Car Trouble

I was driving home from work when I stopped at a red light. Then, when the light turned green Spiffy, my car, decided he didn't want to go anywhere. I was stuck. He claimed his battery was dead and refused to do anything. So there I was, all by myself on a busy street with a car that wouldn't go anywhere. I couldn't push it out of the way by myself. I took a deep breath and tried to restart it. Nothing. I watched as cars got antsy behind me and I waved them on, telling them to go around. And I watched as the green light turned red again and back to green.

I tried to call my dad but he didn't answer. Apparently he had gone out and forgot his phone. So I called the owner of the Bed and Breakfast I work at, I had just left from there and it wasn't too far away so I figured they could come help fastest, she said they would be right there. I had a few strangers stop to make sure I was alright while I waited for them to come. I felt relief knowing I could tell them I had help coming. Then one of my mom's co-workers from forever ago showed up to help, he was on his way home from work and saw me. The four of us managed to get my car to the side of the road and I called AAA so I could get it towed to my mechanic. I later found out that one of my best friends was right across the street the whole time and she came over to wait for the tow truck with me.

Within seconds I was alone with a car stuck in the middle of the road, and within seconds I was surrounded with people, strangers, acquaintances, and friends alike, all ready to help. Over a week later I am still without a car, and when they do figure out what is wrong with it, I have no idea how I’m going to pay for it, but there is still light in this story. I was not in the middle of the intersection. And God certainly used this incident to teach me some very important lessons.

God works in mysterious ways. He certainly used this event to teach me to stay calm and trust Him. And through it He also showed me how many people there are in my life who will help when I need it most. Once I got home I was able to list off at least five more people I could've called who also would have been right there to help. But I also wonder if my car was supposed to break down. Just so I could get some experience with what to do in that situation before I end up in a place where I don’t have anyone nearby who could help. A way to prepare me for the future.

It was certainly a scary experience, and one I hope I won’t have to deal with again any time soon. But now I know how many people are there to help if it does. And I certainly needed a reminder of that. Sometimes God uses the strangest, most random times, like some car trouble, to remind you of the most important things. What has God reminded you of recently?

 

9/11 stories

Tomorrow is a significant day in history. Tomorrow is the 15 year anniversary of 9/11. A day where everyone remembers what they were doing. This post is a little different than my previous posts. This one is special. It’s sort of a post leading up to the real post. Being the writer that I am, I am fascinated with stories. So, I want to hear your stories. Where were you on 9/11? What stories do you have? Please share them! Write a comment here or go to my Facebook page at Jessica Page  Send me a message or post it there. Then I would like to compile your stories into a special blog post. If you would like to remain anonymous just let me know and I will honor your request. There is no time limit on when to send your stories in. If they don't make it into this years post I will save them for next year. Let’s help each other remember this day in history!

 

 

Update: I did not receive enough stories to compose a blog post this year. But please keep sending your stories and I will put together a post for next year. Thank you to those who shared stories, and I look forward to reading any more stories that people have!

The Right Order

Today my parents are celebrating their 24th wedding anniversary. I'm honestly not sure if I know a single couple who loves one another as much as they do and as long as they have. That got me thinking about what makes a long lasting marriage and I realized, a lot of it, has to do with doing things in the right order. There is an order to things and when that order is followed it becomes much more likely that the relationship will last longer. People all have different ideas of what this "right order" is. And just so there are no misunderstandings, I’m not saying any one of them is either wrong or right. What I would like to do, though it will require revealing things about myself that I’m still not sure I want to share, is to share with you what my idea of the right order is.

I have a motto. I catch myself saying it over and over again. It is “friends before more than friends.” This means that I believe part of a strong romantic relationship is being good friends before you cross that line. If there is a strong friendship there before two people become romantically involved with each other then I believe it is much more likely that the relationship will stay strong. My parents were friends first. They tell me stories of all the fun things they did together before they were even dating. You hear about people saying they married their best friend and that’s why they are still together, well how could that happen if someone jumped into a romantic relationship before that lasting friendship was established? It can't. You can learn a lot about someone while just being friends. People aren’t afraid to show their true colors to a friend, whereas when trying to impress a girlfriend or boyfriend they’re on their best behavior.

