Amanda Daniels, Speaker – May Luncheon
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. “ – Romans 8:28
Years before I became a mother, God was busy preparing me for what He knew would later come. After college, He began developing my analytical and financial skills. He placed me in a career where I was trained to understand patterns and trends. I spent years learning to budget, analyze, strategize, implement and most importantly, to notice outliers in numbers as indicators that something was off. Though I was very successful, I was never fulfilled. And I couldn’t understand why I continued to be given such wonderful opportunities at work when all I myself really wanted was to be happily married and have a baby.
It was only after my child’s diagnosis of Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes when I finally understood and was able to look back with tremendous gratitude for my career. My training was the very thing that led to her early diagnosis. And it continues to be highly valuable as I teach her to better manage her disease.
God prepared me when I myself had Gestational Diabetes. I was scared to death to prick my finger and check my blood. But I had no choice. I learned about the impacts of certain foods and activities on blood sugars. And most importantly, I learned that God was there helping me pierce my skin four to six times a day. Though gestational is MUCH easier than type 1, I did get a basic understanding of how she feels.
Most important in my story is that God led me to study the Bible just a couple of years before she was diagnosed. It was only then that I truly began to comprehend who He is and that I truly began to trust Him. I learned how much He loves me. I learned about His sovereignty. I learned about His faithfulness. And I learned how to listen to Him.
The spring before her diagnosis, I participated in a Beth Moore study on Esther. After my group finished, I very clearly heard God tell me that He wanted me to lead this same study over the summer in my home for neighbors. At first, I assumed I heard Him wrong. I did not feel like I was equipped. I was still new to Bible study and was not yet comfortable praying publicly. I did not have the confidence it required but I decided to do the best I could and I took the leap of faith and invited the neighbors. Nearly twenty came.
One of the primary themes of Esther was courage for “such a time as this.” I knew God was preparing me for something because He wanted me to do this study twice!
Sure enough, right after we completed it and the kids returned to school, my daughter was diagnosed and I was called to apply what I had just been taught! Ever notice how God does that???
What comfort I took in sitting back and connecting all of the dots. I realized that God was not surprised by my daughter’s diagnosis. And though it threatened MY plan for her life, it did not threaten HIS plan for her life! All we had to do was reach out and grab His hand and trust Him.
I knew God had prepared me to handle it and in turn I would prepare my daughter.
I knew He would not abandon us but would walk through it with us.
And I knew I had a wonderful opportunity to teach my daughter how to walk through a trial leaning on His strength and not my own.
And finally, I knew (I KNEW) that somehow, some way, someday, He would use it for good.
Was it hard? Yes and it still is. But when did we decide that only the easy things are good? Sometimes, it is those excruciatingly difficult things that bring about the biggest blessings.
Robert J. Morgan really dissects Exodus 14 in his book, The Red Sea Rules. As I read it, the light came on for me and I saw God not only allow Pharaoh and his armies to pursue His beloved people, but actually orchestrate the whole thing!
Were His people terrified? Yes, they were. And they cried out and whined and complained and felt sorry for themselves. They worried they would die in the wilderness and wondered why Moses had bothered to lead them out of slavery.
Did they know or understand what God was doing? No and sometimes neither do we!
But in the end, was God faithful to His people? Yes, He delivered them by using the very thing that threatened to drown them. I love the image of the water forming walls of protection along the path where they walked through to dry land.
We all have our own journeys through Red Seas. In order to make it through to the other side (which usually, by the way, is exactly where our calling lies), we have to know and remember the promises made to us in the Bible. We have to know the WORD! There is no situation for which He has not provided a promise to deliver us through it.
If we are looking through a lens of fear, our idea of deliverance and blessing looks different than His. And sometimes, our idea of healing and life looks different than His.
But if we look through a lens of faith, our ideas align with His and we are able to trust Him with things that we cannot see.
We must be intentional about calling on our courage and our faith when fear finds its way into our sight. Because if you are living and breathing on this planet, rest assured, it will.
Choose to keep your eyes on Jesus – looking through a lens of faith. And God will reveal His glory.
JOIN US!
May 20, 2016
Overcoming Fear – Taking Off Your Fear Goggles
Speaker: Amanda Daniels
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