I’ve witnessed the birth of new life – watching as those precious, little lungs take their first breath.  I’ve experienced holding my own breath as my little ones grew into adults.  I’ve observed each step of their development with anticipation, worry, yet seasoned with love, joy and pride.  That experience taught me to be patient, loving, caring and humble. I’ve lived my life seeing characters unfold before me.  My mind has become a library of sorts – holding a treasure of representatives of the human race. Some are stellar members of society.  Some are dark and broken.  What I see is how much we are all alike – trudging through life with hidden secrets, fears and needs.

I’ve observed a young, homeless girl, jumping cement highway barriers as if she were leaping hurdles on a racetrack. She is like a speck in a sea of concrete, but moves like an antelope in the wild.  I see this child as a survivor, yet pray that she will eventually find some measure of peace in her life. Yet, maybe she has for the moment.

I’ve considered a blind man as he walks with his unleashed dog – tossing a Frisbee in the air for the dog to catch and waiting for him to retrieve it and bring it back to him.  The two are inseparable and totally dependent upon each other.  I wondered who was leading who.

There are those within the walls of a church – who hold secrets that need to be dealt with.  They come to the church for solace not realizing that everyone in that building is in need of something. I wonder what would happen if one day everyone opened up to each other, rather than trying to blend in to the crowd.

I have known those who can’t move forward, because they are locked in a way of life that they can’t change.  I’ve been aware of those who go through physical pain and wonder if it will ever end.  I’ve seen the caregivers and the strain that is placed on them as they unselfishly help others.  I’ve gazed in wonder at the rich and famous.  Through my own experience of having both wealth and poverty, I have found that there really is no difference in the two.  Problems as well as joys occur in either sector.

There are the public figures, who often are placed on pedestals, destined to fall – The scholars who put their faith in science and knowledge – the skeptics who believe in nothing. There are those who profess to trusting in God but are pushing to make it on their own.

The addict, the thief, the murderer, the prostitute, the bold and brazen are in the same category as the benefactor, the motivators, encouragers, the preachers and teachers.  We all have one thing in common.  We’re imperfect.  There is no amount of makeup, plastic surgery, botox, body building or weight management that removes imperfection.  Only God can do that. The other truth is that we will all die one day.

Solomon observed his life in the book of Ecclesiastes.  He had it all, yet felt life was meaningless – that there was nothing new under the sun.  He had wealth, status, everything that man strives for, yet it wasn’t enough.  The word Ecclesiastes actually translates into meaningless. The world is broken.  We muddle through it, often without hope. We go through life and at times are confused.  We experience life in ways that don’t satisfy and leave us empty. Yet we have hope if we have God in our lives.  He can fill us up in ways that the world never can.  He will restore us, mend us, lift us up and walk with us on this earth and He has prepared a perfect place for us in heaven.  On that promise, we can depend.