I love it when I get to SEE God's details for our lives, when He so SO covers and protects our hearts, even in the midst of sad hard things. I believe that God even cares about sparkling orange sneakers.
Yesterday, one of Faith's guinea pigs died which on the surface might sound like yes a sad event but let me tell you that it was much more than that. For a precious jewels who has experienced a high amount of trauma in her life, as well as enormous loss, as well as the daily navigating of worries, loosing a BELOVED guinea pigs is much more than that.
Did you notice, I added the word "beloved," because Speckles our old guinea pig was SO LOVED by our Faith. If there was a record for the most amount of time a child spent with a guinea pig, I bet Faith would win the record. Speckles and Ash (the other, still alive guinea pig) would shoot hoops with Faith (she would set them up with their own very comfortable front row seats), would do homework with Faith, would have snacks with Faith, would go on the trampoline with Faith, would go anywhere with Faith that we would let her take them. She would check on them in the mornings and as soon as she got home from school she would take her homework and snack out in the garage and hang out with them for a good hour or so (sometimes longer, but I would usually tell her she needed to come in - and will still tell her with Ash. She has made them the coolest "playmobile" type things as well as fed them very well with lots of shredded carrots as that is their favourite. They were (and are) both trained to walk on her back as well as up the stairs ... I could go on and on ... I think you get the idea :)
Here is how I got to see God's hand throughout a very difficult situation for our sweet Faith.
Two months ago or so Matteus's beloved bunny died. Matteus was also very sad as he also so loved his bunny and spent a lot of time loving on it. In that moment that I found out about Snow (the name of the bunny that died), I heard God say to prepare Faith for when her guinea pigs die (as all animals die at some point). A couple days after Snow died, I started this conversation with Faith, talking openly and honestly with her. I talked with her about how eventually her guinea pigs would die, and even though it was really sad to talk about, I wanted her heart to be aware of. I mentioned it several times in the several weeks that followed, Faith even initiating the conversation too sometimes. Then I had a thought that I better take some recent pictures of Faith with her Speckles and Ash, and I did that.
Had I not done all of that, Faith's heart would have been in complete shock. Had God not prompted my heart, I would not have done it.
Yesterday as Faith was processing with me the loss of Speckles, she told me about how about a couple of weeks ago she had had a dream that Speckles had died. She told me how it felt so real that as soon as she woke up she went to check to see if he was still alive, he was. She now wondered if the dream was God's way of getting her heart ready. I wondered the same thing, and I do believe that God used the dream to prepare my precious Faith. How COOL is that. I realize that we are still talking about a guinea pig, but for those of you who understand the depths of trauma and grief will understand the depths of God's details of protection.
Then yesterday I thought Faith needed a break from being home, and suggested she join Bella and I on some errand running. Faith agreed which was good, as she doesn't normally like to go to stores. We hit our local children's consignment shop and what did we find but SPARKLY ORANGE CONVERSE like shoes, which is a double WIN for Faith as she LOVES orange shoes and loves runners/sneaker type shoes as well. She is already very much and athlete through and through. She was stoked about the shoes, and laughed out loud when trying them on, and I of course happily bought them for her. Sparkly orange runners for my little girl at the exact time that we randomly stopped into the shop. It doesn't get much better than that and it was no random act.
This morning Faith came into bed with me and was snuggling as she woke up thinking about Speckles. God reminded me in that moment of her journey, eight years ago when we first brought her home from China it seemed painful for us to even gently touch her. About three years later she was at a place where she was somewhat comfortable with a hug from me (and only me). And on and on her healing journey went, God this morning reminding me of the HEALING HE HAS DONE in her life. How AWESOME is that!
THANK YOU JESUS for the way that you prepared my sweet Faith's heart for the loss of her pet. THANK YOU JESUS for the way that you took care of her heart in the midst of her grief, and the ways that I know you'll continue to take care of her heart as she continues to grieve. THANK YOU JESUS for sparkling orange sneakers.
Here is how I got to see God's hand throughout a very difficult situation for our sweet Faith.
Two months ago or so Matteus's beloved bunny died. Matteus was also very sad as he also so loved his bunny and spent a lot of time loving on it. In that moment that I found out about Snow (the name of the bunny that died), I heard God say to prepare Faith for when her guinea pigs die (as all animals die at some point). A couple days after Snow died, I started this conversation with Faith, talking openly and honestly with her. I talked with her about how eventually her guinea pigs would die, and even though it was really sad to talk about, I wanted her heart to be aware of. I mentioned it several times in the several weeks that followed, Faith even initiating the conversation too sometimes. Then I had a thought that I better take some recent pictures of Faith with her Speckles and Ash, and I did that.
Had I not done all of that, Faith's heart would have been in complete shock. Had God not prompted my heart, I would not have done it.
Yesterday as Faith was processing with me the loss of Speckles, she told me about how about a couple of weeks ago she had had a dream that Speckles had died. She told me how it felt so real that as soon as she woke up she went to check to see if he was still alive, he was. She now wondered if the dream was God's way of getting her heart ready. I wondered the same thing, and I do believe that God used the dream to prepare my precious Faith. How COOL is that. I realize that we are still talking about a guinea pig, but for those of you who understand the depths of trauma and grief will understand the depths of God's details of protection.
Then yesterday I thought Faith needed a break from being home, and suggested she join Bella and I on some errand running. Faith agreed which was good, as she doesn't normally like to go to stores. We hit our local children's consignment shop and what did we find but SPARKLY ORANGE CONVERSE like shoes, which is a double WIN for Faith as she LOVES orange shoes and loves runners/sneaker type shoes as well. She is already very much and athlete through and through. She was stoked about the shoes, and laughed out loud when trying them on, and I of course happily bought them for her. Sparkly orange runners for my little girl at the exact time that we randomly stopped into the shop. It doesn't get much better than that and it was no random act.
This morning Faith came into bed with me and was snuggling as she woke up thinking about Speckles. God reminded me in that moment of her journey, eight years ago when we first brought her home from China it seemed painful for us to even gently touch her. About three years later she was at a place where she was somewhat comfortable with a hug from me (and only me). And on and on her healing journey went, God this morning reminding me of the HEALING HE HAS DONE in her life. How AWESOME is that!
THANK YOU JESUS for the way that you prepared my sweet Faith's heart for the loss of her pet. THANK YOU JESUS for the way that you took care of her heart in the midst of her grief, and the ways that I know you'll continue to take care of her heart as she continues to grieve. THANK YOU JESUS for sparkling orange sneakers.
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