Bears, oh my!
Here we are in the month of November where we shift our focus to thanksgiving and gratitude for all of our many blessings. I think we would all agree that 2020 has not been an easy year. We have all faced personal struggles in our own families and corporately as a nation. Yet I believe that if we search our hearts, we still have so much to be thankful for.
I will begin - I am thankful for the small details of our lives that never escape the mind and hand of God. You see, a couple of weeks ago, my husband and I went on a much needed vacation to the mountains. We needed a time of rest, relaxation, and refreshing and the Smoky Mountains was just the place for it. The leaves were beautiful and the air was crisp. And while the beach is by far my favorite get away, I must admit that this time the beach was not where we were supposed to be.
“I suddenly realized that my God, as awesome and powerful as He is, also showed me how intimate and loving He is to give His attention to the smallest wishes of this girl’s heart.”
We have visited Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Cherokee, North Carolina and rode through the mountains many times. Each time, I had hoped to see a bear in its natural habitat but I never did. I know that wanting to see a bear must seem trivial to you. And, I guess it is. But there is more to this than meets the eye. You see, this girl was tired – mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Constantly giving and pouring out is exhausting and quite honestly, I was there.
I was reminded of the passage in Psalm 37:4, “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” So this time, I decided that I was going to ask God to let me see a bear. And, so I did. I figured that since God created bears, and if God could make a donkey talk then surely He could direct a bear our way to fulfill this desire of my heart.
You know what? To my delight, God answered that prayer. On the side of a mountain road, about fifty feet or so from where I was standing, I saw a beautiful black bear walking around in the woods. I have a video to prove it!
Jeremiah 31:25 says, “I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.”
Psalm 23:3 says, “He refreshes my soul…”
Psalm 103:5 says, “Who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles.”
Psalm 149:4 says, “For the Lord takes delight in his people…”
Each one of these scriptures describes exactly what God did for me. When I got back in the truck, I was as giddy as a little girl whose biggest wish had been granted! But after some time, I was overcome with the sweetest refreshing of God’s presence. While I was ecstatic to see the bear, it really wasn’t all about that. I suddenly realized that my God, as awesome and powerful as He is, also showed me how intimate and loving He is to give His attention to the smallest wishes of this girl’s heart.
I am thankful for the reminder that God really is close to us – hearing and seeing the big and small details of our lives.
Jesus taught the disciples that their worth to God was more than the sparrows – and Jesus said that God does not forget the sparrow. Jesus then went on to say that God knows the number of hairs on each head.