“Karen’s Notes!
Insights from a Glory-Bound Lady”

Selected Notes
Volume 7 Number 32, “Now Where Did I Put Those Keys?”
August 7th, 2024

A note about our laughter: Karen and I frequently laughed together. As I think about it, often the laughter took place because of something that I did or said! You will laugh at this. My children will attest to the fact that for years we often were looking for Dad’s car keys before we walked out the door. I had the bad habit of walking into the house, being so excited to see everyone, being mobbed by our many, many children and then throwing my keys “somewhere!”

One year Karen bought an inexpensive wall mounting with three key hooks. I thought something was suspicious when all my children were giggling. Out she came with the tape measure. She wanted to see exactly how far off the floor Daddy’s eyes were! “Don’t come in, Daddy!” were the shouts, and the giggles persisted. Karen (with my permission) used this illustration in her ladies’ conference in several places. Let me share the verse and then what she wrote.

“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7).

Karen wrote: Everything has a consequence. With our many children, I had to give them an added incentive to pick things up after themselves. If they didn’t put things away, I levied a ten cent fine! If we don’t put things where they belong, we can’t find them later. Our choices in life bring about consequences. Let me tell you about my dear husband and his car keys.

Often my family had to look for Daddy’s car keys until that day when my children and I bought Daddy a surprise. When they brought him in from the garage door and into the laundry room, there straight ahead was the wall mounted key holder exactly at Daddy’s eye level. Now there would be no excuses. As soon as Daddy got home, even with kids hanging on him, he would look straight ahead and hang his keys up and then wrestle with the kids.

It worked! Yes, she got more than one laugh out of that with ladies. But on a serious note, actions do have consequences. Choose wisely. I am thankful for those lessons as well as for the forgiveness of the Lord when we do sin and act unwisely.