Never Too Late...

Amy Grant – Beautiful Music
 Amy Grant – Mountain Top
 Amy Grant – Old Man's Rubble

Listening to Amy Grant reminds me of my early nursing school days, when I roomed with a lovely artist/future nurse named Michele Stephens. She came from another school, another dorm, where she had roomed with none other than Amy Grant! My mind drifts back to those days in the tall, pink dormintory of the Georgia Baptist School of Nursing in Atlanta. We were a crazy bunch, but the friendships we developed there have remained strong, even when we haven't seen each other in decades.

Tonight, on Facebook, God reconnected one of those long ago threads of friendship. A different Michelle (Mangum) Cullison encouraged me with a powerful word of affirmation and encouragement regarding my position in Christ, and His calling to me. She also shared with me an amazing story of reconciliation between her and her father, after a 25 year separation! I won't go into details with her story because she has already written that story, but let me tell you, it brought me to tears, over and over again. Beautiful, strong, truly touching story of a daughter and her dad, coming together first as Christians and then as, finally, father and child.

My heart is filled to the brim with gratitude for this visit I had with my friend after all these years. It was not in person, but I felt her sweet spirit just as powerfully as if we had met up in person, as if we were still just hanging out at the dorm, or down at the Varsity, drinking frosted oranges and eating pimiento burgers! Hearing her share about her recent missions trip to Peru, with, yes, her long lost dad, gave me chills.

It's truly never too late. Never too late in the game, as long as we have breath to breathe, for God to step in, to take over the reins and bring us back to the path He initially had in mind for us.

As Michelle reminded me, God is about TODAY, not yesterday. We woke up this morning to clean slates. There is nothing He can't do to get us back on track, no matter how far away we've wandered off. He is in the Restoration business for a reason.

I asked God on Saturday for a specific Word, some way that I couldn't control, so that I could know for sure if it was Him telling me to write, to do missions, and my friend, not knowing that conversation between my Father and me, did exactly that. My heart leapt within me, to know that my God cares enough to answer such a simple prayer.

Have you ever heard this expression? God is in the details. I don't know where that came from but it is right on target. God cares if you had breakfast this morning. He cares if you have enough money for gas to get to work, or to get your kids to school. It matters to Him that your tooth aches, you are worried over your weight, or that your kid is being bullied every single day after school. It matters, it means something, it is important to Him.

What is the dream you've had since you were a kid? What is the place you go to in your mind when you dream about who you wanted to become when you grew up? What have you given up on, fully convinced that you've screwed up too much, too often, too badly? Whatever it is, run get it, dust it off, and show it to Jesus...and watch as He makes it brand-new.

He can do that, you know, make old things new, make broken hearts whole, and change the game plan at the very last minute.

All you've got to do, all I've got to do, is trust Him. And watch Him work!