Reflections from a Beach Trip

 As a Father's Day gift to Brian as well as a reward to the kids, I planned out a kayaking trip to to Caladesi Island.  Lunch was packed, all necessary stuff together (sunblock, towels, sun glasses etc), and we were off.  What I didn't know was that God was going to show me a tiny glimpse of the heart of heaven.  I often stop to watch and observe my children as God uses them to speak directly to a need or desire in my heart.  What is it about little children?  For me, it is their childlike faith that often shows me exactly where I am falling short or a characteristic of God's heart that I can grow in.  I wonder if anyone out there is the same way?  Does God use your children to speak to you?  If so, then you might relate to where I am coming from today.  Anyway, so when we got to Caladesi Island we stopped for lunch and then went on a walk to pick up shells.  As my hands started to get full a lady walks up to me and starts to chat with me.  She hands me a bag to carry our shells in.  As of now, I think this lady was an angel...no really...a real angel. As I talked with her I thought how if I saw her on the street I would never think she was a kayaker.  She talked about how she would sell her home before her kayak and while I don't have the physique either, I thought...goodness, I would never have thought!  Well, I never saw her again, even though everyone we past on our way looking for shells was there when we walked back...I certainly do believe that I entertained an angel.  It was as if God was saying, "I want you to have this bag because I don't want you to miss a single shell...listen child, I will show you something."  So we began gathering shells...and gathering...and gathering until the bag was so full it was ripping.  It seemed like every couple of seconds I would hear Brooke, "MOOOM!!!  LOOK!!!!" and she would hand me either one tiny shell or a handful.  Then I heard God...clear as day...in the same voice that He always speaks to my spirit, "Lexi, what kind of shells is she picking up?"  "Well goodness God it seems like everything and anything.  There is no rhyme or reason...some are perfect and some are broken."

Don't get me wrong, some of the shells were large and beautiful.  Complete "lacking nothing" much like the picture above.  These shells manages the tides of life and still looked pretty awesome.  They truly were beautiful, even I thought so, and those were the ones I wanted to keep.  But Brooke kept handing me all these broken shells...they were taking up space in the bag and there was no shortage of complete and whole shells on this beach.  And then again, GOD, "Do you see how Brooke equally loves both the perfect and the broken shells?  That is the heartbeat of heaven, I love the times when you have it together and the times when you are broken."  That word was so heavy on my spirit.  In a society that tosses that which is broken, I thought I stood apart from that.  But there is still so much worldliness in me...still so much that wants to get rid of that which is not perfect, including those areas of my life that are broken.  Where I see pain, wear and tear, rough edges, cracking, and eroding God sees beauty.  Some of us have been beaten a little (or a lot) by life, some of us look like these shells to the right...others of us have not enduring extreme times of testing and trial and still look like the beautiful shells above.  It doesn't matter where your spirit is, how weak you are or how much you have crumbled under the pressure of the rising tide, God sees beauty.  He sees an opportunity to turn that weakness into strength by His power and for His glory.  I am learning to not miss the opportunities to allow God into the brokenness of life.  This can be scary... for me it might mean sharing my testimony with a stranger, serving a pregnant lady even though it brings up pain in my spirit, loving the lady who can have children but chooses she doesn't want them.  These are things that take me out of my shell of comfort and plunge me into God's kingdom, His realm where it is about Him and His glory and not me and my pain.  It is when that happens that He will take the broken shell and restore it...maybe not into a perfect looking shell, but a shell that reflects more of His image.

Be Blessed today dear Friend!