You've Come A Long Way Baby

I live in the city. I mean, IN the city. We are blessed with a home that is snuggled into an older subdivision with beautifully large mature trees. Nevertheless, when I walk out of Walmart I stare at a twenty-something story building at the edge of the parking lot. I would have never seen this coming. I was raised a country girl.

I made a trip back home awhile back. Looking for serenity I made my way down one of the old dusty roads I traveled in my teen years. It felt like stepping back into time. I parked my car in the middle of nowhere and enjoyed myself one spectacular sunset. The only sound I heard were the critters playing close by in the woods.

I could talk out loud to Love and nobody would know the difference! It was just the two of us, walking up and down those sandy graveled roads. It felt like a really big gift. As I began to unwrap it, I became overwhelmed with how much Love had changed me, since the last time I traveled that path. We're not talking about a little change...we're talking about a brand new creation.

I'm not saying that "I have arrived", I'm just saying I'm miles from where I began. He's done such a miraculous job of loving me towards "wholeness". How He broke shame and condemnation off of me is a wonder. How he rescued me from hopelessness is beyond me. I remember praying and praying and praying that He would free me from it's grasp and truth be told He did it so gently that I didn't even notice when it happened. I remember a situation arose, which normally would have had me wringing my hands and despairing of hope. But, in it's place was trust. No one could have been more surprised than me! He had done open-heart surgery on me, removing a heart of fear and hopelessness and replaced it with one that dared to believe, that with Him there is always reason to hope. When I realized what had happened I just couldn't help but giggle.

I once played to the fear of man and now I play to an audience of One. I use to wonder if I was a mistake and now I realize I am a miracle. I always questioned if I would ever truly feel loved and now I see myself no other way. I never tire of searching for His fingerprints on my life. When I stop to look, I find them everywhere. Sometimes the easiest way to find them is to step back into time and let Him show you how far you have come...and if you look closely, you will see Him having carried you every step of the way.