The Missing of Them

As I prepare for our Thanksgiving celebration this year it has hit me - the missing of them. I have such great memories of family Thanksgivings. When I was really young all the aunts, uncles and cousins gathered with my grandmother. So much fun. All the cooking and laughing and eating and game playing and puzzle piecing. Big families are fun. Then there were the years away which were not as much fun - oh and the Thanksgiving from hell. (Thankfully only one I can almost remember. I won't go there. Suffice it to say I still can't see, smell or think about Southern Comfort. I've grown up I tell you.) After Geoff and I got married we began going back to my family's Thanksgiving. Again, so much fun. As the years progressed we started new traditions with "family of choice". (Love them so much!) But today I'm missing my mom, my dad, my grandma, my brothers, aunts and uncles and cousins who made family times memorable. I may be looking back with rose colored glasses but today feels tender. 

A Redemption Story

Some time ago I posted a photograph of my family of origin. I sure wish I could find the post so I could link to it here. I'm not sure when I wrote it. Anyway, in the picture I am standing alone off to the side and the rest of them, my mom and dad and 3 brothers are all standing together. That picture has always bothered me. It's actually hanging in the hallway of my parents' house. It's the only photograph I know of that exists of my entire family from when I was a child.

Here's where redemption comes in...Monday night at Soaking (yes, folks, another soaking story) we were listening to a cd about faith and how to believe by letting go of unbelief. At the end of it Amy put on some quiet violin music and suggested we ask God what unbelief we needed to let go of in order to have more faith. I saw that old picture. So I asked God where He was then. What I heard was this, "I am the One Who took you out of that box. I set you apart. In the picture you look like you are just standing there but in reality, in the spirit, you are dancing! I said, Come out and you stepped out." I remembered the story of Peter stepping out of the boat onto the water. That took a lot of faith. I also remember him realizing what he was doing and panicking. What did Jesus do next? He immediately took his hand. He held him up. He didn't let him fall. I want to remember what it felt like to step out of the box. I want to stay out of the box. I know if I fall He'll pick me back up. I just don't want to fall anymore. I want to dance.