October 11, 2006 @ 2:00 pm | Filed under: Family

"Kommen sie hier, bitte."

A simple phrase, yet a very special and poignant one in our home.

Several years ago, as we prepared for our trip to Europe, my husband and I devoured a couple of language tapes, trying to soak up enough French to sound legitimate in Paris and enough German to have some fun in Prague.

Now, almost seven years later, we remember very little of these impromptu language lessons. But this one German phrase, Kommen sie hier, bitte, remains a staple in my husband’s vocabulary. Translated, it means "Come here, please."

But spoken in a hushed voice, accompanied by outstretched arms, it represents nothing short of pure comfort to me.

At the end of very tough days, or sometimes at the beginning of a busy one, I’ll hear those three words. "Kommen sie hier, bitte." I walk into his waiting arms, and know that - even if for only a few brief moments - there is a refuge for me, sheltering me from the winds of uncertainty that sometimes swirl around us.

Like today.

Emotions and thoughts tumble through me, leaving me bone-weary. Is it a bad day? No, just the opposite really. A good day, with just a lot to deal with. But my life is rich simply because I have these people and these things.

People whom I love more than life itself.

And things that I’ve been intrusted and blessed to be a part of.

So even on days like today, when the energy is low and the mood is quiet, I can hear the voice of my heavenly Father beckoning to me:

"Kommen sie hier, bitte."

He has outstretched arms that represent nothing short of pure comfort to me. Instantly, there is a calm. A peace. An unspeakable joy.

A refuge for me, sheltering me from the winds of uncertainty that sometimes swirl around me.