You Are Gonna Think I'm Crazy

I'm just warnin' ya now! If you are not a follower of Christ, you are going to write me off as a loon in a few minutes. If you are a Christ follower you may still think I am a little off my rocker. I read a couple of blogs lately that I thought were wonderful! Not only full of truth, but awesome in imagery. A dear friend of mine has been going through a lot lately with some painful health problems. I gave her a link to these blogs because I thought they might speak to her in a similar way. Little did I know that it would turn around into her ministering to me in a huge way with her incredible faith while she is in 'deep water' (more on this below).

The first one I read was by Cindy Beall called I Think I’ve Figured Out Grace. In that post, she quotes a book of Max Lucado called Grip of Grace. "If God did nothing more than save us from hell, could anyone complain?" Wow, that just smacked me right in the face. It's very true, if we get nothing from the Lord but a free trip to Heaven, isn't that worth celebrating? When talking to my friend about her situation and His Grace, I brought up the song "Your Grace Is Enough." It means more to me now, just reading what I already knew, put to me in a different way. We are but a blip on a screen here on earth, but His grace for our eternity, now that is huge!

The second is called The Deep Water by Kim Heinecke . It's hard to figure out where to start with how this post effected me. I read it, it was beautiful. I really enjoyed it, I shared it. And that was it right? Yeah, no. If you've spent much time with me or read some of my previous post like Frequent Oblivion, then you know I am much of the time unaware of so many things. I don't read situations well, I don't see things coming and I don't anticipate what others see as the obvious. I don't think I'm dense, I just more time in the here and now than trying to figure out the symbolism behind things. I tend to believe that things are the way they seem and that what people say is what they mean. Too bad that's not always true. This is why God has to knock me clean off my chair sometimes to get my attention to something that he has put in front of me ten times in less obvious manners. It's not deliberate disobedience, just me going about my way, taking life in like at face value and not seeing somethings. Sometimes I just need giant billboards telling me what to do. I do not have the gift of discernment like my son.

A week ago last Friday night I got ready to meet my sister at WalMart for a midnight shopping trip. I hop in my van and pull down the driveway. The radio is on KLOVE and I can't remember what song was ending. I thought to myself how much I had been thinking about Your Grace Is Enough and how cool it would be if it were to be the next song. Guess what? No, but really, out of all the songs that KLOVE plays, there is only one that I needed to hear. Only one that I wanted to hear. Only one that He wanted to play for me. Your radio on the same station may have been playing a totally different tune. I don't believe in coincidence, but providence. That may sound silly to some, but for me, it's just how it is.

As I pull out of the driveway and as Your Grace is Enough fills up my van, I am moved to tears. I can't say that I am going through horrible trials, I'm not homeless. I'm not hungry. I'm not alone. I'm not poor. I'm not sick. My kids are healthy. My husband is wonderful. My home is filled with 'stuff.' I have a big yard. I have a car. We are 'fat' rich. My husband has a car. We have electricity and water and money to pay our bills. Sometimes we are placed in situations where it's very easy believe that His grace is all we need. Other times, when things are going wonderfully, it's easy to forget about how big the gift of His grace really is. Maybe you're not guilty of taking His greatest gift for granted, by I know I have been. Have you?

The Lord spoke to my spirit as I drove down the road. Less than a 1/2 mile from home, I was to pull over. I pulled over into a little drive that I never knew excited. Mind you, it was midnight, so pitch black out where I live. In front of me was a small field, full of foliage. There was a clearing and in the middle stood a tree. I heard the Lord tell me to get out of the car and I sat there and argued with Him for the second half of the song. "But if I get out, I won't be able to hear the song." And I added, "Why do I need to get out of the car?" and He replied (not audibly) "Because I said so." Okay, point taken, getting out of the car... I got out of the car and again felt the Lord speak to my spirit to enter the clearing and walk around the tree. I responded with "WHAT?"

In my head, I instantly played 20 different scenarios of what could happen to me should I go for a stroll around this tree, in the middle of a dark field, in the middle of the country, in the middle of the night. Looking out at the tree I start to hype myself up. I can do this. The clearing looks fairly clear of large limbs, critters, or dead bodies. The grass appears to be about calf high. I can do this.

I walk off of the pavement and into the field. Thankfully, the lights of my van were shinning outward, giving me some light to see by. About four or five steps forward and the grass is up to my thighs and then almost to my waist. My heart is pounding, as what I saw was not what not what this was. Had I known from the beginning that the grass was so deep, I would likely not have entered the field. For a brief moment, I glanced to my right. The picture was a beautiful image of the trees with light shinning up through them from behind me. Looking back at my destination, I realized that I was at the furthest point from my van and I felt panic creeping up on me.

It then occurred to me that if I was at the half way point then, I was half way back to the van. Now the light it shinning on me and I have to look down at the grass and weeds in my path so not to be blinded by the light. I remember saying, out loud, "This crazy, why am I doing this?" and then I started to laugh and said "Because you told me to. Because you told me to. Because you told me to." My dad once got in trouble in school and had to right a several hundred word paper on why he had to right the paper. He filled up several sheets with "Because you told me to. Because you told me to. Because you told me to." I guess I am my father's daughter!

Now I am back at the van, brushing off some of the leaves and twigs that came with me. After I am sure that there are no ticks crawling up my pant legs, I get back in the van. I back out and again, head towards WalMart. I start to think about the significance of my trip around the tree. As I mentioned before, I am not always good at reading between the lines. I think about my best friend Dawn. She's very intuitive and insightful and she's knows her way all over the OKC metro area! I always like to take her with me when I'm heading into unfamiliar territory. I don't need a Tom Tom, I have something better, my Dawn Dawn. As I am thinking about the person who helps me with directions, I realize I am missing my turn. I quickly switch lanes and take my turn. Rolling my eyes at myself, I realize that I didn't miss my turn, I took an earlier one...one that will take me to WalMart just the same, but not the way I had planned. I did get to WalMart and to shop with my sister. We made a silly balloon "Mermaid Queen" and had a good time visiting. I didn't share this story with her then, as I am sure she would have raised an eyebrow at me.

I know that there is 'more than meets the eye' in this story. I want to hear your insightfullness. I want to hear your 'between the lines' comments. What in this story reminds you of a scripture or story in the bible? Have you had similar experiences? Has God had you do things that seemed silly or something you didn't understand? Please share. Comment here, or if it's long, blog about it and comment here to leave me your link.