Missing the Boat

I often wonder how many times I’ve missed the boat with regards to great gifts or exciting adventures God had ready for me, but I ignored or chose to go the other way…

My sister and I were talking about this not too long ago as she was sharing that she had just finished a study on the life of Aaron (old testament priest) and that he didn’t listen and obey God at first, but then later tried to do what God had said before – but things were different then.

I know a family who recently went through the process of adopting a precious baby, they were seeking God and yet not everyone was at the same point at the same time. At one point the father was ready and at another point they were both ready, but there were problems with the logistics (ie. God’s wasn’t ready or the child wasn’t ready?), and then finally everything fell perfectly into place – because the whole family was on the same page as God and ready to listen and obey when and what He said, possibly.

I feel like the same thing has been happening with Brian and I. When we were engaged we talked about how we thought that God was calling us to go at some later point, possibly 5-10 years down the road, to be missionaries full-time. France has long been in our minds as a great place to go and minister, but by no means the only choice for us. Not too long ago, I was fully ready to go and after talking with our pastor and praying, we started to contact some missions agencies and missionaries in France. Well, there are lots of open doors and opportunities, but Brian seemed really hesitant and even disagreeable when we would talk and pray about it. So, we were obviously not on the same page. I don’t know what page exactly God was/is on, but sometimes I wonder if Brian and I are even in the same book. Was I jumping the gun for whatever reason? Was Brian dragging his feet? It seemed very clear to me though that God was not asking us to go when we were not both ready. Did we miss the boat? I don’t know. I certainly hope not.

On the other side, I’ve been the recipient of amazing gifts when I least expected it and know others who have been too. In fact, this past week I heard two stories in my family of God’s faithfulness. My dad, Bill, was driving on the freeway and was hit by some drywall that fell from a truck. His car had some bad damage, but he walked away without a scratch. As a testimony of God’s protection, my mother found a nickel (when she finds pennies, she uses them as reminders and thanks God for the small ways he protects us each day) on her walk and knew God was working in big ways that day! Then, another sister of mine and her four kids applied to attend (at a very discounted rate) a local Christian school and they were accepted and the teachers and administrators were excited about working with their newest daughter, who is from Zambia and is still learning English and may be a little behind in some academic areas. It was a true answer to prayer – they got on the cruise ship!

God’s timing is always right. As the Gentile father in Mark 9:24 asking Jesus to heal his son cried out “I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief!”

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