“Holy Cow!” is an expression I have used various times over the years to express amazement or delight, but I never thought much about the background of the statement. In looking it up this week I discovered that the expression was used regularly by sportscasters Phil Rizzuto and Harry Carry. Some people speculate it references Hinduism. Others think its Irish Gaelic. Personally I am more interested in the first half of the expression than the second.
It had been over a year since we had seen them, so it was great to finally get together. We met at a restaurant about an hour away so that the drive would be similar for both couples. As you can imagine, there were no lags in the conversation while we were with them – after all, in one way or another, we have been friends since day one.
Fun Times can be packaged in many different ways. Something can be enjoyable without being amusing. Pleasure can be found outside the realm of frivolity. In fact some of the most pleasurable moments are often experienced while serving or even sweating. Though some may not feel comfortable referring to some of these activities as “fun”, anything that brings a satisfactory smile to the face or warmth to the heart is going to be called “fun” in my book … and I believe our life in Christ is supposed to be fun!
It seems as though lately I have frequently been more sensitive to little things – perhaps I should really be calling them “little blessings” – in lots of different ways. Sometimes it is in the narratives I am reading in the Scriptures. Other times it is in the stories people are telling. Sometimes it is just in nature or the circumstances surrounding me.
While I have no recollection of ever being worried about things, finances were quite tight for us during the early years of marriage and church work. Looking back, it is fun piecing together the little stories of God’s provision and grace. We live in the reality that God’s Word and promises are true: “The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.” (Psalm 23.1).
Potatoes, as they come out of the field, are not much to look at. They are an ugly brown, covered with dirt, and unshapely. The “good ones” are rock hard. Many have odd looking things projecting out from the main part of the body. I wonder who ever thought of eating these ugly, useless looking items.
As the snow covered our lawn and driveway this past Friday, my mind was on Opening Day for the Detroit Tigers – which happens to be today in Chicago. Fortunately we have another week for the landscape to warm-up before the Home Opener on April 5. And, at least at this point, the forecasts look good for both the first weekend of the season in Chicago and the second here in Detroit … with temperatures in the low 50’s all the way around.
We are still watching “Heartland” reruns on UpTV. We recently went through what seemed like an entire season in which one of the sub-plots was the pending engagement of Ty and Amy. Early in the season Ty bought the ring and had an evening set up for the proposal. Then Amy said something that made Ty think that she was not interested in being engaged at that time. While he stepped out to reconsider, she accidently found the ring in a pocket of his jacket next to his ringing cell phone. Thinking Amy wanted her independence, Ty put proposing in the back of his mind. Meanwhile Amy, knowing of the ring, wondered why Ty was having second thoughts.
Tomorrow is March 1st, and the age-old question is, “Will it come in like a lion or a lamb?” The forecasts I have seen call for the weather to be dry and cool. We may even see the sun poke its head out of the clouds in the middle of the day. That sounds like a lamb to me, so we better be aware come Holy Week. Easter this year is March 31 …
This week I visited a lady at a nursing home whom I had never met before. She is about 20 years older than I, and it sounded like she had been a resident of the home for a good many years. She was confined to a wheelchair and spoke with a voice so soft I struggled to hear many of her words. It sounded like she said that she had no family around who visited her. She had called a church asking for a pastor to visit, so I stopped by. As I exited the home, I praised God for her cheerful disposition that did not seem to have been dampened in the least by her struggles.
