Unlikely Teachers
Thunder booms, and our house shakes.
He sits on my feet and won't let me out of his sight.
The light strobes through the window creating eerie effects.
I tell him it's just a thunderstorm. I tell him everything is fine. I tell him to try to go to sleep.
He whimpers and shakes, unaffected by my words.
I pet him and scratch behind his ears. I pull his bed closer to mine so he will know I am near.
I can't sleep. I want to soothe him, but nothing will do.
Doesn't he see that I am not afraid?
If he would only trust me...

How is it that my dog teaches me about God? The only explanation I keep returning to regarding trying times is that the hardest experiences in life are beyond our comprehension, understood with more perspective: the perspective that years may offer--or perhaps the perspective gained from being in the presence of God.
God is infinitely bigger than we are. We cannot grasp his vision, his creation, much less his grace and love. He hears our endless questions; he waits for our growth. He comforts us when we can't understand his language or feel his presence. He is with us nonetheless.

Reading:
Romans 8:38-39

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Unlikely Teachers

He asks a question.
I answer.
He asks, "Why?"
I answer a bit more in-depth on the subject at hand.
He follows with, "--but why is that???"
I answer his question's question. In my mind, I provide a meta-answer.
Just when I think he must be satisfied, he goes a step deeper, "--and why is that??"

Wow! I don't have children and have never played this game as the "answer man." It sure was easier to ask the questions than to offer explanations. I am being confounded by a seven year old! Well, not confounded--there are things that are just too complicated to explain. There are things that I am sure his seven year old innocence is not ready to get its mind around yet. I can tell by his expression that he really wants to know, and I sincerely want to satisfy his curiosity. His asking is pure, but I can't go any further in my replies. His parents will have to do that at the right time. He will have to grow. Until then, he's unsatisfied with my answers to the first three questions, and his fourth question will go unanswered.
Is our Heavenly Father waiting for us to grow before we are able to accept His answers?

Reading:
Romans 8:26-30

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Life Lessons from Scarlett and Rhett

"Frankly, My Dear..."
If the Earth could speak, that is what it would have said to me--at least, that was how I felt anyway. I had reached one of the lowest points in my life. There was nothing horrible left to happen to me. I kept asking God, "Why?" "What's next God? Is the roof going to fall on my head, because that is all that is left to fall; everything else in my life is crumbling around me."I know that I was feeling sorry for myself. I was wallowing in self-pity. The thing that really got to me was that the world had not come to a complete stop. It continued to rotate on its axis, my neighbors continued on with their lives, people continued go to work, the grass continued to grow. Everything outside my world was unaffected by my misery. It was as if the world didn't care.
But once I had hit rock bottom, I finally realized that my life could only move in one direction: up.
My life could only get better, one way or another.
I finally realized that tomorrow held the promise of new possibilities, and I was glad that the grass would continue to grow and the Earth would continue its rotation.
As Scarlett put it, "tomorrow is another day." I couldn't agree more.

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The Serenity Prayer

O God and Heavenly Father,
Grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed;
the courage to change that which can be changed,
and the wisdom to know the one from the other,
through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

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