“My times are in your hands.” Psalm 31:15

Stop the Clock!

It’s hard to believe that we are nearly at the end of the year. It seems like 2019 has just flown by! The last few months have been particularly busy and intense for me. Sometimes I feel like I want to “stop the clock!” I’d like time to stop—or at least slow down. But it just keeps rushing onward.

I never dreamed that our unexpected journey would go on and on and on. As I look back on it, I’m amazed at all that has been “thrown into” this journey. It’s been hard and it’s been good. It’s been sad, and there have been times of joy. It’s been stressful, and yet there have been times of peace and rest. It’s been physically and emotionally painful, but there have also been some points of healing and relief. I’ve often referred to it being a roller coaster. It still seems like one of the most descriptive ways to explain it.

On some of the good days, I have definitely wanted to “stop the clock.” Not so much on the hard days—I’m happy for them to rush by. And yet, it’s the whole picture that shows the goodness and faithfulness of God. Hardship is part of the journey for all of us. Our testings and trials have a purpose. I can look over this journey and see the fingerprint of God in much of what has happened. I don’t understand it all, but I clearly see God at work!

One of the things I’m so grateful for is all the prayer support. Thank you for every time you have lifted us to the Father. I’m confident that those prayers have helped carry us along this journey. I heard Pete Greig say that “the hinge of human history is the bended knee.” I think that hinge, that track along our journey is what has kept us going, kept us being able to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Thank you for your persistent prayers.

As the clock keeps ticking and time rushes on, we can choose how we respond to all the things that life brings our way. We can choose to make our darkest hour our defining moment. I don’t think we can avoid hard times in our lives, but we can choose that those hard times are offered up to the Lord and used for His glory. That is one of my consistent prayers on this journey. I don’t want to look back on this unexpected journey with any regrets. I want to be able to worship Him for all He has done, for His faithfulness, and for His sustaining grace. God has been so good to me!

I can’t “stop the clock” from all that is happening, but I can trust Him to be at work in my life each and every day! He is so faithful to do that.

“Our Father in heaven, we know that our times—all our days—are in Your hands. Teach us to see Your fingerprints on each of those days. Amen.”