two-posts-in-one

I have two things to write about. One is story-like in nature, the other is awesome-God-discovery in nature.

1. Tonight during Bible study, I was struck by a thought that i KNOW i've had before, but got amazingly reminded of again.
You know those times when you are going along the merry way of life and something comes out of left field and just socks you in the gut? Like you get a phone call that someone passed away suddenly. or you find out the girl you were SUPPOSED to marry just got engaged to someone else. or you get the e-mail saying that you didn't get the job you made it to the third interview for. or...well you name it. We've all had those unexpected moments.

and sometimes we even "prepare for the worst" making it the most ridiculous situation thinking that if that is our lowest rung of worst-standard that every other option would be better...only to find out that it IS that blown-out-of-proportion worst.

So where is God in all this? Did life throw him a curve-ball too? Were his plans messed up because someone decided to spend the rest of their life with the wrong person? I mean, it's not his fault people are stupid. But then the awesome little rays of truth shine through the cloud-cover of confusion and questions.

God is not surprised by this. He is not caught off guard. AH! that is so incredible. Just read it again and let it sink in. He isn't up there scrambling for a Plan B that will somehow fit to be a passable second-best option for your life. He knows EVERYTHING. our tiny little pea-brains can't even begin to comprehend this. But we just gotta trust that it's true. He's the safety net beneath us when our little unicycle falls off the high wire. and even when we're confused and lost and questioning and our hearts are broken in tiny pieces...he has got it all and knows exactly what to do with it.

Doesn't that sound like someone you want to trust? I mean, when I was a kid and something went wrong, I ran to my Dad or Mom first. Cuz in my little mind, they had all the answers and could fix anything. Slowly that myth was dispelled, but in it's place they taught me that someone else can do an even better job. And here I am, years later still discovering the awesomeness of that promise. God is so good.

*sigh*

On to part two. (with pictures!)
It was a gorgeous Friday afternoon in Newport beach. I went biking with my parentals down on the boardwalk that divides fantastic beach houses from the stretch of sand and ultimately a beautiful ocean. I cannot explain how happy my heart was. And what a beautiful California/coastal day can do for me. I think I shall one day find myself a beach house.


These are my cute parents holding hands and biking.
SEE HOW BEAUTIFUL THE DAY IS!?




We biked out to this marvelous little bay that had this little stone peninsula with a sand slope named "the Wedge." From whence these amazing waves come and surfers do their thing. So fun to watch. And just about this time, the sun was going down.




which made for some great silhouette shots. (by the way, silhouette is a very challenging word to spell correctly the first time)



Somewhere on the trip to the wedge, however...tragedy struck. unbeknown to any of us, my ID slipped out of my back pocket and got lost along the way. So here I am...going along, taking pictures and NOT knowing what had befallen us.



beautiful sunset.




Listening to marvelous music. while biking. while taking a picture of myself.
multitalentation if i ever saw it.



I too am patriotic when inspired as such.


Very shortly after this point, I got off my bike and realized my pocket felt suspiciously empty. And there discovered the missing license. At that juncture (that is a Eugene word...go Odyssey!), my parents and I split ways and retraced EVERY step...er...wheel-turn? (even the bathroom/stall that we stopped at...we were very thorough)

When I made it back to the starting point, I began to feel sad. I had recently dealt with some license issues and was not ready to have another set so soon! Maybe God is trying to tell me that I really shouldn't be driving.
Then my mom called me and said,

"Suzy you'll never guess! We're riding along and Dad sees a light reflection off of something on the ground. and it was a LICENSE! face down. So we were so excited! we pick it up and it belongs to Gina-something-or-other! WHAT? Who loses a license? maybe she has yours!"

SO CLOSE. but at least i wasn't the only one missing an ID. So i took Gina-something-or-other's license home and mailed it to her with a little note telling her of my false-alarm in thinking her license was mine. it was cute.

Anyway, I sat there and prayed and pondered and such and then this thing of beauty happened to me.

so gorgeous and majestic, this sky. mmmm. and calming too.

Anyway, I decided to wait until thursday to go to the DMV...Just in case it sprouted legs and walked to pasadena.

and today, my mom sends me a text about a mysterious UPS express package. since mail always excites me, I had her open it right then and there. IT WAS MY LICENSE! no note. just popped in the mail!

THANK you God. it was honestly an unexpected blessing. I was fully prepared to go to the DMV and shell out the money for new one.

from now on, I shall hold tight to that thing. and renew it on time. and probably sleep with it under my pillow so no harm can come to it.