Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

• Philippians 4:19

You know how people say that bad things happen in threes.  I hope they are right, but I am uneasy about it.

The photo above is looking into our soft ice maker.  Okay, the ice maker that I used to have.  I bought it for my wife.  She became obsessed with eating ice, and I would rather she eat soft ice than have her break all her teeth.  So, I bought an ice maker.  The ice maker died about two weeks after she did.  I have not replaced it, but I have bought new ice trays for the freezer.

Before my wife passed, she interrupted me in a conversation to say something off the wall.  “You are going to need a new computer and printer.”  I assured her I could do just fine with the equipment that I had.

Then about the time my son’s family arrived before the memorial service, I got such a horrible virus on the computer that all the USB ports and other connections started to fail.  My wife knew what she was talking about.  I bought a new computer and I have not been able to transfer all the documents, but most of them.

Then, as we were planning a big final meal before my son and his family left, the air fryer, which we were planning to use to cook the meal, died.  No way to turn it on.  Maybe it might work if I knew how to hot wire the start button.  I am presently looking for our 48 year old toaster oven that still works.  Yes, a wedding gift from the other engineers at the office where I worked, pooling their resources.

Three things … broken.  One was for my wife.  One was suggested by my wife as needing to be replaced.  And one was something my wife just had to have … just before she got sick and I had to learn how to use it.  All breaking in less than three months after she passed away.

I hope the idea of bad things happening in threes is enough, but other things around the house are showing signs of getting old.  The ice maker, lasting less than a year, and air fryer, lasting less than three years, went from working perfectly to not working at all, overnight.

But on a serious note, I have done a lot of praying.  I asked God, “I need a new computer, since I write a lot and upload to the internet, but please, Lord, remind me how I got things done before the other two devices came along.  I really do not need them.  Amen.  Oh, and P.S. Thanks for giving me that little test of faith.  You are my God, always.”

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.