Someday We Will Understand
Her little body wracked by RSV, Covid, and pneumonia, our 1-1/2 year old great-granddaughter, Lily, was struggling to get enough oxygen. Filled with worry, we begged God for a miracle. In the same week, God gave us the precious gift of a new great-grandson, Caynen. Grief and joy. Fear of loss vs. new life. (Thank God, the grief over Lily turned to joy when God healed her.)
As I reflected on the coexistence of grief and joy in life, I thought of how both painful experiences and God’s faithful love are a part of His weaving for our lives. We often see a messy blur of trauma, trials, evil, and injustice in the world and in our lives. But if we step back and see it from God’s perspective, we see how God is interweaving those dark times with the brightness of His new-every-morning mercies, His amazing grace, and the golden threads of His unconditional love even during those times when we didn’t see it.
We can never fully understand everything that happens, but one day we will see the full picture and be amazed by how God brought all things together to create the beauty of His purpose.
“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:22-23
Jesus replied, “You do not realize
now what I am doing,
but later you will understand.”
John 13:7
“For I know the plans I have for you,”
declares the Lord,
“plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11
It’s the Size of Our God That Counts
“It is not the size of your faith, but the object of your faith that matters.”
~ Tim Keller
“While faith is a very precious grace, yet it is only the medium of the communication of God’s infinite love and power, and we must never put it in the place of God Himself.”
~ John Alexander Dowie
“Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time.”
~ Oswald Chambers
Nature Retreat
Photos Courtesy of My Brother
I just came across this collage I made
years ago from some of my butterfly photos
and thought I’d share it again.
FLY FREE in JESUS!
Freed to Fly 
Trudy,
How scary to have that happen to your granddaughter! I am so glad she is ok! Thank you for these lovely words! I have a hard trine holding both sadness and joy but learning this is the way through. I am always refreshed and encouraged when I come here. Thank you for creating this safe space! Hugs
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Yes, it was scary, Susie. We are so delighted she is back to her lively self. 🙂 Thank You, God! I am a work-in-progress, too, to holding both sadness and joy together. It’s difficult, isn’t it? I’m so grateful you find this a safe place and are always refreshed and encouraged. I appreciate your kind encouragement. Hugs to you, too! May God fill us with His grace to follow Him wherever He leads us, even when the sadness is tugging at our hearts!
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My goodness, Trudy! My heart stopped for a second as I was reading about Lily’s health crisis … I’m so glad she’s OK now but how scary for your family. You describe the coexistence of grief and joy so well … such is life in our broken world, though I dearly wish it were not so. Such a comfort to remember that God is weaving the picture we can’t see and that His purposes will be fulfilled, in His time. I love the song you shared, and the nature photos made me smile too. Love and hugs to you and Len.
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Yes, it was a scary time. I so relate to what you wrote here – “such is life in our broken world, though I dearly wish it were not so.” I’m so grateful we have God to pour out our hearts to! May we lean into Him who will carry us through the darkest nights! Love and hugs back to you, Lois!
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Praise the Lord that it was in His plan to bring your sweet great-granddaughter back to life, Trudy! Yes, we live in precarious and threatening times, but remembering whose we are in the midst of the dark night affords us God’s rays of light to fill our souls with warmth.
Thanks, of course, for sharing your collage of the butterflies and your brother’s latest photographs. Always a sheer delight!
Blessings, and give those grands a hug for me!
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Yes, praise the Lord for His goodness! And yes, it so helps us in those dark nights to remember whose we are, Martha. I love how you write that it “affords us God’s rays of light to fill our souls with warmth.” 🙂 Blessings to you, too! We have 15 grandchildren with 5 more married in and 9 great-grandkids. And three more granddaughters marrying this year! May we always remember whose we are!
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Oh, how God has richly blessed you with a glorious family, Trudy! So happy for you!
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Yes, He truly has, Martha. Isn’t it something how each one is so unique? As I’m sure you know. 🙂 I hope your granddaughters and all your family are doing well! I hope you and Danny are feeling stronger.
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I’m so glad Lily was healed! And congratulations on latest great-grandson! Your post reminds me of another song: “Lift your eyes, see it in a different light…Today Is Beautiful (David Dun). I need to remind myself that my brain can hold onto to fear instead of hope, unless I continually turn to God! And love the pictures! That goldfish gave its life to another of God’s creature; natures way…
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Thank you, Lynn. 🙂 I am listening to that song right now. I love it! Thank you. I’ve never heard it before. And this is so true for me also – “I need to remind myself that my brain can hold onto fear instead of hope, unless I continually turn to God!” My heart cringes for the goldfish, too, but I love the way you word it that it gave its life for another of God’s creatures. Yes, nature’s way. May we lift our eyes and see all things in a different light!
