Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up! Do you not perceive it?! Isaiah 43:18-19 (ESV)

For those who know me personally, you may be either laughing or rolling your eyes as you read this verse because you have probably heard me say it AT LEAST 10 times this year! This has been my verse, (so Andy’s too ha!) of 2017. It seems like we have had a lot of new beginnings from big to small: new church, new season of life with both kids in school, new Bibles, new phone (me- that was a FUN one!), new email address… The first part of the year this verse was etched in my mind because we began to see God leading us in new directions and to be quite honest it was hard to accept. Why is it that we can know something in our head, but it is difficult to know it in our heart? I may know that God’s will is best for me, but I don’t want to trust Him, and do what He says. I want to say “But, but, but!”

Well, after lots of waiting, prayer, and time in His Word, we stepped out in faith and followed His prompting in an area of our lives. (And just to be clear, this is extremely rare for us ha! In the past, we have made many knee jerk decisions and have gone ahead with things without even thinking about asking Him. It’s only by His grace we have survived to this point!)

But here is the part I wasn’t prepared for: after taking the initial step of faith, it still required faith. Who would have thought?! We were out of our comfort zones, which gives the enemy prime ground to throw in the doubts! Thank goodness, I didn’t turn into a pillar of salt. 😊 (See Genesis 19:23-29)

And then just when I gave it up to God, confessed that He is in control, started to drop my pre-conceived notions and focus on Him, a funny thing happened. An opportunity came out of nowhere, and His hand was all over it! He answered a prayer in a way above what I could have asked, in His perfect timing, and this morning my head is spinning. Please forgive me if I have rambled, but this post is strictly a testimony to the LORD and His unbelievable faithfulness and goodness in my life. This is one of those sweet times when I am just overwhelmed, and I want to savor it. He is real, He is good, and His ways are higher than ours.

Thank you for allowing me to share 🙂 And on another note, thank you to all who serve our country. My prayers are with the families of all who lost their lives on this sad day.

Natalie

Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. Isaiah 64:4 (NIV)