The dog, the car and the Logos

Today I woke up before the crack of dawn in a state of anxiety. Besides the usual Christmas crazies yesterday brought a new set of complexities (aka troubles) into my life. The dog and the car.

My elderly mutt, Hobbes, is a long suffering fellow and had been clicking around the house on the canine equivalent of stiletto heels. Yesterday, as a pre-Christmas gift to the old fella, I took him in to the vet to have his toenails clipped. "Oh, and by the way," says I to the vet, "what is that swelling just under his eye?"

No, thankfully, it was not cancer, just a broken tooth and infected bone, requiring dental surgery, "Let me give you a quote on that," says he. Which is how I discover that Hobbes' mouth will cost more than all the Christmas presents and the turkey with the trimmings combined. "OK," says I, "can I get back to you on that?"

Try as I might, I cannot think of an alternative to immediate oral surgery for Hobbes, so, I will call the vet today to book it and worry about the cost later (me and the auto industry, eh? I'd ask the government for a bail-out, but...there really is no Santa Claus - for individuals at least)

Later on, after a busy day of entertaining and decorating, I decided to attend a Christmas drop-in hosted by some friends - that ought to cheer me up! Lo and behold my car protested loudly when I tried to leave later that night - screeching like a banshee it appeared that the parking brake on the right hand side would not release. The car mechanic is not open on Saturdays, so I will have to wait until Monday to find out how much it will cost to repair. Our host drove me home.

Finally, cozy in my bed, I tried to complete my nightly routine of writing up the day in my journal - oops, my glasses, yep, you guessed it - left on the dashboard of the car...hmm - thankfully, I have a few out-dated spares kicking around the house - one of those rare times I can pat myself on the back for being a pack rat.

So, no wonder I'm feeling a little pressed this morning - although, as I review my list of woes, I realize that I am truly blessed that they are so relatively benign - no foreclosures, no earthquakes, no dislocations due to war, no famine.

Still, wussy North American that I am, they do drag me down. As is my habit, I pray in the morning, "casting my cares upon the Lord" so God gets an earful of my angst. Generally I read the Psalms while breakfasting, and found this in Psalm 138: 7-8 "Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me; Thou wilt stretch forth thy hand against the wrath of mine enemies, And thy right hand will save me. Jehovah will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy lovingkindness, O Jehovah, endureth for ever; Forsake not the works of thine own hands." I put down my spoon and suddenly notice the poinsetta on my kitchen table - the colours of the leaves and petals are so richly nuanced!

I believe that this is one of God's daily miracles - that those words were specifically meant for me. Somehow in the eternal now the Logos of God, in love, aimed those words at me, to be read on this morning, to speak to these circumstances. And I am encouraged. If God cares for me and my foolish little woes, how much more must He care for those with greater woes. I pray that God will meet those who are suffering in the midst of their greater woes with love and hope.