For You have been my refuge. A strong tower against my enemy. Let me dwell in Your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of Your wings! (Vs. 3-4)
My grandson, Nicholas, came with his darling brother and beautiful mother to visit in August. We usually have the privilege of their company for at least a couple of weeks, so they all just move in for a while. We spend our days at the beach or in the pool, traveling to the San Diego Zoo, Legoland, or Disneyland. Something fun. We went whale watching and saw a blue whale this year. The whole family went to Catalina to celebrate Heather's and my joint birthday. We took the big boat over and then the boys parasailed with their mom. Their visits are wild, crazy, eat-too-much -- play-too-much fun!
Heather and Nick were selling their house at the time. Looking for another place to live. And Nicholas was hatching a plan of his own.
"Grandmommy, how big is the bed upstairs?" he asked as we walked to the beach one morning.
"It's a king sized bed. Why?" I asked.
"Well, that would work," he responded, joy all over his face. "That's where Mommy and Daddy can sleep."
"Hmm..." my brilliant rejoinder.
"And Alexander and I can put our bunk beds in the downstairs room where you and Granddaddy work." A perfect plan.
"You mean, when you move in with us?" I asked. I'm seeing where he's going with this.
"Yeah," he said as if relieved that I finally understood the master plan. "We could park the U-haul beside the house in one of those parking spaces."
You see, we love each other. We want to be together all the time. To Nicholas, that is the perfect solution. Kibbutzing with his grandparents at the beach. What could be better than living constantly in an environment where you are loved and listened to not only by your parents, but Aunt Vanessa and Uncle Will and adoring Grandmommy and Granddaddy? Embraced, read to, played with, walked with and talked to, encouraged, fed, and prayed for. Paradise, right?
The tabernacle was a traveling tent where the present of God dwelt in powerful light. He lived with them in the Holy of Holies, glowing behind the veil. Moses spoke to Him there -- friend to friend. Priests approached His presence once a year to plead for the forgiveness of sin. It was God's way of dwelling with man -- His purpose from the beginning and for eternity. So to dwell in His tent forever should be our highest goal. To move in with Him. Bring our bunkbeds and our clothes and be with the One Who loves us more than we could ever know here on this flawed and yawing earth. There to experience safety and joy, eating and laughing, walking through fields of unimaginable hue, singing songs with choirs of thousands and thousands, and swimming in the crystal river that flows from the throne of God. What a house!
Nicholas loves us. Knows he is loved by us. That stays fresh across the miles and miles that separate us most of the time. It is special to be with each other. We all can't wait for the hugs and smiles! No fear of being together. No wondering if grandparents really want you at their home. Nicholas knows we are here with open arms to love on him because there is no one like him anywhere! Our shelter is always going to be his and, believe me, he and Alexander are under my wing every chance I get to hold them close.
So it is with my Father. Preparing a place for me there. Teaching me to love Him here. To trust that perfect love has no fear in it. No consternation about my final destination. I will need no U-haul or a suitcase. My Father even has my clothes ready for me. And, like Nicholas, though I am here and my Father is there, His love for me sustains and keeps me because I know Him. I don't question if He is happy when we are together. He is! And someday.....I will live at His house forever.
Then the angel showed me the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month....the throne of God and the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will worship Him. They will see His face...
Revelation 22
My grandson, Nicholas, came with his darling brother and beautiful mother to visit in August. We usually have the privilege of their company for at least a couple of weeks, so they all just move in for a while. We spend our days at the beach or in the pool, traveling to the San Diego Zoo, Legoland, or Disneyland. Something fun. We went whale watching and saw a blue whale this year. The whole family went to Catalina to celebrate Heather's and my joint birthday. We took the big boat over and then the boys parasailed with their mom. Their visits are wild, crazy, eat-too-much -- play-too-much fun!
Heather and Nick were selling their house at the time. Looking for another place to live. And Nicholas was hatching a plan of his own.
"Grandmommy, how big is the bed upstairs?" he asked as we walked to the beach one morning.
"It's a king sized bed. Why?" I asked.
"Well, that would work," he responded, joy all over his face. "That's where Mommy and Daddy can sleep."
"Hmm..." my brilliant rejoinder.
"And Alexander and I can put our bunk beds in the downstairs room where you and Granddaddy work." A perfect plan.
"You mean, when you move in with us?" I asked. I'm seeing where he's going with this.
"Yeah," he said as if relieved that I finally understood the master plan. "We could park the U-haul beside the house in one of those parking spaces."
You see, we love each other. We want to be together all the time. To Nicholas, that is the perfect solution. Kibbutzing with his grandparents at the beach. What could be better than living constantly in an environment where you are loved and listened to not only by your parents, but Aunt Vanessa and Uncle Will and adoring Grandmommy and Granddaddy? Embraced, read to, played with, walked with and talked to, encouraged, fed, and prayed for. Paradise, right?
The tabernacle was a traveling tent where the present of God dwelt in powerful light. He lived with them in the Holy of Holies, glowing behind the veil. Moses spoke to Him there -- friend to friend. Priests approached His presence once a year to plead for the forgiveness of sin. It was God's way of dwelling with man -- His purpose from the beginning and for eternity. So to dwell in His tent forever should be our highest goal. To move in with Him. Bring our bunkbeds and our clothes and be with the One Who loves us more than we could ever know here on this flawed and yawing earth. There to experience safety and joy, eating and laughing, walking through fields of unimaginable hue, singing songs with choirs of thousands and thousands, and swimming in the crystal river that flows from the throne of God. What a house!
Nicholas loves us. Knows he is loved by us. That stays fresh across the miles and miles that separate us most of the time. It is special to be with each other. We all can't wait for the hugs and smiles! No fear of being together. No wondering if grandparents really want you at their home. Nicholas knows we are here with open arms to love on him because there is no one like him anywhere! Our shelter is always going to be his and, believe me, he and Alexander are under my wing every chance I get to hold them close.
So it is with my Father. Preparing a place for me there. Teaching me to love Him here. To trust that perfect love has no fear in it. No consternation about my final destination. I will need no U-haul or a suitcase. My Father even has my clothes ready for me. And, like Nicholas, though I am here and my Father is there, His love for me sustains and keeps me because I know Him. I don't question if He is happy when we are together. He is! And someday.....I will live at His house forever.
Then the angel showed me the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month....the throne of God and the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will worship Him. They will see His face...
Revelation 22
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