“Honey, go home. You haven’t slept more than a few hours in five days. I’ll stay with him. Surgery is scheduled for 8 am. You need to sleep when you can,” murmured my husband.
Tipping the newborn scales at 10.5 pounds, our five day old son snoozed soundly in his crib at Children’s Hospital. Diagnosed with the congenital birth disease, Hirschsprung’s, our pediatric surgeon explained that I couldn’t nurse our babe again until they completed his colostomy in the morning.
My emotions whirled from the day’s diagnosis, but at least we finally had answers.
“Lord, I beg you. Calm my wavering heart. Help me focus my attention on your many gifts,” I exhaled, as I processed through my short, choppy prayer. “At the worst, he lives life with a “bathroom bag”, and sports won’t be his thing. He’ll adjust. He can deal with that. Two surgeries are nothing in comparison to what it could be. This is not life threatening. Thank you, Lord. Use this.”
Exhausted, broken, yet grateful, I gathered my belongings and began heading to the parking structure.
My brother jogged after me and insisted, “Let me drive you. You shouldn’t be driving home by yourself.”
“No thanks. I really need the time alone to process all the information of today.”
As I trudged through the parking garage, the “What If’s” began dancing through my mind. Exhaustion blanketed my thought process and emotions reeled. I begged the Lord to set my mind on things above: His truth, His omniscience, His perfect love that casts out all fear.
Pulling onto the highway, I cranked the local Christian music station knowing that praise music would help squelch any darkness permeating my car. A brand new song by Twila Paris, God is in Control, rang out. Never having played the song before, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My breath caught, and I pulled over to the side of the road to listen more intently.
“God is in Control. We believe that His children will not be forsaken. God is in control. We will choose to remember and never be shaken.”
The tears flowed. I couldn’t stop.
Gasping for breath, my whimper turned to wailing, as the spirit of the Lord descended into that car. He spoke so clearly. Reaching down His loving arms, He gently rocked me, and whispered, “Remember, Matthew’s mine. Remember.”
“God is in control. We believe that His children will not be forsaken. God is in control. We will choose to remember and never be shaken.
There is no power above or beside Him, we know, God is in control.
He has never let you down. Why start to worry now? He is still the Lord of all we see and He is still the loving Father watching over you and me.
God is in control.”
Oh Lord, how quickly I forget.
Scripture reminds me that You are the same yesterday, today and forever. You do not change.
Ladies, on that summer evening seventeen years ago, God’s voice sounded a whole lot like Twila Paris, and I have never forgotten this moment’s critical significance on my life. I did not hear a God who only chose to speak audibly to the people of the Old Testament. No, I heard the one and only, true and living God who sang truth straight to this momma’s heart in the middle of crisis.
My Savior who loved, and continues to love, my tiny babe more than I ever could, met me in a dark car.
His creative medium that particular day? A song. The outcome? Life Change.
As I finished my drive home, peace enveloped me. I can’t begin to explain it, but on one of the scariest evenings of my life, I set my alarm and slept through the night like a baby (a really good baby).
In Matthew 11, Jesus declares, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Hearing is a discipline and too often, I make every excuse as to why God feels distant, but I am reminded once again of His desire to speak truth intimately and directly to us, just like that moment in my car.
Often, it’s in the ordinary, every day, simple moments of life when he chooses to reach out and minister to us. I love that He uses so many creative mediums to do so, and we just have to quiet our heart and listen expectantly in order to hear what He has to say.
With that in mind, can I ask you a favor?
It’s always such an encouragement to our (in)courage community to hear stories from each other.
Is there a time when the Lord spoke so clearly to you that it had a significant impact on your life?
Remember, many life change moments come from simple stories of faithful followers hearing His still small voice in ordinary, unexpected times as well as the big, bold moments. Now is the time to encourage each other and share your story.
I’m so excited to read it.
“When God’s voice sounds a lot like Twila Paris” situations typically only happen once in a lifetime (or twice for me, but that’s for another time.)
And just in case you were wondering, that seventeen year old baby boy is now being recruited by multiple Division 1 football teams. (Oh yes, the story definitely didn’t end that surgery morning when the alarm went off. It was only warming up.) 🙂
~~~~~
post by Jen Schmidt, author of Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, and her new food blog, 10 Minute Dinners.
Leave a Comment
Cherilyn says
Speaking of God using music. 10 years ago I found out my husband had been with another woman. That Saturday night I found out he was on a date with her and I slept exactly one hour that night, literally from 3am until 4am. I stayed awake worrying and praying through scripture the rest of the night.
