The breeze

A number of years ago my family moved to Orlando. The car had this dreadful problem with overheating and so I was left in a very warm car in a very warm place with a fussy baby. I sat very still in the car and every once in a great while a breeze would stir and I would try to soak in every bit of it. It was what kept me sane, I think. It was the little touch of hope that perhaps we wouldn't roast after all. Gosh, it was hot in Florida.

I have discovered it is hot in ministry too. Sometimes, just like Florida, I am fairly sure I will roast. It's the kind of heat the permeates your brain and effects energy, emotion and vision. It's generally a gradual build until you begin to feel like you are baking and then when the breeze blows through, though sometimes it is the merest hint of air moving, it becomes the hope for relief and respite.

Today the breeze was sweet and fresh and consistent. It started first thing this morning with an email or two that became a means of grace. It continued with encounters with folks who themselves were feeling the breeze and rejoicing in its presence and that was a shared blessing. It was experienced by fellow travelers who need the breeze too and it is always more delightful when a joy is shared.

I have to wonder tonight as I sit in the moments of reflections on the day and the blessings it held, How truly is it that a God so vast that my mind can not even begin to comprehend His vision and His resources is mindful of me?! Why does He bother to send me affirmation, confirmation and reassurance? How amazing is this God who loves me with almost a goofy intensity, and not just me, every one of his silly sheep.

At the end of the day, which certainly possessed it's roasting moments, I received an answer to prayer. It was a huge answer about someone who I have had in the back of my mind for years. I have worried about them and prayed that I would run into them or somehow receive word about them all to no avail. Tonight I discovered they are alive and kicking and being cared for. What a relief, what a delightful breath of fresh air. Sanity returns! And once again I am in awe, realizing that God is an awesome God and a gentle, loving, gracious Father who for whatever reason dotes on His children. I am so thankful for that.

I am thankful and I head for bed that with my heart filled with joy and my lips filled with praise. How great is our God. Doesn't the air feel great!