Tonight it started raining 35 minutes into “my Halloween” – meaning that golden hour and a half or so that kids trick or treat in dusk to show up at your house. It’s a precious narrow window of time that parents get out with their little ones.  And trust me it’s so unreal that my little kids are so grown up now. Oh how I would take a Halloween stroll with them again if I could… the evening used to last longer with double the numbers, but us “old-folks” now with grown kids take up more and more of the community. Still 35 minutes of greeting time was better than none. “I got an eyeball” I can hear one princess exclaim! Excited and sweet. Later a teenager was directed to go back to house 24 as the nice old lady gave out full-size KitKat. It was well worth the price of candy.

And it was warm out, and the cat enjoyed it in her tent, except then it started to rain. This cat doesn’t appreciate rain. 

I was well dresses and a wig too, i didn’t feel the rain but thought well let me grab an umbrella, and so I sat 10 minutes in the rain and walked down to the sidewalk to get the last kids. This was too short a time not to reach out and enjoy. I survived the rain.

This is how I imagine God is, waiting with treats ready to give, better than what I was giving, better than house 24 KitKat  better than anything on earth or in the sky. God’s giving out the best in life WITH Him, and going door to door, that’s ALL FULL SIZE GOD, in God. Jesus and the Holy Spirit. WAITING, WALKING, WOW-ING. In the rain, with JOY. In the wait with hope (yes worth it). In the wait with longing. In the wait with loss too. There are kids of God who won’t accept His gift. Sad. It is like raining on God’s treat. His treat to be with us.

Jesus understood the SHORT window of physical time – did question why – did realize sadly in tears riding into Jerusalem that the parade was of people not understanding a Heavenly King, on the sugar rise of the moment for another conquering king but not convinced of the Forever King. Jesus rode in anyway.

Jesus understands the price paid is worth it, worth us. The Holy Spirit extends the Window of gathering. God waits like the Father of the prodigal son, ready to lavish His returned children with His blessings. 

Someday the candy and the day of God’s opportunities to be collected off the earth will stop. Let’s help give out our hope to others in the meantime, and appreciate umbrellas. Now IS the window of opportunity.  Someday these kids (God’s kids) will not venture out, but God WILL still come to them. Someday the night will be broken with Jesus returning, and we will all be on our eternal way.

Pray people find The Way.

Amen