The Rest of the Story
Posted by Amy Harvison at 7/14/2007 8:37 AM and is filed under uncategorized 
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:2-3
Last week I rested on the seventh day of the seventh month of the seventh year of this century. It wasn't a physical rest because I was in four different states - from Texas to Tennessee to Alabama to Georgia and back to Texas in 3-1/2 days. But it was a spiritual rest as Father revealed sweet truth about who I am in Him and about how my youth was such a vital part of who I am in His completed work of the creation of Amy. On 7-7-7 I attended my 30th high school reunion and the next day celebrated my grandson's third birthday. If that, by itself, is not truth revealed, I don't know what is!!
I graduated from high school in 1977 and my parents moved away from that town (where I had lived since 6th grade) in 1978 and I have not been back since - except one time simply driving through without stopping while on vacation. And I did not stay in touch with people from there. And for 30 years the enemy has been telling me lies about who I was then and what I was and that those years were not all that Father wanted them to be in my life. And he has been telling me that going 'home' would not be a fun thing. I'm sure as we all reflect on our lives we see things that we don't like or that we think have marred us for life or changed us in ways we wish we could reverse. And we see things we should have done differently, things we should not have done, and things we should have done that we neglected. The truth is that Father knew all of those things about us before we were ever an embryo and He knew how He would allow those things and use those things to transform us and conform us to Christ and give us ministry and testimony that would point others to Him in the process. And truth is that the enemy does all he can to repaint those pictures and then remind us of those things, causing us to think of them with pain and regret - and without rest as we feel incomplete.
Two nights before my husband and I were to fly east for the long and busy weekend, I convinced him to climb around in the attic until he found my high school yearbooks so I could do some cramming for the big memory test I knew I would face. He found them. I crammed. And I struggled to really remember very many of my classmates. But as I read the notes people had written and then looked at their photos, memories began to come back. But more than the memories, truth began to permeate my mind and heart. And I began to see myself - from those years - as a different person than what the enemy has been painting since 1977. And Father began to tell me to rest alongside of Him in His completed work.
I must admit that I was a bit anxious about walking into the room on Friday night where about 75 of my 600+ classmates had gathered for an informal evening on the night before the reunion. I wondered if there would be anyone that I would recognize, anyone that would recognize me, anyone that I wanted to talk to, anyone that wanted to talk to me, and if there would be a single person there that I would connect with enough to have more than a brief conversation. I'm not real sure why I felt so compelled to go to this reunion when I had not been to the previous ones or what I thought might be accomplished, but I knew I had to do it so I set the anxiety aside, took a deep breath and walked in. I think that upon entering I recognized one person but several people recognized me and said hello and my brain began to work harder than it has in a long time trying to remember who they were and how I knew them. With more than 600 people in my graduating class, there were literally hundreds I didn't know 30 years ago! How would I know them now? But as the evening progressed, my memory became clearer, many old connections were renewed, and my husband and I ended up having a nice dinner with a friend who was in my homeroom all through school and his wife, another classmate of ours.
And the next day, with a list of addresses and a map in hand, I made my husband spend a couple of hours driving around my 'hometown' to see where I had lived, the schools I had attended, where I had worked, where I swam every afternoon in the summer, where I went to church, where some of my friends went to church, and where I jumped off the back of a bicycle on Hemlock Hill... And we visited with some precious relatives who live there and then went to the formal reunion dinner party where we found about 175 of my classmates and teachers with their dates and spouses. Again, I wondered about who I would know and talk to and what it would be like to see them all again. And again, my brain worked overtime. There were a few people that brought tears to my eyes as I saw their sweet faces and recalled their friendship. There were many I didn't remember. I spent most of the evening asking other classmates who other classmates were!! But mostly I found rest in the truth Father revealed throughout the weekend about His completed work in me.
This revelation began when, as I was looking through my senior yearbook, a little green envelope fell into my lap. It was addressed to "Amy" and dated May 19, 1977 - 11 p.m. On the bottom of the back of the envelope was written: "with God, NOTHING shall be impossible." I opened the envelope and a little card with those same words and a drawing of a young boy and girl gazing at a rainbow greeted me. I smiled as I wondered who had given me this card and what type of memories would come from reading it again after all these years.
The note began: "I'm writing this so that you can always have something to reflect upon when you remember high school graduation." The note continued as it mentioned all the events of those days and the fun and the friends and the good-byes to come. Near the end of the note was written: "I think you are ready to graduate. You've grown a lot and although there is so much more growing to do, I honestly believe you are ready and prepared to move on. How do you feel? Scared? Perhaps a tiny bit. Soon, you'll be facing life and its problems as an individual with no one to lean on but Christ."
