The Parable of the Bag

In two weeks my daughter will be off to England for her junior year abroad at Oxford University and we are attending to all of the last minute details to get her ready.  For one thing, we have to secure her VISA, which is no small matter and indeed of great concern, but we are also thinking of other less weighty matters that will help her to adjust to her new life overseas...

When I was twenty-two, I embarked on a great adventure myself, and moved to New York City at the invitation of my cousin Anne.  And she, too, saw to the details of what I would need when I arrived.  She helped me land a job at her company OAG on Madison Avenue and 52nd, scored me an apartment on West 68th and Broadway and living with two of her friends, secured me a place in her summer house in Montauk at the tip of Long Island, and introduced me to my new best friend Diane who was her own friend's little sister.  What more could I possibly ask?!

She did have one other suggestion, and we went right out to purchase it shortly after I arrived:  a large black leather bag from a really nice store to carry my shoes (this was the 80's and everyone wore comfortable walking shoes before arriving at their destination and putting on the better looking pair before going inside!)

And so yesterday I thought I might like to get something like that for Courtney.  We decided to look for a small purse with a cross body strap to help her carry her valuables while keeping her hands free.  Then we thought a wallet with a wrist strap might do the job.  But then she thought she might also like a bag to carry her laptop in, and possibly something that would look presentable for her upcoming dinners and teas with various dignitaries that her job with UNC professor Dr. T will require her to attend, one that wouldn't look too ungainly for her petite stature, and one that would hold up to the weather in London.

And so we went shopping.  We looked at wallets and clutches and purses and bags.  We compared them based on how they would coordinate with her various coats and boots, how versatile they might be for a walk to class or a dinner out, how heavy they would be to carry, and evaluated them on how strong their handles would be to support the weight of the computer.  Most of all, we cared about how much she liked any given one, how nice it felt, and how comfortable it was to use.

So after several hours of considering virtually everything there was in the store, we bought a really cute brown leather bag that seemed perfect.  When we got home, Courtney ran to get her laptop to see if it would fit inside, and to our dismay, it didn't.

But the bag was adorable!  Couldn't she find some other way to carry her computer?  How about using a backpack for her laptop and the leather bag for her purse and shoes?  Because she is so limited on what she can take to the UK (only 50 pounds of things in her suitcase!), we decided to return to the store to see if we could find something else.   And there it was:  the perfect bag!  It was tailored and black and roomy and water resistant and just the right size for her.  It also had a laptop sleeve inside!  We found a cross body bag and a simple wallet that would help her sort her new currencies too.

Still in the glow of excitement from last night's purchase today, Courtney and I sat down and discussed "The Parable of the Bag."

What is that?

Well, when I remarked at how amazed I was that throughout our arduous shopping trip she was able to hold out for the bag that met her considerable criteria, the one that was not a compromise, but the one that would suit all of her needs,  I asked her how she had so much hope and faith that "the perfect bag" would somehow be there.

Courtney simply answered that she was able to ultimately find the best bag for her because she did not compare the merits of each bag with the others, but held out for the bag that met the criteria she had in mind, the criteria that would not make it so much "the perfect bag", but rather "the perfect bag for her."

And I thought how differently I go about choosing things:  the best of what's there,  the one that is on sale, the one that is the best value, the one that is the most practical, or the one that someone else would choose.  And I noticed that all of these criterion are based on external factors rather than on something specific to me.

Then I thought about what God is like in this regard.  And I am absolutely certain that He is less interested in how I might conform myself to a given situation, to try to make something fit that doesn't really, or to be satisfied with the status quo and settle for less than my dreams.

No.  What God truly desires is for me to have the friends, the jobs, the experiences, the sorrows, and the joys that this world has to offer that are a particular combination of *my personal desires* and *His generous provision.*

And then I marveled that He has proven time and again that He will go out of His way (read: coincidences, God-incidences, and miracles too) to give me the absolutely best life that He can that is also and especially tailored to me.

And He has in mind a life for you that is tailored for you too!

Wow.