Reason #398
I got a gift card a few weeks ago. I stuck in the front pocket of my purse and decided when I would use it. The time came and I dug through my purse looking for it. I couldn't find it, but I distinctly remembered putting it there. So, I shrugged it off and figured I'd come across is later. I hardly ever lose things. I'm one of those people who has a "place" for everything. I know where my stuff is, and if I can't find it, I will drive myself crazy thinking about where it could be. I turned my purse inside out and every which direction yet no gift card was to be found. Having no clue where it went, I was quite frustrated. And I'll be honest, I thought about it a little too much. I just couldn't let it go.
Today, I opened the passenger door in my car and there it was. Stuck between the seat and the door, the shiney little gift card finally made its appearance. I like to let my purse ride shotgun, and I'm notorious for leaving it unzipped, and so it had slid out of the pocket into the floor probably during one of my frantic yet perfectly timed morning drives to work. A little bit of relief washed over me when I saw that card. For one, I was excited that I can now use it. But I was also glad to know where it was. I didn't lose it after all. And now, I don't have to think a thing about it because I know right where it is. Peace of mind.
I know I'm making a pretty big deal out of a gift card, but I can't stand not to have my things right where I want them to be. Maybe it's a little bit of my obsessive ways coming into play, but I think we all have times in our lives when we're searching. Searching for something we lost, something we want, something we need, or something we'd like to have. Searching for answers, the right person, a solution, the perfect fit. We look high and low, going to great lengths to get it into our possession or to make it happen. But sometimes the searching process is frustrating. And it's in that process that you become unusually consumed with finding whatever it is you're looking for. Maybe it wasn't a big deal until you realized you needed it or until you went to get it and saw that it was gone. Now, it's a big deal no matter what it is. It's a big deal to you and you can't let it go. You dwell on it, think about it, and become too consumed with the desire to have it. And the longer you look for it, the more frustrating it gets. Why won't it show up? Why is this so difficult? Where in the world is it?
Well, I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't give up searching. I think you should keep your eyes open at all times until you find what it is you're looking for. But sometimes, when we tone it down a bit and quit allowing ourselves to be consumed by finding this particular thing, it just so happens to show up. When you're least expecting it, when you've actually stopped thinking so much about it, there it is. Plain as day, and you think, "Why didn't I think to look there to begin with?" But how much more valuable is it when you've found what you were looking for? How much more do you apprecaite it when it's finally in your possession after spending such a long time searching for it? Your relieved, joyful, and maybe you don't take it for granted like you did the first time around. Maybe you're a little more careful this time as to not let it get away from you so easily. And, it's always worth the search isn't it? I don't think anyone has ever been disappointed to finally find what they were diligently looking for.
So my gift card is going in a safe place. No longer shall it reside in the front pocket of my purse. I've got plans for that card and I'm going to make sure they happen. God's the same with us, too. He's got plans for us, and He's going to make sure they happen. And so, as we search and seek and keep our eyes open for our heart's desires, we should be mindful to include Him in the search as well. Because He's really good at finding exactly what it is you're looking for, what you really need, and at the right time, usually when you least expect it, He will make sure to put it in a place where you'll find it.
#398 - Because He will help us search and find whatever it is we need.
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin. " - Luke 15:8-9
Today, I opened the passenger door in my car and there it was. Stuck between the seat and the door, the shiney little gift card finally made its appearance. I like to let my purse ride shotgun, and I'm notorious for leaving it unzipped, and so it had slid out of the pocket into the floor probably during one of my frantic yet perfectly timed morning drives to work. A little bit of relief washed over me when I saw that card. For one, I was excited that I can now use it. But I was also glad to know where it was. I didn't lose it after all. And now, I don't have to think a thing about it because I know right where it is. Peace of mind.
I know I'm making a pretty big deal out of a gift card, but I can't stand not to have my things right where I want them to be. Maybe it's a little bit of my obsessive ways coming into play, but I think we all have times in our lives when we're searching. Searching for something we lost, something we want, something we need, or something we'd like to have. Searching for answers, the right person, a solution, the perfect fit. We look high and low, going to great lengths to get it into our possession or to make it happen. But sometimes the searching process is frustrating. And it's in that process that you become unusually consumed with finding whatever it is you're looking for. Maybe it wasn't a big deal until you realized you needed it or until you went to get it and saw that it was gone. Now, it's a big deal no matter what it is. It's a big deal to you and you can't let it go. You dwell on it, think about it, and become too consumed with the desire to have it. And the longer you look for it, the more frustrating it gets. Why won't it show up? Why is this so difficult? Where in the world is it?
Well, I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't give up searching. I think you should keep your eyes open at all times until you find what it is you're looking for. But sometimes, when we tone it down a bit and quit allowing ourselves to be consumed by finding this particular thing, it just so happens to show up. When you're least expecting it, when you've actually stopped thinking so much about it, there it is. Plain as day, and you think, "Why didn't I think to look there to begin with?" But how much more valuable is it when you've found what you were looking for? How much more do you apprecaite it when it's finally in your possession after spending such a long time searching for it? Your relieved, joyful, and maybe you don't take it for granted like you did the first time around. Maybe you're a little more careful this time as to not let it get away from you so easily. And, it's always worth the search isn't it? I don't think anyone has ever been disappointed to finally find what they were diligently looking for.
So my gift card is going in a safe place. No longer shall it reside in the front pocket of my purse. I've got plans for that card and I'm going to make sure they happen. God's the same with us, too. He's got plans for us, and He's going to make sure they happen. And so, as we search and seek and keep our eyes open for our heart's desires, we should be mindful to include Him in the search as well. Because He's really good at finding exactly what it is you're looking for, what you really need, and at the right time, usually when you least expect it, He will make sure to put it in a place where you'll find it.
#398 - Because He will help us search and find whatever it is we need.
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin. " - Luke 15:8-9