the grand strand

there's a coffee shop in myrtle beach i went to once on my way out of town. i bought a mug from their display - thrown by a local potter - and then they made me the best pour-over of my life. 

i took it to go. i wanted some coffee for my drive. i knew before i left that i had some things to sort out with God. 

or maybe {more accurately} he had some things to sort out with me.

i prayed about these things for months leading up to that day, and i knew as i left that i was on the cusp of a soul-baring, heart-pouring, tear-filled drive. the tears started coming so quickly that i missed a turn before i made it three miles and ended up going the whole way around a roundabout. 

{fun times.}

now every time i look at that coffee mug i'm reminded of that drive. i'm reminded of how God showed up for me. of how he found me on the back roads of south carolina. 

it is an ebenezer. 

he has brought me safe thus far. 

he is at work even when the tears come hard and fast and i cannot see past the hill in front of me.

i have a short memory when it comes to the things i cannot see. {and even some of the things i can}

i've adopted a saying that comes from ellie holcomb's children's book. 

"don't forget to remember"

it's really easy for me to think poorly of the israelites wandering in the desert despite the fact that God parted the sea for them and then led them by a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire. 

but i do the same thing. 

i do the same thing all the time. 

no, God has never shown up as a pillar of fire outside of my window at night, but he has found me over and over and over again. he has continually shown up for me. 

and how quickly i forget.

so i've started muttering "don't forget to remember" to myself. muttering under my breath like an old man desperate to remember what he went into the next room to find. 

don't forget to remember all that he has done for you.

don't forget to remember how he found you stumbling in the dark,

and struck a match so you could see the next step.

grace doesn't make sense.

it feels wasteful and extravagant.

because it is.

so tell me,

what are your ebenezers?

don't forget to remember.

xoxo