Of course, my drawing drew the kids in to start drawing, too, and my plan was "ruined."
Life is like that. We make plans. They get changed. I started thinking back...
Thirty years ago, I had been married to my first husband for seven years. I planned to be celebrating 40 years of marriage in a few years. I wasn't planning to get divorced. I wasn't planning on his abuse of our child. I wasn't planning on starting over with two young teens. But I did.
Fifteen years ago, I moved to the same city as my parents and began teaching in a new school system, new state. I planned to stay there for the rest of my life, looking after my parents and teaching, living on my own in my cute little ranch house. I had friends and friendly neighbors, a great church. I never planned to get married again! I didn't plan to move again. I was happy doing stained glass and teaching. But then I met Brad, and once again my plans went out the window.
When Brad and I got married, he was a second-year seminary student who was continuing his medical job at the Mayo Clinic as he studied. I was finishing up my Master's Degree in Education, and we planned to move to where he found a church after he graduated. I would continue to teach; he would pastor one church; and then we would retire. We figured that we would end up with a church in Iowa, Minnesota, or Wisconsin, where all of our children and parents lived at that time.
Not.
A little over a year after we got married, God changed our plans again. One of our grandchildren needed a permanent home. After discussion and prayer, we adopted our now-13-year-old daughter. Less than two years later, while Brad was still in seminary, I quit teaching and stayed home to homeschool our daughter.
And then Brad jokingly read me a pastoral job listing on a Native reservation in New Mexico. I immediately had the feeling that we should pay attention. After reading more about the church and community, Brad sent his profile information to the Jicarilla Apache Reformed Church. Seven years ago today, our family came to Dulce to meet the congregation and see the area. A few months later, we moved to New Mexico. We planned to continue homeschooling our daughter and pastor there until Brad retired, just the three of us.
God had different plans. Totally unprepared, we took in two little boys "for a few days" two and a half years ago. Last summer, we received permanent guardianship of them. Our family is much different than we planned! We still plan to stay here until Brad retires, and I'm still homeschooling our kids. But who knows what God has in store for us?!
Right now, everyone on earth is in a similar position. None of us expected the coronavirus. Six months ago, we all planned to attend dances and classes and picnics and graduations. Three months ago, we were making doctors' and dentists' appointments and planning weddings.
Today, we are (hopefully) staying home to protect those who must go to the hospitals, grocery stores, gas stations, etc. to work. None of us planned this. None of us would have chosen this for the whole world. Our plans have been interrupted. Our lives have been interrupted. It all feels very random and out-of-control.
But...
God knew. God knew my first husband was hurting our child. God knew that my plans to live near my parents were temporary. God knew that Brad would become my husband and that we would have three children together. God knew all this before I was even conceived! Psalm 139:16 says, "You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed."
Not only does God know all this, He uses it all for our good! (Romans 8:28) It sure doesn't feel good sometimes, and God's word doesn't say everything that happens is good. The Bible says that He uses it all for our good. We may not understand how something could possibly be used for our good because it seems so utterly bad, but we can trust God that He's got this.
So, God knows about the coronavirus and He uses it for our good. I listened to a song this morning by Big Daddy Weave that brought these thoughts to the fore. It reminds us that God is good, He is here, and what He brings to us will bring us home to Him.
In the midst of these life-changes, God is with us. On a day when more than 2,000 of my countrymen died of COVID-19, I know that I am loved...I know that I am saved. I know that none of us walks alone through this unexpected, unpleasant, unknown time. We can trust Him that even this will be used for our good.
On the Saturday after His crucifixion, Jesus Christ's followers were in a dark and lonely place. Little did they know the joy that was coming in the morning! God is good. God is almighty. He is triumphant! Even in the dark days of a pandemic, we can hold these truths. I pray for each of you that you can have His peace, that surpasses all understanding, in these days of quarantine. Trust in Him, for there is no failure in Him.
Amen.
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