When you make God's glory your purpose, His will your aim, His heart yours - He shows He is mighty to save and His steadfast love to be so precious.
When God asked me to expand my heart and home temporarily to include a preteen (and when I say "preteen" I mean only with a week left of that age.... feel with me: t.r.e.p.i.d.a.t.i.o.n.), I knew the road would be a new, rocky one. Brad and I felt no hesitancy between us.
This is what we want our home to look like, we said several times. Biblically we felt like we were standing on rock solid theological ground. But these two precious 9's in our home. What about them? Was the timing right? That was where the hesitation laid and our conversation and prayers swirled with these questions constantly.
It's hard when you are working through life stuff and making progress and the unknown smacks you in the face.
This could go either way.
The two 9's were in groove. Family life was becoming a manageable routine. I chuckle because while this groove still requires dependence on God, adding an unknown 12 to it makes it more like the category of "prayer and fasting" type dependence.
The girls' play therapist said, "O, nooooo. I'm not so sure about that," when I asked her opinion.
I wasn't either.
But as Brad and I talked and prayed, we only felt, "Yes," from God. And since we answer ultimately, solely to Him, we said yes.
We are a week into this and already are witnesses of God's hand moving in ours and the girls' hearts. Everybody moves over to make more room in our hearts and at our table and in our schedule. It doesn't sound like a very big move over. One more person.
But, some moments are bigger than others.
And that's when I find out that it's true.
His hand is mighty.
His love, steadfast.
The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17
How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light. Psalm 36:7-9