Anything can be redeemed

Waking up today filled with joy. I have a full day of sun, 73 degree weather and a mother daughter dinner with friends tonight. Thankfully, spring is finally trying to show up here. Here’s a little insight about me. There is a reason I don’t live further north than North Carolina. Plain and simple, I do not like cold. Winter is kind of hard on me. Too much darkness and too much cold… And, everything looks dead. Worse, it drives us inside. What I love is the sun, warmth, flowers, green grass and songbirds. This winter has really overstayed its welcome and I long for spring to take a hold. So for today, I am going to enjoy this. And, I am not going to worry about the snow that is in the forecast in a couple of days. At least, not today!!

This has been a long winter. But you know, even during a long one, if you look hard there is still beauty that inspires. I am fortunate to live on a lake or really a large pond they call a lake. Sometimes when I need a lift, I go out and look for the herron that lives on our lake or all the mallards. They make me happy even when everything is stark and cold around them. And, signs of spring come much earlier than we ever feel it. Even this week, there are some early flowering trees. My eyes always search for those beginning buds. I have a yard full of Dogwood trees and the buds are there. Although my yard still looks dead, I know that life is about to spring forth. This is just the cycle that God put in place. He has been pruning and caring for the growth necessary to provide another beautiful spring landscape. Most winters are mild and short here. And every now and then, we have a long one. Sort of mirrors life, don’t you think?

Our stories are full of winters and springs, aren’t they? So, the question that has been on my mind this week is the concept of redemption. I have tried to remain faithful in the truth that God is in it all and working to bring about his plan. And given that, I believe he is all good, all love, and all powerful. He can redeem any situation. He can increasingly build in us the characteristics that Christ represented and that is usually through our trials. And despite all of our human faults, bad choices, difficult situations, and reliance on the world’s lies, he can still redeem it for good. All, we have to do is look at the cross. God worked with betrayal, deceit, fear, ego, cowardice, anger, sacrificed his son and created good out of the mess. He provided us life even when humans tried to eliminate it. They did not see that they were part of God’s bigger story of redemption even as they tried to destroy it. There is a bigger story always in process that we humans cannot see. One that we will never understand fully this side of heaven.

I saw a Facebook post this week from Recovering Grace that said, “Sometimes God redeems your story by surrounding you with people who need to hear your past, so it doesn’t become their future.” That was such a hopeful statement to me for a number of reasons. Our stories connect us to one another. It also reinforces for me that no bad choice, no lack of wisdom, no fear, no lack of faith and trust, and NO situation is beyond HIS redemption. He works his plan- one that is good and glorifying and loving. In the end, we cannot thwart that plan. We don’t have the power to undue God’s sovereign plan. That fact in and of itself is hopeful. Our stories no matter how messy they can get are valuable. So, as a parent of an addict, I didn’t respond perfectly when this disease entered our lives if there is such a thing as a perfect response. Early on, I used to struggle with why I didn’t know sooner, why I continued to enable, and why I couldn’t make this better. The beauty is that God is teaching me through it all and he is teaching my son. He is still in control. I don’t have the power to make or break his plan.

That statement also gives me such hope for my son. His story is valuable even at its worst. Even as I give up my dreams of what his life might be, God is working in his life to redeem it to something bigger than I could ever imagine and possibly bigger than I will ever be allowed to know on this earth. It is God’s world and I believe with all my heart that there is a much larger story of redemption in process- Much bigger than my life and my son’s… And that gives me hope.

As I was considering what I would write about on this topic, my son called last night. Just the level of conversation was a gift to me. It was deep. It was honest and it was faithful. God gave me a glimpse of redemption. My son sent me a prayer that he has been focused on that overwhelmed me with joy and hope. It was a prayer from the book, HEALING THE SHADOW. The prayer was, “Grant that I may be given appropriate difficulties and sufferings on this journey so that my heart may be truly awakened and my practice of liberation and universal compassion may be fulfilled.” Rather than finding every excuse for his problems, he is valuing his struggles. He is recognizing that freedom from the holds of addiction comes from God and opens up potential for greater things. In my son, I see healing progressing. And, I see hope.

So, as we move into spring and approach Easter, let us focus on the cross and the hope of redemption. I see hope in my life and in my son’s despite all the mess and pain and struggle. I know there is redemption in our story. So, if your life feels like a season of winter, look around for the buds of spring. They will be there if you look hard. And, if you feel your life is a mess, there is hope. If your child is struggling, there is hope. ANYTHING can be redeemed. Thank God, there is always hope! Your story is valuable. And, spring is on the horizon!

Thank you, God, that you forgive, love, and redeem us! And thank you for our stories!

Definitely running with joy and hope today.