Miracle Sunday

WARNING - GOD ALERT!!

This post started out in my head about how cute C and his buddy Steven were this week in church. Evan wanted to sit in the front row, which was fine. The band started playing & singing, and C was in the front row, fingers in his ears - it was too loud. It was hysterical in church, and we are a pretty relaxed crowd. My friend's husband and teenage daughter sing in the praise band. Her 2 year old walked up next to his daddy and big sis and grabbed an open (and turned off) microphone and started singing during 1 of the songs. Just hilarious, and so stinkin' cute!

Now, for the sermon...

Is God at work in your life?

Today we celebrated Miracle Sunday at church. We are building a new church, sometime soon. An anonymous donor donated $30-40,000 to the building fund, on the condition that the rest of the congregation matches it on a given Sunday, in addition to regular giving and our building campaign. We have had yard sales, ebay auctions, a silent auction at church - anything to come up with "extra" money. We have also celebrated God's miracles in our lives. It's not about the lightning strikes, it's about the small things that have made such an impact to change our lives.

It's about a country church and the adults that embraced me as a teenager when my parents divorced, supporting me through college and beyond, starting my walk as a Christian.

It's about taking that first "real" job 500 miles away from home, only to find out home is what you make of it, not a place on a map.

It's about a chance email address from a friend and co-worker, who is now my sister-in-law and aunt to our kids. Eight years of marriage this week - woohoo!

It's about infertility after a successful pregnancy, and a pregnancy with no drugs and only 1 ovary.

It's about watching my mom get sick and feeling helpless. And watching my dad and stepmom help my sister and I to help my mom - families coming together in unexpected ways for unexpected things.

It's about a warm, welcoming church when I felt isolated and alone in a corn field in Illinois. Five years later, I don't want to be anywhere else on a Sunday morning or Tuesday night.

Did you make plans for your life when you were 20? I remember talking to the Wesley pastor. My plans? Move to Ft. Worth, work at the hospital where I was born and spent quality time as a preemie 34 years ago, own a Ford Ranger, be a department manager in a big hospital. At that point, there wasn't a husband or kids in the future. I couldn't think that far ahead. I did all of that except buy the Ranger and be a manager when I graduated from college, and it wasn't what made me happy. Now I've got the F-150, work as little as I can and still pay the bills, live in a cornfield of a town, and raise kids - none of which were my plans. And I'm happy, and God's in the middle of it. I still would like to live someplace bigger, but my husband's family is here and it's a great place to raise kids, and that's more important.

And the total for Miracle Sunday?? $55,000, + the donor's $$.

Let's go dig a hole. God has more work to do in this cornfield.