My mother's old bear coat

As we drove to church today I prayed for God's blessing of attentiveness and grace to us at the worship. R. C. Sproul spoke to us from years past, through a tv screen, on the trauma of God's holiness in our Sunday school class. Then Dr. Reymond preached on the providence of God from the story of Joseph finding his brothers tending flocks. Please hear it later this week at www.holytrinityopc.org. He outlined for us the marvel, the mercy, and the mystery of God's providence. His tracing the details of how rain is made, and his tracing the history of redemption back to the seemingly insignificant stranger in Genesis 37 who told Joseph where to find his brothers brought joy to my heart as I remembered God's marvelous, merciful, mysterious sovereignty over all things. It was a great, great comfort. He reminded us to not worry, but to relax, knowing that our God controls all. And our God is good. (I even regained a short glimpse of a long-lost faith that He is working goodness in the lives of my children.) Though Dr. Reymond's closing remarks quoted some of God Moves In a Mysterious Way, he had actually chosen for us to sing O Lord, Be Thou My Helper True, a rendition of Psalm 12. Then Cal exhorted us to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. Dr. Reymond closed with a doxology from Jude for our benediction

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.

As we spent the next few moments in silence I felt a warm peace that I have not noticed for a long time; a feeling of being surrounded in loving protection. And the memory of being a little girl with my face and hands buried in the side of my mother's big brown bear fur coat while she chatted with folks after church came to me. The memory made tears sting my eyes. Just yesterday I had been trying to remember my golden childhood.

God is good. All the time.