In the Right Place

When I share with others some of my life experiences, people often ask me, "What are you doing in Delaware?" Believe it or not, there was once an old country song written where the singer asks himself that very question. The fact is, many of us dream about being somewhere else. Those dreams are often fueled by a lack of excitement and passion in our lives. Maybe we think "If I could just be in (fill in the blank), life we be so much better". We somehow believe that the burdens and stresses of life that weigh us down would just disappear in we changed our address.

The Apostle Paul tells us in Acts 17 that through one man God made every nation that we should inhabit the whole earth and he determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us (v.26-27). This passage reminds us that God determines the time we have here on earth. It suggests there is action and effort required to finding our way; along with some uncertainty as to the outcome. It also suggests that some will try to find God on their own terms and not be successful. But what it also says is that God is very near to us and not hard to find if we truly seek Him and not our own personal agendas. He is always present--in places of beauty and splendor, in the harshest slums, even in Newark, Delaware!

We forfeit so much peace and purpose in our lives when we focus on where we wish we were rather than rejoicing in where God has placed us to impact His Kingdom. Take a few moment and think about the blessings in your life that wouldn't be possible if you weren't exactly in the place you are right now. Mine are too numerous to mention here. Now take inventory of the difficulties and struggles that you are facing; especially those that are the result of your current location, and lift them up to the One who wants us to seek and find him.