You Couldn’t Make it Up!

Greetings from Abruzzo by the Adriatic Sea!

I am house-sitting for Bob[1] and Jill, like I did last year. I have Bethany and another missionary, Nina, with me. The first thing we noticed was that the dishwasher didn’t work. Bob and Jill have three very active young sons, so having a functioning dishwasher would be a real blessing for them. Because we wanted to bless them, we called a repairman and got the dishwasher fixed. We had also noticed that the wooden cover for the dishwasher had been removed, leaving it without any handle and thus making it difficult to open. The repairman noted that the cover needed to be shaved-down because it was a bit too wide at the bottom, and so wouldn’t open properly if re-installed.

We didn’t want to leave the job half done, so we asked around for a carpenter, knowing that a carpenter could plane it down in just a few minutes. But we couldn’t find any carpenter anywhere—and believe me, we looked for several hours all over town.

This morning I was in my usual place by the window, writing on my computer. Then I saw that there were three men in the garden. They entered, carrying a wooden gate, and mounted it as I watched. On a whim, I asked, “Are you carpenters?” They said, “No, but we work for a carpenter.” I told them about the problem of the dishwasher cover. One came in and looked at it. He quickly saw what the problem was. I said, “You see, it doesn’t actually require a carpenter, just one of his tools (I didn’t know the Italian word for plane).” He smiled and said, “Yes, but the carpenter has that tool, we don’t.”

He took the wooden cover with him, and went back to work on the gate. Occasionally he asked to plug a tool in. Then about half an hour later, he came back inside with the cover planed-down, and installed it—a perfect fit!

But this didn’t fix the dishwasher one hundred percent. And we wanted to fix it completely. The repairman said that the bottom shelf was missing six wheels. It had the two front wheels, but lacked all the rest. The repairman said that he had wheels in his shop and would bring them by the next time he was in the neighborhood. This two weeks ago. I was fairly certain that he had forgotten all about the wheels. But today—today!—the dishwasher repairman called to ask if we would be home after three this afternoon because he would be in the neighborhood.

He came by and installed the wheels: pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop—done!

We all marveled at how, just when we had been looking for one, God sent us a carpenter. And He made sure that the job was completely and properly finished. Isn’t that what He also did for us all? Just when things looked their worst, God sent us a Carpenter, and He made sure that the job was completely and properly finished. Hallelujah! God is good!

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[1] “Look, Listen, Love,” pg. 80

Mood Vaccination

Have you ever noticed how some people can affect your whole day, either positively or negatively?  There is so much wrong with this broken-down old world that it is all too easy to get caught-up in somebody else’s bad mood.  But I’ve found the solution:  I vaccinate myself against bad moods by focusing my attention on the things that make me happy.

Here are some things that make me happy:

Dogs—there’s just something irresistible about a wagging tail and a lolling tongue.

Cats—you’ve got to admire an animal that demands your respect before giving you their friendship.

Children—for a fresh perspective that will really open your eyes, spend the day with a child.   Their spirituality and understanding are far deeper than most adults realize.

Friends—both close friends and acquaintances make life so much more bearable.  The latter can evolve into the former with time and care.

Flowers—I was walking by the train tracks, which is usually the ugliest part of town.  In spring there are always poppies by the train tracks, and the scent of magnolias was in the air.

Writing—my friend, Laurie (one of those close kind mentioned above), suggested that I get back into daily writing.  I’ve taken that to heart, and find that I’m happiest when I’m writing.

Bicycling—I had just gotten my bike out of storage after two years, and I noticed that everybody I rode past gave me a big smile.  Then I passed a window and saw my reflection with a huge, goofy grin.  Everybody had been reflecting that grin back at me.

My girly toolkit—check it out!  What man would ever walk off with these tools?  All I have to do is pull out my little pink hammer and the next thing I know I’m smiling.

So, what is it in your life that can vaccinate you against a bad mood?