Analie scooped me up and we headed to Manhattan Beach for lunch. I treated her to my favorite little Italian restaurant called Mama D's in Manhattan Beach. I take all my girlfriends there whenever we have to talk about really serious things concerning life. I've taken Dayne there after she came back from her missionary trip to Russia. On countless occasions, Hoa and I would have lunch there whenever we would make plans for her wedding and pray for her and her husband, Arthur. Yesterday, it was Analie's turn to enjoy the restaurant and the gorgeously sunny day at the beach. Along with the dishes and appetizers, our interests and concerns were "served at the table": family, career, lovelife, faith, finances, health and a lot of inside jokes.
After yesterday's lunch, we headed shopping around the Torrance area. If you don't know me by now, I am very particular and very choosy when it comes to clothes, shoes, handbags and wallets. I needed new clothes to replace all the old baggy-fitting clothes that I purged from my wardrobe and donated to Goodwill. Knowing that I have a balance of zero on my one and only Visa credit card, plus knowing that if I really wanted to splurge to the heavens and pay it all back next month was such a hazardous thought (and still is!). I came to the mall only buy new clothes, but I my eyes peered over to the shoe area and I saw a really elegant pair of Cole Haan tall black leather boots. It caught my eye so much, I had to get closer to it. Analie saw how much interest I gave to those boots.
To be really honest with you, it's not the designer label "Cole Haan" that attracts me to this black beauty of an invention. If these same pair of boots were sitting in Payless shoes, Target, or Big Lots, I would still find myself loving them with exactly the same affection. I asked the Nordstroms sales representative if I could try them on in size 7 (I'm really a size 6.5, but I like my high-heeled boots to fit loosely). They were so artfully made, and the high heel was just the right height! When I zipped up the boots up to the tallest part of my calves, I instantly thought of a gazillion outfits that I could wear it with. But I knew that I didn't need a pair of $375 dollar Cole Haan boots right now. It won't make me feel happy in the longrun. I didn't have any original plans to get shoes, so I just relished on the second best tangible concept--that at least I got to try on a nice pair of Cole Haans that were comfortable and buttery to the touch. Those tall boots are going to wind up on the legs of some very fortunate lady who has great sense of fashion taste. I do mean that "very fortunate" line, because Cole Haan will never repeat any of their shoe styles. Once the style is gone for the season, it's gone forever! I was able to placate myself by telling myself that I'll never have that particular pair because it will be sold out after this weekend sale is over. Knowing that those leather boots will never be available to me was enough to encourage me to move on and put a closure to wanting pair of tall leather boots!
I haven't gone out shopping for clothes in a very long time, so the South Bay Galleria felt like a candystore. I didn't find anything at the shopping mall that was worthy enough to be purchased. I almost never find anything great enough to purchase at the mall, even if on sale. Like I said, I'm very picky. However, Analie bought a pair of dark brown Chanel sunglasses that looked very
classy on her. After she made the huge purchase, she told me that she was
"done for the day".
Do you want to know my shopping secret to searching for the best deals? This is my secret. Ate Ruby who was old mentor and the one who discipled me when I was a new believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, taught me to remember praying to God before and while I am in the middle of shopping for things and thank Him once the transaction goes through and the sales receipt is handed to me. I learned to ask God to help me find cute, high quality stuff that I need without wasting any time. I also ask Him to help me search for exactly what I need that fits my budget. It might sound extremely over-spiritualized, but I really don't care what anyone else thinks. I know He answers my prayer. He also really convicts me when I become wasteful, greedy, or whenever buy something too impulsively and need to return it. My budget for shopping was $200. I don't really buy clothes very often, so $200 is more than plenty. Analie and I headed over to another department store where I practically "stole" the store's largest shopping bag full of business casual clothes for only $160: a skirt, sweater, vest, blouse, and leather boots--oh yes indeed, new leather boots! Analie found a size 6 Calvin Klein dress for me that was originally priced at $158, "just chillin" at the farthest clearance rack for only $31. I believe that dress was my favorite purchase yesterday! I can't wait to rock my new clothes, especially the dress! Analie and I finished our shopping very early, and I still had $40 to spare.
