The Surprise
With the approach of the Thanksgiving season, many are experiencing a heightened sense of gratitude. Although it may not appear on the surface as if our society is desiring to be thankful, I beg to differ. I believe anger, fear, hurt, and sadness are a longing to be thankful.
When we look at what it means to be thankful, we think of our family, our health and wellness, our finances, our freedom. Those are all wonderful things to be thankful for; but I think we should go deeper.
It is being thankful in all things, all circumstances. In good and bad times. It is radiating gratitude in our everyday lives. In doing so, we can be thankful in every season.
I don’t pretend to be a master at this, but when I re-focus my heart and mind on thankfulness, I find I am thankful for little things and big things. In doing so, I am more inclined to share that gratefulness with others.
As we traveled through Florida, we experienced unexpected levels of gratitude, in fact, I think we were purposely thanking God for so many things we experienced. Tranquility in a state park where it seemed we were the only ones there, the power of prayer, healing from difficult conversations, chance encounters with God’s creatures – even the migration of the monarch butterflies! But one event filled our hearts with a moment of thankfulness, of which we will never forget.
It was very hot in Florida – I know, big surprise. Too much of our time was spent in the comfort of our air conditioning. In a 300 square foot RV, the goal isn’t to stay inside. However, on Sunday afternoons during football season, we do not mind being inside to catch a few games.
On what seemed like a normal Sunday, our dearly beloved Pittsburgh Steelers weren’t playing. The games that were on, were definitely not keeping us on the edge of our seats. We would have had more fun spending the day at the beach. This Sunday as it turns out, we were glad we didn’t.
Later in the afternoon, I suggested we go outside, despite the heat, to get some fresh air. I brought along our cat, Sophie, since she loves to be outside with us. As we sat outside the RV, out of the corner of our eye, we noticed people walking by. It is customary to offer a friendly wave, so we obliged.
Halfway through the wave, I realized those people looked like someone we knew. They looked a lot like our good friends Sue and Rob! Even though I couldn’t believe my eyes, I immediately jumped-up, threw the cat inside the RV, and went running to hug them! Jim seemed to be stunned, in an almost catatonic state. He eventually came to and was as excited as me. Tears of joy were flowing!
A little background on our friendship. Sue is Jim’s cousin and Rob is her husband. When Jim and I were planning our wedding, there was no doubt in Jim’s mind that Rob would be his best man. I had chosen my maid of honor but hadn’t even processed who my bridesmaids would be. Until one night.
We were camping with Jim’s family and Sue and Rob came for a visit. It was that evening that I knew Sue would be one of my bridesmaids. I cannot tell you to this day why, as we were still getting to know each other, but God knew. I believe He was nudging me to include her. Six years later there are no words to describe how perfect it was to have both celebrate our day with us in this special way.
Our friendship has only grown over the years. We even had “date nights”, typically dinner on Friday nights. We would get together to just enjoy each other’s company. Sometimes talking for so long, we would forget to eat!
It was Sue and Rob who talked about their idea of RVing that one fateful night when our live changed forever. In fact, they even offered to let us stay on their property for a few months before we launched, so we could prepare for this adventure. They supported us, helped with questions, practice runs with the RV, and even had 30-amp power run to the driveway!
Their friendship has meant the world to us and saying goodbye to them was difficult – to put it mildly. They planned to visit us for the New Year’s holiday so that helped soften the goodbyes. But now here they were – surprising us with a visit in October!!
As you have read in prior posts, Jim and I have been on a roller coaster of emotions during this journey. It was one night talking on the phone with Sue and Rob about those ups and downs, that they decided to book flights and come cheer us up.
To say we were thankful is an understatement! Not only did they listen to our trials, but they acted on the prompting of their heart, booked a flight, and surprised us with a visit. We didn’t realize how much we needed their presence until they were in front of us. We didn’t think we could be more thankful for their friendship than we already were, until they once again demonstrated their love for us.
We spent the next three joyous days exploring the area, enjoying the pool and beach, and just catching up. God worked through our friends to show us kindness in our time of need.
We do not believe in coincidences but rather God’s presence in our lives. When we purposely focused on thankfulness, even in the ups and downs, we find so much more to be thankful for. So, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to our dear friends for their love and support.
We also extend thankfulness to God for the journey he has blessed us with, the trials that come with the journey, the joy that comes from the journey, and the opportunity to extend love to others on that journey. May it give a sense of gratitude to those we encounter along the way.
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
