"Respair":  A 16th century term meaning fresh hope, and a recovery from despair.

We made a trek to see the pods--those square and rectangular boxes that one can rent to store earthly goods. My husband and I wanted to see if the largest pod would be adequate to hold our things--that the truck the company used to deliver the boxes would fit on our driveway.  The warehouse seemed a bit surreal. Miles and stacks of pods. Lines of trucks to carry the pods. No one around. A minuscule office sat at the corner of the warehouse, but we couldn't rouse anyone to help answer our questions. We walked over to one of the trucks and made our best guess that our driveway would fit its wheels, that the size pod we chose would hold our things. Just as we were about to leave, a man appeared behind one of the trucks. "Could we ask you a question about the pods?" "Sure," he said. We posed questions about the driveway requirements, but he responded, "I"m a driver. I transport pods from one location to another, so I don't know a lot about the driveway stuff. But, hey, I'm going to the office to get my orders. Maybe that guy could help you."

That's when we met Billy. Billy Billy as it turns out. "Yeah, my name's Billy, and believe it or not, my last name's Williams.  People call me 'Billy Billy,'" he laughed. There was something about him. Merry blue eyes behind glasses. A ponytail and long sideburns. Rosy cheeks. A listener. Billy answered our questions and put our minds at ease about our pod confusion. He handed us his business card. "You can see it's in the shape of a pod," he smiled.

When I stood in the pod warehouse, even with hundreds of pods stored there, the space was only partially filled. A vast amount of storage remained. A thought crossed my mind that perhaps the pod storehouse was a metaphor for how God wants to store our confusion and uncertainties, our despair, our burdens, our questions, our pain, our anxiety, our fear and worry, our cares. Our stress. I imagined Him saying, "Look at this gigantic warehouse. Such capacity. I am bigger. I can hold your vulnerabilities. Let me do that for you. You don't have to conjure up the faith, provide all the effort. Let me trade you those negatives for fresh hope and comfort, for strength and courage."

As my husband and I walked back to our car, I looked up at the sky. Blue portals shone through the gray. The pod place experience left me peaceful. In a strange way, being there felt almost like a retreat. The metaphorical exhange. Allowing God to store my uncertainty, my cares. Billy Billy's smile. Respair.

Pour out all your worries and stress upon Him and leave them there, for He always tenderly cares for you. I Peter 5:7 ( From The Passion Translation)