Two lost hours

8:22 p.m. Today's project was to go walking with my girlfriend around a park in the next neighborhood over from mine, and then browse the enormous rummage sale put on by the church across the street where Michelle attends. Our walks have been fun and companionable, and I especially like my friend's spiritual growth over the years. She was one of the moms with preschoolers who attended the "Moms' Mornings" gatherings I headed up a few years ago. It's more than a Titus 2:3 relationship where the older woman is to model and teach the younger one to be a reverent and loving wife and mother, but a sisterly one where we share in the issues of our different stages of life while helping our bodies. We have a lot of laughs, and probably don't walk nearly as fast as we should!

The opening morning of the two-day rummage sale saw thousands of bargain hunters in rooms at The Grove featuring everything from knickknacks and clothing to to furniture and skis. scores of volunteers ran things smoothly, and from what we heard, the lines were moving fast.Michelle and I were "line-phobic," so we speedily toured the rooms so she could get back home, eat and return to work at a nearby elementary school as a yard supervisor. Many hugs, greetings and for me, condolences, were exchanged with old and new friends as we made our way through the crowds. When we've found a good thing, don't we ladies like to share it? Nothing new here, considering that Jesus told this parable in Luke 15:8-9:

What woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, "Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!"

When I arrived home, I remembered that the Terminix technician was coming between 12 and 2 p.m., so I speedily showered and dressed and went downstairs to the sound of tapping. He was working his way around the outside of the house to start. Jada was none too happy, so I crated her in the garage so he could finish his work. One task needing done was (and still is) organizing and putting away a very large order of Mary Kay products to fill the 8 orders that God sent me over the last three days. I've been pondering this, and as I've explained to a few friends, it's as if the moment is right--just as I began to be more upbeat, enthusiastic and allowed Jesus to lift the burden of sorrow off my shoulders, He knew I was ready to get excited and active with my business, with an excitement that comes through in my eyes, smile, and even my voice over the phone.As Psalm 139:2-4 says,

You know my sitting down and
  my rising up;
You understand my thought afar
  off;
You comprehend my path and 
  my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my
  ways.
For there is not a word on my
  tongue,
But behold, O LORD, you know
  it altogether.

In all of this happy busywork, I'd forgotten that I'd only consumed a small portion of scrambled eggs with my coffee all day, so I figured out why I felt faint. I made sure to have my emergency alert lanyard on, and remembered the biblical case that it is possible to faint from hunger (Lamentations 2:19). So after the technician  left, I prepared and ate a roast beef and broccoli Lean Cuisine.

Still didn't feel quite right, so I went upstairs, lay down, and got up quickly to violently rid myself of that meal by "upchucking" in my bathroom! The sharp pain in the back of my head let me know that this was one of the migraines I used to be afflicted with 4 times a year. Thus the lost two hours as I slept away the afternoon.

At 4 p.m., I sat up and was fine, waking up with my cell phone alarm. I talked with my daughter Heather for a bit, collected her rent check, and went on with my business plans.

Getting sick is never pleasant, and lost time for a business owner is not productive. But God has a way of redeeming time that we think we've lost, and all of my projects were actually completed.

As I prepare to go to bed for the night, I thank the Lord for a much-needed rest!