Sunday, August 24, 2014

I Believe....


Yesterday was rather interesting for me.

For starters, I ran around all morning first to pay my insurance and open a checking account. They were very friendly there(which is why I give them my customer loyalty and not some other company) and when I handed the agent a $100 bill and told her I needed the $10 change, the other agent took it and went to the store next door to get change. 

Now that's customer service!

He came back, made change and then I said I wanted to open a checking account.  Well, she said she needed a money order. So I got in my car and drove to the grocery store down the street to get one. It was then that I realized one of the bill statements I needed to pay a bill at the store wasn't in my purse. I could have done all of it in one fell swoop.  Great! Now I had to drive home after my trip back to the insurance office and get the bill.

Then there was a line, and there was this little older Hispanic woman with a tiny zipper wallet full of change. She kept on pouring it into her hand, and dimes and nickles and pennies would be rolling all over the floor, making that "ping" sound each time they fell.  She was mumbling something in Spanish each time they fell and she bent over to pick them up as others helped her find her stray change, as she was having a conversation with herself or something. Finally after the fourth time or so of the change all over the floor, I asked her, "Would you like me to help you?" and I cupped my hands and she dumped all that change into my hands. She began counting, "Uno, dos, tres,..." and I wanted to count out loud with her. Finally the line moved and I set her coins on the counter for her.  She thanked me and I moved forward and got my money order and out the door I went.  

Back to the agent's office I go.

I open my account.  I get back in my car and I go home to get the stupid bill I forgot. 

Head back to the grocery store.  

Pay the bills I needed to pay. Got myself a chicken sandwich and went home. Took four bites of the sandwich, because I haven't been very hungry lately and I went to go and sit down. 

There is a knock on my door.

It's my neighbor. She has a crisis. She has to be out of her (ex?) boyfriend's house by Thursday.  She talks, I listen. I offer her water, and a cigarette to calm her frayed nerves. I call numbers for her to try and get her some assistance.  On a Saturday in Vegas, that's a tough feat to accomplish. I give her my advice. I tell her just to hang in there. We make plans to go to church. 

Prior to her visit, I should add here, her boyfriend was outside. He looked a bit upset. I ask him what's bugging him, and he starts going on and on about what is going on with her. I listen.  I lend him a listening ear and a cigarette he asked for.  He goes on his way.

Next thing I know we are in church. I buy her a tea and we split a muffin prior to church...thinking this might be her last opportunity to have a decent dessert.  Come to find out now she won't be homeless. He said she can stay. I tell her she still needs to leave because she can't keep depending on him for security. It's her call, I don't know everything, my own life has it's own pitfalls thank you very much, so take my advice, don't take it. Unless I gave birth to you it doesn't matter what you do with my advice, know what I mean?

Then, something happened at church that shocked a friend of mine and myself. We are both in tears. I won't say what it was, but we also had some much needed "therapy time" together. I listened. Because she was always there for me when I had my dilemmas going on. She is still there for me as well if I need her.

We chatted and then I took my neighbor home and I came inside.

Next thing I know I'm getting ready to settle down...the phone rings....it's another friend of mine.  She has some issues, and I listen, then she gives me her philosophies on her views of religion. I tell her my church isn't a "religion". You don't follow a set of man made laws, you follow God's law which is the Bible. I tried to tell her that God is there, and even though she follows a Wiccan path, the two are not the same. She kept insisting that all are the same. 

All are not the same, God is God period. So then she kept apologizing for saying things she said. I am thinking to myself,(and probably should have said this) why are you apologizing for what you believe? If you believe that strongly in what you believe don't apologize to me. Maybe she was trying to convince herself that what she believes IS truth. I've met a lot of Pagans in my life, I was even Pagan at one time in my life, I was angry. Angry at God and a lot of people in my life at that time. I realize the error of my ways.  My friend may never see that aspect, I still love her and will continue to pray for her, but I see her life falling apart at the seams and I want to say..."Please, stop. Find Jesus and come home to peace and comfort in him." 

Let me share a hypothetical here. You have a child(not saying my friend is a child) but you have a child, and you see them making choices that will hurt them(or are hurting them). You try to help them, but they won't listen. They are so set in their minds that what they are doing is right, that they just dismiss everything you tell them. So you sit, and you wait, and you see a train-wreck coming.  You can't save them. You've tried everything in your power to help them, but to no avail. Sometimes it takes a major atrocity to make them see the light.

Am I not going to be her friend, because she doesn't believe as I do? Absolutely not. She may decide that she has tired of me talking about God and coming back to him.  But as a Christian I have to share  God's word. It's my duty as a Christian to serve God and to minister to non-believers.  If they get angry and decide to "unfriend me" or never call me again, that's their choice. But I will always care about those people, regardless of what they believe.

It's not an easy path. Our pastor even told us it would be a challenging path to walk with Christ. 

I get that now.

I am struggling here with my own problems.  

I just keep moving forward. 

One day, one step at a time. 

That's all I can do. 

It's a rough journey. But I keep plugging away and hope for miracles here and there.  

I got the job. Next I need to find the apartment or house to rent.

Then take it from there. 

My ex decided to reduce the child support because I now make more money. What he doesn't realize is that come December, I will be kicked out of here for making this much money. But I will cross that bridge when I get to it. 

This isn't easy. 

But I have faith that God will get me through this. Not Buddha, not Isis, or Hermes or whomever others out there believe in...GOD.  

This is my belief.

I'm not attacking anyone here by any means. But this IS what I believe to be truth. Maybe a soul or two will be saved by my blog....maybe not. Maybe some will read this and discard it as "nonsense". Whatever the case may be, I know that I will live my life according to God's word and nothing else.

Because as Phillipians 4:13   says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".







Myspace Graphics
Myspace Graphics and Myspace Layouts

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Barb,

Wow you got a raise!
Now you get to move.
Sucks to be Barb.

Have a good week anyway.
Ed

Barb said...

I don't think it sucks to be me. I'm fairly content despite my circumstances which aren't really all THAT bad.

What happened to Happy Ed? Did he take a vacation day yesterday?? :(