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A Godsend |
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Location: Blogs Brad's BlogMid-Week Missive |
 | | Posted by: Brad Miller | 5/28/2009 9:19 AM | Greetings on this gray day,
Have you noticed that some of our renovations are already underway? Oh, not the big one in the sanctuary yet, although there are people hard at work to make that happen as soon as possible. But there were some other things on the renovation/refurbishing list that are currently underway or complete. These are the kinds of things that we can do internally without the need of contractors and sub-contractors. For instance, the drainage issue in the courtyard has been taken care of, and the water is rerouted in a better way. Attached to that is the building of a retaining wall that will shore things up in a really beautiful way. On the other side of the church new sidewalk now connects the storage area with the other entrances to the church. Also, the beginnings of a stone path to the back parking lot now starts at the end of that sidewalk. There is a new storage area in the courtyard for the CDC and for BCC. There is a new expanded closet in the choir room and a beautiful new floor is being put down in the choir room as I write this. Rev. Jennifer’s office has been painted and upgraded, and my office upgrade is now underway. The main office is next. And all of this was done with the talents of people within this congregation like Mike Parker, Tom Chipman and Loni Smith.
And speaking of Loni, her hard work and diligence helped Carol and I avert a possible tragedy at our house several weeks ago. Let me explain.
We closed on our house on a Friday and the movers were moving our stuff on Monday. Knowing that the previous owners had pets and two small children, we contracted with Loni to clean the whole empty house as only she can. Some of you may not know that Loni owns a cleaning company, and I am here to tell you, no one does a better job! Anyway, on Saturday evening, while Carol and I were finishing up packing, Loni called. “Something bad has happened,” she said. “I was moving the electric stove out to clean behind it when I smelled and heard a big gas leak.” I told her to get out of the house, she said had and opened as many doors and windows as she could on the way out the door. We hung up, called 911 and ran to the car. Carol called Loni to get her on the line while we raced to the house. Carol kept saying, “I want to know you’re safe: we can replace a house, we can’t replace you.” I was driving almost as fast as I was praying. When we pulled up, the fire truck was there. We made sure Loni was okay and spoke with the firefighters.
“What happened,” the leader told us, “was that there used to be a gas stove there. When your friend pulled out the stove, it caught the gas valve and opened it up. Whoever had closed it up had stupidly not capped the line! Everything is fine, nothing is broken and the gas is off. Unfortunately, we see this more often than you would think. You need to get a cap for the line and everything will be fine.” They waited a while longer and made sure the gas had dissipated and they left. They told us to call the gas company and they would come out and turn everything back on. We shook hands all around, and they left.
As we stood, trying to get our heart rates down, a car pulled up. It was a man from the gas company! One of the firefighters had called on the way back to the station to help us out. He saw what had happened, told us we needed to get a cap and then said, “Wait a second, I bet I have one in the truck.” And he did, and it got capped and we put the stove back (after Loni insisted on sweeping the area out), he turned on the gas furnace and hot water heater and got ready to go. “You know,” he said on the way out, “This was a godsend. If she hadn’t moved that stove, you never would have known about the gas line and might have jostled it one night and not been aware of the leak. It could have been disastrous. But because she is a conscientious cleaner and pulled out the stove, now you know.”
There are so many ways I could go with this story. A story of the good work of the firefighters and their kindness in calling the gas company. The humor and easy going nature of the gas company guy who gave us exactly what we needed. But most of all, we thank God for Loni and her dedication to doing the best job possible in anything she undertakes. Because she went the extra mile in cleaning behind the stove, our home is much safer today. Because she did more than most would, we found out about the gas line. Because she tackles every job with a single minded pursuit of doing it the best way possible, we are much better off. And what really makes me smile? Do you know the name of Loni’s cleaning company? “More Than Clean”….can I hear an “Amen” for that?
For an updated prayer list and list of upcoming events, please go to www.brookhavenchristian.org
For your prayer lists:
It’s baby time!
Dave, Nancy and big sister Caroline Douglas welcomed a baby girl, Brooklyn Grace, last Friday. Everyone is doing fine and Caroline is loving being a big sister!
Ray Miles, our regional minister, and his wife Wendy, are grandparents again! Their son and daughter in law, Jay and Tara Miles yesterday welcomed a baby boy, Braden James.
Peter and Melissa Mowrey are awaiting the birth of their first child. Labor inducement is underway and hopefully it won’t be too much longer before Jim and Judy can welcome another grandchild! We will keep you posted.
Announcements
Lots coming up:
This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday and we will celebrate with Praise on Peachtree in the fellowship hall. Wear RED as we celebrate the day when Christ’s church began!
Vacation Bible School will be June 13 and 14…we will gather on the afternoon of the 13th and have a camp out here at the church! We will continue with Sunday school and a special “Camp Worship” in the fellowship hall on Sunday. And if you are like me and won’t be spending the night, you are more than welcome to participate in everything except staying overnight! For more information, to sign up to attend, or to volunteer to help out, contact Debbie Kinney
There is still time to sign up your 5 year old on up child (all the way through high school) for theatre camp in July here at BCC. Each camp is one week long and children can go to one or both. The two weeks are July 13-17 and July 20-24. Go to www.theatreworksofga.com for information and to sign up!
Hope you can join us this Sunday as we celebrate Pentecost, Praise on Peachtree style! Have a great rest of the week.
Be peaceful,
Brad
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