"Holy Cow!"

​A family in our church is wanting to sell their current starter home in a small city about 15 miles from our church. They’re looking for something a bit larger and in a smaller community. They told me recently about a certain house they found in the town only a couple miles from where we live, so I decided to check it out on one of the real estate websites. As I scrolled through pictures of the house, it struck me as a home that would be good for their family. 

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And then “Holy Cow!” (A phrase of joyful surprise that entered my vocabulary years ago from listening to Twins radio announcer Halsey Hall call a home run.) Something familiar caught my eye as I flipped from photos of one room to the next. It couldn’t be - could it?! I zoomed in on a painting on the wall. Sure enough! It was a watercolor painting of a dragonfly that Violet had done years ago.  How cool is that! Again, "Holy Cow!"

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Later that same evening Violet and I were driving through town and I noticed in one of the backyards a yard-art fish Violet had sold at least ten years ago.  The sight of that fish took me back to the day that creation was sold at a fund-raising auction. I remembered how excited the buyers of that fish were as the auctioneer pointed to them indicating they had the winning bid! They were thrilled as they came up to tell Violet about “the perfect spot” in their yard where they were going display her creation! And, "Holy Cow!" it is still in that spot after all these years!

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As I thought about those two by-chance sightings, it occurred to me that there is an important “Simple Truth” lesson in those experiences: 

God often puts us into people’s lives just to brighten their day. Some of those day-brighteners are “here today and gone tomorrow.” But every-so-often one of them just keeps on giving and makes a lasting difference in someone’s life.

At the time, we never know which things we say or do will last and which will be momentary. The key is to remember this:  Our job is to simply do things that bring joy. God is in charge of how long they keep on bringing that joy. (But, Holy Cow! What a joy it is when He gives us a glimpse of the things we’ve done that have remained!)

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