Retreat

            In just a few days I fly to Tulsa to spend a week with my daughter, son-in-law, and grandson.  In them I recognize Jesus.

            Dana and I will undoubtedly have many heart-to-heart talks as we move through her daily routines at home with Benjamin.  When Shawn comes home from work each evening, there will be more talk and time for prayer together—and plenty of laughter.  They are gracious hosts, and I will feel at home in their home.  As I do every time I visit, I will be silently praising God for His grace in their lives and for the depth of their commitment to Christ, to each other, and to their son. 

            Benjamin and I will play together.  I’ll find some special little thing to share with him, a grandma game we can enjoy like the way he solemnly places his hand between mine as I clap to his music.  I’ll sit on the floor with him and play my flute or roll a ball or simply enjoy the presence of my sweet bespectacled twenty-month-old grandson.  Maybe I’ll even have the privilege of holding his sippy cup for him to drink at mealtimes.  And it’s a sure thing that his parents will happily hand him over for diaper duty, which I will pretend to dread. 

            With Benjamin in my arms, my heart will be full.  He is a living lesson of God’s grand love and purpose for each and every person, whether they have that special extra chromosome or not.