praying for a set-up

It's the first day of a new year. The possibilities that this year holds are, at this point, endless.

I should say right now:

I'm a constant Facebook status update checker. And Facebook has made it really hard on people like me to stay abreast of all my friends' statuses with their new mobile setup. Blah, I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, but I'd really appreciate it if they fixed that. None of this is my point.

Even though they've made it hard, I've still seen a ton of statuses (I want to say stati, but I  don't think it's a word) today that have wished God's blessings of health, wealth, and happiness on their friends this year.

I would like to politely disagree.

You know what my New Year's prayer is?

That God would do whatever it takes this year for us to seek Him.

If that means losing your job so that He can show you how He provides. Then so be it.
If it means experiencing health problems so that He can show you how He is Healer. Then so be it.
If it means your friends abandon you so that He can show you how He is the greatest Friend. Then so be it.
If it means losing someone you love so that He can show you how He is the best Comforter.

So be it.

I'm not saying this to be callous. I'm saying it because I truly believe it's what He wants.

It's kind of that "not my will but Thine" thing.

Health, wealth and happiness are not bad things. But if there's one thing I have learned (by experience) it is that we rarely seek God's presence when things are happy-go-lucky. We make gods (lowercase g) of other lesser things when He is the only one that's truly God.

I've heard it somewhere that God knows the best thing for ourselves is Him.

I had a breakdown back at the end of July, my dad and I had a long talk on the back deck at their house. I had ugly-cried, like A LOT and been caught red-handed with my pride on high. I'm not sure there could have been a more prideful person at the time. It was extremely ridiculous, to say the least.

Anyway, he shared a story with me that stuck. I was about 4 months old (or something. I was young, can't remember how old necessarily)  and then there was Mama and my older brother and sister. He had just gotten fired from his job (unjustly - not the point) and was in a real tight spot. What was he to do?

He went to a conference at a local church and met someone that directed him to First Baptist - Red Oak, Texas, and it's pastor, Dr. Harold Henderson. He met with Dr. Henderson, who helped him gain perspective. I don't know how long it was before Dad found a job and everything was "fine" again, but I do remember him saying:

"Rebekah, if you asked me today, Would you go through it again? I'd say yes. 100 times. Yes. Because I met God during that time. I met God and He showed me Himself and I've never been the same for it." 

I know, right? My dad is a smart man.

When he was telling me that, inside my head I was saying YES. YES. 1,000 times. YES. I think I started crying even harder. Mostly because I had found it to be true. I don't think I  had ever met with God as much as I did last year when the rug was pulled out from under me.

I think my job situation, my living situation, all that jazz was a set-up. A huge flippin' set-up orchestrated by God. To show me who He was, is, and will always be.

And who I'm not.

So...I hope God sets you up this year.

Because when He takes away the worldy things, it's because He wants to give you everything.

He wants to give you Himself.