At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.” Luke 10:21

I am Giddy this morning! I just realized, again, that I am an honored and privileged man! I had the opportunity to take a vacation to a place that has rooted it’s beauty into my soul. A place which God has blessed me ALL of my life. As I reflect on this year’s trip, I realize that I am privileged to have been to, and seen, places that 99.99% of all humans on Earth have never seen. And WON’T!

Growing up in Pennsylvania, it was a treat each summer to be packed into a car for a 3 hour northbound trip to ‘The Mountains.’ There, My Grandfather had a rare place that was simply called ‘The Cabin.” Way up there on dusty, dirt roads carved by ‘CCC’ boys during the depression, I fell in love with something you cannot package, bottle or ship. It has remained in my soul all of my life and NEVER fails to bring peace and joy to my family and me.

Years ago a rare, and I believe divine, opportunity came up to acquire a place there myself. I now have the privilege of owning a place we affectionately call…you guessed it…“The Cabin!” Now, my own family gets the opportunity to share what I have experienced. The gift goes on! Traveling through the paths and woods that the majority of humanity never gets to see, I always find joy there as I gaze in wonder and rejoice at God’s creation.

I was reading a devotional, that sent me to a Bible verse, that cross referenced to another location, that shocked me! It was like a mountain view after a long walk uphill which took me by surprise! Luke 10:21 starts out with, “At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said,” And I stopped right there! Jesus (God) experienced an epiphany, personally delivered by the Holy Spirit (God) directly from His Father (God)! And His reaction was to be FULL OF JOY! Shockingly, I again realized that God doesn’t need me at all! Even MORE shocking though, is the subject of the epiphany!

What brought the Creator, the Son of God, this blessing? It was the shocking truth that God had chooses to hide REAL ‘truth and life’ from stuck up, snooty folks… and delivers them, through Jesus, to ‘simple’ kids like ME! That means that… God CHOSE to CHOOSE ME! THAT brings ME Joy!

The majority of humanity chooses to be offended at the idea that God would entrust and bless undeserving simple kids with the magic of Eternally True Life. And I think that is just the point! While walking in the Spirit this morning, I came upon a verse that, like a vista overlooking mountains and valleys, is a timeless reality… God CHOOSES Me! And get this… ON PURPOSE! That makes me feel like only .01% of the population can feel. JOYFUL and BLESSED!! Do YOU see and feel it too?

May YOU have a JOY filled day!