Warm Gloves In My Pocket

I smiled this morning as I felt the gloves in my pocket. I was driving in my car, on the way to visit my mother on this cold, rainy day. I had decided to drag myself out of bed at a reasonable time and go see her for the day, partly to take care of some business items, partly to visit and check in on her.

About a mile away from my house, I realized my hands were incredibly cold and thought to myself, 'oh, if only I had my gloves with me!' A small voice inside of my head prompted me to check my pockets. To my surprise, my black, fleece-lined gloves were nestled deep inside. I quickly put them on, letting them envelope each finger and palm, immediately feeling a comforting protection from the cold air in the car.

"Thank you, Lord, for my gloves", I said out loud. I thought to myself, 'isn't that just like the Lord, to provide gloves for me, just because he loves me so, because he cares about my comfort, because he's my father and wants to keep my hands warm. '

As I continued my drive to my mom's apartment this morning, I prayed along the way asking for the Lord to be overwhelmingly present and to open my eyes to his blessings and provision. These days, more than ever, I have been asking the Lord to open my spiritual eyes to see beyond the obvious, and asking that he'd reveal Himself to me in the details of each day. I'm not talking about just the big, "wow" events, but in the minutia, the mundane and trial-making stuff of each day.

My oldest sister met me at the apartment as we are the designated/volunteer children to make sure mom's bills are paid and that her checking account stays in the black. Mom had not slept well last night and was still in her robe and slippers, laying on her couch when we got there. She greeted us with a big smile. This was the first time I've seen my mother without her wig. She usually wears a really cute, stylishly cut wig that she purchased when she first started chemo and subsequently lost all her hair. But today, she decided to not "mess with it" and just "be". I couldn't help but smile as she looked so cute and endearing.

Before we got down to the business of paying bills, the three of us--mom, my sister "J and I--sat and talked while sipping tea and coffee. Our conversation was full as Mom shared openly her thoughts about dying some day, her curiousity about what Heaven will really be like, and the excitement at the thought of seeing other loved ones waiting there. Both my sister and I voiced our feelings of envy that mom will get to go to Heaven soon (most likely), while we still have to go on living in this world and deal with all the strife that comes with it.

At one point, my sister asked mom if she'd like to have scripture read to her. Mom has just been too tired to read lately, so Mom was very "up" for it. J and I each picked a different Psalm to read. I chose Psalm 145 as this is one the Lord showed me this week that I've read almost daily.

Chapter 145
A psalm of praise. Of David.

I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and
ever.

Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and
ever.

Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can
fathom.

One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.

They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.

They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
and I will proclaim your great deeds.

They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.

The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.

All you have made will praise you, O Lord;
your saints will extol you.

They will tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might, so that all men may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all
generations.

The Lord is faithful to all his promises
and loving toward all he has made.

The Lord upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.

The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper
time.

You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and loving toward all he has made.

The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.

He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.

The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will
destroy.

My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature praise his holy
name for ever and ever.

I finished reading the passage with tears in my eyes as we were sharing and talking about God's goodness and faithfulness, one generation to another. I then asked if I could read another passage that the Lord showed me this week.

I read Revelation19:1-16, which speaks of Christ's return and the wedding of the bridegroom and his bride. I could barely finish reading as I was so overwhelmed with the hope of what is to come:

After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven
shouting:

“Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to
our God, for
true and just are his judgments.
He has condemned the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.
He has avenged on her the blood of his
servants.”

And
again they shouted:

“Hallelujah!
The smoke from her goes up for
ever and ever.”

The
twenty‑four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God,
who was seated on the throne. And they cried:

“Amen,
Hallelujah!”

Then
a voice came from the throne, saying:

“Praise our God,
all you
his servants,
you who fear him,
both small and great!”

Then
I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and
like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah!
For our Lord
God Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and be glad
and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has
come, and his bride has made herself ready.
Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear.”

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding
supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he added, “These are the true words of
God.”

At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a
fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of
Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy.”

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name
written on him that no one knows but he himself. He
is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The
armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine
linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.

On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:

King of Kings
and Lord of Lords.

We were excited at the hope, the truth--the reality--of it all. This is real. This will really happen...and Mom is on the threshold of really stepping into Heaven.

After I finished reading this passage, without skipping a beat, my sister broke out in song, singing the hymn "When We all Get to Heaven":

When we all get to Heaven,What a day of rejoicing that will be! When we all see
Jesus,We’ll sing and shout the victory!

I joined in, as did my mother, singing the chorus a couple of times, complete with 3 part harmony! We all laughed and then went off on some tangent about old hymns, singing bits and pieces of them as we remembered.

I left mom's late in the afternoon. As I drove home, I thanked the Lord for the uplifting, encouraging time spent at my mother's and how the Lord had provided each of us with just what we needed. He had indeed given me a glimpse...actually, much more than a glimpse, of His work in the details of life--my life.

I was overwhelmed as I thought about the huge-ness (my own made up word) of God--how Holy and immense He is, yet intimate and personal.

He hears the cries of all who call on him;
He fulfills the desires of all who fear him;
He opens his hand and satisfies the desires of every living thing;
He lifts up all who are bowed down;
He reigns and is worthy of praise;
He is the rider on the white horse whose name is Faithful and True;
He is the victor;
He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords;
He is my comforter in these days grief;
My hope and joy in these days filled with trials;
He is the One who loves me;
He is the one who reminds me of warm gloves in my pocket.