"my cup overflows"

November 25, 2007. (journal entry) I got up at about nine o'clock this morning at the Wilsons' house in the guest room. I did devotions, etc. Claire and I had to hurry down our breakfast in order to go with Mr. Wilson to the church at ten o'clock to help set up. Sabbath school today--I was with Claire in her systematic theology class, after the usual Psalm and prayer for opening exercises, which always involves all the classes, including the adults. After class, we went into the sanctuary for worship. Catherine Donnelly, Pastor Donnelly's daughter, handed me a birthday card as we were going in; Mrs. Millar and Mrs. Dick both gave me birthday presents. I was quite surprised. But then Pastor Donnelly's children's address during the morning service turned out to be about birthdays--and in the middle of it he stopped, asked if anyone had a birthday, found me (thanks to Mrs. Wilson's pointing), and wished me a happy birthday in front of the whole congregation! I was quite overwhelmed and would have preferred to disappear.... The service was very good, about God's work of revival in Nineveh after Jonah's preaching.

After the service, Claire's grandmother came up and gave me a gift; lots of Claire's friends gave me cards. I was utterly taken aback and astonished by the overflow of goodness. Even Mrs. Donnelly gave me a present; Pastor Donnelly came up and asked me, in a jolly fashion, for forgiveness. As we were finally going out the door to the car, Heather bounced up and gave me a hug. Good to see her again. We're planning to go down to the Christmas market in Belfast for lunch on Tuesday. Back at the Wilsons' house, while Mrs. Wilson served the roast and Mr. Wilson made the gravy, Claire and I sat down excitedly in the kitchen to open the cards and presents. So much. A wealth that dizzied and utterly humbled me. The family and I sat down to the usual solid, hearty Sabbath lunch of roast, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, chick peas, and gravy. And afterward, Mrs. Wilson and Claire came in with a cake and candles, and sang and took pictures. All very happy, and the cake, a white vanilla one, was delicious. When we had finished eating, Claire and I cleaned up the kitchen and washed the dishes. Outside little birds were feasting at the bird feeders.

Claire and I went to our separate rooms when the job was done to rest. The afternoon was cold and cloudy, low mist hanging over the hills. After I finished my journal entry, I curled up in bed and slept until five-thirty. I woke up then, packed up, and sat under the blanket reading God’s Ultimate Purpose (commentary on Ephesians) until Claire knocked on my door. We went downstairs and had some tea. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson were already hurrying out the door, but Claire and I had to wait for Calvin, who was still sleepy. The evening was misty, a thin mizzle falling over the low hills. At church, there was a prayer meeting at six-fifteen, then the evening service. After the service, I chatted some with an older gentleman named Mr. Martin, I think—it turned out that he used to be an English major, but that he switched and has been teaching math at school for years. Claire and I went with Mrs. Wilson back to the house fairly quickly after the evening service, to prepare food for the Psalm sing at nine o’clock. While Claire moved chairs in the parlor, I helped Mrs. Wilson slather butter and strawberry jam onto scones, and set out trays of goodies (little squares of chocolate cakes, rice crispy bars, and chocolate-and-peanut-butter squares, fruitcake squares, etc.).

At nine o’clock, people started to arrive, and the Psalm sing got underway at about nine-fifteen, presided over by Mr. Wilson. The parlor, a long, low room on the side of the house, was quite full of people, though everyone had a seat. The plush armchairs and the sofa were full, the piano bench occupied, and the dining room chairs all taken. Heather was there, as were Pastor and Mrs. Donnelly with two of their friends from Wales, and about twenty others. The singing was very good, roundly filling the room, with the basses and tenors just to my right and the altos and sopranos curving round the room to my left. As Mrs. Wilson said later, “Your birthday has put everyone in a good mood!” It was a delightfully happy time, everyone singing away, with murmurs and laughter between Psalms. Catherine Donnelly and Claire’s friend Allison presented. Psalms of thanks and praise, for the most part, were the ones requested, though Calvin asked for Psalm 119X--apparently boys over here are just as enthusiastic about that Psalm as some other boys I know....

After the Psalm sing, Mr. Wilson led us in prayer, and then Calvin, Claire, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, and I served tea, orange juice, scones, and “tray bakes” (as Calvin informed me, the scones always have to be served first). Mrs. Wilson was very flustered and worried that things weren’t going just so, but whenever I went into the parlor, everyone seemed to be having a very good time. At last, when the food had been served, we joined the group in the parlor. I sat with Heather and Calvin and laughed as they slagged each other back and forth. When the last person had left, Claire, Mr. Wilson, and I drove back to Belfast. At Renwick, Mr. Wilson and Claire helped me carry things upstairs. It was about eleven o’clock. I said good-bye to them and put things away.

After everything had found a place, I sat down at my laptop to call home. I talked briefly to my mother. Skype kept breaking up, so finally I decided to try to call the home phone with Skype. While I waited for it to connect, I opened the bigger box from the college Bible study in Stillwater. To my complete amusement, instead of packing it with Styrofoam packing popcorn, someone had packed it with real popcorn—I could smell it through the cardboard! Just as I managed to get the box open, I was able to get on the phone with my father, but only briefly before the Renwick internet connection gave out. Disappointed, I sat back, but decided to open the box. I sorted through it, and burst out laughing as I raked through the stale popcorn. Such a bunch of silly people! And the things they had packed…. Food, mostly, done up in plastic bags. Pecans from Laura; something which I suspect to be cake mix; a whole sack full of hard candy and bubble gum; cinnamon cookies (again, smelled through the plastic); Hershey’s chocolate; hot chocolate; watermelon chewing gum; a mug; post-it notes; granola bars; chapstick; blue and green play-dough in little tins; sticky tack; a parcel in blue-and-green paisley paper form Laura; stickers; letters galore…. I opened only one, a card with a letter from Ruth and a card signed by the whole Bible study inside. Signed in typical fashion, too, which made me want to weep and laugh at the same time. I have seldom known such love, such generosity. It is hard for me to believe in such love. This is God’s love, my Father’s love, the love that died for me, reminding me of His power with a touch of humor. I am not worth such love—and I know that they are not, either; this is God loving God, and choosing to do so through us. Overwhelmed, humbled, I went to bed at about twelve-thirty. (11:12 a.m.; 11/26/07)