The next morning – broken and tired – as I got ready for church I turned on the christian radio station. Three songs played in a row: His Strength is Perfect, He Is Able (and one other one I can never remember). THEN…the same three songs played in a row over again…THEN ONCE MORE they all played in a row!! God used that radio station to play those three songs over three times each and I had the most awesome peace that morning. Praise be to God!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Knowing a lot about song selection, that is amazing. Radio stations never play three songs in a row again.
Thank you for sharing, but know also that even though I don’t know the end story between you and your husband, I realize that has a lasting impact on you and I’m praying right now that the Lord continues to fill in the gap when Satan tries to steal your joy.
Del Marie Riley says
When my family and I moved to Colorado last year, my husband and I were not getting along at all. I wondered if it would be best if I just went back to FL. I was on my back porch praying my heart out and begging for guidance with such a big decision to make. Do I stay here or do I go back home? A magpie landed on my neighbor’s roof and kept repeating “Stay Here, Stay Here.” At first I thought what did you say? Then he repeated it again about 5 times. I still get goose bumps thinking about it. And yes, I did stay and I’m ever so thankful that I did.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
I couldn’t picture a Magpie, so I quickly googled an image. Now, every time I see one, I can remember and celebrate how He used that morning to give you direction.
Crystal says
Oh Jen, this is such a beautiful post, and one that speaks right to my heart. God has always used music to speak His truth and love into my life. He started with me in high school when I first truly accepted Him as my Savior and hasn’t stopped yet – blessing me with a husband who is in a worship band that asks me (of all people!) to write songs for them 🙂 I always feel most connected to the Holy Spirit when I’m worshiping Him through music!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Oh Crystal, yes, I am right there with you on worship music, and what a gift to partner like that with your husband. You writing and him leading, what a blessed ministry your church has in you two.
Lyli@3dLessons4Life says
This is such an encouraging post! (and I love a happy ending…). Thanks for sharing. I need to find my old Twila Paris CD’s and plug them in… you made me miss her. 🙂
Kate says
Indeed, He still speaks.
So many awesome experiences with this…which one to choose?…since you shared one about a song – I will, too:
I’m a doubter….and a bit of a skeptic. I go through seasons of intense dealings with it. A few years ago – my husband and I were driving down the road – having a spirited conversation about faith. I was ranting out all my questions and doubts and such. We had the Christian music station playing on low during our conversation. All of a sudden – a song came on that we had never heard before and have never heard since. (Odd…because this particular radio station played the same songs over and over and over…that we all knew by heart.) The lyrics of this song spoke directly to the questions I had been asking my husband. Like, directly. The lyrics were all about doubt, faith, etc… It was nuts. I cried.
While dealing with doubts about our faith is VERY difficult – it’s almost a gift…because the Lord always comes and reveals Himself to me through it. Always.
Cool post! Thanks!
– Kate 🙂
P.S. My husband played D1 football. Just prayed for your son – for God to speak to him on where he should go…and for righteous believers to meet him there…and for him to be a light and a servant to the team/community he chooses.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Thank you so much for thinking of our son. I want to keep him in our nice cozy home away from all pressure that I know he’ll meet in a D1 football atmosphere, but we are praying those exact things. a huge network of committed believers that can minister right there on the team, and honestly, a strong, Christian coach is on the prayer list as well. Right now, Duke is where he’s leaning, but it’s a long way off.
Nic says
This has brought me to tears because it resonates with the times that God has spoken to me to in the middle of darkness. As a young woman, I cared for my mother in the last weeks and months of cancer and was shocked at the suffering and lack of dignity of it all. Living alone with her through it left little protection from it. I had a huge process afterwards faith-wise and I remember telling God that I didn’t know if He existed, or if He did exist that I didn’t know if He was good. I found church incredibly painful because there didn’t seem to be room for my feelings or questions. But one day, I was home from work early, turned on TV to see a talk show interview with a priest who said that it was during his first Holy Communion that he came face to face with the full extent of his atheism. I immediately heard a voice that felt so clear it was almost audible saying ‘I am okay with your atheism’. Like you, I broke down in tears; the unexpected grace, the gentleness and my God’s ability to love and accept me in the middle of my rejection of Him astounded me. Thank you and bless you for posting. I needed this today.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Oh Nic –
In moments of crisis like that we often ask the hard questions. We’re human, its natural and you are right ,the Lord doesn’t want us to run from those questions, He welcomes them because He knows that in the midst of those unbearable times, He is constant.
His grace is so amazing. Even thought its been years, I am sorry for your loss and even more sorry that the church wasn’t a place where you were met in your time of need. The Lord wants all of us to be able to come in the midst of our unbelief. Let’s be that for others because we know the Truth and can gently turn others towards Him.
