Blessings Abound

Even in our disappointments we can see God's hand at work. No matter what comes our way, we can be sure that he has our best interests in mind. Last Wednesday we set out for the Nashville airport to head to a youth workers conference in Colorado. The alarm went off at 4am and we groggily began getting ready to leave. We packed and got on the road before the sun came up and felt that we had given ourselves plenty of time to get on our 9 am Central Time flight. However, we didn't properly account for rush hour traffic. Our 2 hour drive turned into a 3 hour drive and we arrived at the ticket counter 5 minutes after they stopped checking bags. The plane was still there and wouldn't depart for 25 more minutes but we couldn't get on. Not to worry! We were rebooked for an afternoon flight. (blessing number 1)

Three hours later we returned to the airport only to find that the afternoon flight had been canceled due to snow in Denver. We couldn't leave Nashville till the following morning. We both left discouraged and kicking ourselves for not leaving Chattanooga earlier. Yet God is good in our disappointments. We were able to spend the evening with dear friends from seminary and left greatly encouraged. (blessing number 2)

The next morning we got to the airport on time....actually early (we weren't taking any chances)...and our flight went as planned. (blessing number 3) Upon arriving in Denver we learned that the previous day's snow storm had been intense and the mountain roads received 7" of snow in a couple of hours. Had we made our first flight we would have driven right into that storm. Locals described the road conditions during that time as scary and newspapers showed pictures of overturned and jack-knifed trucks. (blessing number 4)

By the time we made it to the conference we had missed more than half of it. It almost seemed that it wouldn't be worth our time to show up that late. Boy were we wrong. One of the men leading the conference met with us for 3 hours and walked us through the material. The great thing about this was that not only did he discuss the material with us, but he also helped us see how we could apply it in our particular church context. (blessing number 5) It was our own personal conference and we benefited so much by it. We now have a new strategic plan and mission statement for the youth group starting next year. We both were so encouraged and energized by the material.

While talking with the leader we mentioned that we had hoped to ski while we were out there because they had a bunch of fresh powdery snow on the slopes ("Freshy" as the locals call it). He was able to help us get free lift tickets to a nearby ski resort called Arapahoe Basin. (blessing number 6) We hit the slopes Saturday morning after the conference was over and the conditions couldn't have been any more perfect. (blessing number 7) The scenery was gorgeous and the slopes were freshly groomed. We skied for a few hours with neither of us falling or getting injured in any way. Victory!

If you had left me to my own selfish desires we would have been on the slopes from open to close. However, we had to get the rental car back and we had plans with my best friend, Lynnell, later that day. So we begrudgingly turned in our skis and drove off through Loveland Pass on our way to Colorado Springs. The views were breath taking. We stopped on more than one occasion to take pictures.

One thing we noticed was that on every mountain you could see locals hiking to the top and skiing or boarding down and then hitchhiking a ride back up. We both saw the "Caution Avalanche" signs posted all along the road and commented on how it wasn't smart to ski/board on back country trails where conditions are not monitored for avalanches. Sadly, an hour later there was a large avalanche on that pass that claimed the life of 5 boarders. We probably saw them out on the mountain as we drove past. They were our age. God blessed us (number 8) by having us drive through before it happened, but he didn't spare them. I don't understand why that happened. I am saddened for the families who lost their loved ones. But I am also so very thankful for God's protection over us.

So, I know this doesn't have that much to do with adoption, but then again maybe it does. Satan doesn't like that we're adopting. In fact, he hates it. Nothing could be more of a reflection of what God has done for us than adoption, and Satan definitely hates anything to do with God. One of the challenges we have found that adopting couples tend to face is increased attacks from the evil one.

But as you have no doubt seen throughout this blog post, God even uses Satan's attacks to bring about good for His people and glory for Himself. It's realizations like these that make me want to shout along with the Apostle Paul: "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!...For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen."