We had a doozy of a weekend. Curveball after curveball, circumstances kept shifting out of our grips. It was challenging to navigate when one child was over a hundred miles away, and another whose heart was possibly further away. (To respect their privacy, I will refrain from sharing the details.) I will describe it as a growth weekend, not just for the individuals involved but for our whole family. As any loving parent knows, it hurts more to witness your child suffer and endure the pain than to go through your own pain. Oh, the joys of parenting.
We had to learn to accept what didn't make sense to our human intellect. We had to trust God and remember He created a perfect plan for our kiddos even before they were born.
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." ~Jeremiah 1:5 (ESV)
"For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. ~Jeremiah 29:11 (TPT)
I have memorized and cited Jeremiah 29:11 for years, but what God was reminding me this time was to focus on verse 13.
"You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest." ~Jeremiah 29:13 (TPT)
And that is precisely what we did. We called out to the Lord, and we sought Him earnestly. We didn't rest with the unknowns but clung to Him for answers. He released His peace amid our little storm. So far, we have a few answers and have already observed God's working power in both situations.
Doubt and insecurity popped out their ugly head several times like a game of Wack-A-Mole. They tried to be a thief of our joy and confidence. So instead of allowing them to win, we aimed and punched each thought harder with truth and testimonies where God prevailed. It's funny how this storm started with events that didn't make sense, and now that is precisely the testimony we are hoping for - God stories that don't make sense to our human mind. Read anywhere in the Bible, and you will quickly see where God's nature doesn't match human nature.
You can catch a summary of Faith Champions written in Hebrews 11.
I heard Bishop Garlington (Covenant Church in Philidelphia) preach a message a while ago that mentions going from faith to faith; you go through doubts. To go from strength to strength, you go through weaknesses. And to go from glory to glory, you drop the "l" in glory, and you find yourself going through the hallway of gory. The "to" is the place between where you currently are and where you are going. That "to" feels more like "toooooooooooo" because it's a long process.
My family is going through the "to" right now. We're going from faith to greater faith. We're taking our faith, sometimes the size of a mustard seed, and trusting God regardless of the outcome. The "to" hallway is challenging, but that's how we will become even stronger as it pushes us and motivates us to trust Him more.
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." ~Romans 1:17 (ESV)
What about you? Are you familiar with the "to" hallway or going through it now? If so, Let's go after greater faith together and confidently trust our God has a good plan for our future.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
~Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV)
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