Tag: Wonderful Wednesday

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Wonderful Wednesday: Let’s Focus on Chance Encounters

This past Sunday we went to Orange City, Iowa to help Dylan move into the dorm for his sophomore year of college.

When we got to Northwestern and parked by Dylan’s dorm, I had a chance encounter with a friend. We were getting some things out of the trunk when all of a sudden I noticed someone coming up behind us, calling out a greeting.

I turned around and she was right there, with a huge smile on her face.

“Laura!” We laughed and hugged. “What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I was out for my walk and I just saw Gary and realized it was him and then I saw you!”

We chatted for a couple of minutes, and then we hugged again before she continued on her walk and we took Dylan’s things to his dorm. It brought a smile to my face every time I thought of our chance encounter.

How awesome is God to work out the timing so that we were parking in that exact spot right when Laura was walking by? A few minutes either way for either of us and we would have missed the chance to connect.

Laura and I hadn’t seen each other for about two years, but our meeting felt just as comfortable as if we had been getting together regularly (something we used to do when our family lived in Orange City for two years: walks around town, Bible studies, and activities at Maurice Reformed Church).

It got me thinking about all sorts of things.

We have to pay attention. If Laura had been walking with her head down, staring at the ground, she wouldn’t have seen Gary and then me. She would have walked right by and we wouldn’t have connected.

We have to act. When Laura saw Gary, she could have kept going, even if she had seen me. She could have thought we were too busy moving Dylan in and wouldn’t want to take time to talk to her. She could have just kept on walking by (I’m so glad she didn’t do that!).

We have to show emotion. Sure, I would have liked it if my friend had waited on the sidewalk and calmly said, “Hi Robyn” when we started heading to the dorm, but it was so much better to see her excitement and joy at seeing me. Our fun chance encounter filled my heart with so much joy (in the moment and every time I think of it even now).

What if we did a little more of those things every day? Pay attention, act, and show emotion.

At home, at school, at work, at church, around town, or wherever we are. Pay attention to the people around us. Act instead of just thinking about how much we appreciate and love others. Show emotion so our friends and family members know how much we love them.

Now that would make life pretty fun!

“We love because he [God] first loved us.” (1 John 4:19 NIV)

Do you enjoy chance encounters? How can focusing on God help you to make the most of every encounter you have?

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Wonderful Wednesday: Let’s Focus on Connecting

I attended the Northwestern Christian Writers Conference last weekend in St. Paul, Minnesota. I probably could have squeezed in some time to blog on Focus Friday, but I didn’t. And, to be honest, I almost forgot that I hadn’t blogged over the weekend. I thought of it again this morning and decided to do a quick post tonight.

Let’s focus on connecting, shall we?

On the way to St. Paul I stopped to chat and have lunch with my friend Nancy in Edgerton, MN. She likes to write, too, and we had a great time reconnecting.

I tried to stop and connect with another couple in Edgerton, but they weren’t home. I left a note under their mat and left town. Ten minutes down the road, they called me, disappointed that we hadn’t connected. We chatted for a few minutes and promised to see each other sometime soon.

When I got to St. Paul, I met my roommate at the hotel. Jenny and I had been online acquaintances in Write That Book (Tricia Goyer’s Facebook subscription group), but it was so good to meet in person and start to share about our writing journeys and experience the conference together.

At the conference, I got to meet Robin Jones Gunn in person, say hi to my friend Ann Kroeker, and pitch my book idea to agent Cynthia Ruchti (I had already told her about it two years ago, but she graciously listened to me again and invited me to send her the proposal when I finish it).

I met lots of new people and even saw a couple of friends I knew from when I attended the Cedar Falls Christian Writers Conference in years past.

At lunchtime, I sat down on a bench to eat my box lunch and was joined by another woman on the next bench. We started talking and she turned out to be from a town in South Dakota about a half hour from me. Only God could make that connection out of the hundreds of people attending the conference.

At the end of the conference, I met another Write That Book member and Jenny and I were invited out to eat with Gail and her group of writer friends. It was so good to talk shop and hear about everyone’s hopes and dreams as far as their writing goes.

(Jenny is on the far left and Gail is sitting just to my right – so nice to meet her friends, too!)

On the way home, God led me to stop and worship at New Creation Church in North Mankato, MN. I was blessed by their friendliness and the inspiring worship service (first in English, and then I stayed for the Spanish service).

I met my best friend from college at McDonald’s in Luverne, MN. Barb and I caught up on our kids, our jobs, and so much more. Then another friend from college showed up by chance and we talked for a while. When we all stood up to leave, I noticed a lady standing close to me… “Carol!” It was the friend I had tried to stop and see in Edgerton on Friday. She and her husband just happened to be there, so I hugged Barb goodbye and sat and talked with my friends while they ate their lunch.

As I drove the rest of the way home, my heart was so full. All of the connections I had made throughout the weekend–with friends old and new–reminded me of how important relationships are.

I realized, too, that I had connected more with God throughout the weekend than I had been lately at home. The speakers emphasized how much God needs to be a part of our writing process and the reason we write. My roommate and I prayed for our opportunities during the weekend. I saw God in so many ways as I met people and listened to His voice more closely.

I consider myself an introvert, and I like doing things by myself at home, but weekends like this one confirm the fact that we all need each other.

The workshops I went to at the conference gave me knowledge, hope, and inspiration for my writing. Meeting new people and realizing that they could become my friends was exciting. Renewing old friendships felt so good and prompted me to keep reaching out as God directs me, through letters, phone calls, and visits.

When I arrived home, it felt very good to hug all of my boys. They survived a weekend without me, and it was awesome to reconnect with Gary, Blake, and Dylan. Our girls are farther away, but I’m going to make sure I’m connecting with them on a regular basis, too.

Here we all are at Blake’s graduation from Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa in May.

As all of us connect with God, I believe our connections with others will be deeper and richer. Thanks for connecting with me here, and I pray that your connections will bring you lots of joy in the days ahead.

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV)

Do you enjoy connecting with others, or are you more of a loner? How can focusing on God help you to connect more richly with others?