Encouragement for the Soul, Rest for the Body

Wednesday night rehearsal for pending gypsy jazz gigs 

Friday night, I came down with a strange cold which was not in itself miserable except for the utter exhaustion it brought along. What was supposed to be a long day of teaching and then an evening of rehearsal with Of Wire and Wood out in Carpentersville turned into a long afternoon nap and then tomato soup, excellent conversation and a few hymns out on the porch in the beautiful spring weather with Zachary. 

Sunday morning required pre-church fortification:

Coffee that even Abbie would have been proud of ... 

and grits with eggs and toast.

Church was enormously refreshing! We sang Psalm 62 and It is Well with My Soul and in between were given from Psalm 11 one of the most timely, practical, worship inducing, fear smashing, God glorifying sermons I've heard in some time. I've already listened to it again since Sunday and plan to do so several more times over the next few weeks. I heartily encourage you to find a few minutes and bathe in the truths it celebrates!

Due to my lack of energy, our original plan of a hike at a nearby state park on Sunday afternoon had to be abandoned and instead we drove to Lake Geneva (only about 30 min from church) where we just laid on the grass and alternately snoozed and talked until the sun began to set. 

A quick dip in the still cool lake water was delightfully refreshing mid-afternoon 

Dried by the sun and another snooze on the grass later we got burgers in view of the lake and enjoyed the last of the sunshine before heading back towards Geneva. 

The day ended with the car pulled to the side of the road and the two of us perched on the hood of the car to watch the sun set over neat rows of fledgling corn and finally settle behind the trees. 

Then I went to bed and slept for 11 hours.