When God Winks

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by Elizabeth Musser

I love it when God gives me a wink. I don’t mean that to sound disrespectful. But perhaps you’re like me, finding that, in the ordinariness of a day, the Lord just gives a ‘wink’-He shows up in a way that is small and insignificant perhaps on a large scale of world problems but which is oh, so meaningful to me, as His precious child. His wink lets me know that the God of the universe understands exactly where I am on this day, and that He is there with me.
His winks have especially encouraged me in my writing life.

Recently I was chatting by phone with my wonderful editor, LB Norton, about Love Beyond Limits, my novella that she was editing for the Southern love stories collection: Among the Fair Magnolias, which takes place in the latter half of the 19th century. I mentioned that I needed to include in the final manuscript a recipe for a dessert that was described in my story. “But the problem is, LB, I don’t talk about any dessert in the novella.”
Among the Fair Magnolias_3.indd
“Yes, you do,” LB said. “I just read about Mrs. Derracott’s coconut cake.”

Brilliant editor who knows my story better than I do!

I have rarely made a coconut cake and certainly never with a recipe from the 19th century, but I filed away the thought to be on the lookout for a recipe.

Months later, at my parents’ home, on a whim, I got out Mom’s very old, very worn copy of The Joy of Cooking. And lo and behold, I found, tucked between those pages, a recipe for a Centennial Coconut Cake, handwritten on six yellowed sheets of notebook paper by some ancestor long in the grave. A recipe that dated back to the exact date of my story, 1870!

Voilá, God’s wink.

I often include God’s winks in my novels because I have experienced them in my life time and time again.

Once, I was working on the last chapter of a novel and mistakenly copied over my final copy with an older, unfinished copy from the floppy (if that makes sense). It was a long time ago.

I lost my last chapter.

The next morning as I sat down to do my Beth Moore Bible study, her words at the end of the lesson were: Do you have a lost chapter? One that needs re-writing?

Stunned, I almost laughed out loud, recognizing that as God’s wink, as Him saying, “Elizabeth, I know exactly where you are. I know you lost that chapter, and I know you are behind on your Bible study, days behind, so that Beth’s words will be just what you need on this day.”

I am overcome and humbled when this awesome, incomprehensible, all-knowing, all-loving God winks at me. My best and only response is a soft and stunned, “Merci.”

Then I am again inspired to let my heroine have the thrill and encouragement of experiencing one of God’s winks.

What about you? Have you had God wink at you? Have you allowed Him to wink at one of your characters?

Elizabeth Musser June 2015Elizabeth Musser writes ‘entertainment with a soul’ from her writing chalet-tool shed-outside Lyon, France. Elizabeth will be posting on Facebook in the next weeks photos of LB and her making Mrs. Derracott’s Coconut Cake. Among the Fair Magnolias releases July 14, 2015. Find more about Elizabeth’s novels at www.elizabethmusser.com.

Comments 0

  1. Elizabeth, this is a great reminder to be open to God’s touch in the everyday-ness of life. As we were preparing to leave Atlanta to move to Albuquerque, I had a visitation of a hummingbird on our back deck–something I always associated with New Mexico but had not seen at our home in Cobb Co. When we found the house we now live in, one thing that ‘sealed the deal’ was the etched hummingbirds in a glass panel in our master bedroom. BTW, hummers are flitting through the garden outside the window as I write.

  2. We’re in our 70’s, still on the mission field & my hubby of 52 years has had some difficult health problems recently; so much so, that we can’t go back to the US and we ask the Lord – “are You finished with us?” Those winks have come when my hubby was in the hospital and without even asking had opportunity to be Christ’s Light to people from all over the world. More recently He has brought new neighbours into our neighbourhood who speak the language we learned on the mission field over 30 years ago – they actually came to our door because others told them about us. Yes, Lord, it seems You’re not finished with us, yet, and we thank You.

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