Affirmation

People who find God under every rock can be annoying to me. They like to tell you, “God told me to do this … God told me to do that … God showed me this … God showed me that … God told me to say this … God told me to say that …” Sometimes I think that kind of talk is more a show of self-righteousness or insecurity than it is God’s guiding hand.

Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that God is everywhere present, I do believe that God is sovereign, and I do believe that everything that happens in this world God either causes or allows. I also believe that we can sense God’s presence, and be guided by God’s Spirit. I just feel that we need to be very careful about telling others what we think God is doing, and that most of the time we should use that form of sharing to encourage and support others. For example, we can build someone up by pointing out virtues that we see in their life, and follow that up by saying something like “God really shines through you in that way.”

So I am always hesitant to mention where I think I see God showing up in my life, but I will make an exception today.

One of the things I had planned to do in Puerto Vallarta was watch how people respond to beggars. In old town PV beggars often are young mothers who simply sit on the sidewalk with a plastic cup in front of them. My plan was to watch from afar for a half hour or so and record how many people walk by a beggar without giving anything, and record how many actually drop some money in the cup.

It just so happens that today, the day I left for Puerto Vallarta, there was a feature article in the Salt Lake Tribune entitled, “Can Believers Really Pass by the Beggar?” A Tribune Writer and Photographer spent 30 minutes documenting how people responded to a beggar in downtown Salt Lake City. The man sat there with a plastic cup in front of him, and during the next 30 minutes 34 people walked by him without giving anything, and 2 people dropped some money in the cup.

Now the fact that that article appeared in the newspaper could just be a meaningless coincidence with my plan to participate in the same social experiment here, or it could be an affirmation of my intention for this trip. In fact, I’d just like to accept that as an affirmation from God, and thank God for emboldening me through that coincidence.

God is near you, God is with you, God is for you, and God is in you.

My Lovely Wife

Sheri and I have been together since Earth Day, April 22, 1998.

We met through a dating service, which at the time was called At The Gate, but which is now called Green Singles. This was before the age of widespread Internet usage, and the dating service would place little ads in the back of certain magazines. For $29 you could become a member and receive the master listing of all available singles, and then spend a $1 for each letter that you sent to someone through the anonymous PO Box. I read her profile and was interested (SWF, likes to camp, etc.), she lived in the same area of the country, and so I sent a letter to her through the system.

We met at the Au Bon Pain (“Oh Good Bread”) in L’Enfant Plaza in Washington, DC. We sat at a table and drank sodas until the restaurant closed, and then went outside to sit and continue the conversation. It was a brief visit because I had to hurry and catch the last commuter train to the small town where I lived.

4 weeks later we were talking marriage, which was pretty extraordinary since both of us were 37 years old, never married, and at that point thinking that marriage was probably not in the picture … and then bam!

When I speak to her, I usually call her Sweetie. But when I talk about her, I often call her My Lovely Wife. I also like to introduce her as My Lovely Wife, and she appreciates that.

Lovely

Charmingly or exquisitely beautiful: a lovely flower.
Having a beauty that appeals to the heart or mind as well as to the eye, as a person or a face.
Of great moral or spiritual beauty: a lovely character.
Here we are a few years ago:

How to Become Rich

She was a good athlete, but not good enough to earn a scholarship. Her parents could not afford to send her to college, so she enrolled in the local community college and signed up for one course (which is all she could afford).

Then she spent several days applying for jobs all over town, and got rejected time after time. Often she was not even offered an application, but eagerly filled out each one that was offered. She took her time and filled in all the necessary information, and always presented the completed application with a smile.

Two days before her class was to begin, she got a call from a fast-food restaurant. They needed someone to work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night from 6:00 PM until Midnight. She eagerly accepted the job, and though the shift hours did not appeal to her at first because she would not be able to spend time with family and friends at those times, she reasoned that this would be good because it would not conflict with her community college class schedule.

After the first quarter she had saved enough money to take 2 classes in the winter. Spring quarter she took 3 classes. After 3 years she had enough credits to transfer to the University. By now she was working 32 hours a week, but she had become a shift manager at the fast-food restaurant, and so she no longer had to work every weekend night, and she could arrange her work schedule around her class schedule. Though she budgeted and saved carefully, she habitually gave money to local shelters and other charities, and she always seemed to have money available to give to those who needed help. She also volunteered regularly.

She graduated with honors 6-1/2 years after she started. All during her last year in college she worked as an intern part-time for an industrial supply company. Since she was so reliable and helpful as an intern, the company created a position for her upon graduation. They were not really hiring at the time, and they could not offer her much of a starting salary, but she gratefully accepted the position.

Interestingly, one of the company’s primary clients was the restaurant chain where she had worked while in school, and her familiarity with their equipment and supplies proved to be a valuable asset to her new employer.

She worked her way up in the organization over many years, and became a division Director. She was widely known for being a trustworthy, efficient, and fair member of management. She retired from the company after she had worked there 30 years.

Along the way she had married, raised a family, and then became a doting grandmother. Her husband was a mechanic, but after 35 years of doing that his body could take it no longer. She finally convinced him to retire as well.

She spent her twilight years living in the same house she had bought with her husband early in their marriage. It was a simple but well-kept home in the blue-collar section of town. Everyone was welcome in their home.

She grew wiser and more loving every day for the rest of her life, and died peacefully in her sleep.

Clothing

I like to think that my wife and I live frugally with regard to clothing. We buy most of our clothes at thrift stores, yard sales, and consignment shops. Not only does this save us a lot of money on clothing, but in a small way it supports the sustainability of our environment. And periodically, both of us will go through our closet and remove garments that we rarely wear, and set aside a pile of clothes to be taken to a thrift store. We like to keep things in circulation.

The environmental movement’s oft repeated slogan is: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Reclaim

But in spite of our best efforts to live lightly upon the earth, I just did a quick inventory of my own clothing and here is what I found:

  • 27 long sleeve shirts
  • 18 short sleeve shirts
  • 11 sweaters, turtlenecks, and other pullovers
  • 14 pairs of pants
  • 6 pairs of jeans
  • 14 pairs of shoes
  • Dozens of other garments

Lord willing, the last week of October I will cross paths with the disadvantaged of Puerto Vallarta. I wonder how the quantity and quality of the clothing that I enjoy compares to the clothing worn by those I will soon meet.

I Will Take Your Money

Lord willing, I will leave for Mexico on October 24th to volunteer for a week at a few different charities. I will be blogging while I am in Mexico, so I welcome you to join me on this journey. You can find my blog at http://fotopala.com/blog/.

If you would like to donate to this effort, I would be happy to assist you with that gift. My wife and I are paying all my travel expenses, and God has already provided us the funds for the trip, so we do not need your help in that area.

However, here are a few different ways for you to give:

Option 1: There are many indigent women and children who sit on the sidewalks of Puerto Vallarta with a plastic cup in front of them. I suspect that 10 pesos (approx. $1 dollar) would be enough to feed a family like this for a whole day, and when I walk around the streets of Puerto Vallarta I would like to give away as many 10 peso coins as possible. If you would like to give in this way, send me the money and I will carry it to Mexico and give away every last peso.

Option 2: In Puerto Vallarta the following charities are providing some wonderful services: