The View From Over The Hill

I have been young, and now I am old, but I have never seen a righteous person abandoned or his descendants begging for food. Psalm 37:25 GW

I have always imagined what the view would look like from here. And now I have arrived. I think most would agree anything over fifty is considered over the hill. (I know some hard-hearted people that would say anything over forty!)

As a little girl, l remember imagining who I would marry, how I would name my first baby girl Anna but call her Annie and how I would serve the Lord on the mission field. Admittedly, not everything turned out how I imagined.

I could never have imagined me weeping as I did the other day as I was picking out my husband’s Father’s Day Card which read, “You are and you will always be the most important part of all the dreams, the hopes and plans that are closest to my heart.”  For the record–I am 100 % sure it was not the hormones of a menopausal woman but real tears of gratitude for being blessed with a kindhearted, gentle, generous, gifted and godly man who has been the best husband, friend and father of my children.

I could never have imagined that my Annie would grow into such a thoughtful, intelligent, creative, dependable, lovely lady and be such an encouragement and help to me and to many others.

I could never have imagined I would have a daughter like Katie who is so bright, compassionate, loyal, gentle, selfless and who is always teaching me about grace and forgiveness as she demonstrates it so remarkably.

I could never have imagined the joy of having my son, Judah. His smile, his laughter, his dancing. Undeniably, as I climbed this hill, there were times I saw his disability as a tragedy.  I now see God’s grace and kindness to me. He has given me treasures of darkness. (Isaiah 45:3 KJV) Through Judah, God has shown me–as much as a human can understand–His amazing unconditional love.

I could never have imagined Chloe. How easily she evokes a smile in others. Her love and dependence on God. Her determination, strength, resilience and hopefulness in the midst of her disability has been such a shining example to everyone who knows her.

I could never have imagined how blessed I would come to be with such precious family and friends who have loved, encouraged, inspired, and sometimes carried me when life was too difficult to walk on my own.

I now see that when I was young, all I knew of God was what I imagined Him to be. But now, this view from over the hill has proven He is everything He said He would be. LH

Family

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is an aspiring Bounty Hunter who is always looking for God's Bounty-- His grace and goodness-- in the mundane and melancholy as well as in the miraculous. She is also a wife, mother of four adult children--two with Cerebral Palsy, grandmother and minister of the Gospel. "You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance." Psalm 65:11 NLT

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One thought on “The View From Over The Hill”

  1. What a heart you have, Lisa. You always seem to have things more figured out than I do. I’m often flying by the seat of my pants just living day by day, still not understanding God (Lord knows I’ve studied enough I should by now), but although I don’t understand Him, I’m just OK with that, because I don’t need to know everything. I just know He is there, and at this point, that’s good enough. I simply believe, amidst a doubt or two now and again. But your articles are always a pleasure and a treasure to read. Happy Birthday. We are in the same Club. 🙂

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