Joy says
It’s awesome to hear these stories of how God speaks. I am in a situation where I am desperate to hear His voice & His leading. Reading this has been an encouragement to me knowing He is there & He will answer. Thank you all!
Kate says
Just prayed for the Lord to reveal Himself to you…in new and pertinent ways this week. Blessings!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Thank you for standing in the gap for Joy. That is the body at work.
Kellie Anderson says
I had a beautiful little daughter and really wanted to have another baby… but with a new diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome and the reality that it was rather miraculous that I even had one healthy, happy pregnancy without medical intervention, I was faced with the reality that our Bethany might be our only child. Until the night that I was bored at small group. My boredom lead me to just start flipping through my Bible randomly while the small group leader was talking. Yeah, it was not very nice manners. But suddenly I landed on 1 Corinthians 1:11 that refers to the “house of Chloe.” As clear as a bell, a voice spoke in my mind: “That will be the name of your second daughter: Chloe.” On the way home I excitedly shared this with my husband. He didn’t scoff. He never does.
Many months later we were pregnant again. A few months later the sonographer asked if we wanted to know the sex of the baby and with all certainty I said I was pretty sure she was a she! And she was. There were no discussions about her name — I mean, when God tells you in the quiet of your heart what you should name your promised child, you just do it. But we picked her middle name and it is Grace.
And when your angst ridden teenager is feeling low, what better thing to remind her of : that God called her into being and promised her life and named her before she was even conceived. As He does with us all.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Rejoicing with you over that blessing baby. How old is she now?
Amanda says
God spoke to me about six weeks ago, through a blog post on depression. Minutes after reading it, a friend texted me and asked how I was doing. I told her I was thinking of scheduling a counseling appointment for the first time (after a year of struggling with anxiety/depression). Turns out, she had JUST read the same blog post, and was also thinking of making an appointment. God knew that I was “stuck” and couldn’t make that appointment on my own, that I needed a hand to hold. I’m already feeling so much more hopeful, thinking so much more clearly, and I praise God for being so near in my troubles.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Oh Amanda –
Giving you a big virtual hug. (I’m a hugger, hope you are).
Depression can be so isolating. I am thrilled to hear that you have a friend that can walk that road with you and that you feel led to reach out.
Becky Daye says
I can’t NOT comment on this post- because God used the exact same song on an unforgettable day in my life! I was 10 weeks pregnant with our first baby when I noticed a little bit of blood when I went to the bathroom. I called my doctor and he said that it was probably nothing to worry about, but to come in just to make sure. My husband picked me up and “God is in Control” was on the radio station that we were listening to. And I KNEW, no matter what we discovered that “God has always been faithful- why start to worry now?” And they were ringing in my heart as my doctor handed me a box of tissues after the ultrasound. It was a beautiful mercy that God was preparing my heart and my husbands BEFORE we were met with difficult news.
Ah, He is so good, isn’t He?!!! Thanks for sharing this post, because this song has become an “Ebenezer” for me!
Vicki says
Becky, I am sorry to hear of your loss.
God is so faithful to us. He did the same for me when my husband was diagnosed with cancer. It wasnt’ through music, but a dream. I thought it was a nightmare. But really, God was allowing me to grieve in my spirit so that when it happened in real life, I was able to be strong. He was with us through his whole illness and has continued to hold me up since his passing last year.
Thank you for sharing. Blessings to you!
Becky Daye says
Ah, Vicki- I am sorry for YOUR loss! But oh, the sweetness of our God in knowing what we need to carry us through the storms. Thank you for sharing and praying for you today!!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
It’s beautiful to see you encouraging another. You can speak to her needs, just like she can speak to yours. Thanks for being the body and sharing your story.
Becky Kopitzke says
Oh, My. I have a lump in my throat. Thank you for sharing this story from your memories, and from your present-day perspective. This will stick with me.
Renee says
While in my early twenties, I experienced several unexpected losses. Since then, I have struggled with fear and depression. Recently, some of those old emotions resurfaced. I was driving when I heard God in a loud but not audible voice say my name. It was so clear. Later that week, a friend sent me the following scripture. “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” (Isaiah 43: 1-3) He called me by my name. I knew that scripture was for me. It is for each one of us. Since then, I’ve read Isaiah 43 in its entirety over and over. I am so very thankful for God’s assurance that He hears my cry, he loves me and that He is sovereign.
Autumn Martinage says
I have my own story very similar to yours. God didn’t speak to me through a song but he did speak to me. And my baby girl that I was so worried about lying in that hospital bed is now a healthy and thriving 5yo little girl.
