we discovered a car parked on the side of the street, engine running. The back seat was full of all kinds of stuff - like clothes and boxes. And in the front seat? There sat a lady, fast asleep. I slowed down enough to make sure she was breathing. Her chest did rise and fall, so we continued on our way. We checked in on her during our next lap, and all looked the same. Whew! I wasn’t looking forward to CPR and a 9-1-1 call. 

In the afternoon our next visitors arrived. Grandson Zak and his new fiancée Lindsay came over. We watched a few episodes of the Ryan and Haley show to help Lindsay get caught up. She is way behind. The show is on episode 20 something. Lindsay was on eight. Come on, Girl! Catch up! 

Around 4 we braved the traffic and headed into Texas. We went to Nathan’s to sample his latest cooking cuisine, pulled pork butts. There was also pasta salad, mashed potatoes with cheese and bacon, and a fabulous baked beans concoction. It was also a chance for his friends to harass him for being a newly minted Old Man (40).  Folks enjoyed swimming, cornhole (Zak and I smoked Chris and Lindsay), washers, and of course, eating. Happy birthday, Nathan!

Oh! And we got word that Caleb and the mission team made it back home to Waco. Woohoo! 

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬-‭34‬ says, But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Father, thanks for giving all our kiddos a safe trip home. Amen. 

July 5 - “Monopoly ‘Mer’ca”

I didn’t sleep very well. For some reason I was hot and my feet were tingling to the point of being really annoying. It took me a while to realize … I forgot to take my evening meds. They are for dealing with the exact symptoms I was experiencing. I took the meds, worked on a crossword puzzle, and finally fell back to sleep. I was back awake by about 5:15, though. I got up and had a cup of coffee with Ken. 

Ken decided to stick around and join us for lunch. The LaMarque clan came over as well, and we grilled some burgers and hotdogs. After lunch a rousing game of Monopoly ‘Mer’ca ensued. All the properties are sites in the country, and some house rules allowed some trivia questions to be entered into play. The game ended when Ezra managed to bankrupt his Daddy. Attaboy, Ezra. 

Ken left to continue his long weekend driving trek. Everyone else had watermelon, Blue Bell ice cream of five different flavors, or sno cones flavored with white cherry or pina colada. It was truly a ‘Mer’ca celebration kind of day. 

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭3‬:‭17‬  says, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Father, thank you for the time we had reconnecting with Ken. Keep him safe and healthy. Amen. 

July 4 - “Perfect”

We cut back a little on our walk this time. Only two miles. We got started about 20 minutes later than usual, so it was about 20 degrees hotter than usual. At least it felt like it. I’m sure we could have made the 3, but we had company coming in and it was home group time, so cleaning day was definitely upon us. 

I had a weird toothache for three or four days. Not sensitive to heat and cold. Just to pressure. Not a great thing for a tooth to be, especially a molar. Two x-rays, a visual inspection, and some tapping and scraping later, my mouth was declared “perfect.”  No, really. She said, “Perfect” no less than twelve times. 

So why was it throbbing? A combination of two factors. My bite was ever-so slightly off. Easily corrected with one of those sandpaper drill things dentists terrorize with. But she said the most probable cause was … fatigue. The tooth was tired of doing double duty since I’m missing the bottom tooth just behind it. How to fix it? Don’t chew on that side for a week and give it a rest. Well, OK. Done. 

On the way home I stopped at the vet. Freddy has started back up with the coughing again. The next step there is to restart the meds that were helping her last week. Beyond that, the next step is x-rays. Come on meds! Do your thing!

Oh, and we made one more brave foray into the thundering hordes of beach-loving tourists. Kroger had Blue Bell ice cream on sale for $4.99 if you bought two cartons. Done. Twice. Four cartons in the freezer, ready for some grandkids. 

And finally, we enjoyed a visit from an old friend. Ken Fryer, an old Seasider, came in from Austin to chat and spend the night. He sat in on home group as well, so he got a taste of what that is all about. Always great to see good friends. 

John‬ ‭20‬:‭28‬-‭29‬ says, Thomas responded to Him, “My Lord and my God! ” Jesus said, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed. Those who believe without seeing are blessed.”

Father, please be with Ken as he drives around Texas and finally returns home. Amen. 

July 3 - “Another grandkid thing”

We jumped back up to a 5K yesterday well, not “jumped” literally. We walked. But we did make our 3.2 distance goal. And we did it just under an hour. We’ll take it. 

After a shower we got dressed and headed into Texas. Yep. Another grandkid thing. This time Ezra was involved in a music camp. We went to their final performance. 

Ezra had a big speaking role, and had a coveted front row position for the songs. Not to mention his remarkable ability to handle a pair of drumsticks. That’s my boy. Oh, and we also got to stick around and “experience” a meal fit for a … kid - hot dogs and Dr Pepper floats. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34‬:‭8‬ says, Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the man who takes refuge in Him!

Father, thanks for Ezra and for that church music ministry. Amen. 

July 2 - “Front Row”

My day got started really early. Around 6:30 I headed over to Firestone to have the oil changed in the car. I was the first one there, and the only one for a long time. “Front Row,” as Bob Uecker would put it. However, I still got the “It’s gonna take a while” speech.  Sigh. I settled in with a book, some Facebook videos (have you ever watched those guys who mow yards for free? I’d love to do that, but only with the awesome machines they have), and HGTV on the waiting room television. 

They finally finished around 8:30 - oil change and new air filter. Of course they recommended a lot more, but nothing we needed right now.

Next stop was Home Depot. We were looking for post guards for the part of our fence that is getting hammered, and subsequently well on the way to ultimate destruction, by the evil weedeater. We had a very sweet and immensely helpful older guy help us. Sadly, we discovered together that the part we need can only be ordered online. Of course. 

As an added bonus, though, we saw our neighbors, Jonathan and Brandy and Hunter. Yep, same Hunter, the Entrepreneur who sold us some candy the other day. The little man was shopping for a plant for his room. He had his own money, too. And he was calculating prices in his head to make sure he had enough. Enjoy your plant, Hunter. You earned it. 

 Next errand was gas at Randall’s. Pretty expensive stuff in Galveston in the summer. That was followed by a Walmart run for a few basics plus our snacks for the upcoming trip. Check and check. 

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭9‬ says, God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent His One and Only Son into the world so that we might live through Him.

Father, thank you for people who are great at what they do when it comes to car care. I’m sure not. Amen. 

July 1 - “Preemptive Pruning”

We had to cut our walk pretty much in half yesterday. Mile and a half. It was already pretty hot, and Chris got to feeling kind of puny. We are trying not to take too many chances with her. At least I am trying. 

The power company had their tree trimmers out in force. They were actually doing some preemptive pruning to clear power lines in advance of hurricane season. What a great idea. About time they joined the rest of us homeowners who have been trying to keep up with those pesky branches for years. Hope it makes a difference this year in avoiding downed lines in the neighborhood. 

Last night I did something … unexpected. I watched a musical. Two musicals, in fact. On purpose. April mentioned the “Mamma Mia” movie when we were over there the other day as the source of a possible future trip to Greece. Sounds great. Sign us up. 

Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭1 says, Those who are persecuted for righteousness are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

Father, thanks for the assurance, however small, that there will be at least one less thing to worry so much about if a hurricane does come this year. Amen.