God’s Hand At Work {DWITW 365}
One day I was talking to my sister about my job. I said I had been there too long to move on. My salary was too high to expect it to be equal if I started fresh elsewhere in the same field. My vacation benefits were at about 4 weeks, not something to take lightly. I had been there so long, my hours were fairly flexible. I didn’t hate my job enough to consider it time to leave.
About 3 days later, I received a phone call - a friend from church. He began to discuss with me some issues at his work. Then he takes a breath and says “So, we would like you to come work with us. Is that something you would be willing to talk about?”
What?
Excuse me?
YES! YES! YES!
I agreed to have a discussion that evening with the owner of the company, when I just so happened to be at his house for small group.
How in the world did this happen so quickly? Well, the background story goes as follows: I have known both of these men & their delightful families for about six years. We attend the same church. They have seen me at my lowest of lows, they’ve watched God carry me & gently set me back on my feet. They were there to pray for me, hand me tissues, give me a hug or shoulder to cry on & so much more. They are two of the families I turn to when life is hard or is amazing. They are as family as family gets.
When I got that call, it was as if I could audibly hear God whisper in my ear “This is your new beginning.” I didn’t have to think about the decision at all. It was divinely knit for me.
I know life can be hard, and harder for some more than others. The old cliche of life not being fair is among the most real statements in the world. But I also know that obedience to God’s plan for our lives DOES equate to a beautiful story.
When I read Ezekiel 20-32, frankly, I felt sad that I was assigned to write about it. All I felt when I read was the heaviness of the Israelites’ disobedience to God. I thought to myself that they were so selfish, ignoring His warnings, when He was so clearly simply aiming to instruct them in His ways. But then I began my new job, and I began to understand what God might be saying through this section of His Word. My obedience & faithfulness to God is what gave me the confidence to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was my time to leap into a new adventure - this was a similar journey of understanding that the Israelites themselves needed to take.
He has already put us face to face with people in our daily lives who need to see Him and experience His hope.
As I read further into Ezekiel 33, God speaks of the night watchman. The responsibility he holds over the people to warn them of their lives. How the blood shed would be his if he failed to notify the people. I equate that to our responsibility as children of God. WE are responsible to the people around us. We speak of divine appointments being a special opportunity to share our love of God with someone, but really shouldn’t every encounter we have with anyone be a divine appointment? He has already put us face to face with people in our daily lives who need to see Him and experience His hope.
Plus, when we see what God is doing in our lives or in the lives of our friends, how can we not be excited? How can we not want to shout out from every rooftop about our Glorious Father?! And friends, if we are not excited about what God is doing, we need to ask the Holy Spirit to put our hearts in check. Life is not about our timing, we live under His sovereign and good hand. Our lives are not about us. They are about Him - His Kingdom, His people.
In Ezekiel 34, God calls out the shepherds, or priests, of Israel who have ignored their flock. In verse 24 He says that because of the lack of the shepherds’ care, He will tend to the flock. He will protect them, feed them, and shelter them. The reality is we, similar to the priests of Israel, are inadequate to handle the job of shepherding His flock without Him to guide & lead us in the way.
Just this past weekend I was with a person whom I hadn’t seen in a long time. He was a man whom I had previously sought wise counsel from. This recent encounter left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. Rather than encourage me in my walk, he left me with a feeling of judgement and made me feel I was unworthy. As if no amount of proclamation of God’s heart over my life remained true, I cried, devastated. I thought if I was to live based on what was said to me, no one would make it to Heaven. Then, I was angry. How dare he speak to me in a manner that drove a wedge between me & God? I remembered then that it wasn’t about me. And it wasn’t even about the elder that had torn me down. It was about my God. His grave. His mercies. His Grace. His redemption of my soul.
Our lives are not about us. They are about Him - His Kingdom, His people.
Ultimately, my life is about my faithfulness & obedience & deepest desire to live FOR Him. God wants my innermost thoughts, and He wants yours too! He wants our hearts, our hurts, our trivial daily nuggets of excitement & disappointments. Sharing all of our lives with Him allows us to walk hand in hand with God throughout each day. We get to snuggle in close and tell Him about our day. We get to lie in His arms of comfort when we are sad or hurt. We get to know that whether our miracle of healing comes in the flesh or it sends us home to Heaven, either way is a beautiful win.
In light of this, I am excited about my new adventure. I know God hand picked me for such a time as this. I am ready. I am willing. And I can’t wait to share my excitement with the One who loves me most in life.
Sonya Gentry wants to live in a world where being kind and loving means that when we encounter a need or brokenness, we say yes first and think about it second. This would be a world where walking with Jesus means trying to act like Jesus through loving, relevant acts of service; where Christians put their hands and feet in the dirty situations of the world in order to show people God’s love and grace; where we understand that comfort zones are meant to be broken because people need us to show up and be be the best portrayal of God’s love we can be. When she's not working, you can find her being silly with friends and family, playing games with her nephews, volunteering for various organizations and events with her church, or relaxing with a movie.