Puzzle pieces “accidentally” coming together?

I love it when things come together in such clear ways that you have to write about it.

Yesterday I wrote about retirement, my days of retirement, and some people commented on my focus on my husband, and what about single women retiring?  That made me think of a conversation I had with two single women in Africa many years ago.  My days were ordered first by my responsibilities for my three children and my husband, then ministry to others filled up the spaces.  Those women were free to go live in the bush and learn language and culture from the inside.  I watched it.  They woke up every morning free to do what they and God wanted to do.  In some ways, they envied my life and I theirs, and we honestly shared our struggles.  The bottom line, any one of us could revel in our misery and envy or delight in the presence of the Lord and the privilege of serving Him, of serving with Him.

Then I saw this line on facebook: “I love having an old church building, but I don't like how creepy it is being the only one here this late at night... — at Restored Church.  Tim Walker”  My quick response was that he was not alone, as I remembered walking home alone from work as a 17-year-old, through the wrong part of town – I used to sing hymns thinking no one would bother God and me if I was singing hymns. I was alone, but not alone!

Then I saw this on facebook this morning:

• Ruth Kennedy  from Ethiopia:
  "Day 47....without electricity....a dreary, cold day....but Grace Village is buzzing with activities..., the generator is humming, the donkey is going back and forth with water, a group of kids has gone to the tree nursery to purchase trees for the village, tree planting this afternoon, our sheep are being weighed, sheep business head office coming this afternoon, making arrangements for the new children, enjoying the company of little Misgana in the office, buying more solar torches for the village, a bunk bed is being constructed, our 2 science teachers and our bigger boys have been given the challenge to construct a wind turbine together , applications are coming in for special needs teachers for the coming school year.....Yes life could be a lot better, but if you don't have what you want/need, don't stop living, you just happily make do with what you've got and you will be surprised how much happiness will flow through your heart, it just washes away the frustrations about the "have not" ."

And finally I was challenged by this in my morning time: It is actually best for you that I go away because if I don’t, the Counselor won’t come.  John 16:7  I would have stood there in their midst stunned and angry and scared to death.  How could He leave us, me?  All the while ignoring the reality that in the flesh, He could not be with all of us all the time. 

But the Counselor, God the Holy Spirit could.  Andrew Murray puts it this way: He taught them (the disciples) to understand their great need and joyfully expect the coming of something better.  Christ’s teaching in human language was changed into the inspiration and operation of the Counselor, the Holy Spirit.

I am not alone, here in my house.  Tim was not alone in the church.  Ruth was not alone running a ministry for orphans and sick kids in Ethiopia, and you are not alone, regardless of your situation.  I have some ideas on how we can remember that, how we can access the truth of the presence of the Comforter, but will save that for another day.