What’s in your wallet?

I am sitting in Kentucky this morning, visiting with my sister, her husband and my aunt and mom. We sat around the dinner table last night telling stories of our youth. You know how that goes… your mom is always like, “I didn’t know that”… we bust ourselves out years later because we have changed and our past is just our past. I use the word just lightly.

Last night, I shared the stories of my life between the ages of 18-21. Most of those years my aunt was present for, and my mom and sister knew much of what happened during that time of my life. Her husband did not. I was sitting across from him and he would just shake his head and his mouth would sometimes hang open in shock. Yeah, those years. Traumatic years. I suppose they could be viewed as my worst years. Great for dinnertime chatter, eh?

I share this today because, in the middle of the stories, I just stopped. I had to let them know that this was a different kind of story.  I said, “Wait, this is not about, how terrible this was, or about how we should handle this now, this is a story of Redemption.” My story last night was revealing the many times God saved me. He eventually reached down and plucked me right out of that misery. We have a much better view when we are on the other side of things. It’s only then when we can look back and see God’s glory, mercy, grace and protection at its finest. He. Rescues. Us.

The story never gets any better than that. Redemption. No matter how many abuse, illness, poor decision making, near-death experiences you may have had or are facing at this moment, you too, have been redeemed.

He wanted me to share those stories to the four people around me at that dinner table who love me and listened with sad eyes and we also rolled with laughter. I think that after the sadness, you can find laughter. I believe that they had the opportunity to witness His goodness in me that prevailed through all the bad.

God’s glory will always shine through the darkness. He will come and pluck you up and change your world. Most importantly, He will change you.

Rest in the assurances of the Lord.

16He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. 17He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. 18They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. 19He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.  – Psalm 18:16-19