In the interest of keeping an orderly home, when I was growing up, my parents taught me to tidy throughout the day. Because there was always something in any given room that needed to be taken back to its original location, we would pick up things as we moved from one room to the next, transferring them to their rightful place.
Though we often don’t understand God’s timing, He always has a plan to work for our good and His glory. Consider the story of Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha.
“What would you say to the woman who feels like a misfit?” the woman interviewing me asked. As I considered the question, all the situations in which I’ve felt like an outcast or outsider flitted through my mind: as a young girl on the playground, as an awkward teen at the dance, as a college student in a new dorm, as a graduate entering the workforce, as a first-time mom secluded with a newborn, as a visitor to a new church, as a woman with convictions that differed from those of my peers, as a beginner in a career of seasoned veterans…
The first time I saw my husband, he had a black eye. My immediate thought was, He sure is cute, but I’ll bet he’s trouble. I better stay away from him. I imagine God getting a good chuckle from this first interaction. He knew what Bryan would mean to me in the future, but I didn’t.
Do you ever wonder if who you are and what you have to offer is enough? I certainly do. Even as Christians who know our identity in Christ, it is hard to live like it’s true. We feel inadequate and insecure about our capabilities and gifts. We wonder if our everyday acts of obedience matter at all.