The Jacksonville Jaguars, of whom I am a fan, had a very rough day on the field in Charlotte, NC yesterday. Just before half time, the heavens opened and an enormous downpour took place. It was difficult to see sometimes as the camera lenses were covered with rain drops. Water accumulated quickly on the field, and the guys would slide and splash as they tried to catch the ball. It was almost as though it was icy, as the quarterbacks and kickers had troubles hanging onto the ball. The cameramen were showing the waterfalls coming out of the stands and the pools forming in the end zones and sidelines. All the electrical cords and such draping around the players’ benches…yikes! The Jags ended up losing by one touchdown, and could have pulled it out if not for the errors on the field. One of the national announcers remarked that this is the team’s 3rd quarterback this season, although technically David Garrard was off the roster before the first game was played. I fear that next week’s game a home will be blacked out due to low ticket sales and therefore, I will have to listen on the radio. Rats!
On the bright side, the Packers won!!! Unfortunately, I could not watch the game as Atlanta/Tampa Bay were aired here, but guess I could have gone to a sports bar or restaurant to watch it. My downstairs neighbors had suggested we all meet at the cabana for happy hour at 6:00, weather permitting, but weather did not permit. At about 5:00 it was thundering, and then the lightning and rain came for a couple hours. I really like the window-rattling crashing of thunder, even my lanterns were rattling!
Our Bible study yesterday was a continuation of the stewardship series, this week covering leadership. Again with the breakout sessions, our ‘table’ had to pick a person from the Scriptures who showed strong leadership and then explain why. There were only four at my table, with Judy C., Mike S., and an elderly man, Bill. He suggested John as a strong leader and I asked him, “Which John?”. It was John the Baptist and we had our work in front of us, given 4 minutes to make a case for him being a strong leader. By jingles, we did it, too.
When I went into the church after class, there was a member in the pew I had not seen in a while. She lives most of the year in West Virginia and helps her son raise greyhounds for racing. She will be in town for a couple months so we will see each other more often. Garnett thanked me for the newsletters I send her, and I was so glad to get some feedback from a recipient. I was also greeted by my friend, Gretchen, who reported that her dear cousin, Pat, for whom we have been praying, had died the day before. Poor Gretchen! Recently she lost her sister and now one of her favorite cousins. It is so cool to me how close that family is with their extended relatives and how they keep in touch after all these years. She said they all grew up together and such in Tampa, traveled together and such, so it is natural for them to stay in touch. It breaks my heart for her to lose yet another person close in hers…
Robbie was our pianist yesterday and during the offertory, he sang two stanzas of "Abide with Me", acapella. Later, Terri T. told him how much she enjoyed hearing that, and he said it was for those who recently suffered losses in their lives. She and I agreed that it is good to hear this even after the years have passed. Since it was Fellowship Sunday, we had refreshments after worship. At the table, I was singing “We give thee but thine own….” which we had sung in worship. Mike K. said, “Now that’s the Lutheran church I know!” This hymn was sung every week at their church in IL following the offering. That stuff sticks with you, you know?
The congregational/voters’ meeting went smoothly and quickly, so I did not miss much of the football game. The pregame show was on the radio as I drove home, but when I was coming toward the condo, I passed a car with my friend at the wheel. She backed up and I pulled back up the hill so we could talk. Lee apologized for missing the opening of Dee’s show and we made plans to get together to see it. She thought it was a one-time thing but I explained it’s there until December so we have plenty of time. She can’t attend the tea party with us on Tuesday as her son is coming to town so we will try to another time.
Okay, so make a liar out of me…Or at least, premature in my prediction about the black out. According to the radio just now, ‘only’ three thousand tickets remain to be sold by 1:00 pm on Thursday. There yet might be hope!!!
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