“ I didn’t know that “
At a conference a few years ago, we were honoring our Pastor for his many years of service. Different men stood and spoke. One man in particular stood and made this statement that really struck me, “You don’t have to know where you are going to go”.
When I was young I thought, when I grow up, I want to either be a cook or a preacher. Well I can cook eggs, grits and tomato gravy and that’s about it. As time went by I forgot about the preacher part.
It’s good to plan the basic things in life like eating right, getting a good education, learn how to swim, how to fix broken things and such. There are certain things and events we cannot plan or know until it’s time has come, if we did we would probably change them and they would never happen, extremely important things. We are told,” you have to plan your life and future”. Well, maybe a few things such as those above, education and the basic things.
As this man spoke, you know the, “You don’t have to know where you are going to go”, man. He spoke of some things in his life that he didn’t know would happen, like relating to this paster, meeting his own wife and such.
My thoughts began to look back in my own life at all the things that happened. Now I’m not talking about the bad things that happened because of my ignorance, I’m talking about the planned things that God did. I didn’t know that at age 37 that I would be born again, baptized in water and the Holy Spirit. I didn’t know that 7 years later I would meet my wife Sharon. I didn’t know that 7 months after, we would marry. I didn’t know that I would pray for the sick and lost. I didn’t know that a church would be formed around these people. I didn’t know that I would become a preacher. I didn’t know that I would become a part of the church body that was honoring this paster. I didn’t know that my wife and I would move to the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee. I didn’t know that I would be writing these notes to you. I didn’t know. I didn’t know. I didn’t know.
There are very important things in this life that we just can’t know, until we go. I love to surprise my wife and others. I love to give unique gifts and see the surprise on their faces. Don’t give me a pair of socks for my birthday, surprise me. God must really get a kick out of surprising us, because he does it enough.
Relax, stop worrying about the future. “But I’m not doing anything”. “I don’t know what to do”. “If God would only tell me”. “I feel so guilty”. “I’m stagnating and nothing is happening”. Could be we are just worrying about what’s time has not come yet. While we wait for God’s next surprise that we don’t know about yet, Go enjoy life. Go fishing. Go shopping. Play music. Go on vacation. Go to the Mountains. Go love your neighbors.
The scripture says, “My times are in your hands” and “Unless the Lord builds the city the watchman watches in vain”. The things we don’t know about are greater than what we hope for.
David McClary
