Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Good Morning, Ladies!

I wanted to let you know that I have started a "Favorite Links" list on the sidebar just below my introduction. This list will continue to grow, and I would love to have your input if you would like to see something included.

I hope that today brings you many blessings.

Love,
Becky


For Such A Time As This

When Hathach told Mordecai what Esther had said, Mordecai sent her this message: "Don't think that just because you live in the king's house you're the one Jew who will get out of this alive. If you persist in staying silent at a time like this, help and deliverance will arrive for the Jews from someplace else; but you and your family will be wiped out. Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this." (Esther 4:12-14, The Message)

After I graduated from college, I found myself working at a Hallmark store in a local mall while I searched for a "real" job. It was embarrassing to even admit that I worked there. After all, I had a degree in Psychology and here I was working for just above minimum wage!

In spite of being somewhat depressed about the situation, I did my best at the job and tried to maintain a happy attitude. I developed some of those workplace friendships that make the time a little more pleasurable. One of those friendships was with a girl who was barely out of high school. We had almost nothing in common. She was very loud and brash and loved to party. I don't think she had ever stepped foot inside a church. But she was fun at work, and for some reason she was very drawn to me.

I will never forget the day that she came to work very depressed and asked if she could talk to me when our shifts were over. Later that day, as we sat on my basement bed together, she told me through tears that she had been having an affair with her father's married friend and was now pregnant. She was desperate to "take care of the problem" and wanted to know if I could loan her money for an abortion. I was stunned. There's no reason in the world why she should have chosen me to approach with this request. I mean, let's face it... she knew exactly what kind of salary I had (i.e., she knew I had to be as broke as she was!), and she knew I was a Christian. I told her as gently as possible that I didn't have that kind of money, and that even if I did I could never loan it to her for an abortion. As lovingly as I knew how, I told her all about the baby that was growing and forming inside of her and about how he needed her to give him life. I don't remember any of the words that I used, but I still remember that feeling of desperation... I was desperate to save this baby's life.

Somehow God used my feeble words because she chose to let the baby live and to raise him. I went with her to tell her parents because she was so afraid of their reaction. To her surprise, they responded with love. As a family they committed to helping her raise the baby. This year little Dillon will turn 17. I lost touch with my friend before he even turned two, but I pray for her and her son whenever God brings them to mind.

I often feel that God placed me at Hallmark for that very moment because it was very soon afterward that I got another job and moved on.

What about you? What times in your life can you look back on and know that God placed you there for a reason? What about now? What is He calling you to do in the situation He has placed you in now?

God has a plan and He doesn't waste any experiences...