That was me hugging and saying goodbye to my daughter, Julie, as she was about to enter her car to drive alone for the very first time to her college class. I’ll never get over God’s deep involvement in every aspect of my life. A young lady I met for less than five minutes shared that she was a twelfth-grade student, but all of her classes were at a nearby college. A year and a half later, God reminded me of this with a thought for Julie to finish her last year of high school at that same college. After a huge battle, with everyone in the family turning against me, saying I shouldn’t force Julie to leave high school prematurely, Julie is now flourishing. I see her so happy and blossoming into this confident yet humble, fierce young lady. That one God thought (get Julie into that early admissions college program!), got my daughter on this fantastic life path! Heehaw! The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord!
Then yesterday, I was blown away by God’s involvement in a conversation with my daughter, Ember. She wasn’t happy that we didn’t go out to eat at a restaurant where SHE wanted to go, and she showed it. I explained to her the importance of being grateful for any kind gesture done by anyone for her. I said she should overwhelm her dad with love and appreciation for everything he does for our family. I said that she should learn how to wear a poker face and even pretend to be happy even when she is fuming inside because that’s WISDOM when it comes to dealing with other people. Fast forward a few minutes later, I’m having an appointment with God with my son, Emmie, and look what incredibly showed up:
“A Little Thanks, Please
Saying “thank you” isn’t always easy. When a relative gets you a Rudolph sweater for Christmas or wraps up a big package of floral underwear for your birthday, it’s tough to come up with nice words for that “thank you” card—or when your mom puts a pile of veggies on your plate and is waiting for those magic words: “Thanks, Mom.”
That’s the way it works. When someone gives a gift, we say “thank you.” We write the words. We put the smile on our face. We thank the person because we know that they love us. They are being kind and generous. Even when we really don’t like the gift, we thank the giver.” – A Purpose Driven Life Devotional for Kids
No way this was an ordinary coincidence! This was again God revealing His intimate Presence in the details of my everyday life. Even down to me saying to Ember that she should pretend to be happy, the book said, “We put the smile on our face.” God is pretty talkative once we develop eyes to see Him and ears to hear Him. This was His loving way of revealing His Presence with my daughter and me, minutes after our sit-down conversation to discuss this specific matter.
And with this knowledge of knowing God is always with me, I can bravely and courageously tackle my life doing my best with what God would have me to do, and then I can confidently trust that He is at work at the spiritual realm helping me. And trust me, He is with you, too! Wink! Wink!
