Overwhelmed - In a Good Way

These past couple of days have blown my mind. On Sunday I shared a brief timeline of how God provided abundantly in my life during a difficult time, and your response has overwhelmed me. 

Really and truly, it has.

Facebook posts, blog replies, emails, texts, calls - I can't keep up and so I've stopped trying. Instead, I've chosen to delight in the encouragement and love and prayers you've offered. 

I'm overwhelmed with the simple fact that you have taken time to care. We all run different directions with different demands on our time. Your effort to stop and care hasn't gone unnoticed or unappreciated.

I'm overwhelmed that I've been able to exchange words with family and friends from previous places I called home - Grand Rapids, Cedarville, and Chicago.

I'm overwhelmed that I've heard from precious friends and family serving as missionaries around the planet. For some reason, knowing you connected with me from Africa and Bolivia and Canada and Colombia and Asia makes me smile. 

I'm overwhelmed that many of you have shared verses from Scripture. There is no better balm to the soul, or hope for tomorrow, or encouragement for today.

I'm overwhelmed that many of you have detailed your experiences with miscarriage, still birth, and of losing an infant soon after birth. My heart hurts for the painful goodbye's you have been forced to say - and in the same beat my heart rejoices because I know that your little one is whole and complete and lacking nothing in the presence of Jesus.

I'm overwhelmed because I'm just me. Sarah plain and tall. What you see is what you get. And yet, God looks down and sees me as a blood-bought daughter made righteous in Him. He sees my frailty and my faults. He's aware of my worries and my pride. He knows my imperfections and he extends grace.

Why God would choose to love and redeem me so that I can participate in eternal worship before him is beyond my comprehension. Why God would choose to use my faults for his purposes and his glory is mind blowing. Why God would choose to give me every spiritual gift necessary to know his will, walk in his ways, and serve his people is something I'll never get over.

Ever.

And so I'm overwhelmed. 

God has given me so much. To the point that I can never, ever out give him. But, I can choose to trust him and obey him and serve him. By taking the temporary hurts of today I can glimpse the eternal hope of tomorrow because of what he has done to rescue me.

How can I be anything but overwhelmed?