Ocean of blessing

Take everything to the Lord.  The little.  The big.  The happy.  The sad.  Celebrate with Him.  Cry with Him.  Every decision.  Every thought.  “Lord, lead me today.  Guide me.  Purify me and set me on Your path.”  This testimony follows on the heels of my feeling hounded by decision-making.  I felt worn.  Unwanting of any more, I sensed my composure caving in.  And as the pressure of more decisions heaped on, I saw the Lord go to battle on my account.  The first involved my volunteer role with girls who have been abused.  I love these girls deeply.  I feel privileged and hugely blessed to serve them.  My difficulty lay among canceled appointments, rescheduling, extra phone calls, court dates, and longer driving distances.  I felt stretched on time and unsure of how everything could fit together.  I pleaded, "Lord, what is my role here?  Please make these decisions for me.”  Then in the midst of initiating one of those extra phone calls, I suddenly realized peace.  Anxiety floated away.  I smiled in quiet rejoice of knowing the Lord's presence.  Next was my job with theatre.  Staring at numerous rehearsal and performance changes, again I asked the Lord to walk with me.  “Lord, speak from my mouth when to say ‘yes’ and when to say ‘no.’”  Then as conversation commenced and carried on, I felt the stress in my shoulders dissipating.  The Lord had delivered me once again, dispelling my discouragement.  Next was our trip to Port Aransas.  For my husband especially, this weekend away was a welcome thought.  Such delight we took in imagining the ocean and a picturesque walk on the beach.  And then came a phone message from the condo office forewarning us about roof repairs and hammering noise and the possibility of the air conditioner turning off, and suddenly I’m screaming “Ahhhhhh!”  But my husband swoops in to tell me not to cancel the reservation because our room is on the first floor.  Hammering on the fifth-floor roof shouldn’t be burdensome down at the bottom.  And I then recalled praying all those weeks ago about which room to book.  The Lord in His omniscience knew all about these roof repairs, and He took care of us.  Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.”  And on this day these words lived out a depth of blessing.  With immense pleasure I paused to kneel, to bow, to raise my hands to celebrate His victory.  How precious is this freedom He gives that we may ask Him to take our anxieties.  Let Him shepherd us.  Let Him save us all over again each new day.