Lead In The Right Direction

Originally, I come from a city five miles north of Boston, where I was born and spent most of my life.  My house was located three miles from the ocean, where I spent a lot of time swimming, looking for sea shells, and enjoying the sound of the waves.  I can remember how beautiful the sunrise was over the ocean, as I drove along the shore in the early mornings going to work.  The beauty of the ocean and the calmness it made me feel was something I never took for granted. 

 Years later, I moved away for a short time and lived in the suburbs south of Boston. I never felt quite at home there, but in spite of my feelings I stayed there a couple of years. My thought process was to give myself a chance to adjust to a new life style, but I never did.

 Throughout this time, I met my husband and we got married.  We started our life together by moving back north of the city, where we purchased the house I grew up in. 

I considered my husband and I to be the average couple, busy with work and raising a family.  Sundays, our family attended a small local church, where we built a close relationship with the Pastor and his family. 

I will never forget the first time we met their family. They were from a small town in Pennsylvania, and were candidates for the Senior Pastor position at our church.  I remember them being very happy, friendly, and they greeted us with a hug. Their personalities sparkled with warmth and love, something us city folks weren’t used to.
I also admired the Pastor’s courage. When one of the members of the pulpit committee asked him what his favorite song was and if he could sing it for us, he showed no signs of hesitation. He told us the name of the song, It is well with my soul and immediately he began to sing it. They served the Lord with us in Massachusetts for approximately 10 years before moving back to PA.

A couple of months after they left, we felt the Lord speaking to our hearts about moving there too. Eight months after their family had already moved, we also moved to PA. I hope to share that story with you in the future, about the miraculous way God guided, provided, and made it possible for us to move there.

 My husband and I have been blessed with the privilege of serving under the same Pastor and his family, for approximately 25 years. Throughout those years they have shown us the love of Jesus in such a manner that it has become contagious.  God used them as vessels to show His love to us, and because of our relationship with them, we are able to openly share our feelings with others.

One of the Pastor’s consistent teachings that changed our lives many years ago was the power of reading God’s word every day.

I have learned reading the bible is the key to building a personal relationship with God.  I compare it to when we first met our spouse.  We weren’t already in love when we met them.  We loved them more and more as we got to know them.  Over time, the more we know about a person the more comfortable and open we feel with them.

 We can be the same way with God, if we spend time getting to know Him by reading His word and communing with Him in prayer.  The more we do this, the more we learn to trust and love Him.

Be thankful for the people God places in your life who reflect His love and help us to be better people.