Written by: Carl C.
“ A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 KJV
Many years ago, in order to keep my job, I was put on the night shift. I really despised having to work nights…it meant missing church, not seeing my wife except on weekends and it interfered with some of my ministry work. The night shift supervisor had a reputation of being very hard and difficult to work for. I was not liking any of this! But, I went and on the first night of work, I discovered I had something in common with this hard shell supervisor…we both were involved in buck skinning and black powder shooting sports or commonly referred to as muzzleloaders. This common ground often opened a door for me to speak of my relationship with God, but he always retorted, “I don’t believe in God.” A few years later we crossed paths again when we both worked for another employer and actually then worked side by side. Again, I often spoke of Jesus and His goodness. But still he would say, “I don’t believe in God.” We worked together for a couple of years when I was promoted to supervisor and then I became his boss. I still talked with him about his salvation, but he always replied, “I don’t believe in God.” I prayed a lot for this guy as I saw a lot of destructive things happening in his life. About three years later, he retired and then I didn’t see him for over two years. One day, out of the blue, he came into my office and shared this with me…Shortly after retirement, his wife passed away, then his son was killed and his granddaughter came down with a crippling illness. During that time, he became very bitter at life. And then, to add to his misery, he had a severe stroke that put him in a hospital bed, totally paralyzed. The doctors told him his chances of recovery were very small and that he would basically be a vegetable for the rest of his life. As he laid there in that bed he thought a lot about our conversations and my talk of God. He told me he prayed this simple prayer, ”If you really are this God that Carl often spoke of, I ask you to forgive me of my denial of you. Carl believes in you and I want to believe in you. I want you to be my God and whatever I have left of a life, I want to use it to serve you.” Within a couple of days, feeling and movement began to show in his body and within a week, he was up and walking out of the hospital. He now wanted me to know that he is saved, in church and serving God!
Sometimes God places us in uncomfortable situations, but we can trust Him, we must trust Him, for He has the plan!