What not Why

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Have you ever been in a situation that was completely unplanned?  One of those situations where you had some place to be and something happened that completely threw you off of your schedule?  Maybe traffic was awful one day making you late to an appointment.  Maybe you were halfway to where you needed to be but realized you forgot something that was absolutely necessary to have and had to turn around making you late.  Or how about when your flight gets delayed so much that it makes you miss your connecting flight and you get stuck in a city you had never step foot in until that very moment?  That one sounded specific didn’t it?  It is because that happened to me earlier this month.  

So, there I was, sitting in the airport realizing I was not making my connecting flight and ended up being stuck in Detroit for New Years.  I was frustrated, confused, asking God why on earth this happened to me.  I was not doing anything wrong.  I was actually on my way to a Christian conference in Atlanta. And this happens.  I remember sitting there so mad I wanted to just go home and abandon the conference altogether.  Then I remember a conversation I had with this man at the first airport while we both were waiting for our delayed flight to finally get there.  He said, and this is paraphrased, “We’re all sitting here probably wondering why this is happening.  But we shouldn’t be asking why, but what.  We should be asking, ‘What is this happening for?’”  Sitting in that Detroit airport I remembered that conversation. Instead of asking God why, I decided to ask Him, “God what is this happening for?  Who am I supposed to cross paths with?  What are You doing in this moment?”  Crazy enough the next morning, on a 5:00 am flight, I run into that same guy. And we sat there and talked about how beautiful moments like these are because God is somehow moving in them. He was the guy I was supposed to meet and it was incredible.  

When you are in those situations, when you want to ask why, stop for a moment, and ask what.  God will show you, and you will be amazed.  

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The Unknown

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The unknown is a very scary place.  In seasons of transition, sometimes we find ourselves wondering what is going to happen next and fear tends to set in.  We sit there asking all of these questions, wishing we knew what the future was going to hold. We stress out in hopes to have some kind of idea of the direction life is leading.  It feels lonely and desolate.  If you are in between jobs, transitioning into a new school, moving to a new city etc., you know exactly what I am speaking on.  I could not agree more that the unknown is a terrifying place and it is a place I have seen myself in more often than not.  

Life is never a for sure thing.  The moment we think we have it all figured out and think we finally have a grip on everything, it seems our whole world gets flipped upside down and we are right back to square one.  What is really crazy about being in the unknown, is as lonely as it feels and as desolate as it looks, we are not alone.  God is in that space.  He is right next to us and has zero plan on leaving our side.  See, the unknown is actually one of the most beautiful places to ever be. Now in my life, I am excited for the unknown more than ever.  What makes the unknown so beautiful is that when in that space, the only thing we can rely on is our faith in Jesus.  There is absolutely nothing else to lean on.  No one has the answer for us, and we have no idea what our next step is going to be. But Jesus is not leaving us by ourselves.  He is guiding each and every unknown step into the blessing He has waiting for us as He equips us and prepares us.  So if you find yourself in the unknown, praise God, because what’s next is going to be beautiful.