On Mother's Day I settled down to read The Shack for the first time. By Tuesday I was beginning it for the second time. I found the story gripping and full of redemption. It was an answer to a prayer I frequently pray, "Father, reveal Who you are. Set the world right," from The Lord's Prayer, The Message version. I loved the parts of the story where the persons of the Trinity related to each other perfectly, as we will perfectly relate to God and each other one day. The story was a picture of the hope we have for Shalom when God does set everything right on this earth.

As a result of reading this book, I often think I can almost hear Papa say to me, "Sharon Rhodes Hall, I am especially fond of you." I recommend it as a thought-provoking read that will, if you are like me, shake up your misconceptions about God.


To look at the web site, click here.

MY SPRING VACATION

For my vacation I went to a construction site in Kentucky. We stayed in the luxury apartment that doubles as Hall Engineering, KY. Here are pictures that will say more than I could write....I did lots of web surfing right there in that metal folding chair you see....

Easter Egg Hunt

Phylicia

She's seventeen, goes to school, works at McDonald's. Her dream? Either to be a doctor or a supermodel (if she could get all those clothes and makeup)...."I wouldn't even go to college if I could be a supermodel", she announced over her iced latte. She took another sip and said, "A Christian college wants to talk to me about going there, but I'm not interested in a Christian college."

"Really? Why not?" I wondered why anyone who couldn't pay for college would turn down any institution that would give her a scholarship.

"CHRISTIAN college? They're Bible-thumping and walking around singing Kum-Ba-Yah. I would flip them out the way I talk...."

I ventured out. "I'm a Christian."

"REALLY?!!" She looked so incredulous I have to admit I wondered how it could be that shocking.

In her short life, she has run with her mom from an abusive boyfriend, lived in more places than I can count, and somehow she is surviving, making good enough grades to get into college one day and keeping her job at McDonald's for more than a year.

I met Phylicia as a 6th grader at a middle school where I worked for four years. All three years there she ran with the Running Club and me, and once she won first place in her age group.

She's in 10th grade now and since I've known her, she's lived in five different places. She's not running anymore because she doesn't have a ride home from practice; she rides the city bus to school.

Hopefully they will get a Habitat House before Phylicia leaves for college.....or is on a runway somewhere. The medical field or supermodel? They don't seem related to me, but to a seventeen-year-old girl like Phylicia, the both spell a way out.....

Things I have experienced in the last two weeks:

A GPS can get somebody like me who gets lost coming out of my alley, to a destination even if it does have to recalculate because of the wrong turns.

The Filbert fellowship hall was a fun place for little people to play at the York Christmas celebration.

The Apple store in Charlotte is a fun place.

Maggianos' helpings are huge.

Crying makes me feel cleansed.

Fires in a fire pit or wood stove are cozy.

Children grow up to be helpful and fun-to-be-around adults.

There're more, but I have to go eat now.

Today is the day Brandon and Courtney get married. The weather is unseasonably cool and less humid than normal here in Bluffton, SC, where we are enjoying the Palmetto Bluffs Resort-- site of the big event. The little people in our family had a blast climbing the five-story tree house multiple times, while the bigger people enjoyed it too but were a lot more tired after the climb to the top. Even Grandpa and Grandma Rhodes seemed quite agile in their ascent!

Low Country Boil, fried okra, cornbread, watermelon, an oyster roast, a blue grass band---together with family and friends---made the rehearsal dinner at an outdoor pavilion on the water FUN. As we were getting on the trolley to head back to the resort, we could see fireworks over the water. We could hear Chloe squeal as she got her second wind. The smells of the ocean reminded us of past weeks at the beach, and we dodged tree limbs that pushed their way into open trolley.

Beauty, warmth, love, fun--- remind me of Jesus because He came to restore a broken world.

Buying a Car

Intimidated, non-confrontational, and downright scared. That's how I feel on a car hunt. I want someone to tell me what to do and how to do it. The last car I bought I did a little (one hour) of research, 15 minutes of test-driving, and I bought the car. I liked the salesman because we had a mutual friend---and he seemed honest. It's been a good car, but it has an oil gel problem in the engine and somehow it feels like I should have known that. Like if I had done a little more research, been a little more bold, none of this would have happened.

Then that takes me back to what Toby, our pastor, preached about several weeks ago. The "If only" syndrome. If only I had done blank, or if only I had blank, I would be satisfied. I make agreements with these type statements on a regular basis and then find myself either beaten up, full of anxiety, or just bummed.

I am looking out my front window right now and see a beautiful bird happily singing on a tree branch. Every morning they sing!
Is it really true that my Creator can make me that free of heart? That indeed He likes me even when I'm in this state of anxiety? Amazing thought.

I woke up in the night, worried but not sure exactly why. An old song came to mind, and the words comforted me:
"All your anxieties, all your cares. Bring to the Mercy Seat, leave them there. Never a sorrow He will not share, never a friend like Jesus."