Back from the Wilderness

Well, as you can see, it's been exactly 2 years ago that I wrote my last blog post. The last two years have been a walk through the wilderness for me. So dark, at times, that I haven't been able to write devotionals.
My wilderness started as doubts and fear crept into my spiritual life. Add in seven months of fertility meds with handfulls of hair coming out everyday, nightmares and hotflashes every night, cramping and swelling, and an optical migraine where the walls started cracking and sliding down, and I can honestly say I've been in the pit (as Beth Moore would say) for the last 2 years.
But as Ecclesiastes 3:4 says, "There is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance." And I'm ready to start dancing again. :) We have officially started the process of adopting a precious little baby from China. Just to show you how God works in His omniscience...I have wanted to adopt from China since I was a little girl, and I have had a heart for orphans all this time. Only now am I realizing that the twinges and yearnings I have felt all these years are actually a calling from God. So I am going to continue my devotional posts, but I will sprinkle in updates on the adoption from time to time. Right now, we are buried in paper work with a goal to complete the home study by June. I'll keep you posted....
One of my favorite songwriters is Laura Story. Just shortly after she and her husband were married early in their twenties, they found out he had brain cancer. Her songs epitomize the greatness of an all-powerful God in the face of human frailties. So today I leave you with her latest song Blessings.

On the Banks of the Jordan

We've been standing on the banks of the Jordan River for quite some time at our house. Before us is the giant rushing river, behind us is the enemy racing towards us with weapons raised.

I have felt for a long time that the job that I had was not where God wanted me. I was exhausted, completely depleted of creativity, and had daily battles with my self-esteem because of it.

It's like being on a giant hamster wheel and you can't get off. You just run, run, run, as fast as you can and never get anywhere. And you're TIRED.

Can I hear an 'Amen' out there?

So we prayed and asked others for advice and finally came to the conclusion that I should take another position at a different school.

You would think this would be the end of the story...the enemy's gaining on us, but the River's getting ready to part so I can walk through to a new era in life on dry ground.

You would think...

But instead, my former employers are mad. Mad because I am leaving when they had counted on me to continue my hamster race. Mad enough to speak with a Board Member at my new place of employment and try to get me in trouble before my first day of work.

This past week we went to the Choral Festival in Spartanburg, SC - a convention for 1200+ music ministers where you hear great speakers and musicians, listen to lots of new choral music, and just get a general rejuvenating kick.

The first speaker, Dr. Jim Henry, spoke on Joshua 3:7-17, the leading of the Israelites across the Jordan River (did you know God parted the Sea and the River??? He did it twice!). The point that he brought out was that the Word specifically says that God stopped the river 30 miles upstream so that the ground where the Israelites crossed would be completely dry. God anticipated and prepared for their crossing, miles before the place where they actually had to cross...and God will do that in our lives as well.

As we face challenging times, remember that God already knows the battle we face and is preparing for it. When everything seems dark and the enemy is close behind you, God has already prepared for your crossing into safety.