God is definitely in control!
Sarita says
In 1976 I gave my first born son up for adoption. Through the years I prayed Gods love and protection over him. In 1996 I put in paperwork with the state he was born in to see about finding him. He did too! Well he was just starting college and said he couldn’t have contact then. My heart broke . One day I was cleaning and crying at th same time. Why can’t I have my ” Oprah ” reunion ! I was sobbing. Then I heard God say it was going to be ok. He didn’t say I would have a reunion. He said it would be ok. It’s been 16 years and no reunion.There have been times that my heart has ached. God has always given me piece of info about my son. Thank God for Internet! I may never have a reunion with my son. It going to be ok.
Ann Voskamp says
I read your comment twice, it was so powerful.
Thank you for sharing… Testifying.
Yes — you are going to be okay.
He promised.
((you))
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Sarita –
As an adopted daughter, this brought me to tears. I wonder if my birth mom is out there wondering the same thing as you?
Know your son appreciates the sacrifice you made. It was one of the greatest gifts you could do for him at the time.
As I think through this for myself, I would love for my birth mom to know how incredibly grateful I am for this and that her sacrifice allowed me to be raised by a family who loves the Lord.
My only thought is that your son may be wanting to protect the feelings of his adoptive parents, but know that there is not a day that goes by when he doesn’t truly know of your love and sacrifice. It was so selfless!!!
Anonymous says
Thank you for sharing this. May God envelop you with His peace the surpasses understanding. What a courageous and incredibly wonderful thing you did and I admire you so much.
Rosario says
Thank you for sharing this. May God envelop you with His peace the surpasses understanding. What a courageous and incredibly wonderful thing you did and I admire you so much.
Sandi says
I have been so burdened for my 13 year old granddaughter lately. Without going into details, she needs much prayer that God will truly reveal himself to her as only He can. I was chatting with my mom on the phone yesterday about the situation and ended up crying {well really blubbering} and was just a basket case. When I got off the phone our local christian radio station was playing one of my very favorite songs and the words I heard at that very moment were:
And the arms that hold the universe
Are holding you tonight
You can rest inside
It’s gonna be alright
And the voice that calmed the raging sea
Is calling you His child
So be still and know He’s in control
He will never let you go
I KNOW it was on just at that time for ME and I know that God is going to see this situation through and bring victory in the end no matter how long it takes!!
LOVE your story! We serve an amazing God don’t we?!!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Praying with you for your granddaughter. How blessed she is to have such a multigenerational heritage standing with her.
Dori says
He spoke right now through your words and Twila’s song. Currently I am counseling for something that happened long, long ago and I am still trying to wrestle the control. It is so reassuring to hear those words that HE is indeed in control. Thank you.
Ricarda Manning says
I don’t have access to music right now, so God used your post as the medium to give me strength. I am sitting in a hospital room, silently watching my 17 year old daughter drift off to sleep. Whew. Just minutes ago, she was yelling, due to her prolonged immense pain (and fear). She broke her ankle in a soccer game and had it repaired 24 hours ago via surgery. The pain is unbearable for her and I feel utterly helpless. But God IS in control. “I am sorry, Lord, how quickly I forget.”
Thank you for the inspiring words!
Melissa says
I’m so sorry about your daughter’s injury and that you are watching her suffer. 🙁 Praying for both of you!
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
How is your daughter? How is her mom? Praying that this past 24 hours brought much comfort.
Beth Coulton says
Love this- yes, God has used music and a song for many situations in my life. An old one, “When Answers Aren’t Enough”, was my theme song when my 4 week old daughter was in the hospital with spinal meningitis back in 1990. It got me through and I sang it many years after that when asked to sing for an audience. (and she is a recent college graduate and doing just fine, praise God!)
More recently, God has sounded a LOT like Josh Groban, which suits me just fine. 🙂
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Oh Beth – I am with you on the Josh Groban. 🙂 And praising the Lord to here your happy ending.
