Is their hope for deliverance?

I asked God today if there was any hope of deliverance for a couple of people I know whose drug abuse is escalating to the point where they are not only using pills but needles to get high, stealing from their family members, lying to everyone (including themselves) and being arrested for burglary.  I have seen firsthand the destructive effects drug abuse wreaks on every life it touches - not just the addict's life, but his spouse and his children's lives, too. 

So I asked God "is there any hope?"  I then opened my Bible to the location where I left off reading, in Psalms, and guess what the scripture was?  I believe God's answer to my question:

[God] Who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases (drug addiction),

who redeems your life from the pit (no deeper pit than addiction) 

and crowns you with love and compassion,

who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle.

 

 

He does not treat us as our sins deserve (stealing from and hurting our loved ones)

or repay us according to our iniquities.

 

As far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our

transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion on his children,

so the Lord has compassion on

those who fear him;

for he knows how we are formed (He knows what we are capable of such as self-destructive behavior, etc.),

he remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass,

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

the wind blows over it and it is gone,

and its place remembers it no more.

(Psalm 103:3-5, 10, 12-16) (emphasis mine)

 

 

This gives me such encouragement.  As long as our loved ones have a heart beat and a breath left in their lungs, God is giving them another chance for his redemption and mercy and there is hope that every addict can find true deliverance from drugs, not just the "con" they tell their families so that they can continue their destructive behavior.  I had a friend whose husband became addicted to drugs and he went to rehab so many times it was pathetic.  He even stole from the rehabs he was in.  He stole everything she had and pawned it for drugs.  (I still will not shop at a pawn shop for this very reason.)  Drug addicts are the best actors the world has ever seen, they have to lie to keep their family in denial so they will continue to have a place to sleep, food to eat and access to items to pawn.  The worse thing any family can do in that situation is let it go on.  No, this is when "tough love" is the healthy and godly response.  God allows us all to hit "rock bottom" sometimes so that we will turn from our destructive behavior (like drug addiction, alcoholism, destructive relationships, etc.) to Him, our only source for true deliverance.  But if a parent or spouse is there to "rescue" their drug addicted loved ones from the consequences of their behavior, then the addict just becomes a better con and more addicted than ever.  If this situation is similar to one you find yourself in, the only advice I can give you is to pray.  Ask God to deliver them from their addiction and show you what you should do, but be ready for some tough answers.  If we never faced pain, would any of us really ever change?  No.  Trust God and believe that nothing is too hard for Him who formed us from the dust.    

 



ON THE ROAD AGAIN...

As we were on our way to my cousin's in Washburn this weekend, our path was crossed by not only a deer but a very big cow...in less that 2 miles.  Thankfully, the law was behind us so I did not have to dial 911 to report a cow on the loose.  The cop turned his sirens and lights on and herded the cow out of the road (or off the side of the road where it was casually munching hay).

I began to ponder my "driving" ju-ju.  (I don't believe in ju-ju or karma, but for lack of a better word.)  Maybe it is because I drive approximately 70 miles per day or maybe it is the roads I am traveling, but I have seen some mighty strange sights in my journeys and I wonder if it is just me or if everyone has the same type of ju-ju?

I guess it all began when I was almost killed by a Port-a-Potty.  It almost fell off the truck in front of me on I-40 and splashed yucky fluids onto my car.  I still have a fear of transport-in-progress-Port-a-Potties. 

One day on my way home from working in Knoxville, I topped the hill on Broadway and in the road lay a dead body.  Luckily, another car was blocking the lane with their blinkers on or I would have ran over said dead body again with my car.  I called 911 (a reoccurring theme in this story) and told them I was calling to report a body in the road.  Their response "the one near Magnolia?"  How many dead bodies were laying in the road that day in Knoxville????  Maybe it is Knoxville...maybe it is the crazy driving capital of the world.  One afternoon in Knoxville rush hour traffic, I noticed a big, fat bull jogging (seriously) down the right lane on 11-E headed to town.  I refused to call 911 that time but I have called several other times.

