A year ago today was the last time I had a conversation with Grandma Sally. It was the last time I got to exchange words with her. The last time I heard her laugh. The last time I walked into her room to see her face light up, eyes sparkling, and say, “Well there’s Vickie!” I’d go and give her a hug.
We talked about a lot of things that last hour I had with her.
We talked about Granddaddy and his service in WWII.
We talked about Judy and Ryder (her dogs).
We talked about jobs.
We talked about my cousins and their kids.
We talked about family.
We talked about weddings and raising kids and hard days.
We talked about husbands and she scolded me for the millionth time about not caring if I get married.
We hugged and I left and cried half the drive from Kansas City to Manhattan because I knew in my heart it was the last time I’d see her.
I never told her about the Race. I never told her I’d be gone for a year, never told her the journey I’d be beginning in October.
Last year, I wrote a blog called Learning How To Loose. It was one of the hardest blogs I wrote, and I don’t think I’ve ever cried more while writing something in my life.
Grandma Sally was the first person I remember telling me the story of Adam and Eve. She was one of the first people I remember loving fully, deeply, and never questioning if she loved me (other than my parents). I never had to try, or be someone I wasn’t. She loved me. It was just something I knew. She wasn’t just my grandma when I was growing up. For years, she was my best friend. I stayed at her house and we drank hot tea in the mornings. We listened to Alan Jackson and George Strait while she cooked lunch. We would watch Gunsmoke in the afternoon and then she’d have to “rest her eyes” because they were tired. Apparently resting your eyes also involves snoring. I never did figure that one out. She loved me. We spent a lot of time together.
I’m going to guess that as you’re reading this, you have someone in mind who was the same to you. Maybe that person for you is a parent, an aunt or uncle, a grandparent. Maybe for you, that person is a teacher, a coach, a pastor or youth minister. Maybe that person is simply a friend who is always there for you.
What I want to tell you is that people pass. Don’t get me wrong here. People are important. Community is important. People are truly a gift. But people pass. And they aren’t perfect. What I want to tell you is that there is a God who created you, and He is Himself Love. His love is perfect. And He never changes. And He will never pass. He wants to be your best friend.
I’m not at all saying people don’t matter. Just to clarify.
Some of you might be rolling your eyes, thinking, “Here we go with another one of these come to Jesus blogs.”
Spoiler alert: I want my entire life to be a come to Jesus blog, because I want everyone to know Him.
Some of you have maybe tried the Jesus thing, and it just wasn’t working for you. I want to talk to you all especially.
How do you get to know someone? How do you build a friendship? You spend time together. You exchange words. You say words and they listen. They say words and you listen. Sometimes you might kick it old school and write letters. In that case, you read their words. You then write them back.
Your friendship with God is the same way. To get to know Him, you need to spend time with Him. You need to listen to Him. You need to read His letters to you. You need to write Him. Communication goes two ways. I promise you He hears you. He doesn’t just hear you, He listens. Are you doing the same for Him? I promise you, you hear His voice more than you think you do.
If you’re reading this blog and you are having a come to Jesus moment, I’d love to talk to you. Comment below if you’re feeling brave, or feel free to email me at [email protected] . I would love to talk with you and help you in anyway I can. The most important things I can tell you are that God created you, that you’re heard, loved, seen, and known by Him, that Jesus died to make a way for you to spend eternity with Him, and that your life has a purpose.
If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to spend 15 minutes each day reading the Bible and 5-10 minutes talking with God. If you end up making it to 30 minutes, that’s 2% of your day, assuming I did my math right. Are you willing to give up 2% of your day to let your life radically be changed?
I hope your answer is a roaring, “YES! LET’S GO!!!”
If it isn‘t, I pray one day it will be. But I hope it’s today. There’s too much joy to be had to wait.
XOXO,
The Roaring Lion
Beautiful!