Hubby and I did get out some yesterday and did some walking and looking at things. But, before we left, we did have a bit of conflict. I can't even remember what he said to me now, but I do remember how I responded - "I'm doing this for YOU, not for me, to get YOU out of the house." And that made him feel privileged, I guess. We went to the farmer's market and walked around. Saw the granddaughter and her hubby who was helping her, and happened to run into the the daughter, SIL and great-granddaughter who had come as well. We went on our way from there to Ross, where we picked up a few things and hubby got his journals. After that we decided to check out a coffee shop that we heard about Monday evening at Bible Study.
It's called Strange Brew and it's at 43rd Ave & Bell... west of Frys (in that strip)... where the building curves. Wow. It was not like anything I expected! Tish is the owner/manager and this place is really nice. They make several different kinds of coffee, and have a few pastries. But what is cool is the set up. The have comfortable arm chairs and love seats scattered in circles - probably 3-4 of them - big circles too!. A couple tables where people can work if they want. Some Christian items that can be bought, and Christian music being played. It's a place where people can meet and comfortably chat. Even with the number of people there, we had to look for a seat, it was quiet. In one location two young men were doing a Bible study. There were a few couples sitting and having their coffee together and chatting. There were two women spaced throughout the room, chatting and had books laying on their laps. It was such a good atmosphere, I wish we had something like that closer! It is open 8AM-5PM Tuesday through Saturday.
From there hubby was wanting lunch.. my choice, he said, but no fast food. As I drove along Bell, Oreganos came to mind and he said ok. He got the shrimp scampi and the shrimp was nearly as big as half of my palm! He said it was good. I got their salad and could only eat about 1/2 of it so guess what I had for dinner! The other half! Hubby did thank me for getting him out of the house for a few hours. What surprised me more than anything was that he didn't complain about anything. He ALWAYS has something to complain about; the heat, the walking, etc. and this time he remained silent. Grateful. We still didn't find him anything to do; he was more interested in getting back to watch the ND game. So I dropped him off and went back out, meaning to pick up wrapping paper but totally forgetting it and just strolling through the store, picking up a few other things. And that was yesterday.
This morning hubby woke me by sliding his feet across the floor to the bathroom (he doesn't pick up his feet much anymore, it seems) about 4:15AM. I laid there for a little while, wanting to go back to sleep, but unable to do so. I came into my room, wanting to sleep just a little bit more, but soon gave up. I just love my time in the morning with God. I love being able to shut the world out, just for a little while, and just come and sit with Him. There is something special about doing that. Starting in I Kings today I read about some history of it, and about King David making Solomon king of Israel. David always inspires me; he loved God and sought Him with all his heart. Yes, he made mistakes, but always repented (pretty much like me and you), and was deeply loved by God.
Matthew 6:6 (NKJV): "But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."
That has been one of my favorite verses since I heard it many years ago. I love getting in here and shutting the world out by closing my door. There have been times when, at at least one of our other houses, that I couldn't go into a room and shut the door. I remember sitting at the couch and doing my quiet time, and kneeling beside it to say my prayers.
In fact, I am reminded as I think of that, of one time God spoke to me and told me to send my sister $20. I remember having a little bit more in my wallet at that time, but I was not usually sending my sister any money, but God definitely told me to send her $20. Without questioning, and without telling her, I put $20 in the envelope and mailed it to her....all because God had told me to. I later found out that she had been praying for help in a financial situation; she needed to fill several prescriptions and had no money to do so. The money I sent was just enough to cover the prescriptions. Now I don't share that to brag I did something. I share that to brag on God. And to show you that is how He is. He hears our prayers for help. Sometimes He doesn't answer the way we think He should, or even answer us at all! But, in this case, God spoke to me, and impressed it upon me, and I acted. I didn't know about the need. I only knew I needed to be obedient. And God has blessed me many times over because of my obedience. And my sister was able to tell her boys how God provided just what she needed because she prayed and asked Him. God gets all the glory. We all need to be mindful of the nudges that God sends us to help someone in need.
But, back to the quiet times and the secret places I love, I think the one I loved the most was at our first house. We had windows that came nearly to the floor; long, narrow windows. That bedroom wasn't used, so I was able to go in that room and I would kneel at that window, looking out at the stars and praying. I always felt so close to God because I could look up into the heavens. Windows we had after that were too high to kneel before. I loved that time and that space holds special memories for me.
God loves for us to 'step away' from the world for awhile and just spend time with Him. Even if you just sit before Him and turn your thoughts to Him, it is a start. Give yourself a minute to start, if you must, but never neglect Him. Start and/or end your day with Jesus. It changes everything.
Start today. You won't regret it. Go into your room, and shut the door, and pray to your Father in the secret place. he will meet you there.
Blessings!
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