Like the day I was witness to a hit-and-run and a car chase ensued.  Dudes in a red car pulled out and ran right into a big pick-up truck.  Dudes in red car took off down Magnolia with big pick-up truck right behind.  I called 911 and reported that the red car did not have a license plate, they were being chased by the victim and were probably already to Rutledge Pike at that point.  (You learn to give good directions when notifying the police of car accidents, dead bodies, drunk drivers, and car chases.)

I have called to report a table in the road, a herd of cattle in the road, a wild fire on the side of I-40, I have been on the scene of numerous car accidents (stopping for ones I have witnessed first-hand), and I was once pulled over by a guy who later was featured on "Unsolved Mysteries" (which resulted in a call to both 911 and a call to UM's tip line).

I have seen numerous car accident victims, Lifestar landing to help said accident victims, over-turned dump trucks leaving a trail of boulders, Jesus holding his cross while in Chattanooga at a women's ministry conference (ironic, huh?), a man walking across the country with a cross on wheels,

the Oscar Meyer Wiener mobile...you get the gist.

I have been videotaped driving by numerous reporters (a co-worker once saw me on TV as I drove by the scene of a car accident), I have been filmed in traffic jams, and have witnessed officer take-downs, a S.W.A.T. team standoff and of course, have been stopped in numerous roadblocks searching for escaped convicts and drunk drivers.

I never know what I will see on the road again...

A Life Well Lived

It has been a year today since my beloved Aunt Marie went to heaven. As her preacher said during her eulogy "She was old and full of days" like the prophets of the Old Testament.  She lived a good life, had more fun than sorrow and loved to travel.  Her favorite things were buttermilk, the open road and a good Danielle Steele novel.   I think I miss her more than anyone I have lost before.  I guess because we talked every day via email.  Yes, my 93-year-old aunt had a laptop and was not afraid to use it.  Of course, at first she had some technical difficulties and would call me for help.  Like the time she accidentally made a picture of her ex-son-in-law in a coffin her wallpaper.  I think that was traumatizing to her but it gave me a good laugh.  She would tell me about all her travels, stories about our family that were no longer alive and she shared her unique perception on life.  We had a bond that only aunts and nieces can form.  She was one of those people you aspire to be like.  She was one of my favorite people, my hero and best friend all rolled into one.

Some days I miss her so much it makes me cry, but mostly I cherish all the fun times we had together and all the memories she left behind.  I remember our last day together.  We went to Walmart and I had to get one of those electric wheelchairs for her.  Of course, the only one they had charged was clear across the store so here I went, riding along at a snail's pace across Walmart.  She got on it and turned it into a hot rod, even using her little horn on it.  She was a hoot!  We once were playing with her daughter's boyfriend's riding chair in Florida.  We thought it was great fun until I rode it right into his new back door and put a big dent in it.  (Two weeks later, he ran into it with the riding chair and knocked the entire door down so I did not feel too bad.)  Aunt Marie made spending the day going to yard sales the best day ever.  She taught me how to "negotiate."  We had more fun doing simple things like that than most people would going to Disney World or Dollywood. 

I know I will see my Aunt Marie again one day when I get to heaven.  I hope when I leave this world that I will leave the type of impression that she left - I want people to say my life was a life well lived...

Luke

It took 3 years and many prayers for me to get pregnant.  God gave me a verse to cling to during that time:  Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)  I knew God knew the desires of my heart - to have another baby.  I trusted in Him to fulfill that desire.  My husband thought we were too old and I reminded him of Abraham and Sarah.  My full-of-faith husband doubted we would have even one child let alone two.  I assured him we would.  I trusted God and when I found out I was expecting, I rejoiced like Sarah. 

I went to a high risk OB who commenced to scaring me - telling me how great the odds were of having a baby with birth defects because of my age (40 years old when I have Luke).  Assurances were whispered to my heart and I said "Your will, God."  The following week the doctor's office called while I was walking into Walmart.  The nurse began to spout medical jargon at me.  I finally asked her to break it down where I could understand.  Basically, some type of level was high when they tested my blood which meant I was at a very high risk of miscarriage.  To say I was stunned is an understatement.  She called in some medicine immediately for me to begin taking to prevent a miscarriage.  When I got off the phone with her and called my husband, I looked up with tears in my eyes and there was a prayer journal in the aisle I was standing and guess what it said on the cover "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."  I got the message God was sending me.  I was still very upset by the news and asked people to pray for me.  I knew getting extremely upset might add to my chances of miscarrying so I prayed for God's strength and peace. 

