Today was truly supposed to be a Good Friday. I planned to take the kids to the science museum to watch a film at the omni theater, play at the science museum, and then go out to eat at my favorite place: Brasa. I got ready this afternoon and went to reach for my wedding ring off of my crystal ring holder, the place I always keep it since I don't sleep or shower with it on. Only to find that it wasn't there. The spot I knew I had left it. I immediately called for January! She came in and left quickly with her eyes big! I followed her to where she was checking her gold sparkly purse. The purse was empty. She then went on to tell me she put it in there to show her BFF, Sadie, when we went to their house yesterday. This was true for January had worn that sparkly purse the entire day. Of course she even wore it on our long walk to the park.
I quickly gathered the rest of the kids up and decided that we must re-walk every step we did yesterday and go back to the park. In the car the kids and I prayed for God’s help in finding my ring. We spent most of the day doing just this. I went up the steep weed infested hill that January decided to go up and play on the day before. I went by the slides, by the swings, under monkey bars, crossed the busy street abnormally slow, peeked in every crack on the sidewalk, searched my house, searched my car, searched the driveway, we looked everywhere and so did our friends. My ring was no where to be found.
I wasn't upset over the diamonds or how much my ring cost but over the symbolism and the meaning that my ring held. I kept having flashbacks to when Dustin gave me that ring, it was delayed from when he proposed because it wasn't ready at the time he wanted to propose. But when he gave it to me in the parking lot of Shane and Company it was the absolute perfect ring. It was a ring designed especially for me by its maker, my future husband.
I got in my car with tear-filled eyes and decided it was time to let it go. It was just a ring. But it was something I planned on giving to one of my sons if they wanted it to use to propose to their future wife. I wanted it to be an heirloom. Today was not a Good Friday. It was a horrible Friday. Let it go, let it go, is all I could hear. I trust that God is sovereign and that He knew exactly where my ring was and that He could allow us to find it if that was His will. My son, Layton, was very saddened for me over this today and kept hugging me the whole time we searched. At one point he looked up at me and said, “Maybe God has a purpose in you not finding it.” Spoken from an 8 year old, this was hard to hear but since I believe all things have a purpose I came to accept that there was also a deeper purpose in me not finding my ring.
I decided to take my kids out for frozen yogurt for their hard work searching. I dropped my kids and yogurt off at home to watch the Wild game with Dustin but decided I needed to go back out and shop for Easter. I came home still disheartened from the long day. I grabbed my frozen yogurt and went upstairs. I opened the lid and much to my surprise there in the center of my pistachio, cookies and cream, and coconut frozen yogurt was my wedding ring!!!!! I couldn't even believe my eyes. I had to focus and refocus again just to make sure I wasn't imaging the impossible. It turned out that while I was gone January found my ring in the upstairs hallway, very close to where her purse had been laying. My ring had been found. It had been restored to me, its proper owner.
As I sit here tonight and now think over this emotionally draining day I can't help but think of why we call Good Friday good when in reality it was actually such a horribly sad day! Much more sad than the sadness I felt today over my lost ring that I thought was gone forever. But the reason Good Friday was good was because Jesus’ death was for our good. Because by His death we are saved from death and sin. By the tearing of the curtain, God was showing us that He made a way for us to come to Him. In the sadness of the day we can rejoice because we know the end, we know that on the third day he rose again. He is alive and living. He has paid the ultimate sacrifice for our sin. He has shed his blood for us. He the spotless lamb was slain.
In the midst of the sadness over what He went through we can have peace, we have hope, we have joy, we know the price He paid was done for us. We can let go of our sin, let go of our burdens, let go of our pain, let go of our brokenness, let go of control, let go of material things, and nail them up on the cross where his body hung knowing we can be set free, for Christ the king has risen for all eternity. Today was a Good Friday. Hallelujah.
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.” ~ 1 Peter 3:18
I quickly gathered the rest of the kids up and decided that we must re-walk every step we did yesterday and go back to the park. In the car the kids and I prayed for God’s help in finding my ring. We spent most of the day doing just this. I went up the steep weed infested hill that January decided to go up and play on the day before. I went by the slides, by the swings, under monkey bars, crossed the busy street abnormally slow, peeked in every crack on the sidewalk, searched my house, searched my car, searched the driveway, we looked everywhere and so did our friends. My ring was no where to be found.
I wasn't upset over the diamonds or how much my ring cost but over the symbolism and the meaning that my ring held. I kept having flashbacks to when Dustin gave me that ring, it was delayed from when he proposed because it wasn't ready at the time he wanted to propose. But when he gave it to me in the parking lot of Shane and Company it was the absolute perfect ring. It was a ring designed especially for me by its maker, my future husband.
I got in my car with tear-filled eyes and decided it was time to let it go. It was just a ring. But it was something I planned on giving to one of my sons if they wanted it to use to propose to their future wife. I wanted it to be an heirloom. Today was not a Good Friday. It was a horrible Friday. Let it go, let it go, is all I could hear. I trust that God is sovereign and that He knew exactly where my ring was and that He could allow us to find it if that was His will. My son, Layton, was very saddened for me over this today and kept hugging me the whole time we searched. At one point he looked up at me and said, “Maybe God has a purpose in you not finding it.” Spoken from an 8 year old, this was hard to hear but since I believe all things have a purpose I came to accept that there was also a deeper purpose in me not finding my ring.
I decided to take my kids out for frozen yogurt for their hard work searching. I dropped my kids and yogurt off at home to watch the Wild game with Dustin but decided I needed to go back out and shop for Easter. I came home still disheartened from the long day. I grabbed my frozen yogurt and went upstairs. I opened the lid and much to my surprise there in the center of my pistachio, cookies and cream, and coconut frozen yogurt was my wedding ring!!!!! I couldn't even believe my eyes. I had to focus and refocus again just to make sure I wasn't imaging the impossible. It turned out that while I was gone January found my ring in the upstairs hallway, very close to where her purse had been laying. My ring had been found. It had been restored to me, its proper owner.
As I sit here tonight and now think over this emotionally draining day I can't help but think of why we call Good Friday good when in reality it was actually such a horribly sad day! Much more sad than the sadness I felt today over my lost ring that I thought was gone forever. But the reason Good Friday was good was because Jesus’ death was for our good. Because by His death we are saved from death and sin. By the tearing of the curtain, God was showing us that He made a way for us to come to Him. In the sadness of the day we can rejoice because we know the end, we know that on the third day he rose again. He is alive and living. He has paid the ultimate sacrifice for our sin. He has shed his blood for us. He the spotless lamb was slain.
In the midst of the sadness over what He went through we can have peace, we have hope, we have joy, we know the price He paid was done for us. We can let go of our sin, let go of our burdens, let go of our pain, let go of our brokenness, let go of control, let go of material things, and nail them up on the cross where his body hung knowing we can be set free, for Christ the king has risen for all eternity. Today was a Good Friday. Hallelujah.
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.” ~ 1 Peter 3:18