A Rainy Day, A Stranger and An Umbrella

The rain was coming down in sheets as the last session of the women's conference was dismissed that Saturday afternoon. I looked out the window and wondered how I was going to get to my car without getting drenched. It had been raining off and on all day. Maybe it will let up soon, I thought to myself.

I was chatting with other friends while I waited for the rain to abate. I noticed it letting up but didn't want to leave in the middle of a good conversation. By the time I was ready to go it was raining harder again. So I talked some more but this time kept a very close eye on the weather! I really did want to go home!

It didn't seem inclined to quit any time soon so finally I said, "I'm going to make a dash for it!" Immediately a lady, who had been quietly looking at the book table, volunteered, "I have an umbrella. Let me walk you out!" I looked around in surprise. This was not someone I knew and I was tempted to refuse but she seemed genuine and I thought, Why not?

She quickly grabbed her umbrella and we went out together. Our arms brushed as we walked down the sidewalk, for you must stay close if you want to stay dry. It wasn't far to my car. As I opened the door, she wished me well and was on her way.

I headed down the street, tears falling as fast as the drops on my windshield. God has people to walk with me through the hard times. Sometimes I just have to admit it's not going so well. I don't have it all together. I feel lonely, I get frustrated when things don't go my way, I get mad at God for not answering my prayers, I don't understand why He doesn't just make everything better, I don't know how to relate to people, I hide under my bed (well, at least in my house!) instead of going out and seeing who God wants me to bless today.

But the thing I always come back to is this:

He is there... He. is. there.

And he will use whatever he wishes to remind me again how loved I am. A rainy day, a stranger and an umbrella...

Fair Time!

It's fair time!

But it's not fair, she whispered quietly to herself, as she thought of the thousands of brochures she had printed and hundreds of bags she had stuffed. How the boss had added 2 more brochures, late in the game, causing hours more work. The despair she felt when her helper's grandpa died 2 weeks before the starting date, leaving her alone with mounds of paper and empty bags. The struggle to keep up with daily tasks and still find time to stuff a bag here and there. The days ticking closer, the running and running and still the piles on the table. The day her manager asked how it's going and out popped, "I'm SICK of this!" And she wasn't sure she would be able to ever come back and look at another fair packet again!

And then she remembered... How one night her friends had so lovingly prayed for her to get through this intensely stressful time. How her helper came in extra the next week to make up for being gone the week before. How her manager kept checking in to see how things were going and offered little things to make the process go more smoothly and quickly. The surprise she felt when all the packets were finished up a half day ahead of schedule! The fun and unexpected pizza party for the office staff, provided by management, to thank them for all the hard work for the fair.

The first day of the fair arrived and the office was a flurry of activity as people scrambled to get last minute things together and head out. And she was there with a smile on her face, helping as needed and wishing them well. As the last one headed out the door she settled back with a satisfied sigh and thought to herself, Now what am I going to do?!