When Something Special is Lost. . .

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.  Psalm 34:18  

Okay....so as an update from my last post, regarding the "lil lost zebra," I am here to say that it seemeth that zebra is goneth forever. . .   *sigh*    But GOD.   He has promised to make something good come from the seemingly "bad" that happens.   So...there's a lesson...actually many lessons to be learned:

1. Be sure to keep the "to be kept" pile separated from the "to donate" pile.   ;o)  
2. Double-check the bags before you toss 'em in the back of the truck to drop off at the thrift store.
3. Even if your children don't have much to do with their keepsakes on a regular basis, they have formed a special attachment to them, so handle with care.
4. But on a deeper lever, What spiritual good can come from this?  Romans 8:28 gives us a promise for God to work out all circumstances, even the "littler" ones for our good and His glory, if we want to serve His purpose for our lives.   
5. Is there anything that we're holding closer to our hearts than we should be?  If we lost everything we possessed, but still had God, would we crumble under the grief, or would we stay strong and remain faithful?
6. I am learning that even though our children are growing older, they are still going through each phase of life for the very first time, so every day is a learning experience for them too...and it's a time for us to weave the things of God into each of their circumstances.   

When God allows something to be taken away, we can know that there's a purpose for Him allowing such a loss.   I told my daughter that God loves children and would never allow anything to cause hurt or pain without some reason (or blessing) hidden in the circumstance.  Make it a habit to seek Him in every circumstance. 



"What would You have me to learn from this Father??" If He sees fit to bring that something special back into your life, then He will. But if not, it's because He has something better in store for you.

When He allowed my sister to pass away suddenly, I claimed Romans 8:28, wondering what good could possibly come from losing my only sister.   When each anniversary of her death would come, I would imagine placing the grief of her loss on one side of a scale, and then putting the "good" that He brought from her loss on the other side.   As the years passed, I could begin to see more and more good that He had brought from her untimely death. . .but for many of those years, the grief of her loss always outweighed the good.  Then, around the 10th year, the grief and good began to balance out. 

However, last year, on the 13th anniversary, I "broke out the dusty scales" and placed the grief of her loss on one side.  Then as I began to put all of the good on the other side, the Holy Spirit gently spoke, "Tammi, one 'good thing' that I have given you throughout all of this is Myself.  I was there, carrying you when you couldn't bear to lift your weary head.  I have never left you.  You've been given Me throughout all of your grief, and because of this, your faith in Me is stronger now than it was before May 1, 1997."   When I placed HIM, the Great Comforter on the good side of the imaginary scales, the scales tipped completely to the good side!!    Cha-Ching!  :o)  

 

The ultimate good that can come from ANY loss, is that we "get more of God" by allowing His Holy Spirit to begin ministering to our hearts, by binding them up; comforting our hearts by holding us close to His; carrying us until we're able to stand on our own, and once we are standing, we will not want to stray very far from the Great Comforter because He's become our All in All.   

He is the "Something Better" that He will give us
when we've lost something special.

So...what's the lesson in the lil lost zebra?   Remember how God redeemed us through the blood of His dear Son, Jesus..and by His STRIPES we are healed.  Was it any surprise for me to go to the thrift store, in search of lil zebra, only to find sitting on the shelf her stuffed baby lamb she had donated a month ago?   My eyes began to tear up, as I saw her little handwriting on it's name tag. . .and I asked the store clerk "how much is this?"  Knowing why I was there, she said sympathetically, "Just go ahead and take it."  

I went there looking for a black and white striped zebra, and found her little lamb instead.   Thanks to our Lord for becoming our Lamb---the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world!!  And even if we never see zebra again, we've got her lil lamb---as a visual reminder of our Lamb that was slain:  Jesus.  Because He willingly became Our Redeemer, WE'LL never have to be eternally separated from God, if only we'll accept His gift.   And because of Jesus, we'll never have to endure a loss, as long as we and our loved ones are in the family of God~ there's never goodbye, only "I'll see you later."

Thank You Father, for understanding the heart of a young girl who is going through many phases in her life, learning even slightly about loss and grief.  We know You never make mistakes and that You love us more than we can ever comprehend.  Thank You for allowing me to find her little lamb sitting on the shelf at the thrift store. . .for it is a reminder to me of Your Precious Son, Who is our Lamb.  I pray for anyone else who may be experiencing a much deeper loss. . .Father, please draw them closer to You as You draw closer to them.  Bind up their broken hearts and save their crushed spirit, as You have done for me.  Increase their faith in You..Whisper gentle comforting words of hope to their hearts as they place their feeble hearts in Your hand.    Even if we have a lump in our throats, we can thank You through it all, for You have promised us to work all things out for our good and Your glory.   We want to serve Your purpose in our lives. . .so we claim Romans 8:28 tonight. . and we ask this in Jesus' Name....Amen.



Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. Isaiah 53:10