The Past Remembered

Philippians 4:4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." NIV




I have come to know that my Abba will provide for me whenever I ask Him to.  He gives me peace when I need it most.  It has always been said that God will never give you more than you can handle.  I sometimes wonder just what people mean when they say that.  I know that He has always provided for me in the midst of what I perceive to be the worst trials of my life.  Yet I am not sure why one has to go to the edge of insanity sometimes to learn life lessons. I would, just once, like to have my lesson hand delivered to me in a box of chocolates with a cute stuffed teddy bear and a massage rather than in another chaotic, life changing, sometimes painful event.


I decided that with all that had gone on in our life lately, sweetheart and I needed some time for ourselves.  With a disabled grown son, a daughter and a grand baby, and a new job, we found ourselves with no time for each other, no privacy, and short tempers.  I found an absolutely beautiful bed and breakfast online that came with rave reviews.  At first I had to talk myself into it because we have so many hotel points, it seemed wasteful to stay here instead of at a local hotel.  But Abba kept pointing me in this direction and giving me peaceful feelings about staying here.  As the door opened and we walked into the home, I knew exactly why He sent me here.  


In the last few months, I have keenly felt the loss of my past.  My grandparents home, in the family for over 150 years, had been sold and turned into a restaurant.  My brother and sister and I have grown up and grown apart. I am estranged from my mother and I don't get many opportunities to see my father.  My cousins live many states away as do my children and my grandchildren.  I missed giving my family what I had when I was growing up.  The holidays at gammy and pappy's house, the kitchen talk, the recipe swaps, the football games, the pecan tree, the smell of gardenia's, the sound of the train, and the loud happy family talk.  People don't all live in the same town they grew up in any more.  Well, some don't.  My southern family is lucky enough that most of them still live in the area of Georgia we all grew up in.  Unfortunately for my siblings and I, a broken home took us all over the country and separated us many times.

This house, Crystal River Inn  www.crystalriverinn.com , is as close to my grandparents house as any place I have ever stayed.  The front door, the front rooms, the four bedrooms upstairs, the big kitchen, the wood, the furnishings.  It is so beautiful, so stately, so comfortable.  The tall windows, the leaded paned glass, the rockers on the front porch, the pecan tree out front.  It's all here.  And tomorrow we will attend church at the First United Methodist Church around the corner.  Both sweetheart and I attended First United Methodist Churches growing up.  Not the same ones naturally but to have this house here with the church down the street is something that God knew I needed right now.  I am lying in a big king sized bed with old comforters and the sound of traffic on the street.  I heard a train whistle earlier.  It couldn't be more perfect.  I am in awe of how my God in Heaven knows my needs and comforts me.  I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.