“That day, after Briggs testified, I was feeling awful. And I went
out for a walk just to clear my head… and I saw something lying on the
sidewalk. It was a gold locket with the initials E.C.B. engraved on
it. My middle name is Christine. Erin Christine Bruner. And of all
the people walking by that day, I found that locket. What are the
chances of that? I don’t know, maybe it was a sign. Or maybe it was
just some incredible coincidence. But it made me feel like no matter
what mistakes I’ve made in the past, at that moment I was exactly
where I was meant to be. Like I was on the right path.”
- The Exorcism of Emily Rose

I’ve often cited this scene from the 2005 film, ‘The Exorcism of Emily Rose’ as I’ve tried to explain the personal significance of my own “signs” (or “God winks” as I more affectionately refer to them). I can count 5 major “God winks” to date. Every time one occurred, I was either about to enter into, was in the midst of, or was just coming out of a major milestone season of my life where uncertainty had led me to dive into the Word and to pray for a fresh vision of God’s perfect will. On at least 5 occasions I have experienced “something” that was to me so incredible so bizarre so serendipitous that I couldn’t dismiss it as mere coincidence. Happenings so transcendent that I knew only God could have written it into existence. Then, just a couple days ago, on December 31st, 2011… New Year’s Eve, I experienced the most powerful tangible wink from God I’ve ever known. This one knocked the breath out of me. It seemed impossible. So impossible in fact that I almost didn’t believe it. But I did my research and found solid proof. And I am thoroughly amazed. So here’s the story… I’ll write in a ramble, which is only right, since I was on a ramble, when…

…a couple of weeks ago I was on the West Coast living out a childhood dream of mine (sorry, can’t expand on that… not yet anyway). And at the peak of the intensity, my Dad, who came out to support/protect me, noticed a giant tree planter filled with river stones decorating the hotel lobby. He felt led to reach in and take one to give to me for something to hold on to and remember the journey God had brought me through that week. As he dug through stone after stone, all pale in color, a small black and white stone jumped out at him and he snatched it up to be mine. When we met up that evening, my Dad started describing how his entire day had felt acutely in step with God’s leading… every thought, every turn, every choice, moment by moment. He told me a series of cool little signs involving songs and national news events and human run-ins that didn’t at all surprise me since his whole life has been marked with that kind of crazy “fabric unfolding and weaving,” as he likes to call it. And then he told me how he was led to my stone. As soon as I held it, it felt special. I was reminded of the types of memorials that were set up in the Old Testament, like in Genesis 28 when Jacob set up a stone as a pillar and named it Bethel as a reminder of what God had spoke to him there. I knew it was the beginning of a new tradition in my life. From then on I would intentionally find a special stone to remember special moments.

A few days later, my Dad and I were back home in Franklin, Tennessee. On the morning of New Year’s Eve my Dad asked what I’d like to do on the last day of what had been a very meaningful year. Without hesitation, I said, “Let’s go hiking!” Maybe it’s just my Native American nature, but I have always felt a deep, untainted, uninterrupted connection to Christ while out in great wide open, especially when exploring mountains and hill country. So we took the short drive up to hike the high hills of Radnor Lake, and we hiked for hours. I was taking pictures and passing the camera back and forth with my dad, but every now and then I would scan the ground hoping to see a stone that looked fitting for the occasion. I picked up three along the way, but none of them spoke to me, so I ended up tossing them back. I did a lot of praying on that hike, but what I found myself asking God repeatedly was for Him to guide my every step, to speak to my spirit so loud and clear that I couldn’t help but stay in perfect sync with His purpose for my every breath.

Hiking Radnor Lake

Before I knew it, we had come to the end of the trail, and I realized I still hadn’t found the stone that I could say “God lead me to you, and you called out to me.” This part of the trail was back to lake level, and suddenly rocks were getting very sparse. So I picked up one more that looked like a particularly pretty piece of broken concrete that also failed to move me, so I threw it back too. We were just about to cross the final long walking bridge across the swampy edge of the lake and led to the parking lot , when my Dad said “look over to see if there are any streams… even the smallest flow of water will wash stones down stream.” Sure enough, I looked over the bridge and I could see a couple of narrow shallow streams through the boggy swamp grass, and they appeared to have plenty of little pebbles to choose from. So I walked about 50 yards to a point where I could safely climb over the bridge down to the ground (without having to remove my heavy pack) and I trudged through the swamp scanning each tiny stream. As I walked, I sincerely connected with God, and followed that still inner voice, until it stopped me at the edge of a stream that bent as it crossed under the walking bridge. As I bent down to scan the pebbles under the bridge, my Dad suggested a couple blond river stones he could see from the bridge, and as I stepped across to the other side of the stream he said, “there’s a bunch of interesting stones to choose from over here.” And as I spun to look down at the water’s edge I said, “yeah, but I want it to call out to me.” –and before I could finish that sentance BAM!… [Read more...]