inkhorn

Last week I had an interesting conversation with God. First, He showed me an image of a father holding a child’s hand, and from that picture, He taught me several truths. I asked God what the picture meant, so He told me to put myself in the child’s shoes and then think about what I would feel were I holding my own father’s hand. So I thought about it and the first thing that popped in my mind was that I would have absolute trust in my dad. I mean, I wouldn’t ask him where we were going or why we were going on a particular road, but would be simply happy to let my dad take me out wherever he wanted. (This is me as a child, so bear with me!)   Then there would be contentment and a sense of happiness, because my dad was with me and we were together. Also security, because I wouldn’t be worried about anything; my dad would take care of me. I don’t think this ever needs to be explained or taught to a child; they seem to be born with implicit trust! Then God said to me, “You’...

It was a lovely day – a mere 24 hours, but a lifetime of memories – stolen out of our everyday routine. A day of laughter, of enjoying each other’s company, of finding joy in that most mundane of things – grocery shopping! Of watching an old movie together and chuckling at Cary Grant’s antics; of talking philosophy and apologetics and re-experiencing, with delight, the pleasure of finding someone on the same wavelength; of catching each other’s eyes across the room and sharing that silent smile; of seeing our prayers answered as we spent time together with our Father; of lying in each other’s arms, content and at rest. It’s days like these that give us the strength to meet the rest.

Personally, I’ve never actually seen a chicken without a head, but having witnessed its counterpart (with its head firmly on), squawking and flapping at the least provocation, I can empathise with it perfectly! You can mouth platitudes and imagine that you really believe them – until life hits you in the face and then you end up like the aforementioned chicken! Well, I was anyway. And “was” being the operative word, I find myself writing this. They say you’ll know that you are obeying God and doing His will when you feel peace. So, what happens if I don’t? I mean, do honest questions and doubts reflect a lack of peace and hence, not being in God’s will? What is “peace”? And much more basic, how will I know God’s will? I mean, what if I miss hearing His voice? Like when I’m reading the Bible and I overlook a verse, which would have shown me clearly what I had to do! I know I will obey Him – but what if I don’t even know what to do? (This was all part of my headless chicken routine!)...