Natalie says
My first child was only 13 months old when I woke up in the middle of the night, with the “feeling” that I was pregnant again (not planned). I tried brushing it off for weeks. I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it. Worrying for days, The Lord very clearly began repeating to me, “Be anxious for nothing. Ever.”. I would hear it in the shower. While I was driving. As I tried to go to sleep. Over and over he whispered it to my heart. It was 3 weeks before I finally took a pregnancy test – positive! – and he continued to remind me that he was in control. My worry over this blessing was nothing short of a burden that I needn’t bear. I will never forget him speaking such peace into my/our lives. Our little guy was a surprise for sure but my heart knows that the timing was divine.
janet says
Several years ago my husband was having a test on his kidneys. Our doctor had brought up the possibility of cancer. Our girls were young and I had thoughts of what the future might hold for our family if my husband did have cancer. I was sitting by myself in the waiting area at the hospital thinking and praying. While I was sitting there I heard a voice quietly say “Don’t worry.. everything is going to be all right.” I knew it was God speaking to me and I relaxed and stopped being worried. My husband did not have cancer and we have enjoyed many, many more years of a wonderful life together.
kim says
I can totally relate to what you are saying. I remember a time when my first child, who is 18 was a baby in her carrier. I was driving down one of our streets and I was crying extremely hard, hurt, heart broken. Not understanding my life, I was adopted and the parents that adopted me got a divorce when I was 2 and after that it was total chaos. My dad who adopted me had nothing to do with me or my brother after he remarried. So, I was crying out to the Lord wondering why I was not ever given an earthly dad since all my friends had dads and they were awesome dads and were always there for them…And I remember this like it was yesterday and I will never forget it…HE spoke to me and said Kim, I am your Father…Your Heavenly Father and Earthly Father and I have been here for you since the beginning. I will never leave you and I have not. Please know that I am and always will be here for you…It was honestly like a light bulb had gone on in my head…It was the Holy Spirit, speaking directly to me and that day I was so thankful to the Holy Spirit for speaking truth to me at the age of 28 and now I am 47. I do want to praise HIM for always reminding me that even though my dad who adopted me left me HE , the All Sufficient Savior will not.
Stephanie says
I had a very similar experience. My dad was a drug addict and was in and out of my life until he died when i was 13 and my step-dad, who came into my life at 18 months, never was a father figure so much as a financial provider. I, thanks to God, married an amazing god-fearing/loving man and have two almost three children with him. When my daughter was born I began experiencing a lot of resentment and bitterness at how I missed out on having a good dad. I knew I had always wanted a good dad but never realized that I had this HUGE hole in my heart because of it. God just spoke into my heart “I am your dad, I was there… I’ve always been here for you and with you. I love you and I am enough.” It was amazing and began a healing in me that I’ve always needed. God is so good and He is the father to the fatherless is her not? I love Him.
Sabrina says
I was so glad to read this post this morning! What happens to me many times is that I will be reading someone’s blog, and then they have a link or something to someone else’s blog and I’ll click over and discover that the post they have up seems to be written directly to me. It’s times like that I can clearly see the hand of God. I love when that happens!
It’s funny that you would post this today, because I just posted on my blog about a time when the Lord spoke to me in my car. So this has really been on my mind lately, too. It is true that God works in mysterious ways!
kim Johnston says
I am a single parent with chronic illness. I was trying to hold down a job to provide for me and my son, but even working part-time was becomming to much for me. I would come home from work and cry out, ” Lord, what am I to do?” As I was lying in bed one night and crying, I said ” Lord, please show me if quitting work is your plan for me.” I went to sleep and at 3 in the morning, the song “It is Well” was playing in my head and woke me from a deep sleep. Then as I was awake I said ” Lord, if this is you, please let me hear a ringing sound.” As soon as I spoke the words, there was a ringing in my ears..Wow!! I was amazed at how clear He had made it! Many things have happened since then and I have seen His hand in all of them. We have an amazing God who cares so very much!
alicia finley says
Isn’t God great?!
Four years ago began a struggle with my oldest son; he was a senior in high school at the time. His personality changed, his behavior changed and we knew something was very wrong…we just had no idea what. In the summer of 2010, I finally had a moment of clarity where I realized that this was out of my hands, that I could not protect my son from what I could not see or had no knowledge of, and I gave the situation over to my Heavenly Father…so hard to do!
Whenever I spoke to my parents, they would ask how my son was doing and I would express my sadness, my fear, my exasperation with the situation. And my dad’s response was always the same, “Remember, we all have our free agency and the ability to choose.”
It got annoying. I couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t say anything else.
In December of 2010, after much prayer and many sleepless nights, the answer was revealed to us and it was much worse than I ever dreamed.
My son was addicted to drugs and was in a substantial amount of legal trouble.
As my husband and I started our trip down to the college town where my son was living (if you can call what he was doing “living”), my sadness and fear overwhelmed me and I broke down and started sobbing.
As I started to say the words, “Why, Lord? I asked you to watch over him and protect him!”…my dad’s calm voice came into my mind and peace came over me. “Remember, we all have our free agency and the ability to choose.”
And as the truth of the situation unfurled, the immensity of his heroin addiction and the life he had been living, the things he had done, the harm that he had put himself in, it occurred to me that God had answered my prayers – he had protected my son and watched over him; He kept him safe in situations that he put himself in that could have cost him his life.
