Not only is Father opening our ears to hear his “gentle whisper” but He is also opening our eyes…..to see his smiling face.
A few months ago Hilary and I were in Uptown Minneapolis. As we often do I wandered in one direction and she in another having arranged to meet again at a kitchen store. Arriving back first at the rendezvous I noticed outside the kitchen store a table of CLEARANCE items. A spatula caught my eye. It had a smiley face……….like the yellow smiley face badge I was wearing the very first time Hilary and I met in a high school classroom back in Belfast 45 years ago.
“What is the significance of that button?” she had asked me.
“Oh” I replied. “‘Smile Jesus loves you!”
That first exchange laid the foundation of a growing relationship from brother and sister to husband and wife to father and mother……………..
I handed over the few dollars for the spatula and headed for the car to hide her gift under the passenger seat. When I returned to the store, there was Hilary…..sifting through the clearance table! Her hand settled on another spatula, again a smiling one, this time pink. “I think this would be nice for (our granddaughter) Ana.” she said. “She’s really enjoying baking.”
We returned to the car, her parcel in hand, and as she sat down I said, “Why not have a look under your seat?” There of course she found my matching smiley faced spatula…..cue for a photo…..and for a song…..
This is the greatest love story ever
Pain beyond bearing: joy beyond pain
This is the real thing now and forever
Toward which all other stories laid claim
And now your thoughts are my thoughts
Your truth is my truth
Your will is my will
One heart we’ve become
And now your ways are my ways
Your words what I’ll say
I am where you are
Together we’re one
This is the substance, no longer shadow
The drama of ages has all art made plain
It’s childishly simple this wisdom of sages
It’s science uncovered the cosmos explained
And now your thoughts are our thoughts
Your truth is our truth
You will is our will
One heart we’ve become
And now your ways are our ways
Your words what we’ll say
We are what you are
Together we’re one
This is His plan for “Oneness” with us all – mirrored in what we can potentially experience when He gives the gift of marriage in this life.
So “Smile Jesus loves you”
Paul (and Hilary)
P.S. The parents of our next door daughter-in-law, Kim, were visiting last weekend. Linda volunteered a story that confirmed to me the above was the right blog for this week.
Her mum and sisters were making the trip of a lifetime to the Holy Land a few weeks ago. Sister Sally’s husband, Fred, another “Prince of a man” had died a few months before and one night as they were watching a sunset together she quietly said to the Lord, “This is what Fred and I used to so enjoy doing together. It would lovely to know that he is here participating in our joy.” Nothing of note seemed to happen.
A few weeks later mom and sisters happened to be assembled once more on a beach back home in Florida – again watching a sunset. First one of them noticed a “heart” in the sky! That got everyone’s attention. Then the heart was followed by – a smiley face!!
Then came – the wink!!! Then the evening beach crowd’s tranquility was completely busted by the uncontrolled outbursts of delight from the girls as “The Father and Fred Show” came to a grand finale – with ‘the green flash’!!!!