My husband's sister suggested that we go around the Thanksgiving table and share what we are most thankful for this year. She told us about Family Life's (Dennis and Barbara Rainey) tradition of using 5 kernels of corn for each person to share 5 things as they go around the table. Only we didn't have any corn kernels and we only went around once. But it was more than enough.
I knew immediately that I would start crying.
I looked over at my new son-in law, sharing his first Thanksgiving with our family and my eyes just started welling up. Hoo, boy it's hard to talk when you're emotional.
But here he is, the answer to our prayers. We remember gazing at our precious baby, Elle, and whispering our deepest prayers for her. That she would know Christ. That she would be safe. That she would find The One.
We wondered aloud what The One would be like. Was he somewhere far away? Was he smart and funny? Was he tall or short? Did he like girls with red hair? We prayed for him. God, please. Protect him and bring him to our Elle.
We had no idea that Rob lived only 8 miles away in the next town. A move just before Elle's sophomore year in high school brought us to a new town, a new school and a new set of friends. They met backstage of the musical production of "Once Upon a Mattress," where they each had a part. The first time I met Rob, he was Sir Harry, with a fake mustache and a charming cape. He was pretty dashing for a 17 year old, and I could see why Elle had a crush on him.
Elle invited her new friends over and we had a chance to chat with this new boy she liked. When he left that evening, we turned to each other and said, "Now, THAT is the kind of boy she oughta marry!"
And almost 4 years later, they did marry! We couldn't be happier for the choice she made for a partner to go through life with. That boy has turned into a young man, ready to take on the future, and in love with the little girl we raised. Yes, he is smart and funny. Tall and cute. Kind and sweet. He is everything we prayed for and more.
I am thankful for so many things this year. But most of all I am grateful to God for bringing this wonderful young man into our lives for keeps. To see our daughter so happy, so in love, smiling at her new husband and eager to be his wife, is priceless. To know that God led us to make a move in the middle of our daughter's high school years so that they could meet each other just confirms that He knows so much more than we ever could.
So this Thanksgiving, I am offering my kernel of thanks to God for answering our deepest prayers for our daughter. It has been a good year.
Rachel Anne
