The Beautiful Spirit Magazine Spring 2016 | Page 2

O ur family is expecting the arrival of another little one in the summer of this year. Since our house is currently filled with rambunctious boys, I was interested to hear what my oldest two “want” the new baby to be. My five-yearold chose a sister and when I asked him why, he said, “Because I like girls.” My seven-year-old chose a brother and when questioned further, he said, “Because you can be rough with boys, and you can’t be rough with girls.” Our family has a lot of unknowns facing us throughout the rest of this year. We’re an army family, and with that comes a lot of waiting (which isn’t always my forte). If you’ve ever heard someone say that the army motto should be “Hurry up and wait,” then you might have a small idea of how things work sometimes. For example, we thought we would be moving to a new duty station in January of 2015, and we are still at the same place we were then. There are good reasons for this, so I’m not complaining, but it’s an illustration of how plans so quickly change. I realize that such things aren’t limited to army life, but this is my personal experience. With the unknowns of the coming months, it’s easy for my planning mind to run through question after question that really has no definite answer at this point. What’s the gender of the new baby? Where will we put the baby (which is determined by the gender)? When will my husband get back from his lengthy, but somewhat indefinite, training? When will we move? Where will we move? Underpinning these questions is my fundamental wondering if we will have what we need when and where we need it. While I don’t believe there is anything wrong with planning, I’m often reminded by the lifestyle God has given us to hold those plans loosely. After all, James 4:1415 says, “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” Recently, God has shown me in two small, but to me significant, ways that He knows my needs before I even know what I need. First, we recently had some friends we know from growing up together and college, who are also now an army family, stay with us overnight as they were traveling home. I hadn’t realized how much I needed a good visit with Christian friends with whom we have a history of shared values and experiences that allowed us to have a “family with friends” time. As we are currently going through similar experiences both in career and raising a family, the time was a special blessing for me. Secondly, I actually got to sit with my husband in church, just the two of us, for about ten minutes yesterday morning! This may seem silly, but again because of our situation, it seems as though one or the other of us is always out with a child or preaching (that would be him, of course) or at least dealing with little boys struggling to sit still and pay attention for an extended period of time. I cannot tell you the wave of unexpected gratefulness that washed over me when those ten minutes occurred. I mention these two examples to reiterate that my God cares for me and for each one of His children. He knows my needs, however big or small, and he cares for them all—big and small. He fills the needs (and yes, sometimes even the wants) in my life which I have not even diagnosed. Certainly I can rest in His tender lovingkindness as we walk through the unknowns of the upcoming months! The Unknown AUDREY BETH ROLAND The Beautiful Spirit is dedicated to encouraging women to apply the truths of the Spirit-filled life. For a one-year subscription (four issues), send your name, address, email, and phone number, along with a $12 check, to the address below. Reply by April 1, 2016, to receive your first issue in the Spring. The Beautiful Spirit is published under the ministry of the Foundation for Global Education, a 501 (c) 3 private operating foundation dedicated to providing Christian education and charity throughout the world. The Beautiful Spirit 56 West Ranch Trail, Morrison, CO 80465 [phone] [email protected] 2 The Beautiful Spirit Spring 2016