This morning it was gloomy and overcast, quite a contrast to yesterday's start. Before church began, people were coming in wet with raindrops! Spring showers! And it rained nearly all day, ending right around four p.m. Now, the sky looks decent with some grey and pink clouds layered below blue sky. And it is still light outside, which I like!
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Waking and watching the news this a.m. and again in the afternoon was like biting on a sore tooth and finally I just had to look away. Ugh! As hard as it is to believe, we must now brace for government-run medical care. As one Congresswoman assured today, we should have no fear because (paraphrasing) "the task forces will be put in place to 'educate' people and help them live a healthier lifestyle." Oh great! Life as I know it is over!
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It was interesting in Bible study this morning as we continue our study of the civil world and the Christian, how we live according to the laws of the land, unless they would be in direct opposition to what God's Word says. We had some lively discussion and questions today, not even touching the sensitive subject facing our nation today. We have some learned people in our congregation, some of them teachers, and I must say that I learned much in class this morning.
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Kathy B. played our pre-service music and Suzanne accompanied on our congregational singing and the liturgy, Divine Service 1. We sang several hymns from the supplement including two which the choir helped along. Thankfully Pastor had the congregation glance at "Draw Near" before the service began so they knew to turn the page....last time it was a disaster because the cong. did not know it was three pages long and that they needed to turn the page. The choir was at the communion rail and could not help out so this time, it went perfectly.
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While the choir was singing "Draw Near", the congregation was taking the Lord's Supper including those who sat in the back row. One lady is quite elderly and unsteady on her feet, yet chooses to sit in the back. Today an older man helped her back to her pew, holding her hand and guiding her along. It just struck me as so touching and kind, and brought tears which made it VERY hard to sing for a moment. Carol touched my shoulder because she, too, was moved by it. It sure does not take much to get me these days....When I spoke to Bill about it after church, he said, "Oh, no, she was helping me...." in typical 'Bill' style. Usually Brian is her escort but we were busy singing so she had to rely on another man!
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Oh, it was so good to see the rest of the family today, at least now I have seen most of them. One couple is visiting in South Dakota having left here before I did. Darwin's brother is quite ill and I guess they are staying until the end. Hopefully they are not in the flooding areas. Their last trip had them nearly snowbound in VA when they watched their grandson graduate from the Coast Guard Academy a couple months ago.
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Poor Martie really has her hands full with her family. Her daughter-in-law and the grandkids are leaving for AZ soon if not already; her other son has a degenerative disease in the MD family and not faring well; and her little grandson, Mark, presently has a blood infection or something. He was staying at her house this weekend and she thought he would join us for our outing but since ManMan wasn't feeling well, he stayed home with his grandpa. Martie and I are shooting for Tuesday now if nothing else falls apart around her!
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Night fell since I began this posting. The grey has taken over the sky! No boats in sight but earlier, after the rain stopped, I did see a few dotting the waters. Today in Bible study the subject of lottery winners came up, when we were discussing settling inheritances and such. It brought to mind something a dear young man in my life said to me at lunch last week....This young man often talks about 'what ifs' concerning the lottery, always coming up with 'big' ideas of what to do with his landfall. This time it was not to install central air conditioning for his cousin or have a security system put in her house, or not buying a pipe organ for our church. Nope, this time, he wants to take all the WELS members on a trip to Lutherland!!!!! Maybe I am missing the boat by not buying lottery tickets if that is what a person can do with the winnings. I love the idea, however, and tried not to make a fuss over it. Good for him, and good for us all if he wins!
