God's Incredible Presence

          Rosie and I have had a wonderful time for the past couple of weeks.  First, we went to Cape Cod, where dear friends have a cottage.  We had a delightful time there, visiting the many beaches and enjoying the almost incredible luxury of the Cape.  We saw old friends and had great conversations that we will always treasure.  We tried to go on a whale watch cruise out of Provincetown.  The boat was full of people who wanted to see the whales.  The ocean was very choppy and a lot of the people on the boat got sick.  The crew had distributed Dramamine to those who were afraid of sea sickness, and there were people dozing all over the boat.  We didn’t see any whales at all.  The problem was that the whales were apparently on a sabbatical or something and after three hours of looking, the captain decided that we were out of luck, so he took us back to the pier.  The absence of the whales didn’t mar the day; we enjoyed the trip up to the tip of the Cape.   

            This must be our year for mishaps.  After we came back from the Cape, we traveled to a North Carolina beach for a week’s stay.  On the way down, we hit a large fire extinguisher that had probably fallen off a truck.  The extinguisher damaged our transmission and we had the car towed to a local dealer who eventually fixed it. I picked it up earlier in this past week.  We rented another car to get us to the beach. 

            The message of all of this for me is to enjoy what the days give to us.  Despite the inconvenience of no whales and no car, we have had much to enliven our trip and our days.  I got up one morning to a glorious sunrise over the Atlantic, we have had wonderful lunches at the restaurants on our trip and most of all, we have enjoyed each other.  We have collected stories to tell when we get back.  Most of all, we rested, read and relaxed, something that we both needed very much to do.

            Was God with us on this trip?  Certainly, when I look at all that happened, there is no way at all that I could possibly deny it.  When we hit the fire extinguisher on the road, there was no other traffic around, and I was able to bring the car to a stop with no problem at all.  The AAA people got a tow truck to us, and we were treated very well by the dealer to whom we took the car, and we got back on the road after only a couple of hours.  We were very fortunate, and I know that whatever might have happened, our God was beside us the whole way. 

            I love the prayer that reads:  Lord, we pray that your grace may always        precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works

            That was certainly our experience on this trip; and I think it is also our experience in the rest of our life.  God’s grace is a certainty, and we can always count on it.  But what do we mean by God’s Grace?  Is it protection from anything at all that can happen to us?  Certainly not. What I know for certain is that if that experience with the fire extinguisher on the road had had a tragic ending, that God would still have been there to bring us through.  I don’t understand that, I only have God’s promise to be with us in all things and to ultimately give us the reality of eternal life.   It is simply the assurance that whatever befalls us as human beings, we are loved by our God and that God’s arms are wrapped around us forever.  Given our problem with keeping control of our lives, that is something that troubles us.  I have always loved that old saying, “if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”  That has been my experience, and I could tell you many stories about how I set off on one direction and was moved to another, not by my own actions, but by the Grace of God.

            The 23rd psalm is one that most of us know by heart.  It was taught to me when I was a kid, and I love its message. Notice what it says to all of us about God’s presence in our lives, for better or worse:

                        Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
                        I shall fear no evil; *
                        for you are with me;
                        your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

             

            God called the Hebrew people to be his own.  He sent Moses to free them from the slavery in Egypt.  When they got to Mount Sinai, he gave Moses the Law, and when Moses was gone for what the people thought was too long a time, they petitioned Aaron to “Come, Make Gods for us.” Aaron did as they asked, using the gold that they all had on their persons to create a Golden Calf, that they all worshiped.  God saw this and told Moses that he was going to destroy those people.  Moses interceded and God did nothing to the people, and they went on their way.  At the end of their journey through the desert, God brings his chosen people to the land of Canaan, the promised land, where they thrived until their anxiety and their quest for power got in their way again and they found themselves divided.  The human aspirations of all of us get in our way from time to time, but God has a plan for each of us, and when we submit ourselves to God’s will, we always discover that God’s grace – God’s love-- moves us in the direction that we are willed to go; and ultimately we will see our creator face to face and find that all encompassing love surrounding us forever.