Sent:  July 9, 2002

Subject:  Go Play in the Sandbox

Good Morning Ethan & Emily:

I remember so vividly building a sandbox for Ethan when he was a small boy.  I had never built one before, and I was careful to make it large and to fill it with special play sand.  It was a beauty!

We had many fun times playing in the sand, and when Emily came along, she too got in on the fun and helped initiate a few “sand wars.”

I thought of this sandbox when I was reading Psalm 139 today:  “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!  How vast is the sum of them!  Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand” (vv.17-18).

This verse follows a great passage on how God begins working on plans for our lives even from conception:  “For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb” (v.13).  “All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be” (v.16).

What this means to me is that with God there is unlimited potential and endless possibilities.  Truly, “with God everything is possible? (Matt. 19:26, Mark 10:27, Luke 18:27).  May we be like Abraham of whom it is said:  “…his (Abraham’s) faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.  He was absolutely convinced that God was able to do anything He promised” (Romans 4:20-21).

Don’t ever let Satan defeat you with feelings of worthlessness or despair…or make you think you have limited resources or opportunity.  In fact, if you ever get to such a state of mind, go buy a bag of sand and start counting the grains of sand.  Better yet, go to a playground and jump in a sandbox.  With grains of sand all over you and in your hair, be encouraged as you know that God’s ways outnumber all the grains of sand not only in that box…but also on every seashore in the world!

We have a great God who loves us and wants the best for us!  He is limited by nothing, and if you will make yourself available to Him and seek to obey Him, he will open doors of opportunity and blessing beyond your imagination…that outnumber the “grains of sand”!

Take time to play in a sandbox today to get a new vision of what God can accomplish in your life!

Have a great day,

From inside the sandbox,
Dad