All my birth defect test results came back within the normal range for a younger woman.  I am almost 26 weeks pregnant now and we are having a boy. 

The doctor's office called with bad news this week.  I have gestational diabetes.  I went to diabetes training today and again heard the terms "older" and "pregnant" used together.  I had gestational diabetes with Isabella the last 3 weeks of my pregnancy - not the last 3 months.  The nurse mentioned the possibility of needing insulin.  Now I have to watch everything I eat (which is a good thing in a way) and turn myself into a voodoo doll by puncturing myself 4 times a day to test my blood.  (I would not get a tattoo because of my fear of needles).  It occurred to me a moment ago how much I am willing to endure for my child before he is even born.  It reminded me of what Jesus was willing to endure before we were even born so we could become God's children.  I understand why God teaches us about His love for us as He is our father and we are His children, because I have an inkling of what kind of love that is due to the way I feel about my own children.  Of course, the love I feel for Isabella and Luke is intense and deep but nothing compared to the love God has for you and me - His children. 

In the end, when I hold Luke in my arms and kiss him for the first time, everything I have endured up until that moment will all be worth it. Just like all the torment, pain, and separation Jesus went through on the cross for us will be worth it when He holds us in His arms for the first time and kisses us.

Drive By Rabbit-ting

Roger called me to inform me that someone had dropped off another rabbit (along with food) in our rabbit, Ming-Ming's cage while we were at work today.  My first thought was "Only us."  My second thought was "I hope Ming-Ming doesn't get pregnant."  I started giggling and Roger said "It's not funny."  But it is.  What else can you do but laugh when something this crazy happens? 

I suggested Roger release it to the wild.  Then I heard my daughter in the background.  Her exact words were "We cannot release a poor, defenseless animal into the wild to be attacked by a dog."  My next suggestion was to call Animal Control because it is an abandoned pet.  Roger was more upset about someone trespassing on our property.  He hates that. 

When trying to determine who might have done this, I mentioned it might be our crazy neighbors who have been known to leave strange items in our yard like Easter eggs (maybe there is a theme here).  He decided to call and make sure they were not the ones who did this before having the rabbit picked up.  Our neighbors mistakenly thought we wanted another rabbit so they left it as a joke.  Roger informed them that we did not want another rabbit, especially a male rabbit.  I just hope Ming-Ming doesn't get pregnant although she seems to be more interested in the visitor's food than the visitor himself...

A Dimmer World

It has been 5 years since I said a final farewell to my friend Kim Helton.   It was one of the most painful periods of my life.  Although we had both chosen different paths and no longer saw each other, I still considered her a very dear friend.  We were best friends from age 15 to 28.  We had a lot of good times together during those 13 years.  Kim was like the sister I never had.  She could light up a room with just her smile.  She was vivacious, hilarious and unique.  The world is a dimmer place without her presence in it.

When I got my driver's license at 16, I went to Kim's house and took her and her sister Emily for a ride.  They lived about 2 miles from me at the time. 

I was there when she had her first baby and she was there when I said "I do" to Roger.  

Kim shared with me her love of hiking and we spent a lot of time at Panther Creek Park - one of her favorite places around.  She was the one person I could "think out loud with" and not worry about her judging me and vice versa.

She helped me get ready for my prom and my wedding.  She was there with me for my dad's funeral and burial.  She was there for me during numerous heart breaks and the pains of growing up.  We would always have fun when we were together.  

I haven't been to see her graveside since last  year and I plan on visiting her on September 2.  When I go, I talk to her like she is really there with me.  I sit beside of her in the grass like we used to do at the park and tell her how things are going in my life.  I usually bring her a plaque, wind chime or something to let her know how much she still means to me.  

