A Letter from God

I am always on the lookout for good DVDs I can watch with my kids for movie nights; events that are mostly for the girls and me as two-year-olds do not quite have the attention span for a movie.  

Over the weekend I saw the movie Letters to God at the store. I had remembered seeing trailers, and when I saw Wendy Griffith, of CBN gave it a glowing recommendation -- her quote, “a must see for all families,” printed in bold across the cover – I grabbed it (plus it was marked down).

With a soccer-free night I thought if we can get through dinner and homework fast enough we might have time to watch it; something I would not usually allow on a school night. At 6:30 I announced we were going to have a “Monday Movie night.”  My girls just stood and stared at me like I was ill. I said, “Hurry and get your pajamas on,” like I didn’t understand why they were so shocked, but at the same time stating it using a tone of confidence that indicated I knew I was being a cool mom. 

In a matter of seconds we all emerged from our rooms in our pjs complete with fuzzy slippers – even the two-year-old was excited about the change in routine and ran to open his pajama drawer and join in the fun.

My oldest, the unofficial microwave popcorn queen of our house, went right to the cupboard to get the snack – movie theater butter for them and kettle corn for me – while my other daughter began turning on the electronics and anxiously asked what we would be watching.  I showed them the movie and read the cheesy tag line printed on the front as I opened the adult-proof DVD wrapping with the steak knife I had enlisted to help me through this excruciating task.

As I opened the case, a greeting card envelope fell out – something a little out of the ordinary, much like this night.  I picked it up off the ground, opened it and took the card out. My girls were instantly by my side, curiosities peaked with this strange chain of events, asking “who is it from?”  I pulled the card out and began reading the message out loud:

Outside: “Even the strongest of us have moments when the burdens of life seem too great. It’s then that the Lord whispers to our hearts…Come to Me; all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28”

Inside: “Right here, right now, in the middle of all you’re facing, the Lord is there to give you strength and grace. Many prayers are with you too.”

As I fought back the tears, my oldest daughter kept asking who gave it to us, and finally her younger sister, who has just found her love for reading, held up the DVD cover reading the title and said, “Is it from God?” 

I watched the movie holding my two little girls and I thought about the message and the timing of that card. I knew it was put in every copy, and yet it was something I needed to hear – now.  Although I know I have not been on my knees for quite a while, many of my family and friends have been praying for my little family.  Tonight I felt peace fill my heart, and as I hugged my daughters tighter I thought, “We are going to be fine.”