WHEN IT POURS

We have just arrived in Delaware on the North-East side of Columbus, Ohio having travelled west and south from Niagara Falls. It was a 335 mile journey but the little Yaris did a fine job and Hertza, the Sat-Nav, proved faithful once again. But what a day!

We woke up to hear the news that there had been a shooting in Buffalo - just near Niagara Falls - and 4 people had died. When we arrived in Delaware, having come through torrential rain, thunder and lightning, perhaps the worst storm I have ever driven through in my life, we switched the news on and were greeted by a tornado warning just to the south of where we are staying! We quickly read the 'Tornado Warning' advice in the Guest Information in our room so that made us feel a lot better!

It is a reminder that life goes on all around, some things the result of people's choices and others the result of the weather patterns, but we get caught up in it and we need to find ways to respond to it. Some things we can have an influence on others we can just pray, but there is always something we can do if we would learn to respond to those promptings from God that come to us all, all the time.

Here's a trivial incident that happened to us when we visited Niagara Falls the other day. If you read my earlier blog you'll know that we crossed the Rainbow Bridge and spent a hour or so in Canada. There is a full border crossing there - Kerry was delighted to get a 'stamp' in her passport from the Canadian border guard (she doesn't get out much!) - but to get back into the US across the same bridge you have to pay a toll! This took us by surprise and also the two ladies who were in front of us. They didn't understand English (or American) too well and were struggling to understand the written sign that said that the toll was 50 cents and you needed two quarters to put in the slot. It soon became clear that they only had one quarter between them so we gave them the other three they needed. They were very pleased we had done this and we discovered that they were Italian.

As we walked on we heard them saying something about Americans, so we made sure we turned back and let them know that we were kind and generous English people! We wanted the thanks to go to the right place!

The following day (Friday 13) we went into the city of Rochester to search for a particular clothing store for a particular member of our family (not Kerry!), found it, pulled in to park on the road to find that there were parking meters we had to feed. Not sure how much this was going to cost, I parked, got out of the car and there at my feet in the road, was a quarter. I picked it up, went to the meter to find that I needed a quarter to park there for 26 minutes! (Yes, that was all the time we spent in the clothes shop – Karl!).

You give three away, you get one back! Is that how God's blessings are poured out? I should say now that God gives so much more than we give, but where are the other two, or three, or four...... he owes me?

Of course I know it doesn't work like that. I'm just thankful that we got through the storm, that we are just to the north of the tornado (I hope!) and that God has so much more to pour down on me that I won't be able to hold it all myself.

Keep dry, but keep looking for ways to pour out God's blessings on the people you meet today.