Gemma...

I was in Chicago last weekend.
My daughter goes to Moody Bible Institute there and
My other daughter was running the Chicago marathon.
It was a weekend of cheering and fun with my girls and my son-in-law.
It was also a weekend of inspiration.

I was waiting for my daughter to meet me after her PCM (practical Christian ministry) in the projects.
She didn't arrive at the appointed time and wasn't answering her phone.
An hour and a half later, she arrived...
She had been listening to a girl...a transexual...tell of her twisted and heart-wrenching childhood...of her parents constant abuse.
She was so damaged...physically, emotionally, psychologically...
How can parents do that to their own child?
My mind doesn't compute.
My heart cannot fathom.
She shared details of her life with my girl and another...honestly...painfully...hopefully...
The girls listened and loved.
They didn't judge.
They didn't tell her what she SHOULD do...
They told her how precious she is...
And she is.
Whatever she's into or doing or fighting or addicted to...
That's residual.
SHE is precious.
I don't know her name, but I pray for her...

Then I was in the Lifeway bookstore that is housed in the first floor and basement of my daughter's dorm.
I shopped.
I flipped through books, admired artwork, examined Moody trinkets...
And then a small hispanic woman touched my arm.
She wanted me to help her choose a book to give to her granddaughter.
"She is in trouble.  I am so worried." she said in broken English.
Her heart was right out there for all to see.
Her face was etched with concern.
She loves her granddaughter deeply.
No question.
I asked her a few questions...how old is she, do you think she will read a book?
"God can do anything, a book is all I can think to do."
Yep, he can.
Even a non-reader will read a book if God prompts.  Touche.
We looked at devotionals for teenagers...then it struck me.
She's probably not a typical teenager and these cutesy devotionals are going to insult her perceived level of maturity.
And I wanted a book that was dated...that had devotionals for each day of the year.
It's always been uncanny how the devotion for any given date will always be apropos...God is like that.
I immediately thought of "Jesus Calling".
We put back the books we were considering and walked to the display.
She smiled and agreed, this was the one.
She thanked me profusely and I hugged her.
She asked me to pray for her granddaughter...Gemma.
What a beautiful name.
What a beautiful life.
I wonder if Gemma knows how deeply her grandma loves her.
I hope that Gemma will know that she has a Heavenly Father who loves her deeper still.
Pray for Gemma....for all of the hurting souls in Chicago...for that matter, in every city.
It's so easy to rest in our easy lives...in our loving families...
And forget that there are those that struggle.
Who have always struggled.
Who have never known love...
Yet...
May they know with certainty, that God Himself, loves them more than they can fathom.

Psalm 86:15
But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

The Importance of Faith...

Our state experienced a catastrophic landslide this week.
The numbers of dead and missing fluctuate from day to day.
I'm reminded how precious life is...how precious people are...how life can be snuffed out so quickly.
The images of the devastation are everywhere...the sorrow-filled faces of family members, friends, neighbors...tragedies like this one tend to bring people together...to ignite us deep inside to the compassion and love and tenderness that is always there...stuffed down in the mundane of our day to day activities.
I watched the local news this morning.
The anchors spoke to a pastor because they said:
"Faith is important at a time like this."
At a time like this.
Faith is important at a time like this.

And then I wondered...

If we're in the midst of the pinnacle of happiness...does faith lose importance?

What if you were in the midst of the pinnacle of happiness...giving a new baby a bath, talking to an old friend on the phone, enjoying a latte...and the mud came down and ended it right there.

When is faith important?

We run to God when life gets too difficult for our spirits to bear alone.
When we receive a frightening diagnosis.
When we lose a loved one.
When we need a job
When the phone rings in the middle of the night.
When we feel all alone.

But what if we lived our lives in close fellowship with God
every... single... day...
and the difficulties came?
They're inevitable.
Life is not easy.
Death is sure.

To be close with God is not all about following a set of rules...
It is a relationship...
it is peace in the swirling chaos...
power in the face of fear...
love in the presence of hate...
and
joy in the midst of sorrow.

It is life eternal when death descends...

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD And whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, That extends its roots by a stream And will not fear when the heat comes; But its leaves will be green, And it will not be anxious in a year of drought Nor cease to yield fruit.

Weddings...

The wedding planning is in full swing now!
Have I mentioned that my daughter is getting married?
She is!
OH happy day!
Interestingly enough, she is getting married on our 29th Anniversary.
It was a funny coincidence...not planned...just happened that the venue she chose was only available on that particular day during the time they wanted.
There are so many details involved in wedding planning today.
So many choices to make!
I've been thinking about when I planned my wedding...29 years ago...
I only had a handful of choices to make and the number of things to choose from in each category were very limited!
For instance.
I did not go to a bridal salon and try on lots of dresses.
I went to a fabric store and looked through pattern books.
I chose my bridesmaid dresses the exact same way.
I did not have cake tastings with lists of flavors and fillings.
I chose white cake with white frosting (a wedding cake, duh!) and then I chose the color of the frosting roses on top!
I went to Hallmark and chose my invitations from a pool of about 25 styles.
I had to choose the kind of punch to be served at the cake and punch reception at the church.
No alcohol.  No choice.  Period.
Did I want mints and nuts at the reception?  Yes.  Done.
I chose two soloists and the songs they would sing.
The flowers were pretty standard...we chose colors and the florist recommended types of flowers.
We went with the thriftier choices.
I loved my wedding!
I got married before reality TV and Pinterest.  I was blissfully unaware that my wedding could have been a statement of my style and a representation of our personalities.
I was 19-years-old.
I don't think I even knew what my style was at that age...
To me, our wedding was a ceremony...a celebration of having found the one that my soul loves!
It was a reason to eat cake.
Then we got the heck outta there and started our life together!

I'm enjoying the modern process of wedding planning.
It's fun to do some of the steps ourselves...to be creative...
I'm enjoying helping my daughter express their style in the invitations and decor.
It's SO FUN to pin wedding ideas on Pinterest!
It will be a lovely wedding.
It will be a lovely wedding because the people getting married are loved.  They are made for each other.  They are chosen for each other by God.
In the end, it doesn't matter what decor is on the tables or how the invitations look or how beautiful her dress is (and it is very beautiful!).
What matters is that two people will be starting their life together, speaking vows before God and their family...they will carry on the legacies of each family and begin their own legacy for their children and grandchildren.
That is the stuff of life.
Flowers will die...lace will yellow...cake gets stale...
Love lives on for generations...

Loyalty...

30 years ago, I made a prediction.
It was my senior year in high school.
I was in a poetry class.
We were given the assignment to write a poem starting with the words:  I Predict...
I predicted that the Seahawks would win the Superbowl.
I believed it when they didn't make the playoffs for years on end...
I believed it Sunday as the national anthem was sung and the camera panned from Seahawk to Seahawk, 12th man to 12th man.
Faces painted
Hands over hearts
Earnest expressions
Lips moving in silent prayer
And then the kick-off...plates loaded...no, I haven't switched to baseball, my paper plate was loaded with all the necessities to get me through a screaming, jumping, tension-filled championship game of football.
I needed fuel for the fight.
But there wasn't a fight.
It was a whipping that involved a lot of cheering and jumping and dancing...and dance we did.
We laughed a lot too.
And then it happened...5, 4, 3, 2....SUPERBOWL CHAMPS!!!!!
The room went wild!!!
And every 12th man was rewarded for their loyalty...for waiting patiently...for believing...for standing firm through the years of drought...of doubt...
Until the perfect combination of leadership, talent and teamwork were fused into a championship!!