In the end, God also help him beat his addiction and get better, which is no easy feat. He has also stood beside me in the moments where, overwhelmed by grief, I could not hold myself up; and He has helped our family to heal from the grip of this addiction, this choice that was made that has affected our entire family.
And He continues to stand beside me in the moments I need Him and He guides my words when I speak in our community and when I tell my story in an effort to bring healing and hope (and education) to others.
Thank you for sharing your story!
~alicia
Vicki says
Alicia,
Oh your mother’s heart. It breaks mine. I was your son, only it wasn’t heroin, it was meth.
When I look back at my past, I can see God’s protection and mercy on me, likely a result of my mother’s unending prayers.
He is so faithful!
alicia finley says
Thank you, Vicki!
I speak at a lot of rehabs and jails for “victim impact” and I never knew how much my story could help others understand how their choices affect their own families. But, as you know, when you are in the height of addiction…none of that matters. My son has said, “Heroin was my everything. It was my mom, my dad, my girlfriend. It was my God, it was my religion. It was my life.”
Blessings to you for getting clean and moving forward in your life! (this is my ‘soapbox’ on which I stand – helping our community change their attitude to recovering addicts who seek change and help).
God bless!
~a
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Oh Alicia – As a mom of four teens right now, I can’t even imagine the pain and heartbreak you went through, but oh how our Redeemer lives through you now that you can walk with other families in this same situation.
Pam says
I just want to say that I know God IS always in control…many years ago, my relationship with my husband had gone downhill and we were far apart…I was wooed by another man at my workplace and I fell hard…as I was going to meet with him one day, I heard, almost audibly, in my mind…Flee Daughter…and it kept repeating in my mind…I wish I could say that I obeyed but I would be lying…and altho I continued on I listened to Christian radio and every speaker, every song was directed straight at me…they spoke to my every need, my every sin, my every thought…I praise God that my husband and I worked things out, after a very hard time…and we are still together, altho some things that caused the problems to begin with we still have, I have just became stronger in my faith and able to handle the temptations with God’s help…pray for my husband that he would grow more in the knowledge of our Lord and realize his place as the Christian head of the home…
God bless you for this post…I have never felt compelled to tell this story anywhere before…but it just seemed as if I should share here…thanks
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Pam – thank you, thank you for being vulnerable and sharing your story.
We don’t take that lightly and I know that your words will give someone else in the same situation the encouragement to fight for their marriage, and quite possibly, heed the Lord’s warning and Flee.
Praising the Lord that you worked it out. That is such a miraculous testament to faithfulness through the Fire.
Vicki says
What a wonderful post! There are so many things that come to mind when I think about Him speaking to me, but probably the most impactful was this one.
I was in my early 20’s. Going to church after partying all night long. Leading a double life really. I was broken on the inside and hurting so much. Sitting there in the back, I was so sad and praying and told Jesus I just wished He could give me a hug. After the service was over, our pastor came right over to me and said “I just feel like I need to give you a hug!” No one will EVER convice me that hug was not directly from Jesus. That moment gave me something to cling to when things got worse. There was no denying the reality of Jesus and His love for me. That moment likely saved my life, giving me hope when I so desperately needed it.
Lisa says
What an amazing story. It was beautiful and gave me goose bumps. I recently prayed and pondered looking for confirmation of a belief. I was looking for some great epiphany. I mean I’ve heard other people have those kinds of events with God. But, no that was not to be for me. Then, I had this overwhelming sense of peace and thought like words in my head, words from God, said to me “You don’t need that kind of confirmation, because you already know…” and then I knew.
Dougherty says
God is so good, thank you for sharing!
patty says
Wow that is awesome! This really encouraged me. God is in control!
Meg says
it was 2006 and i was in South Africa on a mission trip with 80-something other people. it was missions night and everyone was suppose to decide what their role was in missions. i sat wondering if God had really called me to be a missionary or not until i was one of the few left. i got up from the room i was instructed to stay in until i knew the answer and went into the other room where a tape of the Voice of the Martyrs was playing. it was there, while listening to that tape that i heard God ask, would you die for me? tears streamed down my face as i quickly realized that my answer could not be anything other than yes. afterall this was the God who had died for me. i told Him yes and He said, now that we have that straight… the rest of the night was crazy. i had a vision of something i still don’t understand, but one thing was for sure i left that night knowing God had shown up….
Liz Reeves says
There’s no way I could condense my whole testimony into 1 short blog comment. My whole life, for about the past 20 years, has been one “Twila Paris song” moment after another! God is SO GOOD.
