Did you ever have a week when it felt like something was missing, but you didn't quite know what it was?
I had that kind of a week this past week. It felt like something was missing, and I could not figure out what it was. The past week was typical in many regards. Everything seemed to be going normal as normal could be. But I had this nagging thought in the back of my head that I was missing something. I really couldn’t get a handle on it. At first, I thought maybe I had missed my Apple Fritter. My New Year's resolution for this year was only to eat one Apple Fritter at a time. And as far as I can recollect, I have not missed one so far this year. I asked the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage if she knew of anything I missed. Well, that sure was a mistake. She had a whole list of things that, according to her schedule, I had forgotten to do,. It was almost a book full of “missing activities” that she thought I needed to catch up on. I should've known better, but after completing all her "tasks," I still had this little itch that there was something I was missing. As I pondered this, my wife comes up to me and says, "Could you run to the grocery store and get a few things that I need for tonight?" Of course, I was willing to go and do some shopping. I'm not a shopaholic, but when given a list, I can do the shopping. I had just put the last item into the shopping cart and was headed toward the checkout counter, and then, there it was! I never thought that I would solve my itching problem in the grocery store. But there it was. I was walking by the candy aisle, and there it was; several shelves full of CHOCOLATE. There were all sorts of chocolate candy on those shelves. I just froze and stared at all of that CHOCOLATE and let the ambience fill my mind. My wife cannot eat chocolate for some reason, but I love chocolate. We've not had chocolate in the house since before the pandemic, which may explain my nervous feelings. Nothing is more soothing and comforting to me than a cup of Joe in one hand and the delicious chocolate candy bar in the other hand. My only problem at this point was what not to buy. The chocolate that I love the most is the one I'm eating at the time. Not being judgmental, I selected one piece of chocolate from every shelf in that aisle. I filled my basket with chocolate candy. When I got to the cashier's counter, there seemed to be a huge weight lifted off me, and there seemed to come into my life a peace that I had not experienced for some time. Driving home, I began to think about how I will get all of this chocolate past my wife. I quickly put that aside focused on the delicious piece of chocolate I was eating at the time. I thought of a wonderful verse of Scripture. “Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you” (Philippians 4:9). God’s peace is the thing that most people are missing from their life today. [Dr. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of God Fellowship, 1471 Pine Road, Ocala, FL 34472. He lives with his wife in Silver Springs Shores. Call him at 352-216-3025 or e-mail jamessnyder2@att.net. The church web site is www.whatafellowship.com.] |
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