CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON -- The Moral of the Story

“All I have seen teaches me to trust the creator for all I have not

seen.”

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

It feels like I’ve been riding an emotional roller coaster for the

last two weeks. I’ve enjoyed many wonderful highs with family and

friends. We’ve had people over for meals, barbecues, to play games or

just to visit. It’s actually been pretty nonstop. One friend watched the

comings and goings one afternoon and said, “Why don’t you just get a

revolving door for your front door?”

I’ve loved the fun, the laughter and the deepening friendships. I’ve

enjoyed hearing how God is working in people’s lives in unique and

creative ways. We received some wedding invitations and have been excited

to watch couples start new lives together. One friend called with news

that she and her husband became grandparents of a healthy baby boy. I’ve

loved sharingthe joyful parts of life with others.

But life, like a roller coaster, has dips and downturns as well, and

these two weeks have had too many. My heart has grown heavy as I’ve

shared the painful parts of life with others.

I spent several hours one morning with a friend, a single mother,

whose only child died recently in an accident. I hugged her, listened to

her and cried with her.

“I see things so differently now than I used to,” she said. “My

priorities have changed so much. It’s hard to watch people who are so

obsessed with things that don’t matter, things that won’t last. Why don’t

they realize that what matters in life is relationships, with people and

with God?”

“I’m really learning what it is to love and be loved by others,” she

continued. “God has comforted me in so many ways, through friends as well

as through strangers. Who knows who God might want us to comfort in some

way? I’m really learning what it means to trust God.”

That afternoon I went to the funeral of a young man who lost his fight

with cancer. He never lost his faith in God however, and made the most of

any opportunity to share how near to God he felt from the moment he first

learned of his illness.

“I don’t know why it takes something major in our life to make us wake

up and really get it,” he said several months ago at an evening meeting.

“My life went from one extreme to the other.”

He spoke about how his priorities changed. He clearly trusted in God’s

love and faithfulness and, though he prayed to be healed, he said,

“Whatever God has in store for me.”

During this time period, several other friends have received

disturbing diagnoses. I’ve been impressed with their steady trust in God,

and instead of growing fear, I see growing faith.As they face the

unknown, it’s clear they trust God to be with them during all their highs

and lows.

It’s also a clear reminder that relationships matter most, and we need

to be there for one another as well. Life is filled with many unknowns.

Praise God that there is a God who we can not only know, but we can trust

with all our hearts and lives.

And you can quote me on that.

* CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON is a Newport Beach resident who speaks

frequently to parenting groups. She may be reached via e-mail at o7

cindy@onthegrow.comf7 or through the mail at P.O. Box 6140-No. 505,

Newport Beach, CA 92658.