Concerns…

Duane and I have had some people voice their concerns to us over the fact that we are letting our daughter go off to some other country where who knows what may happen. Shelbie has also had people make these same comments to her so she decided to address these concerns in her latest blog post. http://shelbiesstory.blogspot.com/

I feel I need to also address these fears and concerns. We are so blessed by the people who love Shelbie and care for her like we do. We truly are blessed and grateful for that! This is not a easy thing for us. We feel at peace about this and know beyond a shadow of doubt that the Lord has plans for Shelbie and He is going to use her in a mighty way, but that doesn’t mean that our Daddy and Mama’s heart isn’t torn in a million pieces over this. We would much rather her stay in our country, our state, our city, and our home. Doesn’t our flesh always want to choose the easiest path?

The Lord is stretching us in this whole process as much as He is stretching Shelbie. When Shelbie was just a little girl of 10 or 11 and she woke up one morning and told us that she had a dream that she was rocking little babies in an orphanage in Liberia we knew it was God. She had no idea what or where Liberia was! We knew at the point that God had plans for her life.

We know that it is much better to be in God’s perfect will even if that brings us discomfort rather than have a life of ease and not be in His will. We have to trust that God alone will protect and look after our little girl when we won’t be with her to do that. She is only on loan to us but she belongs to Him. In my heart I actually feel that this won’t be the only time she goes out of my comfort zone. I wonder if God will permanently call her to Africa someday. God has planted the seed deep within her heart to help the hurting and minister to the lost, to love on the loveless, and to be hands and feet for Him.

Shelbie is His. The most safest place she can be is in His perfect will. If that means she is on another continent then so be it. Fear will creep in, it already has tried. We just have to lay it down at the foot of the cross and remind ourselves that fear is not of Him. He gives us peace that surpasses all understanding. We don’t ever want to stand in the way of what the Lord is doing.

Please, for our hearts, be very careful how you voice your concerns to us. Better yet take it before the Lord. As much as we love Shelbie the Lord loves her more. He holds her tightly in the palm of His hand. That same palm that bears the mark of that nail that was put there for us. If God can lay down His one and only son for us then how can we say no to Him wanting to use our little girl to bring Him glory and enlarge His kingdom?  We can’t and we won’t. We are excited to see what God is going to do with her life and humbled to play such a tiny part in it.