Curve Balls

Life can throw us some wicked curve balls. You're standing at the plate. Bat in hand. Stance is good. You feel good. Relaxed. Ready to take on whatever is pitched your way. And wham! You're hit by a curve ball you didn't even see coming. You hit the ground. Your head is spinning. The wind has been knocked out of you. It takes a while to get your bearings. You look around and things have changed. Maybe no one else notices but things are different. Tilted. Off. Now what?

Been there. Experienced it firsthand. I'll never forget the day my husband walked into my office. I was surprised to see him. The look on his face was not good. He told me "I've been fired". I didn't know how to take it in, how to process it. My husband has always been good at what he does. People tell him that all the time but that darned curve ball....

We've been hit by that same curve ball twice in the past few years. Nothing prepares you for it. 

I look back now and I thank God for both of those curve balls, especially the second one. God has taught us so much. To trust Him more than we ever had before. To lean on Him. His promises began to open up to us. We sought His face and His will for what came next.  And it was good. Scary but good. 

So many things about God and how He does things are confounding for our human minds. Often things seem upside down or even backwards. But the joy of watching Him work - wow! To take your hands off and let Him do it - amazing! There is a joy and a peace and a wonder at letting Him have the reigns (or the steering wheel). 

If you think about it, as a believer, its how we are supposed to do life. But, if you are anything like me, you want to fix things, make them right, do something. Sometimes all He needs us to do is rest and wait.

He has all the information, all the resources, all the wisdom. It seems a little foolish to try to do it ourselves, doesn't it? One of my all-time favorite verses is Proverbs 3:5&6: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." It's all there. What we need for life is all there. It really is so simple.....