I am the brunt of jokes in my home. More accurately, my PHONE is the brunt of many jokes. You see, it's old. I get remarks from phone store employees along the lines of "Oh wow, I remember when those came out.." and other such comments that only make the situation worse.
And, occasionally, just to prove how "with it" I am, I will even take pictures with my phone (yes, it has that capability!) and even upload them to Facebook! However, that in itself is a multiple step process! Consider this; after I take the picture, I have to edit it, save it to the phone, then email it to myself, download it from my email on another computer, then upload it to Facebook! I know...you're actually impressed I know the word "upload!"
But here's the rub: many of you, if not most, take a picture, tap it or blow on it or whatever you do with your fancy phones, and there they are; uploaded to Facebook or Instagram and receiving lots of comments already. Meanwhile, I'm flipping through all of the saved pictures on my phone, looking for the one I just took so that I can complete the aforementioned steps! However, it serves to be a great exercise in what I would term "retrospective grace!" Here's what I mean...and here's where I get serious.
That journey through the memory bank of my LG Envy 3 allows me a view into the past and a view of God's presence around every turn. For instance, there are lots of granddaughter pictures on board. It reminds me of how blessed I am to have this little girl only 12 hours away. It calls to mind how fortunate we are to have the opportunity to have her at our home for a few weeks each year. It helps me recall the excitement she expressed that morning when she stormed into our bedroom to let us know it had snowed. It reminds me of the excitement in her eyes when she nearly rode the length of the driveway without training wheels this summer. Memories of fun that are too easily forgotten in the rush of life. Grace filled moments of pouring into and receiving love from this little 6 year old!
This venturing into the past also shows me a shot of all four of our kids sitting on the couch in my mom's house in California taken this June. With kids spread out geographically, it's rare to get them all together. But there is another aspect of the picture that just makes me smile; they're all laughing at something! Probably at my phone while I was taking the picture, but it still makes me smile to see them all together laughing and obviously enjoying the moment. They really like each other, and it gladdens my heart that they love one another! That in itself is a grace thing. For all of the doubts we have about our parenting skills, it makes me think we might have done something right.
There is another set of photos, all snapped during an impromptu trip down the Oregon coast. It was a sort of melancholy trip, about which I won't go into deep detail here. Suffice to say it was a time of getting away and breathing some fresh sea air during a difficult time. As I see it, I am reminded of the restorative presence of God and his Holy Spirit that can bring healing and apply balm to the toughest of wounds. Still, even in struggle, that grace was, and still is apparent.
One last photo shows the Seattle skyline, taken during an early morning trip to make hospital calls. Two church members struggling significantly with health issues were the aim of my visit this particular morning. Even after 30+ years of ministry, I still wonder if what I say is wise enough; comforting enough. But then I'm reminded of the encouraging words of my mentor, Dr. Jimmy Adamson, who spoke so frequently of having a "ministry of presence." And so I strive to enter those rooms not searching for the most pithy thing to say, but rather being the most open to whatever the Lord would like to accomplish in those few moments at the bedside. I become even more dependent upon that grace.
And so, in spite of having the "prop driven" phone in a world of jets, it still affords me a glimpse of how grace filled my days have been, thanks to the Giver of Grace; the Lord Jesus. So take away the "delete file" key; I need to reflect on that retrospective grace often.
