Heaven's Kisses

The Kingdom of God is not only for after we die.
His Kingdom is alive and active here and now.
I got a kiss today.  A genuine moment that had no excuse other than heaven reaching into earth.
No sooner had I posted this:

"Sometimes, when I am doing some small task that seems quite pointless to eternity, I will be overcome by a feeling of joy and peace. It is just like a kiss from heaven. I was sorting through a pile of papers to recycle ones we don't need anymore and organize ones we do while the children were listening to a book on tape and coloring on the floor.... and from the middle of my middle a light happiness overwhelmed me and I had to pause and acknowledge, truly the presence of the Lord is in this place."

I had just hit "post" on my phone, when I got a furious text from Caleb.  It was as if God, knowing what was about to happen, gave me a special secret gift of the knowledge of His presence so that when Caleb contacted me, I emerged unscathed.  What a Mighty God we serve.

Instead of answering his calls, I texted kindness.  Instead of escalating into my own fury, I stayed peaceful, stayed engaged with the children, let it pass... And then it was over, as quickly as it had started, and I was still in one piece.

To have peace in an attack, a calm spirit, it was something more than amazing. 

So many amazing gifts have been gifted to me this week.

• A beautiful Monday evening with happy, healthy children and our amazing community
• An awesome trip to COSI with my sister and her beautiful ones
• In loneliness, I was able to have dinner with my parents, and GET CHIPOTLE!!! Because someone had given me a gift card!! WAHOO
• A friend coming over to help clean the house, and arriving right at the onset of a small crisis.  Because she was there, at that moment, I was able to go and get to the bottom of what was going on at the bank... without 4 littles making it impossible to have a rational thought... then the problem was solved and my house got clean so I:
• Had the ability to make a healthy meal! I mean we had fresh veggies, meat that had more than a small sprinkling of salt (I actually used seasoning!), and I cooked up some potatoes that needed used.  It felt great to sit at the table with my children and watch them devour a salad in a clean kitchen.  It felt amazing.
• Then, a friend offered to watch my children so I could Zumba!  I missed Zumba, it was FUN and made me feel so great!

Even though there have been some low, grieving moments this week... So much wonderful peace and joy has filled my house.  Healing is happening.  God is moving in a Mighty way.  And I am so grateful that I can't even think of an adjective that would sufficiently describe my level of gratefulness.