Turn of Events

In September of 2004, I was sitting in a meeting at the University of Montevallo tending to the business of a math/science program I used to direct. Suddenly, my husband appears in the doorway. I’m confused because I am 3 hours away from home and Tim never shows up at my meetings unannounced.

In that moment, I was sure life was about to take a turn, it was just a matter of what happened to whom. <Tweet this

Within minutes I learned one of my older brothers had died unexpectedly. It was a turn of events, taking me from the mundane meetings of work to “what in the world just happened”.

Have you ever been slammed with a turn of events crashing down without warning? During the midst of the crisis, we are mostly dealing with the pure emotion of the event. Then we slowly begin the “sense-making” process, the why did this happen phase. Our human minds crave to know events in our lives somehow make sense so our world remains a sane, safe place.

Unfortunately, if you have lived much life at all, you know we don’t always get our answers here on earth. God is orchestrating events at such a higher level, our minds could never comprehend. He even uses the horribly senseless events that happen on earth to work out His greater plans – plans that are for our ultimate good by the way.

Everyone knows and loves Jeremiah 29:11 (for I know the plans I have for you…plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope). Awesome, right? But don’t miss the fact that these words were spoken to a people who were going to be in Babylonian bondage for 70 years. Now a future and hope is promised, but not immediately and certainly not what they expected.

Kind of makes me rethink all of those graduation cards I signed with that verse :).

When events take a twisted turn, remember God has the “I AM” perspective.

I have totally fallen in love with 1 Kings 12:15. Solomon’s not-so-wise son is now King. He has rejected advice from sound counsel. But it is all good because God had already said He was going to strip the kingdom away from Rehoboam. So this turn of events was simply God’s path to establishing His word.

Truly, any mind-boggling turn of events is the same. When we commit to Christ, nothing is off limits and God will use whoever and whatever He needs to advance His Kingdom.

In the moments when your calamity comes and life takes an unexpected turn, be like Job and fall to the ground and worship. I wish I could tell you who wrote the following words, but I failed to capture the author. But this is probably one of the most well-written responses to a horrific turn of events I have ever read…

Let your tears flow freely when your calamity comes. Job arose, rent his robe, and shaved his head, and fell upon his face” (1:20). The sobs of grief and pain are not the sign of unbelief. Job knows nothing of a flippant, insensitive, superficial “Praise God anyhow” response to suffering. The magnificence of his worship is because it was in grief, not because it replaced grief. Let your tears flow freely when your calamity comes. And let the rest of us weep with those who weep. When your calamity comes, may the Lord give you the grace to affirm the sovereignty of God, let your tears flow freely, and let God himself  be your treasure and your joy.

 How have you handled the unexpected turns of life? I’d love to hear from you…leave your story in a comment.