When God Crashed My Party

 For the first ten years of our marriage, my husband was a student. We had our first daughter during  medical school with six years of training still stretching ahead. My husband and I had little time together and even less money in the bank account. 

I found a nearby secondhand store. I used to rummage through the racks looking for bargains on trendy little girl clothes, without the stains. One morning I felt particularly blue. 

We attended a local church each week where the children were dressed really cute. I noticed. How long would we be counting pennies and doing without? 

I wished I could dress my daughter in the latest fashions. I wished I could buy some of those bows in every color to perch on her almost bald head. I really wished I could afford some of those white leather sneakers - the ones it seemed every toddler in the church nursery wore.

I was having a raging, roaring pity party. 

I shifted my daughter to my other hip and continued rifling through the racks. I stopped in mid turn. There on a top shelf was a shoebox with the familiar logo. 


The box held a brand new pair of white leather sneakers with Velcro straps - in my price range. And they were my daughter's size. 

I sat my daughter on the floor and slipped on the sneakers. She grinned and kicked her feet. I stood her up and she stamped her feet making tapping noises on the linoleum. 

"My child, ask and you shall receive." God's precious words in my heart humbled me and wrapped me in His love all at once. 

I threw the pity party but God showed up. I should have invited Him to begin with - into my day and into my longings. He even cares about white leather sneakers.