So what about when a friendship becomes a romantic relationship? I personally don't believe in dating. I know I know, crazy right? But I have never seen the point in it. Why be in a romantic relationship with a whole bunch of guys when you're really only looking for one? And guys, this goes for you too. Do we really want to be with a whole bunch of people, only wasting time while waiting for the right one? I believe that when the time is right your one true love will come into your life. It may be a stranger, or a best friend from forever ago, but whoever it is they will come. We just need to be patient. So, I don't believe in dating. The only reason I see for dating is if you are considering marriage with this person. And I mean serious about marriage. I see it as the transition point between being friends and getting engaged. I know that society has a very different view on this subject than I do. I know you probably do too. And I am not trying to change your minds, I’m just sharing my thoughts.

So, dating. I have made a commitment to myself and to God that I will not kiss a guy until I am engaged to him. I know, unheard of right? You hear of kids having their first kiss at ten or maybe even younger. I pride myself on the fact that I haven't had mine. I am not afraid to admit it. It's a special event in someone’s life. Don't you want to save that special moment, that special kiss, for your future wife or husband? I want to be able to tell my children that my first kiss was with their father, not some guy I can't even remember the name of.

In my opinion society these days seems to have things in the wrong order. There are these unwritten rules for relationships that I personally see no point in. For example, a couple seems to think that a logical step in a relationship is moving in together. I honestly can't even comprehend why this makes any sense. Living together is a special thing that comes after marriage. There are better ways to really get to know someone than to live together. Being good friends first for example. If you have all of those special milestones before you're married then what happens when that jump is actually made?

So, now that I’ve put myself out there and probably contradicted everything society thinks is "normal" in a romantic relationship, maybe it will encourage you to take a step back and ponder your view on the subject. Whether you agree with me or not, it’s always a good idea to ponder your view on things every once in a while. Maybe it will change your view, maybe it won’t. And maybe it will help you get to your 24^th wedding anniversary.

Please feel free to comment and tell me what your idea of the “right order” is. I would love to know!

                           Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!!

My Lifeguard Walks On Water

June 12th 2011. Just over five years ago. On that day I officially became a lifeguard. It took a lot for me to get to that point. I've never been one to take on that kind of responsibility lightly. You are guarding people’s lives. Keeping them safe. Helping them if something does go wrong. It's a lot to put on a person. But five years ago I took on that responsibility. I became a lifeguard. And I am so glad I did. Now jump forward to June 12th 2016 and we find that on that day I officially became a lifeguard instructor. I am now not only responsible for guarding people’s lives at the pool, I am now responsible for teaching new lifeguards how to do that job. And I have to say, it’s a bit stressful.

Summer is now here and all the pools and beaches are opening. Seeing lifeguards will be the norm. And we will trust that these lifeguards know what they're doing and will keep us safe. It's so easy to trust someone in a lifeguard shirt. We don’t know who trained them, we don’t know if they remember everything they learned, we don’t know if they are having a bad day and aren’t paying attention, but yet we trust them with our lives without question. We tend to put so much trust in the human beings around us. But we're only human. We're flawed. Why do we find it to be so easy to trust other flawed humans, but yet we find it so hard to trust that one lifeguard who is not, and never will be, flawed?

The lifeguard I am referring to is the one who walks on water. Jesus. I think about how much responsibility I have and how much responsibility these young kids now have and I worry that when something goes wrong, will I, will they, respond correctly? We are only human after all. But we have to remember that the lifeguard on the deck is not the only one watching. And we need to trust that the other lifeguard, the one who walks on water, will watch over us and make sure we are safe.

Lifeguards have a lot of responsibility. I have great respect for a lifeguard who does their job well and you should too. But when you feel like you’re drowning in this crazy life, remember that it is important to trust other humans, but it is also important to trust Jesus. He is the lifeguard who will always be watching over you. And who doesn’t want someone who can walk on water to be their lifeguard?