Evacuation, Day 4, Sunday

Today we went to church and lunch with a friend of mine from high school. We typically attend a traditional service at our home church, Gloria Dei. Today I was looking for a service with a contemporary flare. I knew I was looking for a Baptist service and I knew Brian and Lisa enjoy their Baptist congregation, so I gave them a call this morning and told them we would meet them there. It turned out to be a great morning. We have not had the chance to keep up with Brian and Lisa, so this was a perfect opportunity to visit them in their home, because they do talk about their church as a home. This picture is Brian and Lisa, their kids, Alyssa and Ethan, and us,



**funny side story: I told Stephen we were going to a Baptist church this morning. In a different conversation, he asked if we were going to the good one or the bad one. I didn't know what he was talking about, because we also planned to hit Starbucks, but I figured out that he was misunderstanding me. Eventually I figured out he thought I was saying "baddest" or something similar when I was saying "Baptist." Too cute.****

The sermon this morning was talking about bringing church into work and how to be a good worker. Part of the outline was:

To be at peace in my present position.

To maintain good personal relationships.

Accomplish job with excellence regardless of task

Win admiration of outsiders

Avoid being a liability

I really believe this speaks well to us now that we are completely removed from what we know as normal.

I think we have a chance to set are priorities straight. Everyone (generally) who has evacuated is wanting to get home. We are wanting to get back to the routine. We feel bored and away from our stuff. We can't work like little worker ants because our work has been taken away from us. The home we could be cleaning, the yard we could be trimming, the fence we could be putting up, the stink if the fridge that is certainly there...etc. And, we can't go to work. There is no work.

But, we do have the first two priorities in life:
God
Family

We have a chance to really not let work be the priority. We have a chance to feel what it feels like to really prioritize...correctly, the way God wants us to.

So, relooking at the outline.

We can be at peace in our displaced homes and learn to be happy.
(side comment-some of us can see if we really could be spontaneous and go on a spontaneous, unplanned vacation)

We can build relationships with people we generally don't have time to be with and perhaps influence them.

Our job has changed-Sean, for example, is not used to being Mr. Mom. He is getting a chance to strengthen the bond with his children. This is a far cry from mechanical engineer work building the next space vehicle.

Win admiration of outsiders???? I have ideas, but, I know this is where I need to brainstorm more.

Avoid being a liability. This is hard since we are sponging off my parents, plan to sponge off my sister and will probably sponge a couple of more places until we have power back in our home.

As a final thought, I am getting much more internet time than I usually get because I have more people to help with the kids and I am not in the busy social circles I am used to. I have always had the thought that I should post to my blog on Sundays and write about how Sunday's sermon has challenged my thinking. Perhaps it could challenge someone else's that way. Today I actually have had the time to put that thought into action. Maybe I can keep it up once we are back to normal.