And the note ended with this: "Are you ready? I think so. 'God's will won't lead you where His grace won't sustain you.' Your future looks fabulously bright. I love you." And the note was signed: "Amy". It was note to me from me. Even then I was a write-a-holic! As I finished reading the note Father said, "You were ready and prepared because you were completed in Christ. You were a young woman who loved me and pursued me and it showed in your life. And your note reflected the love in your life - love for Me and from Me, love for and from others, and confidence in who you are in Christ. And whatever happened before or after 1977 was all part of my work to make you into the person I know you to be and desire you to be. And I am resting in that completed work. Rest with me." And as I continued to look at the yearbook and read the notes written by classmates, I saw more truth revealed - I saw a light that shined in His love even though I messed up pretty regularly and even though I didn't feel like I was a very good image of Christ. And at the reunion Father continued the revelation as a classmate purposely came and found me to tell me what a blessing my life had been to him in high school, and how I'd given him a book on the Psalms with a personal note that he still reads and is inspired by as he runs after God. I didn't remember that at all and was actually surprised by the whole thing. It was - and still is - very humbling and leads me to praise...
The pictures from my past as painted by the enemy displayed failures, shortcomings, selfishness, disobedience, carelessness, fear, rebellion, and more. But beneath those lies is the revelation of a beautiful portrait of the life of young woman loved deeply by God who was always at work to love her more and make her an even more beautiful portrait reflecting that love. His revelation is a completed work upon which He looks with joy and rests. Through His revelation I am now - after 30 years - finding rest in knowing that His work is perfect and His love is enough. And with Him, NOTHING shall be impossible. Even finding rest in going 'home'.
There are many young people in my life today and I am praying for each one to be able to always see Father's portrait of their lives - to rest in the security of His perfect love and His completed work - and to never be overcome by the lies of the enemy that steal away the confidence they have in Christ. And I am praying that as they seek and find their individuality in their adulthood that they will not abandon the things He is doing and has done in and through them within their families and the friends of their youth. And I am praying they will never run so far away that they feel they can't go 'home' and find true rest. And I am praying for my adult friends to see through the lies and find the restful truth in Father's painting of their lives as well. And for all of them to see that on the seventh day Father was resting in His completed work - and He rests in that completed work now and forevermore.
Father sees the painting of the story of our lives as completed - and it is a story of going 'home' to a place of remaining as the branch on the Vine - a place of no regrets - a place of praise - a place of contentment - a place of peace at the end of the day. It is a place of sabbath rest in His completed work. And He longs for us to enter in to the rest of the story of our lives - His beautiful completed story.
Resting,
Amy
There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God. Hebrews 4:9
Last week I rested on the seventh day of the seventh month of the seventh year of this century. It wasn't a physical rest because I was in four different states - from Texas to Tennessee to Alabama to Georgia and back to Texas in 3-1/2 days. But it was a spiritual rest as Father revealed sweet truth about who I am in Him and about how my youth was such a vital part of who I am in His completed work of the creation of Amy. On 7-7-7 I attended my 30th high school reunion and the next day celebrated my grandson's third birthday. If that, by itself, is not truth revealed, I don't know what is!!
I graduated from high school in 1977 and my parents moved away from that town (where I had lived since 6th grade) in 1978 and I have not been back since - except one time simply driving through without stopping while on vacation. And I did not stay in touch with people from there. And for 30 years the enemy has been telling me lies about who I was then and what I was and that those years were not all that Father wanted them to be in my life. And he has been telling me that going 'home' would not be a fun thing. I'm sure as we all reflect on our lives we see things that we don't like or that we think have marred us for life or changed us in ways we wish we could reverse. And we see things we should have done differently, things we should not have done, and things we should have done that we neglected. The truth is that Father knew all of those things about us before we were ever an embryo and He knew how He would allow those things and use those things to transform us and conform us to Christ and give us ministry and testimony that would point others to Him in the process. And truth is that the enemy does all he can to repaint those pictures and then remind us of those things, causing us to think of them with pain and regret - and without rest as we feel incomplete.
Two nights before my husband and I were to fly east for the long and busy weekend, I convinced him to climb around in the attic until he found my high school yearbooks so I could do some cramming for the big memory test I knew I would face. He found them. I crammed. And I struggled to really remember very many of my classmates. But as I read the notes people had written and then looked at their photos, memories began to come back. But more than the memories, truth began to permeate my mind and heart. And I began to see myself - from those years - as a different person than what the enemy has been painting since 1977. And Father began to tell me to rest alongside of Him in His completed work.
I must admit that I was a bit anxious about walking into the room on Friday night where about 75 of my 600+ classmates had gathered for an informal evening on the night before the reunion. I wondered if there would be anyone that I would recognize, anyone that would recognize me, anyone that I wanted to talk to, anyone that wanted to talk to me, and if there would be a single person there that I would connect with enough to have more than a brief conversation. I'm not real sure why I felt so compelled to go to this reunion when I had not been to the previous ones or what I thought might be accomplished, but I knew I had to do it so I set the anxiety aside, took a deep breath and walked in. I think that upon entering I recognized one person but several people recognized me and said hello and my brain began to work harder than it has in a long time trying to remember who they were and how I knew them. With more than 600 people in my graduating class, there were literally hundreds I didn't know 30 years ago! How would I know them now? But as the evening progressed, my memory became clearer, many old connections were renewed, and my husband and I ended up having a nice dinner with a friend who was in my homeroom all through school and his wife, another classmate of ours.
