Warm Blanket

For those of us who have entered the addictive world of Facebook, I think we can all relate to the nostalgic feelings of reconnecting with people from our pasts. I don't know about you, but I have had (and am still having) such a blast finding and communicating with friends I haven't seen in nearly 20 years! I grew up in sort of a small town (which isn't so small anymore, unfortunately) and lived there throughout nearly all of my childhood. I graduated from high school with people I've known since the third grade...people who watched me mature into a teenager and then a young adult. People who knew my parents and brother, went to church with me, saw me cheer at football games or sing and dance in musicals. People who sang in youth choir with me, performed in recitals with me, and went on tons of church youth camps with me. People who basically saw me grow up and people I watched grow up as well. The memories I've made over my lifetime are priceless to me, and now to relive some of those through Facebook is, quite frankly, overwhelming.

Last night as I was getting in the bed after my ritual pre-bedtime Facebook check, I was unusually teary and missing my dad. He died a little over three years ago, and every once in a while his loss hits me completely out of the blue. Sometimes I'll hear a song that does it to me, or sometimes it's a holiday...I never know when it'll happen. Now that I'm on Facebook, a lot of my childhood friends remember my dad, and many of them have shared their memories of him with me. One of my best friends from high school shared one with me last night that, even now when I think about it, makes me cry. It's incredibly special to me to be able to cherish his memory through others. I'm so grateful to God for that!

I don't know about you, but I love the feeling of getting under a warm, cozy blanket. I'm so cold-natured that I could just about stay covered up under an electric blanket year-round, in fact. When I think about God being ever-present in my life--in my past, present, and future--I can't help but be reminded of such comfort. I think about the prayers I prayed as a third-grader, as a 16-year old, as a college student, a new bride, and as a mom of five...and they're all to the same God. He never changes. He never leaves. I think about the prayers I prayed at youth camps with my youth group, and how so many of those people are no longer a part of my life, at least to that degree. But God is! I think about my Dad--the man who took me to church and coached me in softball, who was my biggest fan and took such pride in me and everything I did. Though he is no longer here on this earth, the God he worshipped and taught me to worship is still here, bringing me comfort even now. Today, as I celebrate my wedding anniversary, I think about all the ways my life has changed in 13 years of marriage. Even so, the God who bound us together as one flesh on a freezing cold evening in Atlanta, Georgia, is the same God my husband and I worship and serve together right now. Warm Blanket, indeed. As I told Lee last night, He is the Constant in my life--the eternal Thread that has woven me into who I am now. The One who will stay with me when others are long gone. The One who has kept His hand on me my whole life long, even when I couldn't see it or feel it. Oh, how I praise Him for that!

Our lives are full of change. We've all heard the saying, "The one thing we can count on in life is change," and isn't that the truth? Sometimes I'm so overwhelmed by life's changes that I can barely articulate the impact it's had on my life. But one thing is certain and I know it for an absolute fact: God doesn't change. He is. And even better, He is love. He cannot be anything but that, in fact. His love isn't an emotion, either. Just as I am a woman and cannot be anything but a woman, God cannot be anything but love. His love is perfect, and, in Christ, nothing can separate us from His perfect love. Not time, not our failures, and not death. His Word tell us that if we draw near to Him, he will draw near to us. If we seek Him, we will find Him always. Why? Because He cannot move! What an unfathomable concept! He just is, and He loves you, and me, so very much. So much, in fact, that He sacrificed His own Son so that we can experience His love intimately and share it with others. In the constant changes of our lifetimes I pray that we will grab hold to the steadfastness of our loving God. Some changes are wonderful, and some leave us feeling like we're standing abandoned in the bitter cold. Reach for that Warm Blanket, sweet friend, and wrap It around you. It's right where you left It.

"May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant... Your Word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations..." Psalm 119:76, 89-90.