It's hard for me to remember the day her sisters Diane and Emily came to my house with the sad news that Kim had died.  I went into denial.  I could not grasp it.  We were so young - only 33 at the time.  The funeral was one of the most painful ones I have ever attended, other than my father's.  But I think the hardest thing was leaving her at the graveside.  I couldn't do it.  I stood with my hand on her coffin not wanting to say that final goodbye.  Everyone else left, not wanting to be there for the actual burial.  Everyone left except her best friend Jill Free.  She stayed there with me and we talked about Kim.  The undertakers gave me the shovel and asked if I wanted to put the first shovel full of dirt on her grave so I did, told her goodbye and Jill did the same.  It was one of those moments in life that no matter how long I live, I will never forget it.  It was so special to me.  Jill and I stayed with her until after the grave was completely covered, with the flowers beautifully arranged on top.  She would like her final resting place in the country, her favorite place since she was as country as cornbread:)

I know that someday I will see Kim again and I can't wait to see her.  I can hear her now "What took you so long, LouLou?" 

I love and miss you my dear friend.

Happy Birthday Sandy!

Sandy & Chrissy on the lake

Do you have one of those friends that you have known most of your life and you are still friends with today? I have one particular friend that I have known for 32 years. We met on the school bus only to discover that she was moving into the house next door to me. To say that you "grew up" with someone can mean different things. In this case, I grew up with Sandy. I was at her house as much as I was at mine.

We learned to do the wave together. We learned to do the moon walk. We rode bikes together, motorcycles, mopeds, and finally cars.

Did I mention we got into trouble together, too? We were like sisters and what sisters don't get into trouble together...every decade or so?

Okay, so we were a little crazy...

Today is her birthday.  I won't say how old she is but she is 2 years older than me (and I am 39).

I was there when her second son was born.  I mean literally in the delivery room holding a video camera.  Luckily, I did a better job filming his birth than I did her wedding.  I had my video camera on a tripod at her wedding and when she walked down the aisle, everyone stood up and you could not see her until she got to the altar.  Oops. 

Me and Kim at Sandy's wedding

Sandy knows my history and I know hers and we love each other the way we are, like family.  (I am the crazy relative.)  We have been through many years of growing pains, dating pains, marriage pains, and now we are entering a new phase - middle age pains.  (Some of us are closer than others.) 

One day I was visiting her church and as I sat there I begin to think (during the singing not the sermon) that we went from sitting together on the school bus, to her front porch, to sitting on bar stools together, and now we were sitting in a church pew together listening to her brother preach.  I must say it was a very moving moment.  I figure we are heading in the right direction. 

I don't know what life has in store for either of us but as long as we are on this earth we will always be there for one another no matter what.  Sandy is the one person I know I could call anytime and she would come get me no matter where I was. 

God did not give me a  blood sister but He gave me two friends who were as close as I think a sister can be - Kim and Sandy. 

She is one of those people I can see only once a month and still feel like we haven't been apart.  We both have changed a lot since we were 7 and 9 years old (and thank God for that).  I think if we live to be 89 and 91, we'll still be hanging out together either at Cracker Barrel or on a front porch somewhere.

Happy birthday, my friend!

It's a baby!

After many years of praying for another child, my husband and I found out last month that we are expecting a baby in February. 

My husband was beginning to doubt that we would have another baby, but I had peace about the issue and knew that God was going to give us another one...and hopefully before we started drawing Social Security.  Roger claimed he was too old to have a baby.  I reminded him of Sarah and Abraham.  He said "But I am not Abraham."  No, I can attest to that fact and he is only about half as old as Abraham was when Isaac was born.  I never thought I would be having a baby when I was 40 years old but I never thought I would be teaching Sunday school and married to a preacher either.  God has plans for us that we have not even conceived.  There is one thing about it, this baby will be a blessing to our whole little family.  Isabella already kisses the baby goodnight (i.e., my tummy).  She wants to be a big sister so that she can "boss someone else around."  She wants a brother and has already asked "Can we get bunk beds?"  Uh, I told her we should wait until the baby is born first:)

I know most of friends my age have children who are already grown.  I got a late start.  I was too busy traveling and having fun to settle down.  I also knew that I had not met the right guy to settle down with.  God's plans are not ours and I am so glad He has everything in His awesome control.  I am thankful for my life.  It is not "perfect" but God has fulfilled the desires of my heart since I delighted myself in Him. 

