Lessons from Journey, Part 1

Journey is now 5 months old and WOW, what a blessing she has been to our lives. It is amazing to see how God can sculp a new life and a new personality. What is even more amazing is the life lessons that God has been teaching me through the life of a precious little girl. This is the first of many forthcoming lessons that God has reminded me through Journey...

Lesson 1. Blessings Come in Disguise
"Ouch! This is Supposed to be Good for Me?"

The apex of each of the last doctor visits has been when the doctor got out the NEEDLE for her shots. Aneesah and I have had the dubious task of holding her down while she received her vaccinations. As her father I know that what she is getting will help her immune system and fight off many sicknesses, but there is still a little part in me that struggles to hold her while she is screaming at the top of her lungs. I can only imagine what she is probably thinking, "I thought this guy loved me, but he's the one holding me down while this doctor sticks me with a needle." You see, it will be years before she'll understand why she went through that pain. But there was a purpose in her pain.

Sometimes we go through similar circumstances don't we? We wonder why in the world I am going through ________? When will this end? Why is God doing this to me? There is a story in the bible that just might speak to you, it is found in Exodus 13. The Israelites had faced oppression and slavery from the Egyptians for many years and their breakthrough had finally come, Pharaoh had decided let God's people go! So off they went, on the way to their freedom, but they quickly ran into a dead end, a little thing called the Red Sea. And to make things worse, Pharaoh changed his mind and he was hot on their heels. Here they were, stuck in between pharaoh's army and the Red Sea. They began to question their leader and God; wondering, why and how this could happen. One thing they can't go back and see is that it was God who specifically put them there (check Exodus 13:18). The same God who led them into to this perilous situation was also the same God who would deliver them yet again. God was setting them up for an even greater experience, they got to see the Red Sea part! Whatever we go through, the first thing we must realize is that God is the one who allowed us to get here. And secondly, we must rest in the fact that God doesn't do things without a purpose, so he does have a plan in the midst of what you're going through. And finally, we must continue to exercise faith in God. We cannot give up, we must look for the next step that God wants us to take. And remember, that next step might not answer all the questions you have about your situation, but it will get you one step closer to God! God does love you and He does have a plan, just like I love my daughter and I do have a plan for her safety. It may not be pretty at the very moment of the shot, but something is going on under the surface that is protecting her and making her stronger. God is probably trying to do the same thing in you! He's protecting you and making you stronger, it just may be below the surface of your understanding. Stay encouraged!