Really Good News

You people are even more wonderful than I’ve been giving you credit for, and I’ve been giving you credit for a LOT!

I never expected all this laughter, and I’m so grateful.

Al’s comment sums up how I’m feeling about all this right now:

“Isn’t this God’s first superb surprise for us? Yes! We thought this would be easy, that we’d just have to figure out how to spend the funds, but God says, oh, yes, you provide the first fish and loaves, okay? You don’t mind, do you? There’s precedent for this, you know. And I’m laughing.”

I think Al means that he himself is laughing, but it almost sounds as if he means that God is laughing. And I think that’s right. God is laughing, having a little fun with us. Maybe one of the things I personally have to learn to do is laugh about money. This is pretty hard for me.

I am thinking right now that we encourage one another to go ahead anyway with our project and let the first step be finding the money somehow, expecting it to come your way in by some surprise or coincidence or providential something. Still, of course this is optional. After all, how on earth would we REQUIRE this of one another??

Here are some excerpts from your e-mails over the last 24 hours. (We really should post the full e-mails from everyone so we have a full record of all this. Would you each be willing to do that? Or I will.) Also see Andy’s blog post below.

From Al H:
At 9:08:30 I’m reading on the blog that this is quote “really bad news.”
At 9:08:45 I read “There is no money for our project.”
I start laughing.
At 9:09:15 Still laughing.
LAUGHING
Some of it is relief, of course. Everyone is okay! It’s just money we’re talking about…
And the money. Why should there be money? Isn’t this God’s first superb surprise for us? Yes! We thought this would be easy, that we’d just have to figure out how to spend the funds, but God says, oh, yes, you provide the first fish and loaves, okay? You don’t mind, do you? There’s precedent for this, you know. And I’m laughing.

From Debra A:
The theme of “not enough money” is the throughline in the plot of my life. And as for the loss of $100.00 that I never had to begin with, well… Oh well. My project is still important to me and I can do it with equipment I already have on hand. In fact, I want to do it - perhaps all the more.

From Agnes:
And so: let this money coming and the way it will be used be a surprisingly joyful thing. Let the quest evoke laughter, be like new wine.”

In my desk drawer I have $60 (Cdn) extra cash because I withdrew from my ATM not seeing and immediately forgetting the $60 I’d withdrawn two days earlier.

From Karen:
A few days ago, I got a check in the mail. It was for my initial participation in the study. It is for $100. It is still sitting on my dining room table waiting for me to decide what interesting thing I will do with money I was not planning on. It is in reading Al’s and then Agnes’ email that it became clear to me what I will do with my check.

Nick:
I will be getting 100 dollars American for the piece on the Leadership Blog. Found out about that just before hearing that I would be deprived of the Lilly funds.

It is obvious via coincidence and conscience that I have been condemned not to enjoy the Blog cheque.