Are you Real?

     Today I came across a quote that I love, one of my all-time favorites, actually!  It reminded me of a lesson that has come long and hard, but has come over the years, nonetheless.  Let Marjery Williams and her Velveteen Rabbit speak to you:
     "When a child loves you for a long, long, time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.  It doesn't happen all at once.  You become.  It takes a long time.  Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby.  But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly except to people who don't understand."
      My husband and I are standing at a precipice, and will very soon have to jump.  Hopefully, the parachute will work, and we will float to the intended destination, but there are no guarantees, of course.  Any number of things could 'go wrong' (but is that ever the case in God's economy?)....We have the option to continue in full-time vocational ministry near Pittsburgh, or the option of caring for my dear Oma, 92 and still praising God, if you can believe that!  My heart is leaning towards one over the other, but I am trying to be open to wherever God will lead my husband.  
      I suppose I just find this quote to be striking.  Several years ago, sparkling resume in hand, I took on the world.  Now, having become much more 'Real', as our dear Velveteen Rabbit explains the process, I realize that though I have much more to offer with some edges rounded off, I am not as eager to prove myself.  I am eager to know Christ.  Eager to honor my husband and help him grow.  Eager to create a safe and beautiful home for others to rest.  Eager to care for the temple God has given me, through which I can reflect Him to the world.  Eager to have relationships that encourage me to be Real.  Thankful that my Father has loved me so intently as to make me more Real!  
      None of these things fit on a resume very well, but I am glad that God turned my world upside down and inside out, giving me the chance to truly live.  And so I ask, are you Real?  Are you living for the things of this world or the things of the world to come?  Because if you are living for the things of eternity, your resume might not sparkle either, but your joy, peace, and hope will.  Live, my friends, we are called to truly live with heaven in view.  Let the 'Real You' shine forth, for Christ and His kingdom!