{"id":29473,"date":"2021-01-04T03:30:01","date_gmt":"2021-01-04T11:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/?p=29473"},"modified":"2021-01-01T12:52:13","modified_gmt":"2021-01-01T20:52:13","slug":"january-4-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/2021\/01\/04\/january-4-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"January 4, 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cFor He performs what is appointed for me, and many such things are with Him.\u201d\u00a0<\/em>Job 23:14<\/p>\n

Trusting For the Future<\/strong><\/h2>\n

When I was little, I would sit outside the bathroom door where my mom had just disappeared, and I would ask, \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d and \u201cWhen are you coming out?\u201d Whenever we would get in the car to go somewhere, I would ask, \u201cAre we there yet?\u201d and \u201cWhere are we going?\u201d and \u201cHow do we get there?\u201d<\/p>\n

This \u201cneed to know\u201d carried on into adulthood. I am not fond of surprise parties because I will not know what to wear (or, more to the point, what everyone else is wearing). One time a girlfriend planned \u201can event\u201d for us to attend; when I balked and begged her to \u201cjust tell me what it is,\u201d she only said I should bring a pair of flip-flops (it turned out to be a pedicure.) When my husband planned a special weekend away, he refused to give me details, except to bring a bathing suit (it was a beautiful hotel room with a hot tub and fireplace in it.)<\/p>\n

I suppose I just don\u2019t like the feeling of being unprepared, and I don\u2019t like to feel like \u201codd man out,\u201d like everyone else knows what\u2019s going on except me. But I\u2019m changing because of my long walk with God. I\u2019m learning that God brings what we need, whether our need is for information, or provision, or merely what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n

God brought Eve to Adam. Adam did not go looking for her.<\/p>\n

God brought the animals to Noah. Noah did not go out to find them.<\/p>\n

God brought visions to His prophets on an as-needed basis, and usually they did not go looking for them.<\/p>\n

God brought the big fish to swallow Jonah.<\/p>\n

God brought (or sent) the Holy Spirit to His brand new church so it could be built up.<\/p>\n

This can be seen from the beginning to the end of the Bible.<\/p>\n

This morning I began to pray, as I so often do, that God would show me what to do \u201cnext.\u201d I immediately remembered just a few weeks ago that while I was minding my own business during shelter-in-place instructions, God brought me a paying job I could do at home, without my asking for it. The job was a perfect fit for me. I had no idea it was coming. I did not seek it. But He knew it was \u201cthe next thing\u201d I was supposed to do. I sought counsel from godly friends, and everyone encouraged me to do it.<\/p>\n

So my prayer changed from \u201cShow me\u201d to \u201cYou will show me.\u201d This may seem like a subtle shift to you, dear readers, but to me, a person who has always wanted to know what is around the corner, it is freeing. It\u2019s a release from the feeling of having to control what comes. It\u2019s breaking a chain of fear about what may be hidden and approaching. It delivers me from anxiety of looking for it or planning it\u2014God will bring it.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know if Noah spent sleepless nights after God said he was to bring \u201ctwo of EVERY KIND\u201d of animal onto the ark. I don\u2019t know if he planned worldwide routes to locate them; or if he thought he would have to turn over every leaf of every plant to find the creeping things; or if he dreamed of putting nets between trees to catch every kind of bird. If so, he needn\u2019t have wasted his time. God has authority over ALL THINGS, and can simply bring what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n

Lord, You work in amazing ways, and we are ever in awe of You. We trust You with our futures. Amen.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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