What a Trip

As I was leaving work last night, this lady from the office across the way asked "How are you doing?"  When I looked at her she asked "You are the lady who fell?"  I told her that it wasn't me but that it sounded like something I would do.  This morning, I was out enjoying the beautiful spring morning, walking around campus when...you guessed it I fell, skidded across the pavement and my skirt flew up for the world to see.  Luckily no one saw my ungraceful flop and my iPod was not injured, although I was. 

This is not the first display of my gracefulness but I thought once I stopped drinking, I would stop falling down so much but it seems to have had no effect on my "trips."

I was walking through my best friend Kim's yard one morning and tripped over the water lid thingie in her yard and fell face-first into her grass.  I laid there giggling because of how ridiculous I looked and I was very thankful that it was 3 a.m. and no one was watching.  

Two weeks later, I was with Kim and her brother Lee as we walked into a pool party at Lee's girlfriend's house.  I missed a step (it was dark) and KAPLUNK.  I was so embarrassed that I jumped up so quickly Kim didn't realize I had fallen.  Only one guy saw me and made the comment "At least you didn't drop your beer."  Gee thanks dude.  I told Kim I needed to talk to her back at the car and showed her my legs.  Blood was dripping down both of them.  I was young and not as out-going as I am now so I didn't want Kim to say anything to draw attention to my legs.  She assured me she wouldn't as we were walking back to the party.  As soon as we got into the house, she screams "Look at Lynette's legs!" and busted out laughing.  I was so mortified, especially when the homeowner freaked and over did the taking-care-of -the-victim thing.  I guess she was afraid of a lawsuit.  Later  after all the excitement had subsided and I was reclining on a lawn chair by the pool, some guy asked Kim "Well Kim, what do you think about it?" Kim didn't miss a beat and said "I think a 30 pound bag of flour would make a helluva a biscuit."  We all laughed so hard we about fell in the pool.

After a high school football game, I was running to get in my mom's car.  I was wearing slick flats and you guessed it, fell in front of God and everyone right in the middle of the road.  I did my one and only split:)  

One night while we were camping out over the 4th of July weekend, we were all sitting around the campfire talking.  All of a sudden my chair starts falling backward and there I laid, with my feet up in the air!  What did my kind and caring friends do?  They took a picture of me!  I was like "Can someone please help me?"  Sandy and Charisse laughed for 30 minutes over that.  I didn't think it was that funny.

Sandy, me and Kim

More recently, I was at a yard sale when my foot went into a snake hole and down I went, face first in the yard.  Luckily I did not break my foot, only my change purse.  I squished it like a bug and it cut my hand.  No one at the yard sale acknowledged my gymnastic maneuver although I know they had to witness it.

Oh my gosh, I almost forgot the big one.  I was walking down the hill in our church parking lot, my ankle twisted and down I went.  My husband did not see me spread eagle on the ground, but a caring church member walked by and said "You better get up before someone runs over you."  Ah, the compassion.  I had fallen and I could not get up.  Not only was I mortified, I could not walk.  I ended up at the ER, my foot turned black and purple (which is my favorite color but I don't want my foot that color) and I had to wear a fuzzy house slipper to work for a few weeks.  It was a very bad sprain.

I have fallen in a restaurant, I have fallen down a muddy hill while wearing white shorts, I have fallen into a pool, fallen in the hall at work, fallen down stairs, in my own yard, fallen out of a trailer, fallen while hiking up Mt. LeConte, fallen off a Harley, off a horse...come to think of it, I have probably fallen more since I became an adult than I did when I was a child. 

My cousin Becky

I was once sitting on the front porch with my friend Jeff and my cousin Becky when all of sudden, the porch gave way (it was an old house), my chair fell through and I would have fallen off the porch and probably broken my neck or another bone, but Jeff caught me.  He was my hero.  Unfortunately, he has not been around since:)  At one doctor visit, after having a painful procedure, I stood up, passed out and fell down, taking out a small nurse with me. 

