staying hospitable : oasis

The oasis...this week's saving grace!

Oh, dear.

That was the theme of the week.

When the bat broke in, it was Oh, dear Lord in heaven.

When the refridgerator decided it's time on this earth was done, it was Oh, dear melted popsicles.

When I took special care to put a bowl in a bag instead of carrying it by hand and then dropped it anyway, it was Oh, dear shards of ceramic.

And on it continued in similar fashion.

So when I went over to Lauren's to store the salvagable groceries and was also given an Oh, dear free space to store myself for the evening so that I could get away from the dark cloud that had firmly planted itself over my apartment this week, it really was the best thing ever.

And when I was shown the same hospitality again the next night, it really did restore my soul.

I didn't "stay hospitable" in this instance. I experienced hospitality - the best kind! The kind that revived my spirit with a soft place to land, a plate of warm cookies, and a treasured friend. Experiencing that amount of grace made me abundantly grateful for the lousy week that made it possible and for the Lord who knows what I need and loves me enough to give it to me despite stubborn protests. I didn't want to be inconvenienced and tried at every turn this week, but I needed to be restored by God's love via friendship as the pressures of August already start to make themselves known.

Let's call all of this Isaiah 55 in action:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.
 As the rain and the snow
    come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
    without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
    so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
    It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
    and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Amen? Amen!

Thank you, Lord. And thank you, Lauren!