A Poem and a Story

Jana (age 9) wrote a poem about playing checkers:

Checkers is very weird,
It makes me very bored,
I sleep through every game,
It makes me very bored,
I lose every game I play.

That's how I feel about checkers too. I'd rather clean the bathroom.

Here's something I really like: I love to read. And I love bookstores. Especially when I find a really good book for a really low price. That did happen to me recently, and the way it happened is pretty interesting. I was at the Family Christian store with Jeff and my daughter Elizabeth. There was a man down the aisle from me looking at books. After a few minutes he walked up to me as I was skimming through one of Joyce Meyers's books. He said, "Are you looking for a particular book?" Then he told me about a book outlet at Iliff and Chambers where old books from the libraries are sold at very low prices. He said, "You never know what you'll find." I said, "Thanks, I like books." I watched him as he left the store, thinking, this guy is either an angel or Santa Claus. In any case, I know he was sent by God because the news he gave me was a big blessing for this bookworm/lover of bargains. I told Jeff about this conversation, and his comment was, "Do you think he was an angel?" Jeff also knows of my love of books.
THEN....at my first opportunity I went to the book outlet. I bought five books and a booklet. The total at the register was $2.50. No kidding. Most of these books are on the nightstand waiting for me to find time to read them, but one of them I have started reading with my daughters: In My Father's House by Corrie ten Boom. We've had a whole lot of fun sipping tea and hot chocolate and reading this book together. We're only on chapter 4, but here is my favorite part so far: Corrie told of a day when, as a young child, she inadvertently broke a rule at school and was slapped in the face by the headmaster. She said that when she got home that day, crying, "Mama took me on her lap and comforted me; and when I had quieted, Papa held me in his arms as he did when I was a baby. I can still feel the sensation of safety as I put my head upon his shoulder. What a security to have a refuge when life is really hard!"
"Forty-five years passed.....The gestapo had arrested me, and I was being asked the location of the secret room in which I had hidden four Jews and two underground workers. I realized that if I told, it would mean prison and possibly death for the six people who were there, so I didn't tell. The interrogator slapped me on the face, and at the same moment I recalled the backyard of the school, the angry headmaster, and Mother and Father's comforting help."
"'Lord Jesus, cover me!' I cried."
"'If you mention that name, I'll murder you!'" shouted the man. But his hand stopped in midair and he couldn't beat me any longer."
"What a security to have a refuge when life is really hard!"
Amen.