And of course, I have fallen in love a few times. 

No Greater High

May 10th is a very special day for me. May 10, 2000, I was delivered from an alcohol addiction in an attention-getting way which I have posted about before.  I have not had another sip of alcohol since that night.  The smell of it nauseates me.  I know that God was preparing me for a blessing I could not receive unless I turned away from my destructive lifestyle.  One year to the day I met/talked to Roger for the first time.  Two months later we were married.  God is so amazing.  The journey I have been on since May 10, 2000, has been thrilling, scary, lonely, and just plain hard sometimes.  When I stopped drinking and partying, I lost all of my friends including my best friend.  I was a new person in Christ and no longer the same old Lynette.  I lost some people who really didn't care about me enough to accept me unconditionally.  I don't know if I made them uncomfortable or what, but God removed a lot of people from my life during this period.  He took me through a valley so deep I never thought there would be another mountain top.  I relate to the Apostle Paul in so many ways: from being struck blind to the thorn in the side.  That is the reason God has filled His Word with sinful, mistake-making people like Paul, Peter and Mary Magdalene.  We can relate to imperfection but not perfection.  Sometimes I wondered why God was allowing the trials in my life.  It was hard to understand at the time why I was suffering so much when I was trying to live for God while other people who were not Christians continued on their merry way doing whatever they wanted.  That was the lonely part of the journey.  I did not feel like I had anyone to talk to who would understand what I was going through.  God used that time to show me that I do have someone I can always turn to who will understand my struggles and that someone is His only Son, Jesus.  I am closer to God due to my trials than I ever would have been without them.  While I don't want to go back and repeat the painful process, I am glad it happened. 

So on this anniversary of 12 years of sobriety and 11 years of being with my soul mate I would like to thank God for the thorns in my life, for the people He removed from my path and the trials I have endured because without them I would not be the person I am today.  There is no greater high than serving the God on High:)

Love others as you love yourself

Article online:

Authorities are investigating a reported assault that took place on a university campus.  A female student told police that she was grabbed by her waist as she exited her vehicle and that her attacker made a "racially charged statement." The victim, who police said is African-American, freed herself and ran away. The suspect is described as a white male…

Church Bulletin:

The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in His own image, and in that Christ died for man; therefore, every person of every race possesses full dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.

I read both of these articles in the same week and felt compelled to see what God had to say about racism in His Word.  Most people in this day and age know what racism is, especially those of us who live in the South.  I have never experienced racism personally but it has occurred within my own family.  I won't go into details but children were put up for adoption because they were bi-racial.  That haunted me even though I was just a child myself when it occurred and I had nothing to do with it.  I prayed for those children throughout the years, thought of them often and wondered where they were and if they were safe and loved.  God answered my prayers when I was reconnected to one of my family members through Facebook.  She is a beautiful, wonderful woman of God who I am truly blessed to call family.  Racism is a blindness and hatred motivated by fear and misunderstanding.  Actually, I looked up the definition of racism and it is "hatred or intolerance of another race or other races."

Most white people believe we live in an age of equal rights and that no racism occurs in our society but that is not true.  To judge someone by their skin color or country of origin is about as intelligent as judging someone because of their eye color. 

1.  God does not discriminate.

God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Acts 15:8 (God does not discriminate between Jew or Gentile.)

Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God... 1 Peter 2:17

The statement that God does not show favoritism is repeated throughout the New Testament.  If God does not show favoritism, how can we justify it?  God commands us to love our neighbor as our self. That statement does not leave room for racism.  Every race descended from three men, Noah's sons.  We are part of one race - the human race - and God loves each of us as much as He loves the other.  He is no respecter of persons.  God created each of us to be unique individuals who have a special task to complete while living on planet Earth.  God wants us to love everyone and He makes no exceptions. 

2.  Do not tolerate racism.

There are some things I will not tolerate and racism is at the top of the list.  I have heard family members make statements that turned my stomach and I tried talking to them about it, but hatred comes forth from our heart and there is only One who can change another person's heart.  Most people are afraid of the unknown and different races seem unknown to a lot of people who live small lives.   

