"No good thing does He withhold."
As I started waking up, the question that entered my mind was, "Do you believe God writes better stories than you can?"
Interesting.
You see, today I am 40weeks and 5 days, in my pregnancy. And I've had 9 months to think about what today might be like. Nine months to prepare and dream. Just like every mom to be, I've had a story that I've written in my heart as to what I think is the best story line for how and when this baby will come.
This morning was like every other morning with nothing happening. We went to our doctor's appointment fully expecting nothing to be different than every other appointment. But this was not to be how the story would go.
I walked into the hospital today, NOT in labor. Having NO contractions. In NO pain. My husband joked that he missed out on getting to drive like a crazy man whose wife is in labor on the way to the hospital.
This isn't how the story played out in my mind.
But here I am, sitting in a hospital bed with monitors hooked up to me, an IV pole as my new companion, contractions that are, with the help of medication, slowly but steadily increasing and...blogging of all things! (That was definitely not how I saw my labor playing out! Ha!)
The story that has begun is a far cry from the story that I had written.
"Do you believe God writes better stories than you can?"
I can't help but wonder if Mary, the mother of Jesus, laboring in a stable, in a town far from the comforts of her own home, asked herself the same question as she felt the waves of contractions coming on slowly and gradually intensifying,
"Do I believe God writes better stories than I can?"
You see, 9months earlier, Mary was an unassuming teenager, engaged to be married. I'm sure she had thought about her "ideal" story. About marrying this man, living a humble, modest life and growing her family.
Then one night Gabriel, an angel of the Lord, shows up and tells Mary that God is about to rewrite her story.
Nine months later Mary finds herself in an unfamiliar town, in a stable, in the middle of a story she never could have dreamed to write.
Yes, she would bear in her womb the Savior of the world, an honor and favor beyond her wildest imagination. And yet, God's story for Mary involved a difficult conversation with her betrothed, stares and accusations that were understandable, yet unfounded. God rewriting her story meant she would be a young, unwed pregnant girl, in a culture where a woman could be stoned to death for such a state. She was thrust into a world of unknowns.
I find great comfort in the words Gabriel spoke to Mary.
"The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. " Luke 1:28-30
In the middle of Mary's story being rewritten by the God of the heavens and earth, Gabriel gently reminds her that the Lord is with her. He knows it can be scary to have such an abrupt change to your story and he told her not to be afraid.
I did not have an angel show up this morning, but I can tell you, the same God that sent Gabriel to reassure a frightened girl who was about to enter into a story she didn't anticipate, is the same God who brought to my mind early this morning that He withholds no good thing from me.
"For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. " Psalm 84:11
He is with me. He is my sun and my shield and I do not need to be afraid. For I, just like Mary can rest assured that He withholds no good thing from me.
I don't know what story you find yourself in that isn't playing out the way you thought it would. But I can tell you, that God is with you. You do not need to be afraid. He is writing a beautiful story for you, for me, that is greater than any story we could ever write.
Trust Him.
Oh Father, today and every day hereafter, may my heart echo the heart of Mary.
Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant[a] of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” Luke 1:38
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