Overflowing. The best word to describe my time with you is
exactly that…overflowing. Five states, 18 group events, and 20 individual
get-togethers, and not nearly enough time with children and grandchildren…all in
42 days. Vacation? Rest? I think not. Some people might call that an
overflowing schedule. Me? I call that overflowing blessing.
You blessed me with a welcome home overflowing with joy and
gladness. We worshiped together, we prayed together, we shared the love of
Jesus together. And then it was time to go home and you blessed me with a
good-bye overflowing with love and compassion. I'm left with the renewed realization
of how deeply I love (and need) my church and my church family. All that
overflowing emotion in the small space of just 42 days.
Solitude. After the rush of all that was home and the many
blessings and surprises…the overflowing of the most broad spectrum of emotions
(too many to describe here)…comes the need for solitude. Deep breath. I had a plan
to spend some tender time with my Daddy so that together we could process all that
he had done with and through us during our time together in the States.
Instead what I found was that my mind raced with all that
needed to be accomplished upon return. Prayers were fragmented, worship was
interrupted, reading was choppy, hunger was distracting. I realized, though,
that my Daddy already understood all this. He knew that quiet time would be
hard for me and he gladly accepted fragments, interruptions, choppiness, and
distractions…whatever I could give him.
I found that as I relinquished my need to methodically
process the overflow, and believed that my Daddy would accept whatever I could genuinely
give, I was able to spend more meaningful, rich time with him. He loves me. I'm
not done yet. I'm not done pressing in, reading, praying, worshiping, and
hungering…I'll never be done. He's my Daddy and I want his overflow.