Mess and Miracles

  You have been in this place long enough. That is the title. A title that came from a scripture in the Old Testament. At one point, after wandering for 40 years, the Children of Israel were tired. Tired of the walking, tired of the homelessness, tired of the mana, and just tired of not having a place to permanently put down roots. And then God comes to them and says, "ye have compassed this mountain long enough." Because God saw how tired they were, and how they ached for permeance, and knew it was time to move forward and stop circling.  How do I know He knew this? Because as a parent I watched my son struggle, and I knew just as God must have known, when the time for circling the mountain had ended, and the time to get on with the journey had come. My son, who was six at the time, broke his femur while playing tackle football at recess. What followed was a major surgery, screws and plates being inserted into his leg, a month and a half of being in a wheelchair, and months ...

  I wish I could tell you that I never struggle with the concept of a God that knows and loves me.  I still have times where I wonder if he really knows what is going on in my life. And those questions seem to get louder on days like Mother's Day. Today like most women, I had very low expectations for good things coming my way. I had tried to convince my kids to pick something out for me the other day when we were out shopping, but after 30 minutes of a four year old throwing a temper tantrum, and multiple shoppers offering to take her, I knew that wasn't going to happen. Fast forward to Mother's Day eve, and I was at the grocery store by myself (a treat) to pick out what I wanted for a Mother's Day meal, and to select a bouquet of flowers for myself. I had zero expectations of getting breakfast in bed, and knew that the only special meal or gift that I would be receiving the next day, I would have to purchase. So imagine my surprise, when while playing with my kids in ...