Every other week my blog will feature a reposted work. I had been a contributor on two different sites that have since closed or no longer include blogs. I will be reposting pieces that had originally been featured on one of these two sites.
Sometimes God speaks to us.
Sometimes we don’t fully understand what he says.
I have a story about that.
One night, while my wife and I were in the process of
adopting our son, she told me that she had a sense that we should be praying for
him to be warm. Though I didn’t say
anything at the time, I thought it was a little odd to pray that a person in
India would stay warm. Through the experience of our first adoption I realized that the country is generally quite warm. However, I respect my wife
and I trust that her heart is open to God so I prayed that our son would be
warm. I remembered our first adoption, spending ten days in India,
including three at the orphanage playing with our son, I remembered the heat and
humidity of India and I considered it ironic that we were praying for our second son to
stay warm. Despite the irony, as we pray
for our second son, Enoch who we trust is somewhere in India, I continue to pray that he
will be warm.
I am currently on a staff retreat with my coworkers (8/2/11). Today for our devotional our supervisor,
Bronson Pasko, led us out onto the deck by the lake. I was a little bothered by the Indiana sun
and humidity. He discussed the various
ways that we see Christ revealed in the world, citing many scripture passages
that use the metaphor of “light”. One of
the ways we see God is in creation (hence sitting outside for the devotional),
and several times Bronson referred to the beauty of the trees, the lake, and
the light and heat of the sun. The
passages described light; he stretched the metaphor to include the heat of the
sun on our backs. He encouraged us to
soak in the warmth and recognize the
Son of God, the Light of the World.
As Bronson used the metaphor I found myself making a
connection.
Maybe The Father laid that prayer on Candice’s heart so
that we would pray for Isaiah to be physically warm.
But, just maybe, He gave her that burden so that we would
pray for him to feel the warmth of
the presence of His Son Christ.
And maybe both are true.
Maybe, as I have continued to pray for warmth for my second son, it’s quite cold in India and kind
hands are holding him and tucking him in at night.
But, just maybe, The Father answers our prayers by being
present in Enoch’s soul and revealing himself in a gentle way that a child can
receive.
And maybe both are true.
I know my wife’s heart is sensitive to the Spirit of God.
I know that God answers our prayers according to His wisdom
rather than according to our understanding.
Both are true.
And I am thankful.
________
________
Then, when that happens, we are able to hold our heads high no matter what happens and know that all is well, for we know how dearly God loves us, and we feel this warm love everywhere within us because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
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