MORE

"God can do anything,

 you know--

far MORE

 than you could ever imagine

 or guess or request

 in your wildest dreams!" 

ephesians 3:20, the Message

as some of you may remember from my post Expecting, in january we welcomed our second long term guest.  she stayed with us for almost two months, and left for home the other day.  i've been antsy to write this post, because i'm so excited to share with you what the Lord did in her life that i'm about to jump out of my skin! can you tell?!?

to remind you, this dear one came broken, yet expecting. 

she came here expecting God to do great things in her life.

she even told her friends back home,

just you wait and see.

when i come home,

i will come back changed. 

i will  be a completely different person. 

i tear up as i write this. i can't help but cry at the goodness of our God.  He answered her prayers--her wild expectations--BIG time!  she DID go home a completely different person!  He gave her exceedingly MORE than all she expected, hoped for or could even imagine.  and we had the honor of watching it all happen, right in front of our eyes.  a-maz-ing!!!

"Now to Him

who is able

to do immeasurably MORE

than all we ask or imagine...

to Him be the glory..." 

ephesians 3:20, NIV

let's take a look at what a few of her expectations were...

She was expecting... HIM

to meet her
to heal her
to speak to her

to redeem her
to change her

okay...so...

• HE met her.   just where she was. He knew exactly where and how to find her, and how exactly to relate just to her.  He lavished her with His love, and melted her heart.  and better yet, she met Him!  she came to know the truth of who He is, and who she is in Him!  she said, He's the best man I've ever given my heart to.  can you even stand it?!

• HE healed her. oh, how He healed her!  He healed her and set her free from years and years of pain and shame.  she had no idea how He would do it, but He did it! and He went deep, and did a thorough excavation of her heart of hearts.  she told us, filled with such peace and joy, and with a huge smile on her face,  I'm going home, well and whole.  does it get any better than that?!

• HE spoke to her.  for the first time in her life, she heard His voice.  she read His Word and said it was like a love letter written just for her.  like a sheep knows its shepherd's voice, she came to know His sweet, sweet voice.  (i am trying not to start crying again at His goodness)

• HE redeemed her.  Jesus truly saved this dear one.  He saved her!  He rescued her from the pit and set her firmly upon the Rock, Himself!  He gave her new life, filled with more love than she ever thought possible.  filled with LOVE!

• HE changed her.  yes, He totally, undeniably did.  the girl that we once knew left here a completely different person.  she came broken--she left whole.  she came fearful--she left full of peace and joy.  she came ashamed--she left assured, of God's total and complete forgiveness and love and amazing grace.  when she would talk about Jesus, her face would light up a room.  her eyes sparkled, her skin radiated, her smile captivated.  this girl was brought back from death to life--but not just life--abundant life!!!

and what's MORE...

is that she left for home, not just saved and totally changed, but baptized!  in her daily reading (we read the Gospel of John), she came to the conclusion that she needed to be baptized.  it just so happens that my husband is a pastor, so baptizing her was no problem!  we actually did it here at our home.  we invited all of her new friends from our church and women's bible study.  we had a big slumber party on a saturday night, and sunday morning at 9am, she was baptized!  since it's still winter here with snow on the ground, we actually baptized her in a blow up pool, right in our living room.  it was beautiful!!! i wish i could show you a picture of her face when she came up out of the water, because her smile says it all.  (as you may have noticed, for our guests' and family's safety and privacy, i don't post pictures of faces). 

here she is, all robed in pure white,
right after she was dunked!
we were praying for her at this moment.
notice her ring, that was our gift to her,
inscribed with 2 Corinthians 5:17,
 "...if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. 
The old has gone, the new has come!"



and what's even MORE...

is that she became family to us.

we cooked and baked and cleaned together.

we sat in front of the fire at night,

and told stories, and laughed hard.

we took the kids sledding in the snow.

we did life together for two months,

and it was a joy.

it was better, more wonderful...

it was MORE!

than any of us thought that it would be.

isn't that just like our Jesus?

she came expecting Him to do great things, and He did.  but He did so much MORE than she, or i, i must admit, could have ever hoped for.  many times we were both in awe at the wonders He was doing in her life, every day she was here.  we'd just look at each other, smile, and shake our heads in unbelief.  and what's awesome, is that it was all HIM.  i can't take any credit for any it--all i and we did was open our home, and do our small part.  all she did was come, expecting. and HE, He did it all.  all for His glory, and all because of His great, extravagant love for her--His princess bride.

