Don't forget...

"I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us..." Isaiah 63:7

I was speaking to high school’ers the other day at the school I graduated from. It was Chinese New Year and I was asked to talk about my journey with the Lord in China thus far. There is something about recounting all the Lord has done in your life- I talked about how He has been so faithful and led me, and held me and protected me, and blessed me in ways I could never have dreamed. There was no way I could tell of everything He had done for me, there was not time. How can one retell the millions of blessings one experiences each day of twenty-six years in just one short hour of speaking? But even in that brief sixty minutes- I left feeling so encouraged, so filled- almost like my feet weren’t touching the ground and I could fly anywhere (I hope the students got something out of it too, hahaha).

I don’t know about you but sometimes I feel so weighed down. Like I am running with weights tied to my feet- but I am not even going anywhere because I am on a treadmill with ever-increasing speed. So even though I am exerting all my energy, I stand stationary-in the place I began. I am so quick to forget where I was just a short time ago, where the Lord has brought me and what He has led me through. I forget that ten years ago, China was just a dream in a young girl’s heart; and the orphaned children that belonged to her- I only saw them in my dreams. But now I have held them, now some of them are my children. I forget that I waited at my computer semester after semester trying so hard to get on waitlists for each pre requisite for nursing school, and now I am a registered nurse in a wonderful NICU. I forget that so many things the world told me were impossible; the Lord has spoken, His word stands, and these things have been accomplished in front of my eyes. I just forget, so easily. And I grow weary. All I see is what is before me… I want to adopt (now), I want my student loans paid off (now), I want to be in China starting a foster home or hospice clinic (now)… and I wonder why the Lord is set on teaching me patience. Waiting seems to be something He makes me do often, but something I seem to still fail at each time. God give me grace to wait patiently. Grant me thoughts that recall your goodness and faithfulness in my life. Open my eyes to see what You are doing each day.

He has done so much for us. Take a moment and think about where He has brought you from, what He has led you through, the miracles you have seen. All of this is His grace. Let us remember all He has done, be thankful, and soar on His wings to new heights; instead of weary and heavy laden by our own forgetfulness.