
I stayed up late with my dad chatting over the holiday. The conversation led to his confession that his life at 75 years old looked nothing like what he thought it might have as a young man. He realized how small a role he had in shaping the course of his life.
I look at the path my own life has taken, and I see his point. For example, how little did I know what forks in the road would come by choosing to move South for college. I didn’t know what experiences I’d have over the years that would mold my interests and career. I didn’t know that agreeing to that one date would lead to marriage and the kind of life we’ve built together. I didn’t know that showing up at that one party would have me meet a friend that would alter my worldview so significantly. The examples are infinite.
With the start of the new year, I set out to make goals and intentions for 2025. But really, how much of the coming year was going to surprise me with twists and turns I could never predict? I think I know that 2025 will bring the arrival of a new baby, changes to jobs, big transitions in my family’s rhythm of life, but I feel a sense that the ultimate course of it all belongs to God.
I’ve been challenged to think more expansively about how God is weaving together the story of my life through daily occurrences big and small. I wonder if giving up my perception of control can give way to God moving in bigger and more exciting ways. For example, what if I gave up spinning about that difficult conversation I needed to have, and approached it with curiosity and openness for what God could do. What if the outcomes I imagine for myself are dull compared to what God could do if I stepped aside and gave more room?
This year I am holding space for wonder (whose formal definition is the feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, and unexpected) at the ways God may want to work in even the smallest corners of my life.
- Melanie
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