Angels and Ghosts

"I believe there are angels among us,

Sent down to us from somewhere up above.

They come to you and me

In our darkest hour,

To show us how to live,

To teach us how to give,

And guide us with a light of love."

-Alabama

Did you know that you can hear me singing on that song?  Okay so it's not actually that song.  I was with a few other children on an earlier recording on the song, but for the life of me I can't remember who it was.  I do have the music video somewhere, though... on VHS... Anyway, thanks to Ms. Dawson, our Children's Choir Director who got me and a few friends from our church into the recording studios at age 8.  I remember feeling so cool with our headphones on one ear and slightly off the other.  How many kids got to do this?!  Not many, and it definitely impacted my future in the music industry.  Not that I'm doing anything with it now... But I do have a college degree in it!

But all of that is beside the point.  It just provided a nice little entrance into the goodness I'm about to share.  I have two stories.  One involves angels.  The other involves ghosts.  

Curious now, aren't ya?

So, for Desire Church right now, we are meeting on Sunday evenings with the core team until we launch officially in January.  Jerel has challenged us to be seeking opportunities to talk with people we meet and be purposeful in our conversation that we might be able to share about Christ.  Not every conversation is going to lend to that topic, but the point is to be aware of the opportunities that are in our lives every day.  We may discover a fellow believer and have a chance to encourage each other.  We may find someone who has a missing piece to their life and is looking for answers.  Either way, we are keeping our eyes open, and that has brought some really amazing conversations.

Last week, D was looking for a new car (surprise), and we pulled into a Chevy dealership.  Those of you that know him, you will understand that it's a big deal that he was looking into the purchase of a car and not just trading.  That's because he is used to White House.  He knows how people trade there. He doesn't feel comfortable with it here, so to the dealership we went.  The salesman was definitely doing his job, checking on us every few minutes and asking us if we wanted to test drive every car.  We came to the conclusion that there was nothing there that he LOVED, so the guy took us into his office to show us how to look at their cars on-line.  When he handed us his card, it said "Engels".  I asked him how he pronounced it, and he said "Angels," though people just call him "Angel."  

We thought that was neat but didn't say anything further.  On our way out, Engels said, "I hope God gives you opportunities down here."

SAY WHAT?!

Immediately, I turned around and said, "You know, God is exactly why we are here.  We are planting a church in Pines!"  We proceeded to have a brief chat about that and walked back to our car.  Right before we left, Engels waved us down and came to get Dwayne's number so he could talk to him further about our church.  

One hour later, D and I were at El Dorado looking to get my office chair that I had been eyeing for weeks, and we had some nice conversation with that salesman about why we had moved to SoFlo.  You could tell that he was not so invested in the church aspect as he kept referencing how everyone down here "has a religion".  As we were heading out the door I asked him what his name was to thank him for his help.  Guess what he said.  

Angel.

HOLLA!  I about busted at the seams.  I said, "We just spoke with another angel about an hour ago!  You see, this was meant to be!  God sent us our angels to help us get what we need!"

He smiled and was probably thinking... Chica is crazy!

But I was too bubbly with excitement to care about that.

So there you have it.  Angels in South Florida.

Say hello to my comfy new office chair!

Say hello to Dwayne's car #20.  He now drives a Rabbit.  Yes, you read correctly.

Story number two is less exciting and more ridiculous.

So, I was at Bed Bath & Beyond getting some money back with coupons.  (Win.)  And I head out to the parking lot when all of the sudden a shopping cart rolls off of the sidewalk and into the parking lot.  At first, I just thought someone was behind it, but I looked, and I was the only one out there.  Feeling odd, but not wanting to leave the cart in the middle of the road, I grabbed it and pushed it back up to the cart rack in front of the store.  I made sure it locked in between the bars.  

Then, I proceed back to my car when I hear a whirring sound and then CRASH CRASH!  I turned around to see that ANOTHER CART was rolling into the parking lot... with no one behind or around it.  At this time, two ladies had also walked out, but didn't notice the cart.  Here I am standing in the middle of the road laughing hysterically.  They looked at me and then in the direction of the cart where I was staring... giggled... and then continued on their way.  I... feeling like I was on candid camera... once again took the cart and pushed it back up onto the sidewalk where the other carts go.  (Did I even mention that I hadn't even used a cart IN the store?!)  It was at this time that I figured out the ghost behind the carts.  Apparently, the sidewalk is not so level.  When I put the cart next to the bars, it started rolling back out.  I had to push it in really far and angle it to get it to stay.  I'm pretty sure that when I put the first cart away, it knocked the other one off balance and sent it barreling away to drive me mad.

I don't think I really am crazy.  And I don't think there really was a ghost.  But I sure did have a moment of doubt.