Last evening I stayed up a little late before going to bed.

Now just for the record….I was NOT Pinteresting.  Hee hee.

I was sitting in the stillness of the sunroom, contemplating words on the illuminated screen before me, listening to the sounds of the night, observing the sky lighting up in the distance, and glimpsing an occasional firefly dance past my window when I heard the strangest sound, from what I assumed was a vehicle, making its way down the street in front of my house.  If I were a caller on Car Talk, Ray or Tom would probably have had me make the noise in order to identify the problem.  But, you’ll just have to imagine the rather loud rhythmic thurlicking sound, accompanied with fast-paced footfalls on the still warm pavement, in our sleepy neighborhood.

The air became quiet again.  I continued reading.

And then I heard skaheeersh…..KaaahRAK!  WaaaHoOMp!

Those sounds captured my attention!  I set my laptop down and walked to the great room windows to see a young man and young woman running up the street.  I overheard him say to her, “It’s going to be okay!  It’s going to be okay!  It’s going to be okay!  Along with a few more inaudible words mixed in between as they made their way past my house at a feverish pace.

That last bit of observation confirmed in my mind that a vehicle hit an object at the end of the street.  As I replayed the sequence of sounds in my mind, I was certain that those two young adults had been running after their vehicle.

Standing at the window, peering into the darkness I was wondering where the vehicle had stopped.   But then my attention was again immediately diverted as I again heard the sounds of feet running hard down the road and voices exclaiming, “Parking brake.”  This time one of the hands held a powerful flashlight which was scanning the landscape in my direction.

With great interest I watched.  And then, there it was, no longer shrouded in the darkness.  My neighbor’s small green pick-up truck was in my next door neighbor’s front yard, parked in the rhododendrons with its nose at the front door.  An elderly widower lives there.  Can you imagine what a fright he had when his house became the abutment to a moving vehicle?

A small SUV moved down the street, parked at an angle in the middle, and became a huge spotlight.  The trees and truck and house were brightly illuminated and I could clearly see the result of all those strange sounds.

Excited voices could be heard.  And then the truck roared to life, its lights popped on and the driver backed it up and drove it across the offended front lawn, and parked it in the street across from its previous gravitational stop.  Another neighbor joined in the conversation which continued in the street for a little bit, and then the truck was driven around the corner to the alley, everyone returned to their houses, and it was quiet.

You have made the Lord your defender,
the Most High your protector,
and so no disaster will strike you,
no violence will come near your home.
God will put his angels in charge of you
to protect you wherever you go.

Psalm 91:9-11

The Bible – Good News Translation

The sequence of events unfolded in my mind.  Our neighbor’s daughter had come home and parked her father’s small pick-up truck across the street from their Craftsman-style stone-house, which is up the hill from my house, and somehow the parking brake appears to be the culprit.  The truck rolled down the street with the young women running after it and past my car.   The same white blessing I had driven to church earlier in the evening, prayed over, and given thanks for as I made that 25 minute drive.  It, too, was parked in the street.    Through all of this commotion, people had run back and forth past my car.  No one seemed to take notice it was there.  I went out my front door to survey my freshly washed car.  Under the glow of the street light it looked the same as always.   We live on a gentle hill and a narrow street.   The unaccompanied truck rolled down the street with help of gravity and should have sheared off the side of our car, or at the very least, snapped off the side mirror.  And yet 75 feet from our car, the truck had careened into my neighbor’s house.

I closed the windows thinking the storm was quickly approaching, and went to bed.  In the darkness I thought about my desire to give thanks for our car earlier in the evening, even asking God to keep it in like-new working order.   Was my car preserved as an answer to my prayer and heart of gratitude?  Or was there an angel standing in the street protecting my car?  I don’t know.   I know that my neighbors are believers also.  Why was their vehicle not protected?  Did the daughter forget to put on the break?  Was there a whisper of a reminder that she didn’t hear?  Why didn’t her angel protect her father’s truck?  Again, I don’t know.

What I do know is that I am grateful for his protection.  I know that given the laws of nature, my car should have received damage which it didn’t.  Again, I am grateful.   I also know that whether God obviously protects me, or allows the laws of nature to take their course without interference, for my growth and benefit, he is a good God.  And most of all he loves me with an everlasting love.

And here WE are again…

together, celebrating Joy Day, and the Giver of every good and perfect gift.

Here I am, with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude, counting just seven from this past week:

• Moved to tears at worship, singing a song I used to sing with “my” kids.
• Finding encouragement in writing.  Another blogger asking to re-post one of MY posts.
• A long walk with my husband and the fun of discovering nature’s delights along the way.
• A corner of the yard improved after an evening of dripping hard work – together.
• Shelves up and organization more than a possibility.
• One car preserved from damage.
• Counting an unbelievable 85 new fans on my Facebook business page in one week.

Will you join me in counting gifts, too?

Please share ONE THING in the comment section below from your week.  

Seven if you can.  

Joyfully!

Diane

Take the Joy Dare at: One Thousand Gifts.   Or find ONE THING to be thankful for each day and write it down.  Then, come back next week and share your joys here.

Sharing with these communities: Faith Filled Friday|Beholding Glory + Graceful Faith in Everyday|Hear it on Sunday, Use it on Monday  + Playdates|Wellspring with God + Time Warp Wife|Titus 2sday Link up Party + Denise in Bloom

 *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *  *  *  *  *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

 Thanks for reading!  

Please stop by Longaberger Lifestyle 

Through Horizon of Hope®, we all can reach out and change women’s’lives forever in beautiful ways. A portion of the proceeds from every Horizon of Hope product will be donated to the American Cancer Society®.

Handwoven Horizon of Hope Market Basket