I had just finished reading about embarrassing moments...how God can use them, how embarrassing moments can bring humility into life. Believe me, I have had plenty o embarrassing moments. I learned a long time ago to turn them from well, embarrassing, to a wouldn't you know moment, duh I could have had a V-8 type of thing. There seems to be a recurring embarrassing moment through out my adult life and that is, back of skirt being tucked into Spanx, thus revealing my less than perfect side of me. Looks like the full, prairie style skirt is not going to be popular this year, so unless I wear some skirts from the recent past, this could be the first spring/summer this embarrassing happening event(s) will not take place. Numerous times, more than I would like to remember, the ol' skirt stuck in the Spanx happened while working at First Baptist. Fortunately, a friend or a woman in the hall would see me, warn me and then help me return to a decent, modestly dressed Christian woman. One time, I made it all the way into the Education Suite with my moon shining all over Miami and thankfully the outer office is (wo)maned by women and they helped restore my dignity. Whew, catastrophe avoided. Except one person who witnessed this incident, would not let it go. She went on and on about it, how embarrassed I must be, she was going to call my friends to tell them what happened. It almost bordered into unkindness. Seemed a little more malicious than others might see it to be. It was direct and agenda driven...maybe due to insecurities. Who knows? During her diatribe I remember thinking, if I teased you like this, you would cry, tell on me and maybe even run home and be sick for a couple of days. It was at that point the perspective had to be turned and I admitted that skirt in the Spanx usually is a fat girl problem and since I'm fat, this will always have to be something that requires a little more attention to detail. I have since found out that the ol' skirt in the Spanx isn't necessarily a fat problem, it is an attention to detail issue.
On the road back to eating healthy, and I think I am up to eating healthy about 85% now, I've needed to find something that helps me with my rediscovered and oh so upset by the lack of attention, sweet tooth. While going through our junk drawer and I hope everyone has one of those, I found a Cool Whip dessert recipe from my First Place days. Added fresh fruit, some some sugar free Jell-O, and instant dessert, it seems to help. Sometimes I even add a slice of Angel Food Cake to the mix and it is oh so delicious. Today, I was making up a batch of said dessert and instead of using lime or orange, I went wild and used sugar free wild cherry. So, after a peanut butter sandwich came the dessert which is pink. Oh, so good. Some clean dishes and laundry then took my attention, so it was about 45 minutes before I brushed my teeth. Can you imagine much to my surprise while rinsing, all the water was pink. Stink, those blood thinners have made me start bleeding. Should I call the Dr? Is there some way to apply pressure to stop this incessant bleeding? Just about the time I was calling the Dr, it dawned on me...pink stuff dessert! That phone call was cut off quickly. Potentially embarrassing moment averted. Whew!
From time to time I run into people I played tennis against, not with. The conversation comes around to, are you still playing tennis? No. Why not? You were such a good player, I was always afraid to play you. My focus and attention to life changed. So, you never get out on the court and hit? You had one of the strongest serves and your forehand was devastating. No, don't play and your remembrance of my serve and forehand has grown grander in scale with the passing of time. Although today in the laundry I did see a t-shirt that I wore when I played tennis that said, "For your own safety, please do not feed the forehand." That grand statement of a t-shirt is now one of my lovely cleaning the house frocks. Many times while talking with these former opponents, I remember their bad line calls, the too quick call of a wide serve and maybe several different ways they conspired to win. I'm embarrassed that those thoughts flood back to mind. Tennis has no meaning now, but apparently there is something still there for me to go to in my mind. Thankfully, there is a filter in place and those thoughts aren't expressed to them, but sometimes it is only by the skin of my teeth. There is a huge lesson for me not to recall specifically the bad but remember the whole true picture and the good that came to me from the Lord through all those tennis years.
To me the best tennis players were those who could take the power generated by opponents and create a winning drop shot. The key is not to add your own power to the shot, but positioning the racket to absorb the shock and gently placing an nonreturnable shot two inches just past the net. Power was not my problem in tennis, but developing a gentle drop shot was. It came through concentrated work, lessons and finally experience to use it in the match.
Walk in the paths he shows you: Follow the life-map absolutely, keep an eye out for the signposts... then you'll get on well in whatever you do and wherever you go. I Kings 2:1 The Message
I'm learning on the path He shows me to let embarrassing moments do His work. His signposts are all around me. Let those things from the past that meant so much to me, teach me today in the lessons He has me practicing and studying presently. May I have a gentle and quiet spirit. May this be my prayer and desire. May His Word penetrate deeply into my heart.
Proverbs 4:20-22 (New Living Translation)
20 My child, pay attention to what I say.
Listen carefully to my words.
21 Don’t lose sight of them.
Let them penetrate deep into your heart,
22 for they bring life to those who find them,
and healing to their whole body.
This week's posts have looked back quite a bit but remembering the lessons from the past are just a part of the forward leaning of the present and future. I have no clue why I've wanted to write these things. Maybe it is due to ordering Monablog 2010 in book form. Reviewing last year while editing the book was enlightening. There is so much I had totally forgotten about, but so much to praise God in and for when being reminded.
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