I'm writing this from a bathroom in the Hampton Inn in Fayetteville, North Carolina on my way to Bradenton, Florida. I have just rented out my home in Bronxville, New York and I'm on my way to moving in with my in-laws. I sit here and think this doesn't make sense, this is not the vision God gave me for our future. I remember something I recently told my connect group, God typically reveals to us the end of the vision without given us the path, because if we actually saw the path our vision would take us we might not want to go. God is cheeky that way. If Joseph had known that he would have to be sold by his brothers and become a slave and put into prison in order for his vision to come true of his brother's bowing down to him, he may have asked God to give the vision to one of his other brothers.
As I uncomfortably sit in a sterile Hampton Inn bathroom so as to not disturb my wife, two year old son and one month old daughter asleep in adjoining room, I contemplate moving onto the army green and yellow diamond carpeting, in a hope that it will be more comfortable. It is then that I see Joyce Myers book "The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word" and I find inside the following verse: "You have granted me life and favor, and Your providence has preserved my Spirit." Job 10:12. I recognize that these gifts Life, Favor and Providence keep in in good cheer and preserve my spirit. Without the gift of life, I wouldn't be able to appreciate the vastness of His unfailing love and mercy, without His Favor I wouldn't be able to recognize His divine intervention even in the middle of trouble times and without his providence I would not have the faith to know that he will complete that what He has promised and that "All things work together for good for those to trust God and are called according to His purposes (Roman 8:28)."
So if your like me and the vision God gave you seems sidetracked, trust that like Joseph you are precisely in the place God wants you to be. His providence that will ultimately preserve the vision and the destiny He has in store for you. So preserve a cheerful spirit despite your circumstances.
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Amen and thank you. Two years of down turn and obstacles and praying what seemed to futile prayers left me exhausted and at my end. Thankfully this is when God can work. I have stopped trying to tell God Almighty the best path for me and my family and I see and feel Him moving in our lives once again. My spirit is lifted up once again because I am once again leaning and relying and completely trusting Him. Our family has bee challenged with doubt, shame, despair and some friends stepping out of our lives becoming weary themselves of our troubles. I just finished Job and related to the experience of people telling us if we hd done everything right we wouldn't be where we are. Thankfully God does not love us based on our deeds. I have submitted my circumstances to Him, we r taking steps to fix what we've messed up, I love my husband more instead of resenting...God indeed is the lifter of our heads.no
Dear Anonymous,
Leaning and relying totally on Him is where God wants us always to be, when things are going good and when things are going bad. Unfortunately, it is when things are going bad that we remember our dependence on Him. I"m currently in that place of total dependence.
As a husband and a leader of our household, it is hard to admit but I have made many mistakes, some I even tried to cover up all of which I would like to forget, fortunately, God casts them all our mistakes into the sea of forgetfulness even if my wife isn't as forgetful at least she is forgiving.
As far as prayers going unanswered, I'm learning more about prayers by observing my son. As my son has gotten old enough to have a will of his own. His requests sound more like demands. I wonder if our prayers sometimes sound like that to God.
I'm trying to learn more about what God is saying by listening to His voice and praying according to His will so now I try to end all my prayers with, "not my will but thy will be done." A great book on this subject is "Crafted Prayer" by Graham Cooke.
Be careful about listening to the advice of your friends, they often mean well but if they haven't suffered in the same way you and your family has their advice might not be sound and their patience is very likely to be short. Job did everything right and it was because he was in the will of God that suffering came his way. We need to just trust God and submit to Him and the process he is taking us through.
Earlier in my walk with Christ I thought I had great plans and God was cool partner to have along for the ride with my plans. But I got the order reversed, I need to give it all up forsake mother and brother, family, wealth and pick up my cross and follow Him. Picking up a cross means we are bearing something that others don't bear. Our walk is actually harder not easier when we follow Christ. A great read on this subject is "Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream" by David Platt.
I believe God has me in exactly in the place he wants me, even if it is not the place I want to be. I believe God has you and your husband in His perfect will, even if it doesn't seem like it at times. It sounds to me like you are actually spiritually leap frogging your friends and I hope you are encouraged to know that He is always with you, He will never leave you nor forsake you. We have to get to a place in our walk with Christ that He is enough.
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