I don't mean people you once knew who then died -- I mean people who have always been dead in your lifetime.
I believe they can be. There's a dead lady who is a type of mentor for me because of how she described herself.
Israel had one female judge. Her name was Deborah. Her story is found in the fourth and fifth chapters of Judges.
Besides being a judge she was a prophetess. She sat under a palm tree and the people of Israel came to her with their disagreements and problems. In Judges 5 she refers to herself as "a mother in Israel."
That's how she identifies herself -- as a mother. That's it.
And that is what speaks to me. Deborah did some mighty things. As a mother, she governed the entire country of Israel. She commanded a military leader to go to war. She went to war with him. And still she called herself a mother.
If I think of all the roles I play in my life, the one that identifies me the most and how I see life is being a mom. It is who I am. When I deal with people younger than me, animals, plants, my home, I see it all through my mom eyes. When I choose what comes into our home; when I make any decisions, it is through those same mom eyes, same mother mentality. My husband has even had to remind me a couple of times he isn't one of my kids.
Why is this on my mind?
Hawk (the young man pictured above) and I were reading about Jesus healing a man who couldn't walk. I ask Hawk if he's going to be healed. He doesn't indicate anything about that, but I wonder if Jesus does heal him on earth, if then he will be like all young adults and leave home (which is how God made it to be). I say to him, "Are you going to live your whole life with me?"
He signs yes.
And that makes m happy, very happy.
Now I know things can change.
I also know some people look at my life of taking care of a teenager who needs assistance with everything, and think it must be hard and must be a burden (and at times it is hard and difficult but it's my life and I love it), but this is one more way Hawk is such a gift to me.
My other kids are growing up. The second one leaves the nest in less than two weeks. My middle daughter is living life in heaven. My two youngest are in junior high and are quite independent. They are gradually getting their own lives, lives apart from me. And this is good. But I guess I need someone to love here at home along with my husband. And that is Hawk. He needs me all the time. He likes to spend time with me. He enjoys our time of reading and quiet. He is my constant companion.
God knows who we are and who we will be years down the road. We are all changing. Life may give us situations we would never have chosen but I am convinced those situations are engineered by God to perfectly fit who we are and who we will become.
When Hawk was three years old the thought of caring for him for decades as an infant was a thought that overwhelmed me. It was too much for me to think about. But now I understand and it's okay. It's more than okay. it's our life.
(I recently talked to someone I hadn't talked to for over 20 years. At one time our lives had been kind of similar. Now our lives are vastly different because we as people are vastly different. )
I don't know what situation you are in right now but I know that I know that I know God can bring beauty and joy and peace out of it if you trust Him. If you just hold tight to Him no matter what He'll work it out so that you and others who watch your life will be amazed.