A Rosie Story

Rosie is a story of the goodness of God on display.

It was a three hour drive there and a three hour drive back, and despite the early morning 2 am departure time, I don’t think Rosie stopped talking the entire time in the truck headed to and from a deer hunting trip in Bernice, Louisiana! Rosie is my buddy, or, my “Turkey Buddy” as she would say. I get the privilege of serving Rosie and her family in the role of pastor. We have shared lots of good times, and I look forward to sharing many more on down the road, because Rosie is a story of the goodness of God on display. Let me explain…

From a number of viewpoints, Rosie’s life is an example of the redemptive grace of God. One of those viewpoints is the fact that the family God has given to Rosie is a family that willingly chose to enter into that kind of lifelong commitment with a young girl that desperately needed it. Before Rosie became the daughter of Jordan and Kelsi, she was a girl that essentially had no functioning parent and was forced to take on a parental mindset herself to look out for her little brother. Enter Jordan and Kelsi into her life, and a child who hadn’t experienced true and genuine love was the object of the pure love of parents that wanted nothing but the best for Rosie. That’s grace! That’s redemption!

As imperfect as all earthly parents are, the parent/child relationship is an example of the relationship the living God desires to have with his children (Matthew 7:11). Jordan is an avid outdoorsman, and in his role as “Daddy” he has invited his daughter into his world to share in the joy of relationship built around the experiences Rosie’s father’s world offers. In the safety of that relationship, Rosie has flourished and grown in aspects of life that far transcend the outdoor experiences she participates in. She’s learning from every sunrise and sunset; every deerless sit and every fruitful harvest; every tree stand conversation; every wonder of the great outdoors – and Jordan is the father that facilitates these everyday moments into understandable encounters with the Heavenly Father (Romans 1:19-20).

As talkative as the trip to and from Bernice was that day, it was evidence of the safety Rosie feels in the presence of her daddy – the same safety we can all feel in the presence of Almighty God (Psalm 4:8). Interestingly, the chatter of the trip turned into sweet dreams in the deer stand as Rosie rested in the fact that her daddy was watching what was going on around them and would alert her in the event she needed to wake up. Isn’t this daddy/daughter relationship a portrait of how the Lord is with us? In His presence we can rest and know that His ever-watchful eye is carefully looking out for our best (Psalm 34:15)! As Rosie was confident in the daddy she had learned to trust, I pray that we grow in our walk with the Lord to the point that we can do the same!

If the story ended here, it would still be a Rosie story – but it doesn’t. Daddy did wake daughter up when the deer came out. Daddy did point the target out and help sleepy eyes to focus for a good shot. Rosie pulled the trigger and smiles and stories ensued. All because Rosie was redeemed by parents that love her and are willing to put her into situations where she can experience the love of a parent and the joy of success. That same redemptive experience is available to each an every person on the planet if we look towards the Father who loves us so much that He gave His Son as a sacrifice to pay for the sins of us all (John 3:16) . And in the transaction where our sin is exchanged for Christ’s righteousness as faith in Jesus is acted upon, the redemption of a loving Father is able to be displayed (2Corinthians 5:21). Is His redemptive grace on display in your life? I encourage you to turn to Jesus and fall into His loving arms today!

I trust this Rosie story has encouraged and challenged each reader in whatever way the Spirit of God deemed necessary. Whether you are the child that needs the love of the Father or you are the parent that needs to demonstrate that love to your children, allow this Rosie story to motivate your knowledge to become action. Then one day down the road – perhaps even among the giggles and ramblings of a road trip to Bernice, we’ll compare our amazements over the redemptive grace of God – In the Great Outdoors!