Month: January 2020

The day was blistering hot. Even the slightest breeze was a rare moment that day. Now and then there were brief swirls of dust hovering over the farm. I stood outside our house, keeping a close eye on our oldest son.

It was lunch time, and little Daniel had other plans. He was pushing his big wheel tricycle down the gravel driveway, as fast as he could, away from our house. It made such a racket on the stones and ruts! I called and called his name, but he continued to get further and further away.

Great-grandma Verratti, whom we lovingly called “Gram”, was standing alongside the driveway, near the grass. As Daniel rolled past her, she called out to him, saying, “Daniel-boy, your mother is calling you.”

Daniel quickly replied, “Oh, I know. I can’t hear her!!”

Wherever you are, at this moment in time, in your relationship with God… has He been speaking to you? Has His voice been drowned out by the noise of your efforts to move in the direction of your choice, not His? Has your God, Who has infinite wisdom and love for you, been longing to show you His plans for amazing, but you’ve chosen to settle for your desires of mediocre, leaving you hungry?

God has more for you. So much more.

First, He wants to be your Father… your perfect, loving, compassionate Father. But He waits for you to ask. He says, “Whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life.” John 5:24

And then He has more. So much more.

What’s amazing is that when we are His child, He calls us His sheep and takes care of us like a Shepherd. He watches out for us and carries us when we are hurt. He knows what’s best for us. He never leaves us.

Sometimes, though, we can get so tuned in to the voices all around us, that we aren’t hearing the voice of the Shepherd. He’s speaking. We just aren’t listening. He says, “My sheep listen to my voice. I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27

Is it possible that you want to hear from Him, but really aren’t sure that you’ll like what He has to say? God’s whispers to you will always reflect what He has already told us in His letter to us, the Bible. Yes, it may call you to turn around, stop what you are doing, walk away from destructive relationships, sacrifice things that seemed to carry value… and walk towards the One, Who waits with open, loving arms and incredible plans for your life… and so much more.

So. Much. More.

Although I have been blessed beyond measure to know many of my readers, I know that some of you don’t know me. I’m incredibly honored to have you joining me! A brief description of me would be…. a child of God, a wife of 43 years to my amazing husband Dan, mom of six loving kids, mom-in-law to six wonderful kids-in-law, grandma to 20 grandchildren, farm wife, nurse and a few other involvements to keep me out of trouble! Please, if you respond to my posts, tell me about yourself… I can’t wait to meet you!!

Sometimes, the only way to see where we’re going, is to look back.

As you and I embark on this journey together, I’m going to begin by laying out an old fashioned paper map, so that you can trace with me the steps that have brought me here. Some of the roads have been rough, with potholes and broken pavement while others have been smooth sailing, with gorgeous views. But it’s has taken both to bring me to where I am. This will be a slightly longer post than those in the future. Bear with me….

One of the greatest blessings of my life is that I was raised in a loving, God-centered and crazy, active home. My father’s job required extensive travel, which in turn demanded a lot of my mother… six children, moving every three years, and a husband with one foot in business and the other in church speaking engagements.

Then it happened. Dad called a family meeting and dropped the proverbial “bomb.” He, together with my mother had felt God calling him to leave his substantial salary position to go into full time church ministry, as a traveling speaker. This was not a paid position. No. This was a “Children, I know God will provide” position.

To a fourteen year old girl, this meant many things. It meant challenges and changes, loss of status, loss of security and loss of friends. However, as I struggled to regain my footing, and straining to see through the fog, I realized that I was embarking on a journey that would change my life forever. This would be a journey on which I would see, over and over again, a God who was much bigger and far more powerful than the stick-figure that I had drawn Him to be.

The first year was a maze of questions and answers, tears and celebrations, as I watched in slow-motion my parents knock out from under themselves every man-made financial and material support, and learn to relax in the arms of the One who was carrying them. I witnessed in a front row seat a battle being fought over my family between Satan and my God. We experienced extreme illnesses which were recovered from and empty kitchen cupboards and yet never went hungry.

The phone rang… Mom answered. After a brief conversation she turned to us children and explained. Company was coming for the weekend, arriving the following night for dinner. With a voice of confidence, she said to us, “Children, even though we have no food to serve them now, we will watch God provide.”

Mom prayed. And yes, God rolled up His sleeves and went to work.

We lived in one of the suburbs of Toronto, Canada. Friends of ours lived on a farm north of the city. They called to say that they had a frozen half of beef that a customer had failed to pick up and they didn’t have room in their freezer for it. “Could you take it off our hands?” My older brother was sent to pick up the meat. Thanks, Lord.

That evening, we went to our church prayer gathering, and came out afterward to find a fifty pound bag of potatoes leaning up against our car.

The following morning a neighbor called to see if we could use a half bushel of apples.

A friend stopped by with a loaf of bread.

By late afternoon, my mother had set the table with all of her best china and silverware. The doorbell rang. There stood a woman with a beautiful arrangement of flowers in her hands that she thought we might like on our table.

As my mother closed the door, she turned to us children and said, “Children, when the Lord sets the table, He does it right!”

As the years have come and gone, I have seen God continued to show up, revealing Himself as the loving and trust-worthy Friend that He promised to be. Whatever you are facing right now…. He promises to provide what you need. The Bible says, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19) If it’s potatoes…. He’s got this. If it’s strength to make it through another day… He’s got this. If it’s a matter of being totally confused as to what God is doing in your life or your family’s lives… He’s got this. But we have to let go and trust Him…. because it’s according to His riches, not ours.

Just let go…. ’cause when God sets the table, He does it right.

I am so ridiculously excited to be writing to you on my new blog, that I really don’t know what to say! Think, Ruth… think. What is it that you always wanted to say to anyone within ear shot? Hmm……. Got it.

Life has been, and continues to be, many things to many people. It can be brimming with both joy and grief… and, yes, at the same time. It can feel empty and useless or full of meaning. It can appear to be more than we can handle. Life can crush, ignite, empower, destroy, compel and bless.

As I have journeyed through my life, and continue to walk it out, God has taught me many lessons, often learned through just the every day stuff. Sometimes the pearls that I have gleaned have been through those living life around me and often it has been through reading His letter to me, the Bible.

No matter what life has brought your way, God has been loving you… infinitely.

You and I are going to take a walk together. I can’t wait. Grab a jacket. The seasons will change as we travel. I’ll be ready to go soon.

Stay tuned….

With love,

Ruth