Gift Wrapped With A Bow On Top
It's summertime for us! Finally! We are enjoying a much needed break from the heavy demands of this last teaching semester. Physically and Mentally we were desperate for rest and rest we are now getting. One of the great joys of our rest period is having the chance to sit down with a friend or two one-on-one that we don't usually connect with during the school year. I had that chance yesterday and it was sweet. I knew God was doing amazing things in the heart and life of my friend but I hadn't yet had the chance to hear of it personally. Sitting quietly in a little cafe and hearing story after story, detail after detail of answered prayer and the clear movement of God in re-directing a life was like water for my thirsty soul. Times like those can't come often enough and they are valuable in so many ways. One thing they bring is visible reassurance of God's specific working right now, in this time and this place. A second thing they bring is the reminders of God's specific working in your own life in the past. And to me a third thing they bring is hope that as God has done, He will continue to do not just for me, but for all who call on Him in faith. I left our time with a thankful, introspective, and hopeful heart.
I was reminded of the importance of telling others what He is doing in my life. When we tell each other we bring each other needed reminders and necessary hope. Someday I hope to tell you a bit about my friend and her amazing journey of faith. But not today. Her story is still being written so today I'll tell you one of mine: One thing God has done for us very specifically this semester is answered our prayers for our children's schooling needs. The overwhelming thing to me was that He answered it in such a way that exceed all my expectations and left me marveling at a God who answers a prayer 6 years before you asked Him to. We were seeking much wisdom and researching many choices for how to proceed with our son entering elementary school this year. In the end, we chose a combination of the local public school and homeschooling and began to pursue it. I was confident that for the next 6 years of elementary school that even though it would be difficult we could navigate it successfully with God's help. But by Junior High I felt strongly it would be for reasons of culture and difficulty beyond our grasp. And so I asked God that if He wanted us to stay here He could provide a better option 6 years from now. He answered by providing it right now. We weren't looking and weren't expecting, and suddenly the prospect of an international school job landed in Rob's lap, then the mention of schooling, and finally the decision that such schooling could be provided if only I would also take a job for them.......but not just any job, a nursing job.
This job of school nurse has been the unvoiced desire of my heart since we arrived in China. Although I have dearly treasured the chance to stay at home when my children were very small, I have quietly missed practicing nursing. It wasn't just a job for me, it was a love of mine. But I saw no opportunity for myself here, aside from a tiny window of hope that one day, just maybe I could find a way to be hired by an international school as a school nurse. But I had laid it aside because I know what God is doing here is far more important then my career. And then without ever voicing that desire aloud or even whispering it in prayer, the job was dropped on my lap. It was placed there by a God so wise and so loving that He knows my unvoiced desires and isn't content to simply answer prayer for my immediate and desperate needs. He delights to know and give me the desire of my heart. And He didn't just settle for answering one prayer, He is so amazing that He combined our desires and our needs and fitted them altogether so that nothing was left undone. With the gentle touch of His all-powerful hands He has provided our schooling, employment, visa, and financial needs in one large gift wrapped package laid at our feet before we even asked.
And then for the cherry on the top, came the news that if we had decided to go the local school route, it would have required something from us that we could not have ethically and in good conscious provided. But in refusing to provide it we would have lost all chance of Robbie qualifying for local schooling for this upcoming year. He would have been forced to exclusively home school which because of our situation here is not a good option. So not only did he provide our desires, he also preserved us from a heartbreaking decision. We are blown away by His goodness.
So I hope reading my story today encourages you that God is still at work today in specific ways with real people. I hope it reminds you of what God has done for you in the past. And I hope it gives you great hope as you meet with Him in prayer today and look towards your future. He knows, He sees, and He cares.
Phillipians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
I was reminded of the importance of telling others what He is doing in my life. When we tell each other we bring each other needed reminders and necessary hope. Someday I hope to tell you a bit about my friend and her amazing journey of faith. But not today. Her story is still being written so today I'll tell you one of mine: One thing God has done for us very specifically this semester is answered our prayers for our children's schooling needs. The overwhelming thing to me was that He answered it in such a way that exceed all my expectations and left me marveling at a God who answers a prayer 6 years before you asked Him to. We were seeking much wisdom and researching many choices for how to proceed with our son entering elementary school this year. In the end, we chose a combination of the local public school and homeschooling and began to pursue it. I was confident that for the next 6 years of elementary school that even though it would be difficult we could navigate it successfully with God's help. But by Junior High I felt strongly it would be for reasons of culture and difficulty beyond our grasp. And so I asked God that if He wanted us to stay here He could provide a better option 6 years from now. He answered by providing it right now. We weren't looking and weren't expecting, and suddenly the prospect of an international school job landed in Rob's lap, then the mention of schooling, and finally the decision that such schooling could be provided if only I would also take a job for them.......but not just any job, a nursing job.
This job of school nurse has been the unvoiced desire of my heart since we arrived in China. Although I have dearly treasured the chance to stay at home when my children were very small, I have quietly missed practicing nursing. It wasn't just a job for me, it was a love of mine. But I saw no opportunity for myself here, aside from a tiny window of hope that one day, just maybe I could find a way to be hired by an international school as a school nurse. But I had laid it aside because I know what God is doing here is far more important then my career. And then without ever voicing that desire aloud or even whispering it in prayer, the job was dropped on my lap. It was placed there by a God so wise and so loving that He knows my unvoiced desires and isn't content to simply answer prayer for my immediate and desperate needs. He delights to know and give me the desire of my heart. And He didn't just settle for answering one prayer, He is so amazing that He combined our desires and our needs and fitted them altogether so that nothing was left undone. With the gentle touch of His all-powerful hands He has provided our schooling, employment, visa, and financial needs in one large gift wrapped package laid at our feet before we even asked.
And then for the cherry on the top, came the news that if we had decided to go the local school route, it would have required something from us that we could not have ethically and in good conscious provided. But in refusing to provide it we would have lost all chance of Robbie qualifying for local schooling for this upcoming year. He would have been forced to exclusively home school which because of our situation here is not a good option. So not only did he provide our desires, he also preserved us from a heartbreaking decision. We are blown away by His goodness.
So I hope reading my story today encourages you that God is still at work today in specific ways with real people. I hope it reminds you of what God has done for you in the past. And I hope it gives you great hope as you meet with Him in prayer today and look towards your future. He knows, He sees, and He cares.
Phillipians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
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