* * *

let's believe Him for MORE,

dear friends!

M O R E!

than all we could ever hope for our imagine!

even in our wildest dreams...

In Search of Hope

out our front door

i have searched.

the kids and i have searched.

my husband and i have searched.

we have sought that which is lost...

for hope.

and we have come home empty handed. 

every time.

from the field looking toward home

i have called her name

loudly, foolishly, brazenly.

i have looked high in trees, low in bushes.
in winter's silence i have listened
for her tiny, tiny mew.

we have traveled north, south, east and west.

at times i was filled
 with hope and expectation.

 i also stewed in frustration.

some days i told the Lord,

my hope is as small as a mustard seed.

does that still count?

i have winced at times

when her name is mentioned

in front of our children,

fearful that wounds trying to heal

and little minds trying to understand

were being wrecklessly torn.


when our young son
with down syndrome,
has, at the most interesting of times,
asked
"wha hopey?"
(almost as if he supernaturally
knew that i needed to be
prodded with the question)
and
when our daughter has asked me
as i'm laying in bed with her at night
where hope might be,
i have been at a loss for words.
i've asked the questions myself
and don't have the answers. 

the walking path behind our home

as i have searched through scripture,

i have found solace, understanding and empathy.

i have felt His Word

to be like a kindred, old and faithful friend:

what strength do i have,

that i should still hope?

what prospects,

 that i should be patient?

job 6:11

where then is my hope?

who can see any hope for me?

job 17:15

sustain me according to your promise,

and i will live;

do not let my hopes be dashed.

psalm 119: 116


why are you downcast,
o my soul?
why so disturbed within me?
put your hope in God...
psalm 42:5

o hope of Israel,

its Savior in time of distress,

why are you like a stranger in the land,

like a traveler who only stays a night?

jeremiah 14:8 

the view from our daughter's window

as much as i have fought it at times,

i have also continued to be

filled with, and inspired by

hope,

again and again.

for me,

there was no escaping it:

there is hope for your future

jeremiah 31:17

there may yet be hope

lamentations 3:29

but as for me,

 i watch in hope for the Lord,

i wait for God my Savior;

my God will hear me

micah 7:7

...my soul is downcast within me.

yet this i call to mind

and therefore i have hope :

because of the Lord's great love

we are not consumed,

for His compassions never fail

lamentations 30: 20-22

indeed, in our hearts

 we felt the sentence of death.

but this happened

 that we might not rely on ourselves

but on God,

who raises the dead...

on Him we have set our hope

2 corinthians 1: 9-11

brothers, we do not want you to...

grieve like the rest of men,

who have no hope

1 thessalonians 4:13

ruthie, all grown up!

and thus i have had no choice

but to continue to hold onto hope

and to hold onto Him:

therefore, since we have such hope,

we are very bold

2 corinthians 3:12

let us hold unswervingly

 to the hope we profess,

for He who promised is faithful

hebrews 10:23

now faith is being sure of what we hope for

and certain of what we do not see

hebrews 11:1

no matter what the future may bring,

i know this:

i will not come home empty handed.
i will run after,
and chase down hope
'til its mine.

 unexpected, sparkling beauty

 has been found in the search. 
lessons have been learned,
and silver linings seen. 

hope has been poured into my heart.
and i've come to realize this: 

my hands are already full. 

***note to other cat lovers : ruthie, above, is the spunkiest cat ever.  as my husband and i went out in search for hope, literally over the fields and through the woods, ruthie faithfully followed.