How, you ask?

Last night, at church we were ask a question as part of the "table discussion" part of the evening where we share thoughts, or ideas and what not, the question was :


How does faith help us when we don't know the "how" of what God wants to do for us.

I admit it was a bit difficult to pin point the exact "answer" because the question was ambiguous for as concise as it was.

Maybe it will help to point out that the topic of the evening was how to know God's will for our lives and whether we go left or right, date him, or not. Take the job, don't take the job, buy the house, don't buy the house. If we are supposed to start a new ministry, or not. Most of us get stumped even when we get the answer...with the big question..."how"?

The truth is that we just have to take the steps of faith, one at a time. And, as our pastor demonstrated so well, as the lights were dimmed to darkness and all we saw was the glowing candles from each of the tables, with vague silhouettes of those gathered around, that God's word truly is a light unto our path, even in the darkness...and if all we see is a twinkle of light, we can trust Him as we walk in that direction , that He lit our path. Even if only for the next step. Somewhat like peddling that bike, the faster we pedal the more stable we become. (Thanks for the analogy Phil !)

I almost ALWAYS over think things...just a quirk of who I am, and imagined myself taking that one step...in the dark, toward that beacon of light, however big or small. Even though I don't know what surrounds me in the darkness, I am focused on the light, on what has become clear and just exercises that faith that is often exercising me.

We began to discuss this around our table. How do we take the next step? How do we know what God's will is, so that we can know "how" to take the next step. How do we know our path? How on earth do I make it to the end of the month? The "hows" were flying!

The truth is, I look back over my life, and I think "HOW" did I get here? I never would have imagined that each step would lead me to what is a pretty extraordinary life. But, there were(and still are) so many "hows" that may go a lifetime unexplained!

I don't know how I managed to raise three amazing kids on 8 bucks an hour for most of their lives. I don't know how I managed to find my way into a profession that I was never educated in, whether it was criminal and family law, or the mortgage business. I just know that the opportunities presented themselves, and I took the chance. I had to take the step as the light turned on...but the point is THE LIGHT TURNED ON. I don't know how I was able to manage my first year in this business, when the pay is commission only and there were months where I wouldn't get paid at all. I only know that tiny miracle after tiny miracle of God's grace and mercy in my life ushered me (sometimes a bumpy ushering), to today. Whether it was a reimbursement of an overpayment from two months prior that showed up in my mailbox, and was 18 bucks more than the bill I needed to pay or an extension of grace from someone until I could meet that obligation.

No matter what you call it, I know I have so much and have been blessed so tremendously. I have wonderful friends, and some pretty special family, a job that I love, a beautiful home, and many luxuries that I simply don't deserve. How?...good question. One step at a time, one relationship at a time, God has directed, blessed, and provided exceedingly and abundantly above and beyond what I could think or ask. Just as His word says that He will. I can't always pinpoint exactly the how of it...but to answer the question...faith is what helps us to take one step at a time, in the direction of the path that the Lord is faithful to reveal to us, and the "how" of it is truly God's mystery and we often don't see or appreciate until we look back.

...and I realized that for me...the "how" is the unexplained, unrecognized miracle of it all!