New Friends, Fellowship, and Milton Berle

Well, the latest storm should arrive in the next 24-30 hours. We should begin to experience some of it as early as mid-day tomorrow. But landfall will likely be in the middle of the night. Or about the time I typically go to sleep...LOL Current projections show it landing south of me. Where I am is expected to have minimal impact similar to all of the other hurricanes I've experienced here. My prayers go out for those in the path. It appears to be heading in the same path that the big one in 2022 took. This one is likely going to be less strong, though. It has been a very powerful storm in the gulf. However, there are some factors that are weakening the storm as it approaches land.

One of the things I've noticed since moving here is that the rest of the world seems to be more anxious about these storms than those who live here...LOL Part of that could be how it looks on the national and international news. They don't really do a good job talking about what these storms are and how they work. I totally get why it seems so scary to everyone else who doesn't live here. I use to live in Indiana and saw those reports. But the information we received down here in Florida paint a completely different story. There isn't a sense of panic. I personally do not follow the local news. I use an independent service that I pay a subscription for. They just give me the facts and they educate on how these weather events work. I've been able to share with my neighbors this information and it has helped them remain calm too. Of course, I preface it saying I'm no expert and I'm only sharing what I learn from the service. I also tell everyone that they need to make the decisions that work best for them and their families. I haven't told anyone they should stay home like I am. I just have a calm way about me that seems to bring comfort to others. At least that's what they tell me...LOL

I spent a lot of time outside today...hehehe Part of that was to get in as much time outside as I could before the storm. The best part, though, was spending time with neighbors. Being able to meet neighbors lately, and now having time to get to know them, is an answer to prayer. I no longer feel as isolated as I once did here. I spent some of the time with Autumn and Maddi in fellowship and prayer. I was also given a lot more time getting to know Valerie. I walked with her for about three hours...hehehe About thirty minutes of that was also walking with Autumn. The three of us walked to a nearby convenience store to run an errand for Autumn. Autumn invited me to join her and I invited Valerie to join us as well. But after that, it was just Valerie and I. Earlier in the day, Valerie and I also walked quite a ways on my lunch break. It was fun getting to know her better. We talked about so many different topics. This stage of friendships is a lot of fun...hehehe Discovery is always a part of any relationship. But this initial period is different because it is like a blank page of the book. The story begins!

She shared with me a few of her favorite things here. I really appreciated that. Those closest to me know I ask questions like what was your favorite moment today. But she openly shared these things without me asking. It felt intimate and special. Like she was opening a window into her heart. Of course, I don't know her well enough yet to know if that was something deep to her...LOL It is something I find deep, myself...hehehe If this friendship grows, I'll get to know how she communicates and will know more about what these sort of moments mean to her.

I began the new Bible study Cherie and I are doing. I think I may have talked about the Bible study before, but we had been doing a daily devotional for a little over six months. We did five, forty day, daily devotionals. Now, we are doing a weekly Bible study. This week, we are doing the introduction lesson. After that, we will be doing eight more lessons that align with each episode of season one of The Chosen TV series. So, it will take us nine weeks to go through this. I can already tell that this one will take us deeper than what the devotionals have done. And the devotionals felt pretty deep...LOL This is something I've really desired to be a part of. It has been quite a while since I've had a fellowship like this and I'm very grateful for it. These past six months have been such a blessing. I look forward to this continuing and growing.

Speaking of fellowships, Autumn, Maddi, and I discussed the idea of being more intentional with our fellowship time. For the past few weeks, we have been hanging out, praying, and just talking. Today, I brought up the idea of doing an in-home church here in our community. It can start with us and then we can invite others from our complex to join us. None of us are pastors. So, it will start off as just a fellowship gathering that will likely involve watching sermons online and listening to worship music from an iPhone. But we'll see where this goes. My very first church was one that started as an in-home church of seven people several decades ago...hehehe It grew into an official church that still exists today. Autumn had also been thinking about starting a church like this. It's something I'm praying about. If the Lord Wills it, this will happen. If He doesn't, it won't...LOL

More changes are coming at work. I can't talk about them yet. But it is something I will be praying about. It is something that reminds me that there is no such thing as stability in business...LOL I'm so glad I know that God is my provider. I remember those days when I thought working hard and earning a paycheck was something I was doing. Although I'm technically doing that, it is God who provides it all. So, when changes happen, I can trust that He will guide me as I navigate those changes. It helps me make better decisions knowing that He is the one providing and that I'm just doing what I need to as I follow His Will for it all...hehehe

I had a dream about the storm last night that came true today. I already had peace about how it will impact my area and my decision to remain at home. Having a dream and then it happening just adds to that peace. This isn't the first time I've had dreams that came to be later. I don't imagine it will be the last. I cannot say I understand how that works and why God would choose to reveal Himself in this manor. It happened in the Bible. So, I know I can trust that it is real. Are we meant to understand this? I would like to find out...hehehe I think I may bring this up with Pastor Doug. I still need to schedule our next chat. I'll try to remember to ask Him about dreams and visions.

On my last call with Pastor Doug, the main topic was about virtual church. He agreed that the season I'm currently in makes sense. The highlight word being season. Seasons have a beginning and an end. He believes in the importance of having an online stream option. However, he doesn't feel certain practices work virtually. For example, baptism really isn't a virtual option. Watching a baptism online isn't an issue. But a person cannot really be baptized without being physically present with the pastor. I suppose I get that. I still have questions about all this, but I'm beginning to think that what I thought about virtual church really isn't possible. When I first started thinking about it, I imagined that the entire church experience could be virtualized. But things like this baptism process might not work after all.

The big storm I've been talking about is named Milton...LOL When I first learned of its name, I couldn't help but imagine Milton Berle and his cigar in hand...LOL So, when I see the storm, all I can think of is the ghost of one of the funniest comedians of all time coming at us as he is smoking a cigar...LOL