Despite Life's Plans

Today I want to talk about my girls. For those of you who don’t know me, I have a twelve year old and an eight year old. Both of them have grown up in the midst of my illness. As a result my eldest is extremely responsible for her age and more mature than most. My youngest is one of the best little helpers I know.

Both make a strong effort to keep the house picked up and pitch in when I need extra help. Because they’ve learned that just because mom is down, the world doesn’t stop turning. And when the going gets tough, we pull together as a family and make it work.

When my children were preschoolers and carrying much more than they should have to bear, I often wondered if my illness would hold them back. If it would stunt their abilities, simply from not me not being able to physically get them where they needed to be.

It was the natural guilt of a mom consuming me to fear their childhood was being stolen. But the Lord, as He so promises, provided good things to prosper. I’m convinced that my twelve year old is full of love and has a servant’s heart because she learned from such an early age what it means to take care of others.

And my eight year old is learning to be less selfish everyday as she discovers what being part of a family is about. What amazes me most is that the Lord has many ways of accomplishing His goals. And just because my life hasn’t turned out exactly how I’d planned, the Lord still accomplished what He set out to in my children.

In what ways has the Lord accomplished greatness in you or yours when life didn’t turn out as planned?