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God is in control

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ST. CHARLES, Mo. (BP)–On Dec. 6, 1996, at 10 p.m., my life completely changed. While playing in a high school basketball game, I dove for a loose ball. Another girl also went for the ball and landed on my head. Immediately, I had no feeling on the left side of my body, and the pain in my head was excruciating. As I lay completely still on the gymnasium floor waiting for an ambulance, my mother reassured me by telling me, “Turn it over to the Lord. You are in God’s hands. He is taking care of you.”
In the months that followed, I was forced to deal with the loss of fine motor skills and short-term memory. My reading comprehension was at a second-grade level, and I had to learn how to write all over again. I constantly suffered from migraine headaches, dizziness and nausea. My doctors determined my brain was leaking and had partially blocked blood vessels in the area of memory and concentration.
The critical nature of my injury brought an end to my life as a normal teenager. I went from being an honor student excelling in three sports to being unable to carry any classes in school and having doctors tell me I would never play sports again. My plans for my life were to graduate from high school and attend one of the finest engineering universities in the country on an academic and athletic scholarship.
I now know that God’s plan for my life may be completely different. King David described God’s plan in Psalm 139:6: “All the days planned for me were written in your book before I was one day old.”
In the Old Testament, Job was a highly respected man with wealth, honor and a large family. He was deeply spiritual and followed God’s laws. To prove Job’s faithfulness, God allowed Satan to test him. Satan took all of Job’s earthly possessions, killed his children and afflicted his body with painful sores. Job lost everything, but he still remained faithful and submitted to God’s control.
I also have submitted myself to God’s will and have put him in control of my life. This past autumn, I had the opportunity to volunteer at a soccer camp for handicapped children. I looked past my injury and saw the needs of these special children. They could not see my disability. Some just wanted to touch me to know I was there for them. Others only wanted to talk with me and know I would listen.
The same way they depended on me, I must depend on God. Although I cannot see him, I can see the many wonderful things he has done. Although I cannot physically hear him, I can always talk to him, and he is always listening.
In the book, “Chicken Soup for the Soul,” there is a story about a carpenter who had just finished a rough first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit and his ancient pickup truck refused to start. When he finally arrived home and walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree and touched the tips of the branches with both hands. As he opened the door, he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles as he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.
When asked about his actions, he replied, “Oh, that is my trouble tree. I know I cannot help having troubles on the job, but one thing is for sure, troubles do not belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home.”
The carpenter gave his troubles to the trouble tree, and I gave mine to the Lord. I trusted in the Lord’s goodness, justice and wisdom and gave him complete control of my life. Just as God restored everything to Job, I believe he will do the same for me. Even though I still suffer from migraine headaches and the loss of memory and concentration, God is slowly healing and restoring me. I am not sure what my future holds, but I know God has a plan for me.
There is a popular gospel song that states, “I’ve been through enough to know He’ll be enough for me; He’s come through too many times; That puts my mind at ease for good; I’ll stake my very life, He’s gonna take care of me; ‘Cause I’ve been through enough to know He’ll be enough for me.”
Just as my mother’s voice reassured me at the time of my accident, the Holy Spirit comforts me now. God is in control, and he is enough for me. Is God in control of your life? Is he enough for you?