A Showcase Of Grace

I have not been able to write much recently. My beloved Anne Lamott has trouble lately also, she said so on Facebook this morning. I feel a smidge better. Maybe my downsizing project has hijacked the words, holding them hostage until I actually finish the undertaking. Or perhaps it's the unbelievable, chaotic political climate, or back pain that just won't behave, or unending prayers for the critically injured and seriously ill loved ones and friends. Or time spent devouring deliciously good books. 

Since I tend to hear from God while writing, I walked around our yard today, searching for the words, aching for something new to say, anything to inspire, chew on or shake a fist at. Having settled into retirement this summer, nestling into the comfort of lack of schedules, much like easing into super-soft cozy sheets on a chilly winter night, I wandered around the garden, unhurried, observing.

It was outside, stepping around our patch of earth that I heard it deep down in my bones, down to the very roots of my inner most being. It's in the ordinary that we find the extraordinary. Inhaling a fragrant breath of thanksgiving, I unwound the green garden hose, watered the raspberries.

During my downsizing, I've seen our life unfurl before my eyes, like watching an elongated documentary, one that you would view over again a thousand times, just because. And in catching re-runs of our life in photographs, children's sports awards, vacation memories, old books, and more, I see with fresh vision how God uses the ordinary moments to showcase His extraordinary grace.

Oswald Chambers wrote: " Keep the thought that the mind of God is behind all things strong and growing. Not even the smallest detail of life happens unless God's will is behind it." I survey the garden once again on this quiet, ordinary day. The words will come when ready, our political climate will simmer down eventually, the prayers will continue for the hurting and the back pain might need to be given a kind name, like Barack, or Michelle. Invigorated hope trailed me as I walked back into the house.