This morning I work up to hear a new song that I have recently learned about. It's called "Abraham", and it's written by Josh Baldwin from Bethel. I absolutely love the story of Abraham in the Bible. He is counted as a righteous man, and received one of the most noted promises in the Bible.
"Then He (God) brought him outside and said, 'Look now toward heaven,
and count the stars if you are able to number them.' And He (God) said to
him,'So shall your descendants be.' And he (Abraham) believed in the
Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness." Genesis 15:5-6
While we read this story and stand in awe of such a promise, we forget many times that Abraham had YET to have a son. He strictly had to believe that what God had promised him was true, and that it would come to fruition despite every external circumstance in his life.
Many years ago, I was attending a dance worship conference. I loved watching the women wave their flags and banners in worship to the Lord. It was beautiful to watch! Ricky and I were engaged, and at one point during worship, Ricky saw a picture of me in his head. I was dressed in white, and I had a child with me. Ricky said that the Lord spoke to him and told him that my womb was blessed!!!!
At this point, I remember that scaring me a little bit. I was not sure what that meant. And while I was absolutely in love with this man of mine, I wasn't sure how I felt about having children. The Lord had just begun to show me that it was part of His plan for us when we got married. He had just begun to change my heart towards having children. But I believed the Lord, and I knew my Father. If He said it, it would happen.
Fast forward to last January, 2016. At this time I had 6 beautiful children, and we were in the process of adopting 3 more. The Lord had done such a miraculous work in our short years of marriage. His journey had been so unique up to this point, and I had learned to just roll with it. The fact is, I trusted my Daddy. He had walked us through many miracles thus far. So while I couldn't always anticipate what He would tell us next, I trusted His plan. Because one of our current 6 was adopted, the Lord had grown such a heart in Ricky and I for orphans. Hosting orphans from Ukraine the years previous to that had also grown our hearts.
So, here I sat at Bible study, with a group of beautiful woman, and the Lord spoke yet again. He told me that I would be a mother to the motherless. I immediately began to cry. Right there at the table. I knew it was Him. And my spirit jumped within me. I knew that for the rest of my days, this would be something that would be part of my life. And I was no longer scared. I was EXCITED!
You see, when God calls you by name, it is just about the best thing in the world. When God gave Abraham his promise, he had no idea how so many descendants would be brought about. He just believed God. And while I am currently a mama to 3 children who were not born to me, and have fostered 5 children thus far, I believe His plan will continue to go places that I cannot even anticipate. In fact, very recently I felt the Lord encourage me that some of those that I "mother" would not be physical orphans, but those spiritually needing a mama as well. When God calls you by name, it is life altering. It is an absolute great adventure!
So, dear friends, what has God spoken over you? What promises has He written over your heart? The truth is, He has called you by name! He has incredible purpose over your life. And He is not hiding from you. He wants you to know what you were created to do, and He wants you to walk in it.
On a side note, can I say this? Sometimes we as believers feel like others have really big callings, and what God has called us to do seems so small. Can I encourage you? What God has called you to do is HUGE, and was uniquely given to you. Your impact will affect the world. You never know who your life is impacting right now, today. The person you are working next to, the patient you are treating, the children you are raising, or the man you pass by in the grocery store. Our life is meant to be a display of the GLORY and GOODNESS of God, not us. And if we do it well, we are impacting the world, friends. We are.
Love,
Monica:)
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