19 cent Miracle

After getting an oil change, I stopped by Trader Joe's to pick up some random things, since it was so close to the auto services. On my way out of the parking lot, I noticed a woman holding a sign:

"Anything helps."

I rolled down my window and reached for the first handy food I could find, bananas. "Want some bananas?" as I pulled two free from the bunch. "Sure!" She hurried over to take the bananas, as the cars behind me started to pile up. Aware of their impatience, I zipped out of the parking lot, but not before I caught one last glimpse of the woman:

She was so full of gratitude and excitement that she immediately started eating one of the bananas.


The cars pressed on and I was swept away by the traffic, but the image stuck with me. This was just a 19 cent banana. And it alone meant a lot to one woman and her dog, while I may hardly notice the loss of bananas, and certainly not the 38 cents for them.

It left me a bit shaken up. I can understand why people drive by and pretend to ignore those in need: it's easier. It's way easier to stay in my comfortable bubble and pretend that everything around me is lovely; or, if it isn't lovely, it's clearly not my responsibility. But I am so grateful for these experiences that remind me:
1) how incredibly abundantly God has blessed me
2) how these blessings aren't just mine, they're also for me to share with others

At first, I marveled at how 19 cents was a miracle for one woman; now I'm convinced it was just as much (and probably more) of a miracle for me.
Thanks, God.

Explanations

First post. (Mostly because I'm procrastinating on homework, as usual)

The title of my blog may seem a little self-centered, and I'm a little sorry for that. I'm not trying to say that the world revolves around me. And I hope that even my life doesn't revolve around me, because that gets miserable fast. But, God loves me. And that's something that I too often take for granted as an inherent part of my life. Or I keep at an arm's length ("Yes, God loves everyone"). So, I'm posting it as my title and the name of my blog. At the very least to remind myself of the truth. And I hope that any readers out there can adapt it accordingly for themselves (in other words, substitute your own name).

Besides being an excellent reminder, the title expressed the most about my life. My entire life story shows how God loves me. And I hope that my actions and experiences will continue to reflect His love.

OK, I'm starting to get a bit too analytic/preachy, so I'll try to wrap this up with a brief explanation of the background image. This picture is from my first trip to Peru, when we had a morning of rest. I went on a walk to try to have an extended quiet time with God. I found an unfinished guard tower at the edge of our complex, and there I enjoyed some solitude. My favorite part was singing worship songs, some in Spanish, some in English. I can only wonder what people walking by outside thought as they heard this singing... Regardless:




It was a beautiful time spent with God, remembering His love for me.