Hello friends, Happy November! I cherish this month with the last of the leaves falling, cozy sweater, and boot weather, and my heart is so full of thanks for God who gives so abundantly and lovingly! God is love! 🙂
Do you know that God in Heaven loves you more than you could ever imagine?! He loves you so much that He sent His only Son to die for your sins, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 (NIV). Not only does God want to save you, He has promised to guide you (Proverbs 3:6), protect you (Psalm 121: 7-8), strengthen you (Philippians 4:13), deliver you (Jeremiah 20:13), heal you (Jeremiah 17:14), and love you because nothing “… can separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 38-39). These are just a few of the promises of God! Hang on tight there is more…He has awesome plans for YOU!
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV).
God gave my daughter and me a glimpse of these promises last Friday, November 2nd. God is amazing! But first, let me start this by saying that I choose to see God’s hand in everything. I do not believe in coincidence. I believe God orchestrates every part of my life and I “know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV)
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               I drive my daughter to and from school every day. It had been a trying week for both of us, so I thought we would get ice cream after school together on Friday. Just the two of us. However, it seemed to be taking longer than usual for her to get to the car. She is rarely late. About ten minutes later, I noticed her walking towards the Jeep.
“Sorry, I’m late mom. Grace was trying to get a hold of her Uncle so that we could give her a ride home. But he didn’t get back to us in time before the bus showed up.”
“That’s okay, honey. I understand. Ready to get some ice cream?”
About five minutes later we pulled into the parking lot of Baskin Robbins. Not too far from where we parked, we noticed a few police vehicles, a red SUV right alongside them, and a few officers walking around surveying the scene. I knew this was definitely not a traffic accident.
Savannah and I went inside Baskin-Robbins and placed our order. While the employee was getting our ice cream, I asked her what was going on outside. She said, “About fifteen minutes ago, there was a “road rage” incident, and a vehicle shot out the back window of the red SUV.” Wow. Right near where we are parked. In my neighborhood. I would never have imagined it could happen!
Then I had an “A-Ha Jesus” moment. We were fifteen minutes late getting here!!! My daughter and I may have very well been in the middle of it….but God! Our late “setback” kept us safe. I believe it.
I have learned, over time and with God’s grace, to take setbacks in stride. Whether they are appointment delays, traffic, canceled plans, etc. God knows the whole story. There could be a whole multitude of reasons why the setback happened or is happening. But God knows and I trust Him.
So many good things came out of this! Obviously, my daughter and I shared some time together protected by our glorious Father in Heaven. But, I also used this as a teaching moment with my daughters. I explained to them that even when it appears that things may not be going our way, the One that holds our today’s and tomorrow’s is working everything out for good, and we can always trust Jesus!
I’ve got to say that I truly love these teachable moments with my daughters. When the light of Jesus shines in their eyes, and they truly feel the touch of the Holy Spirit and the promises of Christ, my heart is so full of JOY!! I pray that they will draw on these moments in the future as they grow and walk with the LORD.
My friends, problems, and setbacks will happen in our lives. We may not be able to control the fact that they happen, but we can control how we respond to them and Who we talk to about them.
While reading the November 3rd devotional from Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling, these words spoke to my heart:
“Every time something thwarts your plans or desires, use that as a reminder to communicate with me. This practice has several benefits…talking with Me blesses you and strengthens our relationship. Another benefit is that disappointments, instead of dragging you down, are transformed into opportunities for good. When you reframe setbacks as opportunities, you find that you gain much more than you have lost” (Young, Sarah. November 3rd, emphasis mine).
Isn’t God’s timing awesome?! I read that devotional the day after my daughter, Savannah and I experienced a change in our plans and we saw it as an opportunity to see the goodness of God in it! I pray that the next time you experience a change of plans in your life, pray to God about it and release it back to Him, trusting Him for the outcome. May God continue to bless you!
All the glory to God,
Shanon
Image of “Sometimes you are delayed…” by Quotes about strength by Pinterest.com.
Young, Sarah. “Enjoying Peace in His Presence” devotional. Thomas Nelson. Print. 2004.
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