Laced With Grace

Our family just returned from a super fun weekend camping with two other couples. We laughed, talked, and enjoyed long bike rides. We laughed hysterically at the golf cart and pet parades. We stayed up late sharing around a campfire and roasted marshmallows. Our kids played flashlight tag and cops and robbers and our families made lifetime memories.

A wave of sadness flooded me as we packed up camp and towed our campers back to reality. It wasn’t that long ago that I used to plead with God for friends. Sure, I had acquaintances but I was missing that close connection with girlfriends. This dry valley lasted for several years. An all-time low occurred when I was pregnant with my first baby and realized I didn’t have enough friends to have a baby shower.

In those times of feeling without friends, the Lord himself showered me with friendship. He taught me to rely on Him and trust in His ultimate and perfect friendship. Proverbs 18:24 reminds us that we have a friend who sticks closer than a brother and John 15:15 reminds us that Jesus calls us a friend. Second, the Lord did answer my many years of prayers by providing several close girlfriends. We often get together at each other’s houses and go out to dinner. Those friendships have blessed me in many ways. I know I can count on each one of them at all times, and they can count on me.

What about you? Do you have a favorite girlfriend? Or are you in a valley feeling lonely without friends in your life? When I am downtrodden and feeling alone I try and cling to the truth that Jesus is always my friend and will never fail. And because His word is truth, that same promise applies to you. If you’re lonely and praying for God to send friendships to you, believe that he will and in the waiting time, hang on to His word. He will not let you down!

Dear Lord, Thank you for the precious friends you have blessed me with. I cherish each and every one of them. Lord, I pray for those who are lonely today and ask that You come beside them and be their friend. Please place people in their lives who can encourage them and uplift them. In Jesus sweet and mighty name, Amen.

In Christ Alone,

Dana

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 ESV

The day had been much longer than expected at the RV dealership and a second night of camping was in order. The kids had behaved well cooped up inside the service waiting area. That evening we treated them to a swim in the dealership’s neighboring campground pool but were forced to cut it short by the darkening Florida skies.

On our way back to the camper, we passed a playground. The kids begged for just a few minutes of playtime. They wanted it badly and quite frankly, they deserved it. We had asked for far more than any 4, 6 and 9 year old should be expected to give. But my husband and I glanced at the now ominous sky and knew we had to tell them no. We continued walking back to our camper hoping to make it before the skies opened up.

Just as my husband snapped a couple of quick pictures of the awesome sky, the storm began. If we had allowed the kids even a few minutes on the playground, we would’ve been caught in the storm walking back. As hard as it was to say “no,” we knew it was the best decision.

I have experienced the same thing in my prayer life. Many times I have prayed for something I felt I deserved. I have prayed for things I wanted that I believed were for the best. Still, God said no. Sometimes I see the reasons. But for other prayers, the “no” remains a mystery.

Trusting God when he says “no” requires faith that He is sovereign. Charles Spurgeon once said, “We do not walk by sight and faith, but ‘we walk by faith not by sight.’ To let us occasionally see would, in fact, remove us out of the realm of faith, and bring us down from the high position of believers to the low platform of sight-seers.”
When God doesn’t let us see the reason to the “no” answer, He walks us on a faith journey, showing us that He knows best and has a plan for us.

Have you had a “no” answer recently in prayer? How did you respond? Will you walk by faith from the high position of believers?

In Christ Alone,
Dana

God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord 1 Corinthians 1:9 ESV

Anyone who knows me can attest to my love for Disney. I love collecting all kinds of Disney treasures and snow globes are among my favorites. That is why I was so heartbroken when my beloved Pooh Bear snow globe was knocked over and broke. Water, glitter and glass shattered into un-repairable pieces. As I was cleaning up the mess, I began to ponder what I had learned in my quiet time earlier that week.

The great prophet, Jeremiah, was commanded by God to break a jar in front of the elders to illustrate God’s anger with the nation of Israel’s idolatry. Jeremiah 19:11 says, “Just so will I break this people and this city, even as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot again be repaired.” Israel was caught up in the worship of idols. Today, idol worship is still very much a part of the world even as it manifests in many different forms. The gods of money, greed and false teachings run rampant in our society. No wonder so many lives are broken into tiny pieces by the hardships and trials that make it difficult to stand firm in the faith.

The God of the Bible is the only one able to put broken pieces back together. I can testify to this truth. When trials come and hope is placed in the Lord, the outcome will somehow be victorious. When hope is wrongly placed in the gods of this world or the false teachings of man that are inconsistent with scripture, the pieces stay on the ground. Un-repairable. Broken – just like my snow globe and just like the prophet’s jar. Romans 8:28 (ESV) says,

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose

This wonderful Scripture says “all things.” It doesn’t say just some things. It doesn’t say the big things or the small things but all things. No matter what our trials or how broken our lives may seem, all things will work for the good of those who love Him. I clung to this verse as our family just went through a very hard 11 month trial. God’s word brought us hope and peace to wait on Him. It wasn’t always easy but it is what kept us going; believing and trusting in God’s plans.

So what about you? Where are you placing your hopes? Are you finding comfort in God’s word or the words of man? If you see your life dropped before you shattering into pieces that seem unmendable, what god do you turn to?

I will forever miss my Winnie the Pooh snow globe. Even though I am unable to repair my precious keepsake, I am so thankful for God’s love which consistently and perfectly mends the broken pieces of this life.

I would love to have you visit my personal blog Seeking Precepts.