SUNDAY, MARCH 17

Be joyful of all things. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances for it is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-19)

A few years ago I showed up for my shift as a cashier at the rummage sale. It was the last day of the sale and the building was still brimming with rummage and not quite enough customers. We always work in teams of two, and after an hour, since it was so quiet, the woman that I was assigned to work with gave me a reprieve from my duties so that I could go shop the sale. Fun! I could walk the corridors and talk to people, while nosing about for treasures.

When I walked into the area called "Jewelry" I noticed a small monogrammed pin. I have always loved monograms, and it looked like the monogram was ARD. An "A" for Anne, an "R" for Reeves, and a "D" for Dan, my husband. I asked the ladies who were working in the department for a consultation. "Could this be an A?" "Don't you see an A?" We laughed that I was wiggling the pin a little to skew the results. "Sure, it's an A," they finally conceded. Wonderful! I bought it, pinned it on my sweater, and headed back to my work.

When I approached my teammate, Barb, she actually gasped. "That's my pin! You bought my pin!" In an entire building full of rooms of mismatched, well-worn rummage, I had found "the needle in a haystack" and bought something that my partner had donated!

It had belonged to her Mother-in-Law (a woman that had lived to be 101 years old!) and it was a gift that Barb herself had had monogrammed for her. Her name was Agnes (It IS an A!) and Barb donated it to the church not really knowing if anyone would want a monogrammed item.

Can you believe it? The whole experience felt magical, like I was meant to have this pin. I think this story is a wonderful example of the Holy Spirit in action. A little nudge to bring me closer to a fellow church member and to signal that I was indeed in the right place.

Dear Lord, thank you for the fellowship and commu­nity of the church. Help us to make connections and to share our experiences with one another. Help us to feel the Holy Spirit in our everyday lives and to rejoice in it. Amen.

Anne Reeves