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It's raining right now. There is a huge storm going on that has been going on for the past hour and a half. This is sort of unusual for Tucson, at least in the past 10 years, but it reminds me of what it used to be like here during the summer when I was a kid. I love it! I know, I know. I keep talking about the rain. I can't help it. It's been so long since we had a real monsoon season in Tucson. I had forgotten how great it is and how much I missed it. I'll stop now. Really, what I wanted to talk about was how amazing God is. I know it sounds so cliche to say God is awesome, but really, He is! It is incredible to see Him move and do things that only He could do. It's so easy to get caught up in what is going on in your life specifically and being so focused on yourself that you can't see anything else. Sometimes you can be so focused on one particular area of your life or one situation or problem that everything else becomes unimportant and you lose sight of how God is working and the things that He is doing. Taking a step back and reminding yourself that God sees the greater picture and is well able to work everything out for the good of everyone involved helps to open your persepective and see what God is doing. The past week has been an incredible experience with God. I have been able to see God move in so many ways, in so many areas, answering so many different prayers and just being the awesome God that He is. I just finished reading a book about someone I greatly admire and one of the main points of his story was that whether we see it or not, God is always working to bring about His plans and purposes in our lives. Even when things look so dim and you have to wonder where God is, He is still working, causing all things to work together for good. We make bad or even wrong decisions and we can mess things up, but He is indeed the Redeemer and He can work to turn even our mistakes and short comings into something wonderful. As I look back on my life and continue down this road that leads me closer to being the person God wants me to be, I am amazed and awed at how much God has delivered me from, how much He has blessed me, and how He has used my life and life experiences, even the bad ones, to work out His purposes and plans for my life. Only God could do what He has done for me and so many others I know. Truly, He has given me beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for mourning. I am so thankful, so deeply thrilled (perhaps more than my words could ever express) that I am my Beloved's and He is mine.