Stranger?

Dear Friend,

Flashback devotional, but yet still important.

Numbers 22: 27-28 “ When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, angry and beat it with his staff. Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

Yesterday, I was put through a small test. I needed to seek the face of the Lord for an answer. That usually involves me being next to a body of water. I went down to the river and found a unique little cove. I sat in the cove and just began to thank and praise God for all He had done. I then began to ask God for wisdom for this particular situation I was facing. I needed him to provide an answer for me because I didn’t want to be out of His will for my life. If I was involved in anything I didn’t need to be, I needed Him to help strengthen me so that I can be in His complete and total will for my life. What happened next was nothing short of amazing.

I got quiet and just began to stare at the water. A man comes into the little cove and speaks to me. He said this is my little spot, I come here often. I normally come here on my breaks, but I am not working today, so I came down here anyway. He looked at me and said, “Ma’am you look like you have trouble in your face.” I said, “No I am ok!” (Because in my head I am not about to talk to a complete stranger about my business). He came and sat near me and said, “Come on why don’t you tell me about it.” So I looked at him strangely, and in my head said, “Why not he doesn’t know me?”

I began to tell him my reason for coming to the river. I was looking for God to provide clarity on something I needed an answer. He looked at me and said “I get that, He always provides answers for me by the water. He said ma’am I am not overly religious but I do know God, I do talk to Him and the one thing I do know is that, the STEPS are already laid out for us, we just have to walk them out. God gives us this thing called choices, but either path we take, they are already laid out.” I just got real quiet. We finished talking, I found out we knew some people in common and parted our ways. I began to think about what he said all night. See he didn’t fit the part, he was smoking (and not just cigarettes), looked like he may have had a few drinks but he was definitely was being used by God. God took me to the above reference scripture and said, if I can use a donkey, why couldn’t I use the man on the rock?

Psalms 37:23 “The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him.” No matter what is going on in my life, my steps are still ordered. Even if I make a wrong decision, my steps are still ordered. As I walk out into unfamiliar territory, my steps are still ordered. My grandmother taught me something a long time ago, she said, “Don’t be afraid to entertain a stranger, you never know who you are talking to (Hebrews 13:2). I didn’t encounter a donkey, but I did encounter the strange little man on the rock, who would remind me that Jeremiah 29:11 is my truth, why because my steps are still ordered. I can't afford to be paralyzed by being indecisive, I have to trust God is with me. Faith is not by sight,

Got My Marching Orders,

LMJ