The enemy of our soul begins to whisper his vile lies and plot his wicked schemes against us when we are still young and vulnerable children. He'll take anything that makes us different from others and rub our face in it. He wants us to feel that our uniqueness is a liability, that we are a misfit, that no one gets us. As we grow and mature in Christ, we are more equipped to embrace the truth that we are fully seen, known and understood by God. We can, hopefully, look at our uniqueness as a gift. The enemy doesn't play fair, however, and will take the fact that a child learns differently, or is taller or shorter or fatter or skinnier than others and use it to beat them up with their "differentness." As a child enters the preteen and teen years, the awkwardness of all of the changes their body is going through can exacerbate these feelings of being a mis-fit.
"Nana, can we PLEASE go to the beach with the sand dunes," our ten year old granddaughter pleaded. We were on our annual grandkid trip to our youngest daughter's in-law's cabin on the Umpqua River. The beach she was referring to was a forty-five minute drive from the cabin. I told her that we were going to the beach that was much closer to the cabin and that I didn't think this beach had sand dunes. However, once we arrived at the nearby beach we noticed that right where the jetty juts out into the sea was a row of sand dunes, perfect for climbing and then running down, sliding down and rolling down. Later, I talked to her about the fact that God wanted her to know that He understands her, that He sees her and knows the desires of her heart. I wanted her to know that playing on the sand dunes with her cousins was God's gift especially for her.
As relentless as the enemy is to make us feel less than or like a misfit, I believe that God is even more relentless to affirm us with His love. He wants us to be confident of our belongingness in His family. I believe that He is constantly leaving us love gifts, things that only He knows have special meaning to us, things that only He knows that we desire. Many times these gifts are so small and seemingly ordinary that we can fail to notice them. For example, years ago I really wanted to find an unbroken, whole sand dollar but could never seem to find one. Then, I began to find, not just one, but multiple whole sand dollars just about every time I went to the beach. Where others might say it was just a coincidence, I say God was showering me with little reminders of His love. God is also well able to send us the big, seemingly impossible desires and petitions of our heart. When all three of our daughters longed to have babies, but two struggled with infertility and one struggled to find a guy that she wanted to marry, my heart desire and secret petition was to see God end my daughters' seasons of hope deferred. God heard and answered abundantly above all I could ask or think! We now have three daughters AND three sons-in-law and seven grandchildren.
Everything about you is seen, known and understood by the God Who created you and loves you. If you care about something, He cares about it too. From seashells to sand dunes to the deepest longings of your heart for yourself and your loved ones, God cares. Keep your eyes open and your heart receptive to notice all of the ways that He cares for and answers you.
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