And the next day, with a list of addresses and a map in hand, I made my husband spend a couple of hours driving around my 'hometown' to see where I had lived, the schools I had attended, where I had worked, where I swam every afternoon in the summer, where I went to church, where some of my friends went to church, and where I jumped off the back of a bicycle on Hemlock Hill... And we visited with some precious relatives who live there and then went to the formal reunion dinner party where we found about 175 of my classmates and teachers with their dates and spouses. Again, I wondered about who I would know and talk to and what it would be like to see them all again. And again, my brain worked overtime. There were a few people that brought tears to my eyes as I saw their sweet faces and recalled their friendship. There were many I didn't remember. I spent most of the evening asking other classmates who other classmates were!! But mostly I found rest in the truth Father revealed throughout the weekend about His completed work in me.
This revelation began when, as I was looking through my senior yearbook, a little green envelope fell into my lap. It was addressed to "Amy" and dated May 19, 1977 - 11 p.m. On the bottom of the back of the envelope was written: "with God, NOTHING shall be impossible." I opened the envelope and a little card with those same words and a drawing of a young boy and girl gazing at a rainbow greeted me. I smiled as I wondered who had given me this card and what type of memories would come from reading it again after all these years.
The note began: "I'm writing this so that you can always have something to reflect upon when you remember high school graduation." The note continued as it mentioned all the events of those days and the fun and the friends and the good-byes to come. Near the end of the note was written: "I think you are ready to graduate. You've grown a lot and although there is so much more growing to do, I honestly believe you are ready and prepared to move on. How do you feel? Scared? Perhaps a tiny bit. Soon, you'll be facing life and its problems as an individual with no one to lean on but Christ."
And the note ended with this: "Are you ready? I think so. 'God's will won't lead you where His grace won't sustain you.' Your future looks fabulously bright. I love you." And the note was signed: "Amy". It was note to me from me. Even then I was a write-a-holic! As I finished reading the note Father said, "You were ready and prepared because you were completed in Christ. You were a young woman who loved me and pursued me and it showed in your life. And your note reflected the love in your life - love for Me and from Me, love for and from others, and confidence in who you are in Christ. And whatever happened before or after 1977 was all part of my work to make you into the person I know you to be and desire you to be. And I am resting in that completed work. Rest with me." And as I continued to look at the yearbook and read the notes written by classmates, I saw more truth revealed - I saw a light that shined in His love even though I messed up pretty regularly and even though I didn't feel like I was a very good image of Christ. And at the reunion Father continued the revelation as a classmate purposely came and found me to tell me what a blessing my life had been to him in high school, and how I'd given him a book on the Psalms with a personal note that he still reads and is inspired by as he runs after God. I didn't remember that at all and was actually surprised by the whole thing. It was - and still is - very humbling and leads me to praise...
The pictures from my past as painted by the enemy displayed failures, shortcomings, selfishness, disobedience, carelessness, fear, rebellion, and more. But beneath those lies is the revelation of a beautiful portrait of the life of young woman loved deeply by God who was always at work to love her more and make her an even more beautiful portrait reflecting that love. His revelation is a completed work upon which He looks with joy and rests. Through His revelation I am now - after 30 years - finding rest in knowing that His work is perfect and His love is enough. And with Him, NOTHING shall be impossible. Even finding rest in going 'home'.
There are many young people in my life today and I am praying for each one to be able to always see Father's portrait of their lives - to rest in the security of His perfect love and His completed work - and to never be overcome by the lies of the enemy that steal away the confidence they have in Christ. And I am praying that as they seek and find their individuality in their adulthood that they will not abandon the things He is doing and has done in and through them within their families and the friends of their youth. And I am praying they will never run so far away that they feel they can't go 'home' and find true rest. And I am praying for my adult friends to see through the lies and find the restful truth in Father's painting of their lives as well. And for all of them to see that on the seventh day Father was resting in His completed work - and He rests in that completed work now and forevermore.
Father sees the painting of the story of our lives as completed - and it is a story of going 'home' to a place of remaining as the branch on the Vine - a place of no regrets - a place of praise - a place of contentment - a place of peace at the end of the day. It is a place of sabbath rest in His completed work. And He longs for us to enter in to the rest of the story of our lives - His beautiful completed story.
Resting,
Amy
There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God. Hebrews 4:9
What a beautiful discovery.
Love.
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Yes... I can't wait to read the next chapter!
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Father just cracks me up! I'm going to my 30th high school reunion this weekend. He knew I needed to hear this.
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His timing is as perfect as His story, isn't it?
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