By the way, Analie and I were talking about what makes us happy in life as we were browsing through the clothes. She brought up the subject. To tell her in all honesty, if it was left completely all up to me, I'd never feel or be completely happy at any given moment of my life. There's always something insatiable, something missing, a longing for something more and greater. And when that hype is all over, the chasing-cycle continues onto another infatuation of some sort. While there is nothing wrong with being happy and doing things that make us feel happier, it's to be assumed that some things we do to gain happiness can be "ephemeral", but there are definitely exceptions. Yes, I said the word ephemeral. We both laughed because it was the perfect in the conversation to drop a "smart-people word", just to contrast that many times I am slow and dumb about life! I simply reminded her that our lives are not about us, but it's about God who deserves to be glorified and Jesus Christ who saved us so we can be right with God. I'm glad that Analie is Roman Catholic in religion. We can freely talk about God in that sort of way and we're not afraid to say something that might offend because we've been close friends since we were 15 years old. Our friendship is secured by respect and trust. These talks that I have with Analie have been happening more frequently because we are both facing hardships right now that we can only humbly relinquish to God, so that we can go through our day in peace.
After shopping, I treated Analie and myself to a hot cup of Earl Gray tea at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf by the Del Amo Fashion Center. We fixed our tea with lots of honey and cream. It was so good. She was sharing other things that she's being challenged with and I did a lot of listening. Then Analie brought up a lot of questions about what does it mean to be a Christian and how she can get obtain real peace. "How can I be sure that God will never leave me?," she asked. "I started changing my ways, Liz. You know this. But this time I want to really start all over again and not go back. How can I do that? What do I need to do?" She also wanted me help her find a Bible that she can easily read and understand. The funny thing was that Barnes & Nobles bookstore is situated right around the corner. Analie asked me with a smile, "Do you want to go to the bookstore and help me find a Bible, Liz? I know I need one, because I don't have one. I've been wanting to have one to keep in my purse so that I can start reading it."
There was hardly any parking left. Barnes & Nobles bookstore was packed full of college students and other folks. There was so much hubbub going on inside the bookstore that Saturday night. We went up the escalator and found the religion aisle. It was the only aisle in the entire bookstore that was vacant, in contrast to the astrology aisle, right beside it. There were 3 people browsing through books probably about the zodiac signs and tarot cards. Obviously, it seems as if nobody really takes interest or would be caught dead browsing through or hanging out in that particular area of the bookstore where the Jesus Christ books are found. We found the shelf fully stocked with various Bibles. "Gosh, I don't understand King James Version. What is the difference between NIV, ESV...What does 'Red-Letter Edition' mean?," she asked. It was overwhelming for her, soon after she found a nice black leather bound Bible with silver-leafed pages at the bottom shelf. "Ooh, this one is black with silver! I want to look inside. Do you think I can open the shrink wrap?," she asked me. I told her, "Go for it!"
"Liz, what do you do when you read the Bible? Do you read it everyday? How do you get to understanding the Bible?" Analie asked me. We sat on the floor and she was asking me what the difference is between Roman Catholics and Christians. She asked me why my mom left Catholicism and if changing churches really helps someone get saved and know God. I assured her that it's not the church, the priests, all the good works done, the sacraments, the Holy Communion, and praying the Rosary that helps a person grow closer to God, but rather maintaining our faith in Jesus Christ and following Him that saves us. We were sitting on the floor for a long time flipping through Bible verses, and I saw Analie's eyes starting to get red. Then occasionally, she would look away from me and pinch the tears out of her eyes. She didn't want me to see her cry and she didn't want to cause a scene in the bookstore. "Thanks, Liz! Thank you for spending all this time with me. I really want to change and I don't want to come back to my old self."
"You know what Ana, give me this," I told Analie. "No, Liz I can't let you." "No, let me. I want to," I told her. I took that Bible and I purchased it for her with the remaining money from my clothes shopping budget. Then I dedicated the new Bible to her with the God's Word, a short verse from Ezekiel that really spoke to her.
In all the 15 years that we have been friends, I've prayed for Analie
many times. But I can't recall a time when we have ever had the
opportunity to pray together. That evening, before I stepped out of
her white Volvo, we prayed together for the very first time about
opening up ourselves to have faith and trust in Jesus Christ's saving
grace, and allow God be the one to change us.
Ezekiel 36:26
I will
give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from
you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
If you have the same or similar questions that Analie had (mentioned above) lingering in your mind, it doesn't help to put things off and leave those questions unanswered. Seek out the answers and put those questions to rest. Here's a really great resource to read through about every day questions we have and may be afraid to ask other people about. What I really like about the Just Stop and Think Website is that there is a 15-minute movie you can watch that explains an impacting message: http://www.juststopandthink.com/
I basically don't have a life until April 2008. Yeah, this is real shocking huh? 
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