baby on the loose

John loves to play in the pantry. So far he can reach only what's on the floor -- canned goods, some bottles, and the half-gallon container of olive oil. Michael and I were both in the kitchen the other day and somehow neglected to see that John, playing quietly in the pantry, had opened the olive oil, somehow (aided by a insecurely fastened top), and had it in his lap. Upside-down. Yes, he was sitting in a lake of olive oil, oblivious as only a baby can be. Michael said that all we could do was laugh (but he wasn't the one who cleaned it up!).

No spiritual lesson this time -- just a cautionary tale. The new, full container of olive oil has its top securely fastened, and I watch John much more closely when he's in the pantry.

clouds and darkness

I wonder if anyone is still out there reading this -- it's been so long since I last posted. Hellooooooo???

Isn't there some verse, probably in the Psalms, that talks about clouds and darkness surrounding the Lord? (I hate it when I can't find a verse.) Anyway -- this describes how my relationship with God has felt recently: as if he were very distant and shrouded. I miss the good old days when it was easy to know that God is Immanuel, God-with-us.

But the cool thing is that there is a verse in the Bible (I know there is!) that describes what I'm experiencing, in contrast to all of the many happy verses about God dispelling darkness and our walking in his light. The truth is that God is there in the darkness too even if hidden, like the sun hidden -- but not gone -- behind the clouds in this strangely wet Dallas summer. "I answered you out of a thundercloud" (Ps. 81:7).