Being in the midst of struggle really can be tough, but it also can help you REALLY APPRECIATE when life gives you little gifts.
We have a garden and greenhouse on the grounds of the OV Methodist church that was constructed by a recent mission team for weeks the ladies of the church have been watering and sewing and working… with no results. It has just been patches of dirt. Until yesterday morning, when Kieren happened to look out her bedroom window and said, “Mommy there are FLOWERS!” I didn’t even know what she was talking about until later in the morning when we drove by the garden and recognized the yellow treasures that had confidently sprouted from the ground. The flowers had bloomed!! All of a sudden, when I hadn’t even been watching they appeared.
Dear sweet Jesus thank you for Kieren Joy Prince. What a gift that little person is.
Little gifts of life seem to be springing up all around and out of nowhere in our world. They are bringing me so much joy and very welcome in the difficult terrain that we seem to be journeying through. Gifts like randomly meeting someone super amazing from the Congo where my good friends Mathy and Antoine live. Or an incredible DOUBLE rainbow over Ocean View in the morning after a hard rain.
Little gifts like a beautiful warm day where I can wear flip flops even though it is truly winter here in Africa, or a little text from a friend remembering something about my life, or my superman husband going out of his way to start every day with a hug. BIG gifts like when some of our greatest friends in the world come all the way from North Carolina and spend a week with you and just sink into the goodness of your life. Like when these amazing friends bring you bags of gifts like Santa Claus and cards from home and little things that make you smile. Like when these beautiful friends just LOVE the people who you LOVE and celebrate their amazingness. Oh man, we have had some gifts here with Dan and Suzanne Kelly visiting.
Then there was another BIG GIFT because we got a DOG. I had recently learned that kids with autism often connect with family pets and so we had been talking about getting a dog for Keller. But then a friend of ours in Ocean View had a litter of Jack-Russel terriers and decided to GIVE us one as a gift. Just like that. So boom our week just got really wonderful. Kieren is obsessed with ‘her’ new dog that she tried to name Rosie but we swiftly changed it to Beyonce. For obvious reasons. The jury is still out on Keller as I think he likes all the ‘cute’ attention in the house and doesn’t want to share with Queen B, but he will surely warm up. She is a sweet little puppy that has brought some sunshine into our world.
I am thankful for beautiful little gifts that God gives us in these days. Our God is a loving and giving God. He lavishes His love on us. He is not hiding from us or keeping His goodness from our hearts. If we look, He is always the gracious and abundant Father opening to door to meet us and running down the road to embrace us.
Where are the little gifts in YOUR life?