What do Jesus and the Beatles have in Common? Both Want to Hold Your Hand...
But Grab Jesus' first!
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
There are people who have the ability to retell a story with such clarity and intensity that you emotionally connect with their words and feel as if you are reexperiencing their particular circumstance right along with them. Over Christmas break, I had the opportunity to reconnect with a group of friends, one in particular who has this gift. As we came to the topic of most frightening parenting moments, she had the ability to demonstrate her effective communication skills as she recounted her Disney World Christmas experience with us.
She began her story by vividly describing how crowded Disney World was during the Christmas season of the particular year that they visited, and how long it took to enter into each attraction. As her family tried to make it through the most magical place on earth, she kept emphasizing to her son, who was six-years-old at the time, how important it was for him to hold onto her hand and stay with her. Things were going along perfectly, until the moment arrived when he actually saw a life size Mickey Mouse greeting visitors in the distance. Overcome with enthusiasm and exuberant joy, her son dropped her hand and immediately raced through the crowd towards Mickey. Stunned by how quickly he disappeared, her reaction time could not catch up to his incredible pace, and he instantly vanished from her sight.
After ten minutes of frantically searching and screaming his name, she and her husband finally were able to locate him being consoled by another caring mom; my friend hugged him tighter than he ever experienced. By the end of the story, the raw emotion had resurfaced and she was in tears again, and all of us were right with her!
As we begin this New Year, let us all remember that our Heavenly Father wants us to experience 2023 by holding onto His hand each and every day. Each step of the way, Jesus wants us to cling to Him and walk at His pace. He doesn’t want us to try to get ahead of Him or lag behind the path that He has planned for us. He is always present and our source of wisdom, comfort, and strength throughout each daily event, and He has us constantly in His sight.
What peace and joy it is to have such a faithful traveling companion!
Wishing you a very joyous and Happy New Year in Him!
Mrs. Palka