Raindrops and Roses

The other night there was a huge storm here. Amazingly, only two of the children woke up and ended up in my bed for a short time. As we were watching the lightning, I felt like we should all jump around and sing "My Favorite Things", although that might wake up Graham, who apparently was not stirred by the storm and whose snoring was competing with the thunder. After the kids were back in their beds, I was lying in bed and wondering what would be the one thing I would grab if the house caught on fire (there was a lot of lightning!) It would obviously have to be something small, because my arms would be full of precious cargo. I decided that it would have to be the Bible that Graham gave me on our wedding night almost 20 years ago. From an outsider's perspective, it might seem like a poor choice. It is old, the binding is completely unglued, the pages are bent- not exactly a worthy rescue. Yet to me, it is like a history book of our family and all that we have been through together. I like to circle special verses, those that God has used in me or that I clung to during hard times. There is the verse I found after I crashed my father-in-law's car; verses for a couple wanting to adopt and the date written when the prayer was answered; verses I repeated moment by moment when I was having a hard time being a loving wife and mother. I have marked special verses when each of the five children have been born, a verse from a favorite preacher who is now in heaven, verses to comfort me in bouts of melancholy and despair. It is like stepping back in time- as soon as I see the verse on the page, I know exactly where I was and what was happening when God revealed the beauty of the verse to me.

I'm thankful that there was no fire- just some interrupted sleep (for some of us) and a time to reflect on what is most important. I'm thankful for a record of rejoicing and mourning; dreams and disappointments; my sin and God's redeeming love and forgiveness. I'm thankful for the gifts it reveals- a loving husband, five miracles, and hope for another 20 years of God's faithfulness to me and to our family. Maybe the next time there is storm I will find just the right verse, circle it and write on the page "we all jumped on the bed and sang with the beloved Julie Andrews."