Friends,

My blog relaunch has been a bust. I said I would start posting on Tuesdays and Thursdays with the theme of Psalms and Puritans, respectively, but somehow I haven’t quite hit my stride.

This summer we’ve been sharing cars. Part of the time it was four drivers for three cars, then four drivers for two cars, then three drivers for two cars. It actually worked pretty well. I do not take for granted the extra time I spent with my husband and college son this summer, riding together and dropping off, and many days just staying home. Still, the last few weeks I have been looking for a car, test driving quite a few, and looking for a low-mileage, good deal. On Tuesday I brought home a white Pathfinder which I have oddly wanted since my days as a Stetson Hatter. My friend Maria had one then, and I thought she was the coolest and that her wheels were the gold standard. I had another friend Jenn who got an Explorer a couple of years later. I could not stop calling her car the Pathfinder.

“Do you want to take the Pathfinder?” I’d say.

“It’s an Explorer,” she’d say.

But the point is, at the advent of the SUV era, only Pathfinders made the cut in my mind, and now I have one, a white one like Maria’s to boot.

Will was rounding at the hospital this morning and met Sam and me at church. My Pathfinder has ApplePlay, which I have had before, but not in my most recent car. It’s such a fabulous feature for many reasons, but my favorite thing is to use Siri to text and drive. Will had sent me a message that I laughed uproariously at — he’s a very funny guy, but I don’t know why this particular line struck me as so funny.

Then Siri, unbeknownst to me, recorded my response. She said, “Your message says, ‘HAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.’ Ready to send it?”

I don’t know if I’ve written enough Ha Ha’s above. It went on and on and on and on. I wish I could have her read me that message to kick off every Sunday. Because Sunday should be a day full of joy, celebrating again that the tomb could not hold Our Savior, acknowledging that we are loved beyond measure, that God is Sovereign over all things, that He has never and will never leave His throne. The world may feel out of control and discouraging, but not the tiniest aspect of it has surprised Our God. He holds you in the palm of His hand and loves you with a patient devotion beyond comprehension.

As the exiles who returned were told in Nehemiah, “Eat the fat and drink the sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10b). I hope you recognize today — and every Sabbath — as a feast day to be celebrated. After all, the joy of the Lord is our strength!

With Love,

Kristie

P.S. I am hoping to be more faithful about posting in the coming weeks!