Moses' second wife was from Cush and his brother and sister had a problem with her. Remember what happened to Mariam when she opposed her brother...her skin turned white as snow with leprosy.  Numbers 12:1, 10 Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite.

3.  Children should be taught to love.

I want my daughter to grow up in a world with less racism.  Children are taught racism.  I hope to teach my daughter to appreciate everyone and know that we are each unique and precious to God.  Racism is just another tool used by Satan to cause hatred.  Do not let him blind you to the ignorance of racism.

4.  God is a God of love

As a child, a teacher gave me "The Diary of Anne Frank" to read and it showed me what ultimate racism and hatred leads to...genocide.  That 6 million Jews could be gassed and cremated in the same century I lived was appalling and altered my perception of the world forever.  I introduce this subject to my Sunday school class as often as possible, for instance when we were learning about Esther, and I also explain it to my daughter.  I do not go into graphic details but I tell them what happened and why.  I know many Holocaust survivors have said if we forget the past we are doomed to repeat it. 

I have been blessed with different perspectives from friends of different races and see the beauty in each one.  When we get to heaven, there will be no racism and it will seem like such a petty waste of time.  Why don't we have that attitude while we're still here so that we can spread the love of Christ through our love of others.

Our House, in the Middle of Our Street

Yesterday my husband called and asked "Want to know what type of excitement I have had this afternoon?"  This is never a phrase you want to hear.  Apparently, he went to start an old car we have on our property and heard a whoosh sound. The dead grass under the car caught on fire.  All the retired neighbors spotted the fire, one called 911 and a firetruck was dispatched.  Luckily, my husband was able to get a water hose that reached to that part of the property in time to put out the fire before the firetruck arrived.  God was watching over my husband, our property and the surrounding homes.  As I was telling my co-worker about the "excitement," I guess the stress got to me and I started giggling thinking about all the weird things that have happened to us while living there. 

(Our front yard, scene of the melee.)

I guess the first "strange" episode was a few months after Roger and I got married.  We were going to bed one night when we heard voices in our backyard.  Roger went to investigate and said that the couple across the street were in our yard arguing.  We watched them from our living room window and the guy started hitting the lady.  He got her down in our yard and was pounding her face into the ground!  I told Roger to get his gun.  He refused so I called 911 and told them that one of our neighbors was pounding his wife's face into our front yard.  It seemed like forever before the two cop cars arrived and by the time they did, the neighbors had moved back to their own yard.  Apparently the wife had stabbed the husband with a knife at our other neighbor's house.  (We live in a quite neighborhood in a good part of town despite what it might sound like.)  The cops finally sent the wife to her brother's house and we thought the excitement was over for the night until the husband appeared in our front yard - again - this time with a flashlight.  So I called 911 back and told them.  The dispatcher said "Maybe he is looking for his finger."  I was like "What????"  She was joking and that's when she explained that the wife had stabbed the husband.  So they dispatched cops, again, to our house.  Apparently the husband had lost his keys while pounding his wife's face into the ground and had come back to search for them.  The cops explained to him the whole concept of trespassing in the middle of the night and he left.  Little did we know that he went to get his wife and brought her home where she entered through the bedroom window which seemed weird to us.

(The duplex of the neighbors is in background)


The next "odd" occurrence was on our anniversary.  We were enjoying a nice dinner when we heard a loud noise.  We rushed to the door just in time to see a  hit-and-run accident.  I called...you guessed it....911 and gave a description of the car as it drove away.  The hit-and-run driver saw me on the phone hanging out the front door and decided to give himself up to the cops.  At one point in the evening, the victim of the hit-and-run was kneeling down in front of the cross in our yard, blue lights were flashing in the background, and the cops were administering a sobriety test on the other driver in the middle of our road.  It was like watching a "Cops" episode with the theme song "at the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light" in the background instead of "Bad Boys."  The cops arrested the drunk driver/hit-runner and cited his victim for not having insurance. 

(Our cross in the background of this picture.)

