Resurrection

Resurrection
April 20, 2014

Easter means lots of things to different people.  Is one of my favorite holidays because there is no work involved except the personal retracing of the path of Jesus.  Just like spring arriving every year, we know how the story ends!  Victory in the Resurrection?  Right?

This year Easter has taken on a whole new meaning.  You see, about 9 p.m. on Easter Sunday, a drunk driver did this to our business:

Our business means a lot to us, my husband's life long profession, our sole livelihood and that of our four full time staff members.  Our business is relational, we have been around for 37 years so we have lots of friends.  Many of them I have heard from in the last 36 hours.  This was a great reminder that the impact of our business, and even our lives, goes far beyond what we do to make a living.

First let me say a good word for our first responders - the Lexington Fire Department and Police Department were amazing.  This was my first time to have a catastrophic event - those guys are like chaplains, pastors in uniform....I never thought of them as caregivers before.  Now I get it.

But this felt different, purely as an act of grace, we were strong in the middle of chaos, armed with resolve to take the next steps being laid out for us and covered with nothing but gratitude.  What happened on a Sunday evening to destroy bricks and mortar could have been life and limb on a busy Monday afternoon on Versailles Road.  Gratitude!

In the light of day on Monday morning began the task of insurance calls, code enforcement, structural engineers, contractors, phone calls, text messages and TV interviews!  Things started dropping into place, calm and peaceful feelings were abundant.  There was even laughter amid the chaos!

Friends showed up to get supplies, carry art and inventory, go get lunch and give us a hug!  First visitor was our Pastor, then artists, our banker, family, church friends, customers and more customers. Everything was going to be OK!

Today we had good report from the electrical inspector so we get our meter back in and tomorrow the journey to powering up begins.  Communication, records, power tools, light....all depending on the life giving flow of electricity!

If you know me, then you know I read several daily devotions.  Today was this one that really helped me put things into words...

“That’s When the Miracles Really Start Showing Up” by Gary Meuller

You can’t fix the government. You can’t cure the church. You can’t change the world. But you can do something huge with your life. You can get right with God. Not by trying to be perfect, seeking to be more righteous than anyone else or attempting to earn your way into heaven. But simply by making it your life’s priority to approach God with a humble spirit, get real with God about how much help you need, invite God to go to work in your life and live out of the abundant grace with which God fills you. So start today. Right now, in fact. Then do it again tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that. And the day after that. One day at a time. Every day of your life. And, along the way, you’ll discover that’s when the miracles really start showing up.

and this from Richard Rohr: 

"Ultimate security allows you to suffer small insecurities without tremendous effort."

Yes, we are undergoing a resurrection of sorts.  Out of the rubble will arise a better South Hill Gallery. One with reinforced front walls.  One where our staff sets toward the rear of the room, not on the street. A chance to rebuild our front room better, not constrained by the facade that we started with.

Yes, Mike and I and our little band of merry men, we are going to be OK! Living out of the abundant grace we have been given.

Here is a link to the news story:

http://www.kentucky.com/2014/04/21/3205309/lexington-police-think-they-know.html?sp=/99/164/