Coats: Luxe Lim | Booties: Colors of California | Cashmere Sets: miloves |
Today our province will no longer require vaccine passports, March 14th all other restrictions will drop. March 14th and Covid will finally be over. Apparently, interestingly enough, March 14th also marks the date of when restrictions happened, two years prior. Remember the two weeks to flatten the curve? Wow, hard to believe it dragged on this long. God didn’t waste it though, because as believers, we know that he works all things together for good, for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28)
The other day while I was dong my workout, the song, The Blessing, came on. It immediately brought me back to when it was first released, which was also two years ago from when this all began to happen (March 20, 2020). For those of you that have never heard of it, you should check it out. It’s an incredible worship song, based on scripture (numbers 6:24-26). It’s the heart of our heavenly father toward His children. Here is a little breakdown I took from studies of the scriptures it’s based upon:
This prayerful blessing is packed with meaning for worshipers and divides into six parts:
May the Lord Bless You…
Here, the blessing summarizes the covenant between God and his people. Only in relationship with God, with him as our Father, are we truly blessed.
…And Keep You
God’s protection keeps us in covenant relationship with him. As the Lord God kept Israel, Jesus Christ is our Shepherd, who will keep us from getting lost.
The Lord Make His Face Shine Upon You…
God’s face represents his presence. His face shining upon us speaks of his smile and the pleasure he takes in his people.
…And Be Gracious to You
The result of God’s pleasure is his grace toward us. We don’t deserve his grace and mercy, but because of his love and faithfulness, we receive it.
The Lord Turn His Face Towards You…
God is a personal Father who pays attention to his children as individuals. We are his chosen ones.
…And Give You Peace. Amen.
This conclusion affirms that covenants are formed for the purpose of securing peace through a right relationship. Peace represents well-being and wholeness. When God gives his peace, it is complete and eternal.
As I listen to this song while I write this, it stirs up all sorts of emotions, as it brings me back to the beginning of Covid, not knowing what we would face, but full of joy and annticpation for God’s goodness – totally trusting Him. The next couple months, we would face major obstacles with a couple of our businesses, having to close down for months. We would then discover a hole Ivy’s heart, followed by my battle with colon cancer, followed by decisions to sell our restaurant and phase out my event managment company. As I write this, the song sings:
May His favor be upon you
And a thousand generations
And your family and your children
And their children, and their children
May His presence go before you
And behind you, and beside you
All around you, and within you
He is with you, He is with you
In the morning, in the evening
In your coming, and your going
In your weeping, and rejoicing
He is for you, He is for you
God was certainly with us. Looking back, I don’t even see the trials as anything more than opportunities for God to show us His power, goodness, favour and love. Thru His strength we were able to wether the storms with leave and joy and be victorious in all the above. As though that’s not enough to, on top of all that, God worked it all out for our good. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t always easy. When hit with bad news, there were moments I was very afraid and even questioned God. That is normal as humans, but the important thing is we don’t stay there. Every time, I choose to trade my tears for trust in Him, the one that has never failed me. He never has and never will. During those times of trouble, I never felt God so close. It’s quite incredible to feel that closeness to Him. This season was tough, but it didn’t steal my joy or my faith. In fact both have been elevated to a higher state and I have never been happier. For those reasons and more, I wouldn’t change a thing.
So as we begin to return to a new normal, I am really excited to see what God has in store. I am sensing He has used this season to prepare believers for what is next. He has an amazing plan and purpose for each of us. Knowing Jesus is the exciting thing in the world, because you are friends with the one that sits at the right hand of the one that created it all and He is good! Just as we like to give good things to our children, our heavenly father wants to give us, His children good things (Mathew 7:11). God has often shown this to me through my experience as a parent, but Yesterday, I was out and about and I decided to stop at Toys r’ Us to get Elle and Ivy Elsa dolls. Elle had mentioned she liked them, so I felt like surprising them, because I love them and it makes my heart happy to do things that make them happy. On my way home, I felt really excited to surprise them and God used it as an illustration to speak it into my spirit that He feels the exact same way doing things for His children.