Karen Fawcette says
About 20 years ago, I was living in Colorado and went to my first non-denominational church… was amazed at ‘contemporary Christian music’ — grew up Presbyterian in the choir and had never heard anything like that… it touched my heart so deeply. I had renewed my faith in Christ but wanted to offer myself somehow, and being extremely timid for the most part I didn’t know how… my husband took me on a business trip and as I sat in my car during one of his meetings, a flipped the radio dial around and discovered Christian music on the radio (that was a new thing for me too!) and the first song I ever heard was Petra singing I Am Available… and I never forgot it —
“my whole life was incomplete, until I laid it at your feet… so use me as you will, I am available!”
I have been in love with God speaking through music ever since…
Dougherty says
I’m amazed at how often I hear God’s voice, sometimes in music, sometimes just a whisper in the back of my mind.
The one time that really leaps to memory is when I was 16, I was dragged along on a family trip over Spring Break to visit one of my dad’s friends who I knew. He worked at Biola University and wanted me to see the campus. I distinctly remember standing in front of the small prayer chapel, falling in love with the place and hearing God say “this is for you, you will be here”. I couldn’t believe it because my family had struggled financially all of my life (most of my childhood we were below the poverty level).
But that moment gave me the courage to apply and the hope every semester when the bill would arrive to see what God had in store to get me through. Even though my time at Biola was anything but idyllic, I *know* it was exactly where God wanted me. He used my time there to learn a lot, but most of all to give me a fire in my heart for studying His Word, to embrace being a student and to let myself just flat out love digging into the Bible, even with all of my struggles.
missy says
21 years ago I made the most regretful decision I would make in my life so far. I thought I got off easy. It was wrong. It was despicable. It was evil and I did it. Me. I was supposed to be a child of God. My God smiled on me anyway. Blessed me with a wonderful husband, 2 beautiful and healthy sons,….but……I could never let go of the child that I made go away. Knew there was forgiveness was but was ashamed to accept it. I was 40 years old with that same wonderful husband, those same beautiful babies now 16 and 11, that same wonderful Jesus showing me daily how much he loved and treasured me. Even me. The idea of adoption had never entered my mind. I had my babies. But then I could see her. I could almost touch her and she wouldn’t let go. The harder I tried to pray her away the stronger the plan cemented in my head and heart. I talked to my husband who quickly told me “that’s crazy”, we talked to our sons “whatever”, we talked to our families “that would be wonderful” I talked to my husband again” you’re still crazy” Then our God worked His magic with him too. Bringing a beautiful girl home from a future that seemed dismal is not what changed things. My God spoke through the voice of my family, my children, my husband, my friends, and said this is your daughter and she is. But the real voice happened when I accepted the forgiveness he had been holding for me for so long. It came in songs of praise, words of encouragement, in psalms and verses but mostly in came with joyous, peaceful reawakening.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Yes, Yes, He is a God of Forgiveness and loves us through the mess.
What a powerful story you have and as a daughter of adoption, thank you for opening your heart and home to one more and sharing that here.
Mrs. H. says
This made me cry. Thank you for your honesty.
Anonymous says
Thank you!
Melissa says
I have many stories of God’s voice ringing strong in difficult moments.
The very first time, I was ten years old. My family was packing up and moving from Los Angeles, CA, to a mountain town in Colorado, leaving everything we were familiar with behind. In the early hours of the morning before the sun was up our caravan of the moving truck, my dad’s pickup, my mom’s minivan, and my grandma’s Camaro (yes, my grandma drove a Camaro!) got onto the freeway and started the long drive. I was riding with my mom in the minivan. She turned off the radio and suggested we pray for our trip. When she turned the radio back on, the chorus of Michael W. Smith’s “Friends” came on. And we started bawling. “Friends are friends forever…if the Lord’s the Lord of them…” I still get teary every time I hear it!!! Almost twenty years later we still have many dear friends in California. 🙂
Cynthia McGarity says
Thank you, Jen, for this. Since a devastating vocal illness two years ago (I’m a singer) and ensuing – necessary – emotional shakeup, my faith has soared. Now there’s rarely a day that I DON’T get a message. (Thus the title of my blog. :). There are days that I mourn the fact that I spent years not getting the messages because I was too busy…too proud…too dense. But mainly I look ahead to the many years in store with clarity and joy. Even amidst the sorrows now, there is joy.
My dad, the light of my life and truly the most influential person I have ever known, passed away last May. With the Father’s grace, my faith stayed strong and I survived the grief. The best part, however, was in the signs that my dad has consistently left my mom, sisters, and me ever since. At low times, we will receive a heart or a cross and know that he is there with us. A stone, a cloud, a leaf, a button….they show up in the most unlikely places. But it is our concrete evidence that he – and He – is there with us, walking our path…helping us on our journey.
