I was at the beach last week, and made a point each day to get out (before the little people awoke) for some time with my sweet Jesus. Nature has a way of calming my spirit and pointing me to my Creator, and this particular morning was no different.

I sat that morning just amazed with the good things He given our family, good things that have often been hard at the start – things we didn’t know to ask for, but He knew we needed.

While we were at the beach, we had a chance to send money with a family member to provide months of food for the family of our sponsored Belizean child.  This took such a small sacrifice on our part for such a great reward for his family!  We have the opportunity to take a distant role in watching a little boy grow, learn about forgiveness and Jesus and eternity and have an chance at a better life – an opportunity to change generations. What a blessing for our children!

While we were there, a friend messaged me and we had an opportunity to take in a puppy – the breed I knew we wanted next.  I wasn’t so sure we were ready for a puppy, but my friend said, “Sometimes God’s blessings take a lot of work.”  I let that percolate for a while and realized she’s right.  Sometimes things that are really good for us in the long run take a lot of effort, effort that will shape the character of us and our children.

He’s given us a gift of some time at the beach for a chance to rest and create family memories that patch some holes worn by years of my husband’s health needs.

I sat there that morning and soaked in the knowledge that My Creator – not just any creator, but my creator! – created this water, every grain of sand, every minnow, every person walking by!  Yet he knows my heart and knows what I need to become more like Him.  He knows I need to make sacrifices to provide for others.  He knows we need the hard work and joy of a puppy for the relationship and comfort that a dog offers to my animal-loving children.  He knows I need to rest and make memories with my family, and He knows the holes worn by years of struggle. He used His people to write His heart in this book so I can know Him more and learn how much He cares about me.  Jesus loves me. The all powerful, omnipotent, unfailing creator of the universe loves me, cares about me and knows what I need.

And you.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6:25-26 (NIV)

He loves you too.