Family Dinner and Devos

The scene:  Our deck at dinner time with devotions following

The characters:  My family, sans my eldest daughter who was at work

The sitch:  A snapshot of a day-in-the-life at our dinner table

• One boy regaling us with how he cracked up all his friends recently with a well-timed musical rendition of "Why do my nostrils whisper to me".  Don't ask.  I have no idea.  But it was apparently hilarious to the intended audience.
• One boy lets out a massive burp (followed by a quick 'excuse me', which apparently erases the burp from existence and makes it as if it never happened).
• During devotions, one boy bolted from the table with a some sort of oral crisis and the rest of us were left wondering what on earth was going on (we were later told there was a large amount of tooth pain that had to be dealt with immediately).
• My husband was reading our devotion book (a great CPH book called Celebrating the Saints by William Weedon), and the saint we were hearing about was Augustine.  He has a very interesting story and I was listening intently. . .until my husband read that he lived in Hippo.  Several people couldn't control their laughter and we had to stop for a moment while he explained that Augustine did not in fact live in a hippo, but in a town named Hippo.  Carry on.
• At the very beginning of the hymn we were closing with, Shadow puppy made his move.  He noticed our distraction with our hymnals and swept up to the table, grabbed a morsel of meat and whipped back down to the deck.  We had to stop the hymn while we all cracked up (and dad had to discipline the bad boy - who looked largely unaffected).
• When we finally were able to sing the hymn fully, my heart sang along with our voices.  We sang "The Day You Gave Us, Lord Has Ended", an old favorite of mine from childhood.  And indeed, today was a gift from the Lord, complete with its serious and silly moments.  

1 The day you gave us, Lord, is ended,

the darkness falls at your behest;

to you our morning hymns ascended,

your praise shall sanctify our rest.

2 We thank you that your church unsleeping,

while earth rolls onward into light,

through all the world her watch is keeping,

and rests not now by day or night.

3 As to each continent and island

the dawn leads on another day,

the voice of prayer is never silent,

nor dies the strain of praise away.

4 The sun that bids us rest is waking

your church beneath the western sky,

and hour by hour fresh lips are making

your wondrous doings heard on high.

5 So be it, Lord: your throne shall never,

like earth's proud empires, pass away;

your kingdom stands, and grows for ever,

till all your creatures own your sway.