guest blogger - patti ryan

I was in a mall parking lot when my phone notifications flashed the title message from Regina about the cancellation of our travel to Sendafa. Last minute dash to get some compression socks for the flight... I still wandered around the store after collecting myself in my car. That 'collecting myself' included a phone call with Joyce, a phone call with my son and my daughter, and texts with my prayerful friends. So, safe to say, the collecting of myself took about an hour! 

God was sitting right there in my car with me I am sure. He knew, He always knows... He knows the depths and the breadth of my thoughts and my heart. He knew how much I thought I needed to go to Ethiopia. I felt as if He was leading me there, offering me a glimpse of true acts of service with my fellow humans from whom I had so much to learn. For many years I have felt the desire to teach abroad, in areas where God wants to use me to make His presence known, in places where I could feel I made a difference. So far in this post I count 11 I's and 13 forms of me/my/myself - 24 indications that my compass needed to point up to God to help me learn what He wanted me to learn from this experience. 

A later notification on my phone was another email, this one from a Christian blogger I follow. I opened the email to find He sent me this message in that post - "It's not about you!" None of this was about me - it was all about Him! When my prayer circle members expressed their happiness in our safety I was grateful, but certainly not happy. I was able to speak with God and tell Him I was thankful for His work in my heart and I can give Him my sadness. He turns around my 'sad and safe' heart and makes it joyful! Full of joy because of the friends I've come to love and appreciate in the preparation alone for this journey. He knew, and He knows!