ALL Things Work Together

I'm in shock. The captain of the cheerleaders from my graduating class has Altzheimers. I'm shocked that something so sad could happen to her. I'm shocked that someone my age has a disease that's associated with the elderly. And, growing up with this girl, whom I'll call Linda Sue, I had thought she would always get her way. In the little girl mind within me, I'm shocked that she can't.

I remember camp the summer after the sixth grade. After arriving by train and being transported with our luggage, we all stood in the central area of the camp. The counselors, one by one, called out the girls who would be in their cabins. Linda Sue was put in the cabin with several of us who were not her best friends. She immediately let them know that this was not to be. In front of everyone, in that campfire area, she threw what could only be described as a tantrum. And it worked. She was put where she wanted to be.

My parents made sure I went to the "best" schools. I did. But that "best" came with a price. The children of high achievers often mimicked the behaviors that brought such success to their parents. Friends were not people. They were a means to an end. They propelled one into the spotlight, into the groups, even on an elementary school level, that would bring influence and power. And so it was with Linda Sue.

What are you saying to me, Lord, in this situation? Are you reminding me that I came to know you in high school? This very attitude of being ignored by those clawing to the top was what called my attention to my desperate need for something.You reached out to me, and I knew that You were my answer. You took away that despair and filled that void. And life has never been the same again.

So, thank you, God, for Linda Sue and all the dozens like her. They provided the inky-black darkness in my soul that made the beam of light from Your lighthouse even brighter. She helped prepare the way in my heart for You. Nothing could be more important, leading me to the rich, full life you have for me, a life where there is no room for bitterness and resentment. As it says in Romans 8:28, it all works for good in your plan for your own.