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I am so thankful God laid His healing hand on your little granddaughter and brought her through. He is so true to His Word and promises, and He still answers the cries of His people. Praise His holy name.
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Thank you, Cheryl. Yes, He is so true to His Word and still answers our cries. May we never forget to thank Him for His new-every-morning mercies!
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Oh Trudy, this is such a precious post, touching me so deeply. Especially this: “But if we step back and see it from God’s perspective, we see how God is interweaving those dark times with the brightness of His new-every-morning mercies,”. Praise God for His mercies in little Lily’s life! And congratulations on your newest Great-grandson. Our God carried us so gently, doesn’t He? I am so very grateful. And guess what? The robins have arrived here! So hopefully they will be on their way to your area before long too. Blessings, love, and hugs for you!
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Yes, God truly does carry is so gently, Bettie. Seeing through God’s perspective makes life more peaceful, doesn’t it? Even when we “feel” like we’re drowning in the stormy waves. I’m so glad the robins have arrived there! Those signs of spring always refresh my weary spirit. 🙂 Blessings, love, and hugs to you, too! May we lean into our faithful Savior who will always stand by us and carry us through anything!
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Praise God that little Lily was in God’s care all along Trudy. Yes, grief & joy are always with us & we don’t often stand back to see the joy that surrounds us in the grief we may be feeling.
Thank you for this post, blessings, Jennifer
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So true that we don’t often stand back to see the joy that surrounds us in the midst of our grief, Jennifer. Blessings to you, too! May we lean into our God who knows and cares and is always with us!
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Amen!
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Oh Trudy, I am so sorry for the dark and difficult road you walked with your great-granddaughter Lily. Yet as you made so clear, you were never alone, and God’s faithful goodness surrounded Lily.
Thank you for the reminders of Hope we have no matter what we can “see”, God is bigger than any trial we face.
Sending great big Hope hugs your way!!
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You warmed my heart with your great big Hope hugs, Donna. 🙂 Thank you! I send some to you, too! May we cling to the Truth that God is faithful and He is bigger than any trial we face!
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Dear Trudy,
Thank you for your posts here. It is a gentle place of encouragement. And thank you for all you have shown me throughout my life. I look to you as an example of the woman I want to be. Even though I am a bit younger than you, I have watched you travel through life and grow into who you are today. (Although sometimes from a distance.) And as you often say, “I am a work in progress”, you have taught me that too. We are always growing. And that is beautiful. I thank God for you!
I am grateful that God brought you back into my life!
Love,
Shelley
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Oh Shelley, I am so grateful for you, too, my dear niece. You are a beautiful person and though your journey in life is so difficult, I see how God is strengthening your true voice that had been stolen from you and growing you into the woman He created you to be. May we together keep encouraging each other, growing in His grace, and leaning on Him to show us the way He wants us to go!
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I’m so glad to here that Lily made it through. Wow, her little body went through a lot. And congratulations on Caynen’s entry to our world.
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Thank you, Lisa. Yes, she was very sick. We are so grateful for two miracles. 🙂 Little Caynen is such a content baby and is already sleeping 8 hours a night. May we lean into our faithful God who still works miracles!
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I’m glad Lily is ok but that must have been so scary for all of you. It is so hard to understand what God is doing in situations like that, especially the times when there’s not the happy ending we hope for. I love the verses you chose though, and the song by Ellie Holcomb. It is comforting to remember that even when we can’t understand God is still good and he is there to carry us through.
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Thank you, Lesley. We’re so grateful Lily made it through, but we feel bad for those little ones that don’t and the family that suffers. Yes, it truly is comforting that God is still good and will carry us through even when we can’t understand. May He give us grace to trust Him and His faithful love no matter what happens in our lives!
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Wow, Trudy. Those stunning photos reminds us again that all creation sings His praises. Thanks for sharing truth and beauty here, friend …
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I’m so glad you find truth and beauty here, Linda. Yes, all creation sings His praises. May the beauty of His creation draw us to trust He has all matters under His control!
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So glad that Lily is doing well now. My health battle was also tough so I can only imagine what it’s like for precious babies.
This message reminds me of the Inside Out movie. You’d think that Sadness ruins everything, but eventually, you realize that there will be no Joy without her.
I love these photos too. 🙂
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Thank you, Lux. I’m sorry you had a tough health battle. I hope and pray your health is much better now. I haven’t heard of that movie, but I was just looking it up and read how this movie “encourages the full spectrum of emotions, conveying that they all are an essential part of life and there is nothing wrong with feeling sad.” It sounds like a much-needed movie. God created all our emotions and we need to address each one, don’t we? Thank you for telling me about it. May we lean into Jesus who cares and understands each emotion!
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Thank you. I’m doing much better now by God’s grace. Yes, that’s a great movie for everyone. You should watch it with the family.
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I’m so glad you’re doing better, Lux. 🙂 Love and blessings to you!
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