Happy Dancing

Well, what a difference a week makes, huh. After my last post, I was a little concerned that I'd depressed everyone. But not this time! After we got out of church last Sunday, one of the other women in the church was walking out the front door, and noticed something shiney on the sidewalk. She bent down, picked it up and exclaimed "This must be Joie's ring!" And she was correct!!!!! After 6 of us scored that sidewalk, and the grass and searched and searched for it. After the gardner had come thru with the blower cleaning off the sidewalks for church. And after an entire week of plenty of folks walking past it, Papa showed her my little band of love laying on that same sidewalk. Now how wild is that?!?! This church is downtown, there's tons of folks that walk by there all the time. We'd had Fat Tuesday services, Ash Wednesday services (twice, I might add) and then Sunday morning it shows up. Oh squealing with delight. My Papa loves me. I mean He really LOVES me!!!! After I got slobbery about it's return, I quickly shoved, pushed and twisted until I got the little darling on my somewhat swollen finger. Next time it comes off, they'll have to cut it off!!!!!!But it looks so sweet there on that finger! It's kinda amazing how once I admitted that the ring itself wasn't so important, that it was the sentiment behind it, that's when the ring showed up again. You'd think I'd have learned this lesson many years ago....but no. I'm a little slow sometimes about things. Years ago, when I was facing cancer for the 4th or 5th time, I learned that if I'd give it all up. All the dreams, all the wants, all the fears....Papa comes in quietly and almost stealthily to give us all that we just gave up! I pray, my friends, that you'll learn this lesson quicker than I have. When we give it all up for Him, He is trustworthy and faithful to give us the desires of our hearts. Not always in the way we think it should happen, but in ways that are better for us and bless us to a much greater degree than we can imagine. So as you rejoice in your 'rings of love' that surround you, don't be afraid to give up those rings. Knowing for a certainty that Papa will replace them with bigger, better and brighter rings of love. Shalom, Joie