God’s Connect-the-Dots
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Lamentations 3:21-24
But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him."
This morning is one of those times when I cease to question God’s care and concern and intimate involvement in our lives. I won’t bore you with all the details of some of the latest dramas going on in my life right now, suffice it to say there have been several, and they have been potentially life changing. So this was a great morning to receive this scripture e-mail!
Sometimes I find myself uncharacteristically calm, true to my calling as a faithful believer in God’s mercy and the healing love of Jesus Christ. At other times I have found myself railing at God and wondering how much more He expects from me. This morning I am reminded whatever I go through, He will be there in the midst of it all. He has already laid in place everything I need to get through, and His plans are perfect, so I need to wait on him, be still, trust and persevere.
While I have had my quiet morning time the past two days, I was just not up to posting a devotion. I had some oral surgery and so was a bit under the weather. I found my energy was depleted, partly from the surgery itself, and from the antibiotics I’ve been on for who knows how long—in any case they’re starting to zap some of my energy! I’m feeling on the way back to my full energy and strength though, as I have gone to bed early and tried to keep moderately active without overdoing it.
This has all been part of a process, I know. The world doesn’t stop spinning when I don’t post a devotion. But I feel very committed to this. I’ve heard from others that they rely upon my words, divined through God, which on any particular morning, speak to them, just as they have spoken to me! That’s pretty amazing to me. As I think about the fact that I “officially” started this ministry in April 2004, it is the one constant in all that time. To me, this is further evidence of God’s weaving together of a life – a life full of love and joy, laughter and wonder; also sorrow, loss, pain and disappointment. All of it weaves together into an intricate pattern we can only see on those rare occasions when we catch a glimpse of God’s divine plans for us.
Those glimpses are sacred and divine. My day was like that on Saturday. Long story . . . won’t go into it all. Saturday was a day full of those glimpses—so many seemingly random dots in my life became connected on that day. It was amazing. I was awed and at one point I actually had to pull off the road and just sit and cry a bit and wonder at a God so huge and vast who took the time to lay in place a plan for my life so perfect and so divinely planned. On a day like that it’s much easier to have faith, and to trust that God’s mercies never fail.
On a day when someone loses a job, or a loved one dies, a friendship ends, or some other devastating event plays out in life, it’s more of a challenge. Maybe that’s why we receive those “Saturdays full of glimpses of the divine” every so often: To remind us, to encourage us, to uplift and fortify us for the times when we wonder where God fits into the picture. He is there. He always has been, and he always will be. He has already laid out a plan, full of safety nets and second chances, third and fourth chances, too! He’s already taken into account the wrong turns and the U-turns you’ll make. He’s already got a place in heaven for you—and for me.
That’s the whole point. We have hope because of Jesus. He arose a new creature, and so will we. We are washed clean, made new and acceptable to God through the salvation won for us on the Cross. How can a God so big and mighty, strong and powerful, even think to do that for us? How could He love us so much He can’t stand to think of heaven without us in it?! Doesn’t it just make you want to stop what you're doing and cry a little?
My prayer today is that you see glimpses of the divine throughout your day. And that those seemingly random dots in your life become connected.
Mary
