It was an interesting day

Oh, the title, so loaded with meaning in my own mind.

It was an interesting day.

Yes, by interesting, I do mean long, stressful, wonderful, scary, awkward and every other sort of meaning that would typically come from someone staring down their nose, rolling their eyes, and extolling that pithy sarcasm.

Now, all too soon, I will have to rise and begin work. Under seven hours to be exact. Which means that the words I wish to express are quickly cutting into precious minutes of sleep.

Have I ever mentioned I'm not the most productive person in the world when I don't get enough sleep?

Bunny trail. :)

An interesting day.

I was having a conversation with God on my drive into Minneapolis and I asked him that familiar, wonderful question, "Who do you want to be for me now, that you couldn't be before?"

His answer sustained me through the day.

He said, "I want to be the God who rejoices over you."

As he said it, I felt his smile, so near to me.

So through a delightful party, through the drive home, through worship practice (which was much too short), through leading worship with mistakes aplenty, through prayer, through dissenters, through my speaking, through my moderating, through a church service that altogether went the wrong way and had to be guided back, there he was.

Smiling.

Again, he would say, "I am the God who rejoices over you!"

Finally, as the day closes, and my to-do list remains unfinished, friends not contacted, appointments not made, I find myself writing an e-mail that I truly wish I did not have the occasion to write.

I find myself rehashing a report of early events of the week, (which at the time I was somehow brilliantly sheltered from, devastating though they be) and a weight appears in my heart. The weight of all I carry, responsibilities, duties, expectations, areas that I feel completely smashed between a rock and a hard place with no space to move any direction. I find myself lightly tossing around that unfortunately familiar desire to pack a bag and leave and never look back.

(Oh I rebuke you, Satan! What an evil thought!)

So suddenly I am weighed down, with what must be done, what has not been done, what cannot be done, and what I wish I could do. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, I hear a voice. It's still smiling; it's whispering.

"I am the God who rejoices over you..."

ah, yes.

CENTER

There's the truth.

He's rejoicing over me.

He's smiling over me.

And he's waiting for me to go to bed.

Because he knows that when I crawl beneath those covers, I will begin to speak with him.

There, in his sweet, gentle presence, all those cares will wash away, and yes, I will be made new.

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.