Does It Fit?

Before every person lies a road that seems to be right,

but the end of that road is death and destruction.

—Proverbs 14:12 VOICE

I spied the little table and sized it up as soon as I walked onto the porch of the local marketplace, which features handmade, homegrown, and found items.  Looks to be about the right size.  I moved closer to investigate the price. Twenty dollars. Perfect! But is it sturdy enough to hold a stack of books? I gave it a shake, and it barely budged. I think it will work.

“I’d like to buy the little red table on the porch,” I told the store owner, as I approached the counter.

“Great! Let me wipe it off for you.”

We chatted while she swiped at the dust. “A project table,” she commented.

I must have looked confused because she added, “You’re going to refinish it, right?”

I glanced at the painted table, chipped and scarred with scratches and nicks. “Nope. I like it the way it is.”

“Oh, you like its character,” she concluded.

“Yes, it’s perfect.” I said, excited to take it home to position it in the spot I had planned.

The Wrong Door

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

—1 Peter 5:8 

It was Friday afternoon, and I couldn’t wait for my “Friday Night Write,” which is what I dubbed my time set aside to write my weekly devotion. I sunk into the couch cushions with my laptop over my knees and logged on.  Suddenly lines of text scrolled across the screen and a bright light flashed from my webcam. Then a warning took over the entire window: Your computer has been blocked.

What?

I read on. Apparently I was suspected of one of a myriad of serious infractions, such as copyright violations, use of unlicensed software, spamming, and terrorism.  Terrorism? Clearly they have me mixed up with someone else!

My heart beat fast. What should I do?  Call the police? But it wasn’t a 911 emergency and it was already after office hours.

I continued to read. Then I noticed something in the wording was askew. It didn’t line up.  This is a hoax!  A virus!  Ugh. Now what?

Never Clueless

But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.—1 Peter 2:9 

“I’m surprised you didn’t find the crest,” said high school student Mariah, referencing the pendant necklace borrowed from my colleague for the after-school murder mystery.

“What crest?  Where was it?” cried the students who had just completed the clue-finding circuit.

As leader of the campus ministry, Mariah had orchestrated every last detail of the outreach event and recalled where she had placed it. “In the garbage can in the ladies restroom.”

“The only thing we found in the garbage can was the journal.”

I knew that was true, for I was the one who had RE-placed it there, having rescued it earlier from the custodian’s trash hopper.

A quick check in the restroom confirmed our fears.  The crest was gone.