True Hope and a Future

I never would have described myself as the adventurous type, and I’ve been scared to death of the positions I have found myself in countless times, but there’s something exhilarating about coming out the other side of a situation I never would have placed myself in in the first place.   Both literally and figuratively speaking, I can honestly say that I don’t like jumping and I hate falling, but I love it when God catches me!  There’s no way around it: the catching experience cannot occur without the jumping and falling preceding it. 

Ephesians 3:20 says that God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” and I’ve learned by experience that, according to His power that is at work within me, I too am able to do far more than I could have ever imagined. Or would have even thought to ask, for that matter.  My recent mission trip to Alaska was no exception.

I really wasn’t expecting much in the way of adventure on this trip.  I had electricity, running water, paved roads and spoke the language.  What more could a girl ask for?  But with God, it’s when you least expect it that you should expect it. 

One of the projects our team was working on was building a house for the camp director.  My involvement in this particular project was in proportion with my skill level - minimal.  God had placed many men on our team who were very talented in various aspects of construction.  I just wandered up to the site on this particular day to take pictures of the guys in action, or so I thought.   

Ten of the twelve members of our team were going horseback riding that afternoon; half of the group from 1:30 to 2:30 and the other from 2:30 to 3:30.  I arrived at the construction site while the first group was gone and the second group was leaving, so it wasn’t that I was chosen to run the Pettibone because I was qualified; I was chosen because I was present.  While I am tempted to say I ended up running this machine by accident – or by default – I know there are no accidents in God’s perfect plan. 

If I don’t look like the type of woman that operates heavy machinery, that would be because I am not, or at least I was not.  I can’t tell you the last time I even drove our riding lawn mower, and yet I found myself in Alaska operating a Pettibone.  Prior to my arrival, I had never even heard of a Pettibone, let alone known that it is a large piece of machinery with a platform on the front that raises and lowers.

After brief (emphasis on brief) instruction from the job foreman, who then left to pick up supplies, I found myself in the Pettibone behind the controls.  Now, I often ask myself, “What difference will this make in the scheme of all eternity?”  http://truehopeandafuture.blogspot.com/2011/07/in-scheme-of-all-eternity.html This question helps me put things into perspective and get over the fear of looking foolish, but this situation did have the potential to make a difference in the scheme of all eternity.  I wasn’t just raising the platform; I was raising the platform with a passenger on it!  And I didn’t want this passenger to enter into eternity while I was the one behind the controls!

Rick was another volunteer at the camp and a man of great faith – as evidenced by the fact that he got onto that platform without me having as much as a practice run.  I sincerely prayed for Rick, that he would live to tell about this experience, but I never told him that.  Some prayers are best kept between oneself and the Lord. 

To say I was challenged by the situation I was in would be an understatement.  I was totally stressed out! But the bottom line is that I did it and Rick lived to tell about it (praise God!)

Obeying God can be the easiest, and at the same time, the most challenging thing you will ever do.  He doesn’t ask for much, and yet He asks for everything.

First, He asks us to SHOW UP.  We don’t need to have all the answers.  We don’t even need to ask all the questions.  We just need the attitude of Samuel: “The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” ~ 1 Samuel 3:9-11

Next, He asks us to TRUST HIM.  Without trust in God, I can talk myself out of just about everything. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;” ~ Proverbs 3:5

Finally, He asks us to OBEY HIM. Not just learn about him, but put what Ive learned into action. “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD?” ~ 1 Samuel 15:22

Lord, I thank you for the blessings I’ve experienced because I obeyed you.  Forgive me for those times when I haven’t showed up, haven’t trusted you, or didn’t do what you asked of me.  I’m so thankful that through you I can do all things, and I look forward to the adventures you have for me in the future!