A Parting Gift

It has truly been a blessing to have a meditation published in The Upper Room. My heart has always been set on sharing with others what God has done in my life by way of writing. When I wrote my meditation, I was in one of the biggest transitional periods of my life. I was caught between enjoying and embracing God’s gift of life with the birth of my daughter, and feeling very burdened by the death of two family members (one of them on the same night my daughter was born). The lessons I learned during this interesting time I still carry with me today.

One takeaway that I still cling to is to never let my temporary struggles steal my eternal joy. When I look back at these events in my life, I can quickly see that my faith grew substantially through this trying time of my life. Even when I wanted to throw in the towel, my mind kept going back to the book of Exodus where Moses parted the Red Sea. With the Egyptians hot on their trail, God’s people had to think quick about where their faith was going to come from. Was their faith in themselves and their ability to ward off a much stronger enemy by themselves, or was their faith in a living, powerful God who promised never to fail them? Personally, I’ve come to know by dealing with trials that I tend to try and fight out of my own strength—it's almost an instinct. However, like the Israelites realized, no amount of human strength can overpower what God can do through our worship. As the Egyptians were closing in on them, the Israelites had to decide whether to fight from within themselves or to fight through their worship. Moses made the decision to lift his hands and have faith, trusting that God would provide.

As I think back to the birth of my daughter and the death of my Grandmas, I am so glad I chose to lift my hands and worship. I have come to terms with the fact that God simply knows what is best for me. The next time my back is against the wall and I am unsure how to pass through the depths of despair, I will raise my hands in worship. My daughter is now three years old, and because of the events that happened on the night she was born, my wife and I are able to share with her the importance of faith over fear, and worship over worry. In closing, I want to thank everyone for their taking the time to read this testimony. It is a pure joy to know that many of you who are struggling with something today may find peace in knowing you are not alone. May the grace of God bless you exponentially.