Happy Memories (Conclusion)

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In John's carIn yesterday’s post I left you sitting in the back seat of our wedding getaway car listening to Nate’s surprise over the well-appointed gas station bathroom. We had changed out of our wedding clothes so as not to be conspicuous in the airport and were ready to focus on the task at hand: ditching the posse chasing us with a desire to punctuate our wedding night with pranks.

Our driver, John, headed for O’Hare with a line of cars hot on our trail and pulled up to the departure curb seconds ahead of them. Nate and I grabbed hands and bolted from the car into the crowded airport, hoping those in pursuit wouldn’t find out we weren’t actually flying anywhere.

Zig-zagging through mobs of travelers that Thanksgiving weekend, we darted into a gift shop and crouched behind a long display case, ignoring the stares of shoppers. Never mind that the case was glass on all 4 sides; it was the best we could do. It worked like a charm, though, because through the glass we got a glimpse of our pursuers running by, heading for the nearest gates. (No TSA to stop them in 1969.)

As soon as they passed our hiding place, we darted from the gift shop and ran back toward the street, crossing our fingers that John would just be completing his drive around the airport loop as we got there. Ideally we hoped to jump into his still-moving vehicle before our parade of pursuers saw us.

*               *               *               *               *               *               *               *

This memory of our post-wedding chase put a smile on my face last weekend as Nate’s and my anniversary date passed without him, once again. On our wedding day we were both 24 years old, and all was right with the world. Yet even during our romp through the airport, we were half-giggling and half-fearing. If our pursuers found us, would they really stick like glue all night? Might our marriage get off to a rocky start  because of whatever pranks they would pull?

That same conflict of feelings, giggling while fearing, reoccurred more than once in our 40 years together, not during any chase scenes but in everyday life. When threatening circumstances appeared, we tried to:

  • laugh, though nervous
  • smile, though anxious
  • giggle, though fearful

Actually, beneath those cheery exteriors, we might have been downright terrified, and God never wanted that. He wants all of us genuinely laughing, smiling, and giggling while letting him handle our nervousness, anxiety, and fear. But since our nature is to nurture the negatives and play down the positives, it takes willful determination on our part to follow his directive. When we do, though, our lives will be characterized by lots of joy.

The DrakeAs for Nate and I, all that nervousness was for naught. John was waiting at the airport curb, our pranksters never found us, and we giggled (without fear) all the way back to The Drake, where we had a short but very sweet honeymoon.

“Anxiety weighs down the heart.” (Proverbs 12:25)

Happy Memories

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The four days of Thanksgiving weekend included the 4th time I’ve come to my wedding anniversary without my husband. So on Friday, November 29, my thoughts floated between 1969 and 2013. It would have been 44 years.

As I told my children, though, this year wasn’t as difficult as the year before, which wasn’t as difficult as the year before that. A broken heart does mend, because it’s God who’s working gently within, doing the healing himself. And part of that is his pointing me back to the good times Nate and I had together.

The receptionAs I looked at wedding pictures this weekend and thought about that day, God reminded me of a funny incident after our reception. Back in the sixties it was common for a bride and groom to be “pranked”, so it was important to have a getaway plan.

Nate’s friend John from law school agreed to be our driver and seemed a safe bet, since none of our friends knew him or his car.

Our honeymoon destination was The Drake Hotel, only 1½ miles from Moody Church, so it was critical no one find out where we were going. If they did, they’d be knocking on our door all night, harassing us with phone calls, dogging our every move.

featured_Drake_Snow_BannerNate had stored his car (and our suitcases) near The Drake a week before the wedding, so all we had to do was get ourselves there without being followed. The plan was to first head for O’Hare Airport, making everyone believe we were flying out of town. Then we could double back to The Drake for a peaceful, private honeymoon.

Rice throwingAfter the rice was thrown and we were safely in John’s back seat, a trail of cars set out following us, as expected. John did his best to lose them, but the chase was on, and even red lights didn’t stop them.

Earlier in the day I’d put my long coat in John’s car and Nate had added his own clothes. He didn’t think it appropriate to change in the back seat, so en route to the airport, John pulled into a filling station. The chasing cars hung back, ostensibly waiting for us to gas up, but Nate grabbed his clothes, crouched down, and raced to the bathroom door. In the back seat, I slipped out of my gown and into my coat.

MirrorWhen Nate returned, he said, “That was the nicest bathroom! It had a full length mirror and everything!”

“That,” we said, “was because it was the women’s bathroom.” (We’d all seen the sign.)

*               *               *               *               *               *

It was just a tiny memory on my anniversary without Nate, but God used it to prompt gratitude. All widows have hundreds of happy recollections like that, and it’s wisdom to summon them up in order to transform a broken heart into a thankful one. And what better weekend to do it than Thanksgiving?

[Chase conclusion tomorrow]

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Fit for Use

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The morning after Thanksgiving, while unloading the dishwasher, I noticed that nearly every piece of flatware we owned had been used the day before. The silverware basket was bulging with its load and represented about 10 pounds of knives, forks, and spoons nestled together in close quarters. But when I slid them out of the basket, each piece was sparkling clean.

UtensilsSince one of my sister’s 30-somethings and one of mine had signed on for Thanksgiving “clean-up”, they had done all the dishes the night before. And as I looked at that pile of sparkling knives, forks, and spoons, it was a marvel the dishwasher had transformed them so easily and thoroughly. The last time I’d seen them, they’d been gunked up with bits of turkey, greasy stuffing, and mashed potatoes. And they were unfit to use again until each had been dealt with “personally” by being cleaned. That included being stuffed into the dishwasher basket, followed by contact with soap, water, and heat.

The same is true of our inner selves. Each of us is continually fighting against smudges on us that are rightfully called sins. If we accumulate too many of them at once, we become unfit for God’s use, much like the dirty silverware. Every sin has to be dealt with personally, one at a time, and if we ignore them and let them pile onto us, the purposes God originally planned for us cannot be achieved.

Just like there are specific purposes for clean knives, forks, and spoons, each of us has a purpose, too, something God intended from the beginning. And within us he has established the abilities and talents we need to get his intended plans accomplished. Not only that, he made us so that we’d experience rich satisfaction in carrying out the very things he had in mind for us to do.

But just like dirty silverware has no purpose until it’s been cleaned, we, too, have to be clean to be used.

Fit for useThankfully there’s a way to get that done, and it’s linked to Jesus Christ. If we maintain a tender conscience toward our own sins, labeling them for what they are, he invites us to come to him for cleansing and promises to do it. Just like that dirty silverware, we can get sparkling clean again, becoming fit for his use because of his willingness to forgive us.

This Thanksgiving we decided to go casual, which is why I used my stainless steel flatware. I do own some sterling, but it seemed out of place with the rest of our décor. Maybe there is a place for the far more valuable sterling, though; once we’ve sought forgiveness and received clean-again status from the Lord, he views us as having the same sterling character as his Son. And that, he can use.

“We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)