Making God Smile

My facial hair is growing back. It is not so much that I already got tired of the nekkid face, but that I just spent the past week on vacation. There are several items that are not allowed to participate with me on vacation: computer, wristwatch, razor. These items are especially unwelcome when the vacation is what has come to be known as The Annual Guy Trip.

The Annual Guy Trip is where I take my son and my son-in-law to some manly place for manly activities like hiking, fishing, rafting, eating lots of meat and other non-healthy foods (in fact, with the exception of one day, our only vegetables were green chiles and guacamole). This year’s trip was to a friend’s cabin in a remote canyon in northern New Mexico. It was rustic, beautiful and isolated. Our host told us to watch for a 600 pound black bear that had been seen frequently on that side of the canyon. We never saw him, but we did our hiking on the other side of the canyon, supposing that he knew where his boundaries were. We did see some fresh bear tracks near the private lake where we went trout fishing, but we never saw the bear. We did see deer, elk, squirrels, some young bald eagles hunting prairie dogs, and some amazingly beautiful scenery. And did I mention that we consumed a lot of red and green chile?

I have to confess that what I enjoyed most about the trip has not yet been mentioned. All that stuff was great, but what really inspired my prayers of thanksgiving to God happened after bed time. The old man couldn’t stay up as late as the boys, so I went to bed first each night. Lying in the dark and listening to their laughter and conversations, I was so appreciative of their relationship with each other. They are not just brothers-in-law. They are brothers and friends. And not only do they enjoy each other, they enjoy hanging out with me! I love my boys!

It makes me think of a couple of things that I think really make God smile. One is when His kids want to spend time with Him. Another is when His kids get along with (dare I say love) each other. He really loves His boys (and girls) and that’s why our lives really matter to Him.

Even when we skip our vegetables.