Shouts of Joy

Monday was a gorgeous day in Leavenworth, Kansas.  I took advantage of the Spring weather and took my children to the park after months of being locked inside for the winter.  There were several other children at the park and I watched them enjoy the warm, welcoming weather with their families.   As I pushed my three year old daughter on the swing set, another three year old girl was swinging beside us being pushed by her grandmother.  She looked at me through her  big blue sunglasses and said, “My mommy has cancer but is better now!  She is at the park with me today! I love her so much and she is getting better every day!”  I smiled at her and said, “That is awesome, I am so glad your mommy is feeling better!”  I asked her grandmother if her mother was in remission.  She went on to tell me that she just had a breast removed two days ago and will continue to do chemotherapy.   Eventually she will have reconstructive breast surgery done.  I noticed her mother at the other end of the park with no hair playing with her son.  Meanwhile, her daughter was filled with so much joy that she was telling anyone and everyone who would listen to her.  Her name was Emma and she was such a blessing to me that day to listen to and watch!

                I began to quietly pray for this lady and thank God for her life and more so for this precious child who chose to rejoice that her mother was well enough to be at the park with her for the first time in months.  Believe me, it put things in perspective for me.  I went home thinking about this family and this precious mother.  I wondered for a second what it must have felt like for her to be well enough to be able to go the park with her children.  My health and the health of my family is something that we apparently take advantage of daily.   There are so many who are dealing with life and death situations while we go along life without a thought of it.  I am truly humbled by this!   However, if you would’ve seen this child’s smile as she told me about her mommy’s well being, you would’ve thought she was more blessed than I was!  The truth was she was in that moment because God was revealing His faithfulness to her. She was counting all things joyful!  This little one was teaching me a much needed lesson.  It filled me up with joy thinking about how God pulls us through some difficult times.  

Isaiah 51:11 says, “ The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away and in the end, we have joy! “   This promise was made true for this young child of God who rejoiced to anyone who would listen as she proclaimed the good news of her mother’s health.  My prayer is that I too would shout for joy in the promises of God.  When was the last time you had so much joy that you couldn’t contain yourself and you had to tell a perfect stranger of the joy you held inside?  May the joy of the Lord be your strength today and may you tell everyone you come in contact with the joy you hold like this little girl did!