The Lord himself will go before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forget you. Don’t be afraid and don’t worry.

Deuteronomy 31:8 (NCV)

I met Mark on the Internet sixteen years ago and during those first days of getting to know each other, we spent a great deal of time online, chatting back and forth, sending emails and text messages. However, the first “real” conversations occurred a few weeks into our relationship when I flew up to take care of my grandgirlies for a few days.

I didn’t have time to spend chatting online because of my responsibilities to the girls, but after I put them to bed at night, we would talk on the phone. This was new and added a different dimension to our conversations. I was able to ask questions and get immediate responses with accompanying voice inflection, pauses, laughter, and tears. The amazing part was Mark’s answers reflected exactly what I was thinking. I don’t remember how many times I replied with “right answer.”

I recently had one of those days when the sun was shining outside, but it was cloudy in my soul. This quarantine has me very weary. Each day is a challenge for this extrovert, nothing going like I want it to with no apparent change in the near future. Ready to give in to my own personal pity party, I decided to spend some time with my Father knowing that any hope for change would have to come from Him.

I sat down to read two different devotionals and would you believe they both had the same theme? One read, “Thank Me when things do not go your way, because spiritual blessings come wrapped in trials.” The other began with with, “Thank me for your problems.” The author, Sarah Young, didn’t write these words just for me but God did.

So, instead of whining, I asked God to give me a thankful heart. I knew that this was His day, He had taken care of me in the past, and I needed to quit fretting. But I had to choose to lay my burdens down at His feet. I know that this season of waiting, paring down, giving up my plans and expectations will teach me strength and endurance for what is next. I’m learning to look for bright spots of color that give me hope. God knows just when I need the “right answer.”