How God cares for my children…

God is amazing in big earth-shattering ways. But He’s also amazing in little carefully-planned and perfectly-executed ways, too.

As I shared on Tuesday, we lost a cat who had very much become a part of my children’s lives. Well…because I shared that part of the story, I must share this part as well.

The kids asked us, just hours after we buried Lila, Monday night, if we’d get another cat. We assured them we would, as long as it was female, for we need another good mouser. Besides, Marshall (the cross-eyed male we still have) will need another cat to snuggle up with this winter, for warmth.

On Tuesday, I watched my kids demonstrate the strength I blogged about.

Wednesday, I saw a post on Freecycle from someone who had kittens that needed homes. I emailed her, but she didn’t respond until after this story was over. (Obviously God’s doing, as you’ll see.)

Thursday has, for two months now, been scheduled as the day when I’d take the kids on the 40-mile trip to the Humane Society to get our 7-month-old puppy spayed. (It’s MUCH less expensive than the vet.) The trip requires drop off in the morning and pick up in the evening, so we planned to make a day of it, visiting the library there and spending hours at the pool.

So we packed stuff for the day, had fun fulfilling our plans, and then, when 4:50 rolled around, we packed up our stuff, changed out of our bathing suits, and drove back to the Humane Society to get Macey.

I got there, and while I was waiting my turn, I realized that they probably had kittens needing to be adopted. I asked about them…and was told that the adoption office had just closed up for the day. I was a little disappointed, for the kids would have had a wide selection to pick from and it would have been a great ending to a fantastic day. But still…this is Ohio and free kittens are to be found on almost every farm around. We’d find one sooner or later…and probably sooner.

I got a very-happy-to-see-me puppy, went back out to the car, and started to pull out…only to see a woman and her two daughters get out of their car holding two very cute kittens. (I know, I know…almost all kittens are very cute.) Anyway, they were obviously there to be surrendered, since that’s the only reason anyone would be bringing cats at that time of day. So I rolled down the window, asked a few questions, and a few minutes later I had three kids begging me to call Daddy and see if we could bring two kittens home.

Late that night we were all praying, and again my kids were giving thanks. But what my son gave thanks for struck me.

“Dear God,” he prayed, “Thank you for Jasmine and Peppermint. And thank you that Mommy scheduled Macey’s appointment for today, and not yesterday, and not tomorrow. And thank you for getting us there at the same time as the lady was bringing Jasmine and Peppermint so we could have them.”

He’s right. There are dozens of tiny things–just in our own lives–that could have gotten us there two minutes later, or two minutes sooner. That doesn’t even include whatever circumstances contrived to bring the woman and her daughters there in that exact minute.

It amazes me to think of how many tiny little things God kept His hand on, just to bless my children with two kittens who couldn’t be more perfect for us…For not only are they both females, but Jasmine is adventuresome and curious, yet totally content to be held and cuddled, just like Lila was. My girl loves how she’s different from Lila, yet she’s got the same gray spots on her paws. And Peppermint is a tiger-striped tabby and very shy and quiet…just like the cat that was my son’s before she mysteriously died in the yard months and months ago.

Not only does God know when a sparrow falls to the ground, but He hand-picked two kittens for my children, then went to extraordinary lengths (planning some of it two months in advance) just to deliver them into our hands.

I know that some would say that He could have gone to a lot less trouble to save Lila’s life on Monday…yet that would have invalidated everything that Tuesday’s post was about. This story is an illustration of a God who sees a much bigger story than we do…who not only transforms what life throws at us, but who also wipes our tears and guides dozens of tiny circumstances– just to deliver tiny bits of life to ease our hearts.