God’s Classroom

Not too long ago I broke a toe while stumbling through the house with my morning coffee. That tiny fracture made big changes in my routine for months. Oh how I complained especially over the loss of my morning walks. From a day with our family to just going to church.nothing was untouched. The small steady pain was a constant reminder to carefully weigh the necessity of every step.

In our walk with Christ most of us have broken a few toes as we stumble here and there. One second we are strong and assured while the next we are wondering if it is worth taking the next step. God has more often than not incorporated pain into His lesson plan to get my attention. It is a method guaranteed to make me think over what is truly good and necessary versus what is just a passing fancy. When each step is painful it is vital to decide which ones are vital in my path.

I am still learning that when I pray for God to show me His ways then not to complain about His classroom methods. Each day is another in a chain of miracles called life. God’s desire is that even in its tiniest details – both the mundane and the unexpected that I am being given the chance to learn more of His love for me.

Never too late to Leave a Legacy

“If we knew how great the grandkids would be we’d have had them first!” some people say. For a parent exhausted and discouraged by years of struggling with just getting it right for a day, even one hour of grandparenting can feel lile the balm of Gilead! What can be more refreshing than pushing your granddaughter on a swing or holding your grandson’s hand as you crunch through Autumn leaves? But unlike the sense of never ending and overwhelming responsibility that being a parent brings; grandparenting comes wrapped in the sweet sadness of knowing it may not be for long.

I have lived enough to know that one day this time will pass and I will no longer be here with them. No amount of hugs or kisses can change the calendar or slow the pendulum of life’s clock. But what I can do today is to be sure of what legacy I leave behind. Will I leave them a list of my fears and frustrations or will I pass on to them my faith? Will they weep and say, “Grand-dad went to be with the Lord” or will they have His peace knowing that my life has been wholly His? What a great hope lies before us! We can still leave behind a great legacy…not that we lived trouble free but that through every mighty storm He has been our mighty Savior!