Connections

I don't ever think things are really random. It goes against my, "God is in control." thing. I have been stressing for a couple of weeks over our roof leak problem at the church. I used to enjoy a fix er' up challenge, until Wren (my wife) told me I was not too handy. It obviously wounded my psyche, because my skills have diminished to the point of being non-existent.

To the point:
The roof leak not only affected us, it caused problems for our new neighbors. They have been kind and understanding about the situation. Last Friday understanding turned to, "Get the roof fixed now." Saturday was the day a repairman was scheduled to come. See, lots of stress. Long story short (as if); the roof leak has been repaired (I hope), and everybody is happy.

Our neighbor came by on Sunday to get a look at the repairs. As we talked on the sidewalk a passerby heard our conversation and invited himself into it. After attempts to understand each other it became clear the passerby really only wanted to be heard. His name is Mike (San Fransisco), a former teacher, and current New Orleans re -builder. His philosophy on life in general seemed to be "glass half empty." Vaughn (neighbor) launched into a brilliant defense of personal responsibility, living in community, and the good ol' U.S.A.

Our conversation prior to meeting Mike was on the difficulties of living and working in a community that values self-expression over personal responsibility. To my surprise Mike professed a belief in God (Quaker), but felt as if God were the impossible to please boss. Vaughn expressed his religious ideology (Buddhist), and the fun began!

I stood on the sidelines for much of the exchange but when asked, offered the Word as answer. We got some strange looks from people walking down the sidewalk. Vaughn uses "colorful metaphores" when expressing his points. I openly blushed several times... no, just kidding. Seeds were sown all the way around. I pray that seeds I feel that were sown in me (seeing anothers point of view, understanding, compassion) will flourish. I pray that the Word that was sown in Mike and Vaughn will take root and grow.

All of this in spite of the stress was worth the exchange!

Thanks for crawling around inside my head for a while.