As she's in her garden she holds the bright red, freshly picked strawberry in her hand, “Oh how sweet and juicy this would be” she says to herself. Her mouth waters in anticipation of her strawberry delight. So soft, yet so juicy and sweet. Darla just couldn't take it any more; she had to have one. She slowly raised the strawberry up to her mouth. She could feel the strawberry on her lips; she closed her eyes, opened her mouth and “Hi Darla!”. “What, what was that?” she asked in disbelief. “Who called my name?” As she looked around her eyes became fixed on him. There he is, he's back. Oh what a wonderful surprise. “Big Ron” she hollered. “Come quickly, God is back in town.” God happened to be passing by her house while talking to some people in the street when he noticed her in the garden. Darla was so excited to see him. She loved God very much. Darla got up, walked through the gate of her white picket fence, went out to greet God and his sidekick Hazi and invite them into her house to talk and relax.
While at the house Darla made a wonderful dessert called Strawberry Delight. While God and Hazi were enjoying their dessert, Big Ron sang songs for them with some of the neighborhood kids he'd gathered together. They played “Nothin' but the blood of Jesus”, “ Friday Night in Universal City” and “No turnin' back” a couple of Big Ron's favorites. God really enjoyed the music and Darla's strawberry delight, of course. Oh how Darla loved to have God in her life and especially in her home. God felt very welcome when he was around Darla's so he stayed for most of the afternoon. They talked about many things including the neighborhood kids, her family, Big Ron's singing, gardening, the internet, Abraham, and King David. Oh how God enjoyed simply spending time with Darla and Big Ron. As the sun began to set God and Hazi decided it was time to head home. That night Darla encouraged Big Ron to build an extra room onto the house so that if God ever came back to town he would have a place to stay. “What if God never came back to our house” Big Ron thought to himself. But Big Ron loved God and decided “I'm going to build a room for God and furnish it so that if he does come back he will have a comfortable place to stay.” It was settled then, the two of them worked hard to make the room comfortable for the Lord. A comfy bed with a memory foam mattress, a night stand made of bamboo , several down feather pillows and soft blankets, a small white refrigerator, a laptop and a mosaic by Misty on the wall. “That ought to do it.” Big Ron said as he took a deep breath and wiped his hands clean. “God should be able to do just about anything he wants while staying here.”
Several days passed and God did show up again and this time he stayed the night in his new room. “What a wonderful gift this is” God said. That night Darla and her husband got to visit with God and Hazi in the extra room, and as you might suspect they all enjoyed their time together. God could see that Darla liked to have him around and this pleased him.
A few months passed and God and Hazi decided to stop by for another visit. They enjoyed Big Ron and Darla's hospitality once again. “How can I bless Darla?” God asked Hazi. Now Darla was already happy with simply having God in her life; she didn't want anything from God. But God insisted and after talking it over with Hazi he had an idea. He was going to give Darla something she didn't even know she could ask for, a son!
“What are you doing, Lord?” Darla asked. “Please my Lord, don't get my hopes up. ”The Lord took Darla by the hand; “I know you have always wanted a child but have been unable to bear one to this point. You have been such a wonderful neighborhood mom for all of the kids around here, adopting them into your heart as your own. You always welcome me into your life so I want to give you the deepest desire of your heart.”
One year later Darla had a baby boy. He was oh, so cute. He had crystal blue eyes, blonde hair with little waves and loved to smile. He was very chubby and was always sucking his thumb. Big Ron and Darla decided to name him Michael. “Mikey” as they called him, quickly became the talk of the town. Everybody adored him, especially his mom. Mikey grew to be a polite, hardworking, godly boy. He enjoyed playing basketball, chess, drawing pictures and of course playing the guitar just like his dad. The family enjoyed many fun days together. From the time Mikey was born, each time Darla made her delicious strawberry delight, she could not help but remember what wonderful things God had done for her simply because she made him feel welcome in her life. And wouldn't you know it, God blessed her with even more.
The End
(taken from 2 kings 4 - the shunammite woman)
(taken from 2 kings 4 - the shunammite woman)