 
My husband requested a road sign that states "dangerous intersection" be installed mid-way on our hill as a warning of the hidden intersection - the location of the accident.  We also had a sign put up in our yard that said "no dumping" because people were bringing their empty wine boxes (yes, classy I know), liquor bottles and trash and dumping it in our yard!  After the sign went up, no more trash went down.

One day as we were driving up the hill to our house we noticed a woman at our 80-year-old neighbor's house.  I said "Oh, John's got a girlfriend."  The more we studied "her" we realized that it was our neighbor JOHN (who was also my church's organist).  He was walking up the hill with a wig on his head during a thunderstorm.  I told my husband "I can imagine what the obituary will say now, 'Local church organist struck by lightning while wearing a woman's wig.'" 

One evening my brother-in-law, my mom, Roger and I went to dinner.  When we got back, not only was my brother-in-law's car rolled, someone had wrote"Just married" on the rear window and taped the empty toilet paper tube to the windshield.  Our crazy neighbors did it.  (Of course, my brother-in-law had been "just married" about 3 times and was still kinda married...but that's a whole other blog entry.)

PS
For those of you who were born after 1985, the title of this blog entry is an old 80s song.

Aunt Ruby

(Ruby and her sister Genie)
This morning on my drive to work my Aunt Ruby came to mind. She is actually my great-aunt, my grandmother's sister.  At family functions, we would always sit together.  Even in my family I attracted the craziest person in the room.  I adored Aunt Ruby.  She was one of the most interesting people I have ever known.  Even in her 80s she was very entertaining. She had an apartment in an assisted living complex in Greeneville. I would sometimes spend the weekend with her.

She drove a blue Andy Griffith car that registered 150 mph.  How would I know that, you might ask?  Because my crazy aunt let me drive it when I was only 13.  It was my very first driving experience. I floored the accelerator and we whooshed down the hill of her apartment complex going about 60 mph.  Aunt Ruby got down in the floorboard and yelled "slow down."  I actually drove around Greeneville and the sad part is, I drove better than Aunt Ruby.  She was driving down the emergency lane at one point when I suggested she might want to get over.  She giggled and over we went, drivers behind us honking because she pulled out in front of them.

One Christmas at my brother's house, she received a bud vase and two bottles of Mad Dog 20/20.  (Did I mention I come from a long line of happy alcoholics?)  When Aunt Ruby opened the bud vase she said "Oh look, a shot glass." and then proceeded to use it to drink a fifth of wine while the rest of us were opening gifts.  Later she accused one of us of stealing a bottle of her wine when she discovered one was missing (the one she drank).  Like I said, a little crazy.  I kept telling my family that I thought Aunt Ruby had Alzheimer's but everyone assured me that she had always been that way. 

(This is me and my nephew Josh.)

One day we were at a family function, she was perched in the chair beside me and asked "Who is that?" pointing to my nephew, Josh, who is one year younger than me.  I said "That is your great-nephew, Josh - Larry's son."  Aunt Ruby asked "Who is Larry?"  She somehow managed to remember me:)  A few minutes later she asked "Is that your son?" again referring to my nephew.  I was like "He's only a year younger than I am!  NO, he is not my son he is my nephew." 

When my cousin Rick got married we all journeyed north to Ohio to attend the reception.  Aunt Ruby was drinking Long Island tea when I last saw her at the bar.  She got drunk and lost her false teeth.  Luckily she found them the next day before we all headed back to Tennessee:)

(Aunt Ruby is the first lady on the left. My grandmother is the last one on the right.)

I have discovered that our family has this weird chemistry.  We attract the strangest people and the strangest things happen to us.  I don't know why but it does.  Aunt Ruby lived in New York City with her husband years before I came along.  She went to the movies one day and the gentleman beside of her fell face-first into her lap.  She yelled at him to get off her.  He had had a heart attack and died in her lap!  Every guy she dated at the retirement community she lived in died.  Of course, they were all in their 80s but still...

Aunt Ruby always gave me change (she once gave me $30 in coins), a laugh, and her love.  I miss her so much - she passed away years ago from Alzheimer's.  I can't wait to see her again.  I wonder if she will still be that crazy in heaven.

(This is Aunt Ruby with my grandfather.)