He was waiting...

Have you ever been in a longterm relationship, whether it's marriage, or a lifelong friendship, where you just seemed to lose each other in the everydayness of living? Then you take the time and effort to go on a date, have lunch and go shopping together, or go on a weekend getaway and all of a sudden, the reason you are friends, or the reason you fell in love comes back into focus.

The summer I turned fifty, I told my husband that what I wanted for my birthday was some time at the beach with no one but me and Jesus. I had been sensing some things clogging up my relationship with Him...some unhealed hurts, some unresolved offenses, and just the general busyness of life. So off I went, on a hot sunny summer morning...me, an overnight bag, my Bible and my journal. Even the drive to Lincoln City, with worship music blaring, and me singing at the top of my lungs with no one else in the car to worry about, the clog was already breaking up. (By the way, did you know there is a scripture about how Judah, which means praise, plows up the clods?) After I got to Lincoln City and checked into the hotel, I drove around and found a place to park where there wasn't a crowd of people. The weather was perfect and warm enough for shorts. There on a small bluff, overlooking the beautiful, blue Pacific, I found a little rock to sit on, and met with Jesus. I know He spoke to me, healed me, strengthened me, during our special "date" away and alone.

Everytime I've gone to Lincoln City since then, I've gone back to "our" spot. A week ago Steve and I had an overnight getaway there. We had a great time reconnecting with each other, after what has been an extremely busy season in our lives. The two of us went together to my spot. Steve sat in the car and read His Bible and studied. I went to my little place on the rock...Bible and journal in tow. The minute I sat down, I had a sense that God's Spirit was there...like He had been waiting there for me, knowing that I would come back to that place to meet Him. Had I been with Him regularly, consistently in my daily life since that time almost two years ago? Yes, of course. Had we had good times of real communication together since that time? Again the answer is yes. But something special had gone on between Him and I in that place, and not only did I remember, but He remembered too. He was there waiting, waiting for me at our place...