During a re-acquaintance of a dear friend, Steve, this week; we were able to share humorous stories back n' forth. As you know me, even a bit of humor may carry a "gold nugget life lesson" hidden within it. (By permission to obliterate his tale by virtue of the re-telling)His story began with the reintroduction of his autistic daughter, Shannon, (who is now 40 and still the same little girl in her mind) and her ability to make life amazingly focused and full of value. And now to Steve's story:
A farmer that lived near Steve and his family decided to give them 2 little kittens (like all good farmers are willing to do)... and of course Steve's daughter, Shannon, welcomed the little fur balls into the family and even named them -- one she named "Donut" and the other she named "Hot Turkey Sandwich". Neither cat had the characteristics of the foods by which they were named ... but those just happened to be Shannon's favorite foods.
Within a short period of time Donut was just gone...not there anymore so the focus now was to love and care for "Hot Turkey Sandwich". One day "Hot Turkey Sandwich" went missing also. The family looked everywhere to no avail, but the mystery remained on their minds.
Some time later the most curious event took place: There was a knock on the door of the family's house. Upon opening the door, there stood a smiling salesman who immediately jumped into his pitch for his unique product - Aerial Photos of "Your beautiful Home" ... "which can be purchased as individual photos for sharing with family and friends up to sizes that were frame worthy" - and he produced a beautiful (Possibly) 11 x 14 full color, almost painting like finish of the property.
Steve was aghast and quite humored by the detail of the photo and asked the Salesman to hold it right there... for he wanted to get his wife. The anxious salesman (probably feeling that he had done a marvelous job of selling the product, was just about to close the deal) eagerly encouraged Steve to go get his wife. Steve, trying very hard to hold back his laughter that was about to roar forth like a might wind ripping though a forest tree line, brought his wife to the door to see the photo.
Without even directing her eyes to what he saw ...Steve said, "What do you think honey?" ... immediately her eyes were drawn to an image captured at the end of their driveway. Low and behold, the timing of the aerial photographer had recorded an event that was unseen by the family, and opened the discovery to the key to the mystery of missing "Hot Turkey Sandwich". There captured in beautiful panoramic color that could be posted in the finest National Art Gallery was a flattened "Hot Turkey Sandwich".
Steve's wife saw the flattened cat immediately ..."Oh my, so sad, so that's what happened to our cat." Without even a flinch of sympathy the salesman looked quickly at that detail of the picture and immediately retorted, "We can air brush that out for you!" WOW - that sure clinched that sale ... NOT!!!
But think about that for a moment ... "We can airbrush that" out of your life. What tools we have in our armada to do small and great cover ups in our day and age! In fact, the faster we race on into technological oblivion with years flashing by like seconds, we get better and better at leaving gold in the after burn of our need to appear OK. Transparency, although touted as a characteristic of a good leader, is really rough on the pride of most individuals trying to lead organizations , let alone there own families. Faking it will not cut it, but here is the reflex we need to develop to be victors in this present life: Psalm 71:1,2
"In Thee, O LORD, do I put my trust: --- Trusting our strength is a recipe for failure.
let me never be put to confusion. --- He can and will help us sustain our sanity.
Deliver me in Thy righteousness, --- We can count on Him because of His Righteousness... not ours. and cause me to escape: --- His escape plan never involves life threatening addictions.
incline Thine ear unto me, --- Call on Him, He is inclined to listen because of His love for us.
and save me." --- Any other deliverance is not complete enough for out fragile humanness ---
Only Jesus Can Save us!
NOW ---Today! The air brush is not an option --- We live in a frail estate of human affairs in which we precariously hang on the edge of eternity. With His Spirt indwelling and leading in the life of "we as believers", we now find that "All things work together for good to them that love God and who are "the called" according to His purpose."
All things --- All people --- all events --- all joys --- all heartbreaks --- should never come under the decision to airbrush them out of the full purposes of the Divine. All is key to the ever endearing of God to us and us to God.
As crazy as it was - "Hot Turkey Sandwich" was part of the lives of a family, and the dramatic answer to the mystery of a cat's disappearance will now be indelibly etched in the minds of the family. Steve can look back with humor, but with events like these engraved in his memory , he will never deny the care of Almighty God.
If an aerial photographer can catch that moment ... then there is no doubt that the God that sees the sparrow fall also knows all of the needs of the heart.
No apologies but this life needs no air brush only an uninhibited heart full of the awe for God and an unbridled tongue filled with the praises of GOD who loves us with an everlasting love.
Psalm 71:14 - "I will hope continually, and will yet praise Thee more and more."
HLFA,
Jeff