A Journey with Another

Over the past three years or so, I have been counseling and ministering to a young woman in great distress. She came into my life broken and beaten up. The main focus became her son and the conflict she was having with him. After a while I referred her to another family counselor. About a year later she would call again and I would retreat to that quiet place and pray that God would give me wisdom and words. After a long while of speaking I asked her if she was ready to come to know the Lord. Tearful and broken she said, "Yes."

She took her Bible and on the phone we went through the steps of coming to know Christ. She cried and prayed from her heart. She cried a prayer of desire - a prayer of need - a prayer of yearning. No matter what she had been facing or will be facing she now could rest assured that the Lord is going to help her and she could have peace in Him. The Lord has always wanted to have her life - her problems - her worries. With the Lord she could now find peace and rest in the midst of her struggles.

I never met her son though I heard so much about him I still prayed for him and his relationship with his mother. Then through a chain of events the Lord would, several years later, bring us together. I would now be able to put a face to the name I had heard so often.

Wednesday evening I met with a member at our local recreation center to help get the sound system set up for the next morning. My friend and I would be singing for the National Day of Prayer. A young man stood by the stage and I was introduced to him. I heard the name - a common name - and didn't think anything of it. When I teach my class I tell people to "notice everything" around them. God is working in the details.

Busy working in my area, I looked up and noticed that the woman's ex-husband was standing next to this young man speaking to him way off on the far side of the building. I stopped and stared for a moment listening for God to speak. I then put it all together. The young man's name came back to my attention and then I realized that they were father and son. I then realized that the Lord had brought me face to face with a young man I had heard so much about, spent time praying for, at times defending to his mother and there I was standing next to him. Finally the Lord would bring us together.

I now know where he has been working for the past four years. He has seen me too know and knows that I have been working with his mother. I have no doubt that this is the beginning of something good. My encounter that day with this young man was not an accident nor a coincident, but a journey moment from God. At just the right moment God would bring us together - though several years later.

Look for those encounters with others today. Ask God how you might be able to minister to them or maybe their task is to help you today. Find God working today. Find him in the details. Have a successful journey!