Thank you for your beautiful story and the reminder that there is proof all around us of His glory as long as we keep our hearts open to seeing it!
Susan G says
WOW! This is such a confirmation in my soul…He speaks to me many, many times through a song…having the perfect song come on at just ‘the right time’. 😉 And like you, tears will stream down my face, or the sobbing will begin, as I hear my awesome God ‘talk’ straight to my heart. Letting me know that He never leaves me, never will forsake me, hears my heart’s cry, and cares about ‘every detail’ of my life. He even told me the name of a person who I was supposed to get to pray at our semi-pro football game too, and He told me LOUDLY in my head. I had to laugh and replied, “Well Duh”! Thinking to myself and to Him, why didn’t I think of this man. 🙂 OUR GOD IS SO AWESOME!!!
Thank you for writing this! And what a beautiful story and testimony of your son!
Margaret Spears says
Oh Jen,
A similar thing happened to me when I got the news that my unborn baby girl had died. I was driving home alone on a long country road, and I asked the Lord to speak to me. To calm my fragmented mind and hold my broken heart.
I turned on the local Christian radio station and Twila’s voice singing ‘God is in Control’ rang out. Her music has always been a source of comfort and strength for me, I had her album ‘Sanctuary’ playing at each of my children’s births. (I had 5.) I knew that He would carry me through the hard days to come, that He would comfort my family, that Bethany Grace was even then in His arms and I would meet her one day in that same embrace.
The season I’m in now is much different, (I became a Grandma for the first time May, 2012), but I need the reminder of His unwavering love and stability more than ever.
Thank you for sharing this priceless reminder.
“This is no time for fear This is the time for faith and determination Don’t lose the vision here carried away by the motion Hold on to all that you hide in your heart There is one thing that has always been true It holds the world together
God is in control. ”
By His Grace Alone,
Margaret Spears
Amanda Jones says
I’m another Hirschsprung’s mama, and the story sounds so familiar. God definitely uses music to speak to my heart, and those days back in March 2002, as well as all the days since, I’ve listened. Thanks for sharing this today. 🙂
regina cozad says
Thanks for this. I’m having a rough time with my pregnancy right now and I have to keep reminding myself God is in control.
Nancy Ruegg says
My eyes filled with tears as I read your powerful story, Jen. Then, I scrolled down through dozens more stories–so many testifying of God’s miraculous power and grace. What glorious peace and joy to know that our God is an active God, interceding and engineering circumstances for His children. He is indeed in control!
Anonymous says
I have cried out to God for years to rescue me from the pain of verbal and emotional abuse. And, in 2005, He spoke to me very clearly and said that He is coming… but in His timing. He promised me that I will have freedom from this, and He gave me a sign to prove that what I heard was actually from Him. That sign came true in 3 parts — and in such a way that I have absolutely NO DOUBT in my mind that it was God, and God alone who spoke to me. And, so now, every time I’m feeling broken and alone, I remember God’s promise… He is faithful, and He is definitely in control. God is good… all the time. 😉
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
Yes, always.
Praying on your behalf for you to be completely healed from your past pain, knowing that HE is faithful and you are not the lie that came from that verbal abuse. You are loved, cherished and the daughter of the only King.
Anonymous says
PS… I am a huge believer in the fact that God can use anything He chooses — any media / person — to speak to us right where we’re at. God has used books, friends, coworkers, television, music, etc. to get my attention. He has even used Facebook! 😛
Lissy says
I love that song. I remember teaching it as a Primary Choir song years ago, & it really impacted the parents.
Just wanted to add that a really wise friend told me to play great Christian music in the car when I had to drive to & from the hospital when my husband had Leumkaemia, then had a bone marrow transplant. She was right – all that music really ministered to me & was so helpful on the good & not so good days! Music is very powerful in that way – goes straight to the heart…
Sending peace & love.
P.S. Hubby is now 5 years out from the transplant & going well.
Thank you Lord.
carol says
I was driving to the hospital after hearing my husband was in cardiac distress and was about to have an angioplasty. That same song — God is in Control — was playing on the radio. Peace and comfort flowed through me. That was in 1993 and all I wanted was to be out of that awful marriage.
But God IS in control. My husband made it through the angioplasty and even heart bypass surgery in the next year.
We had many years of a sorry, miserable marriage.
In the last two years God has worked a real miracle in our lives. We are now very happily married (to each other) and in June we will celebrate our 41st anniversary! God is truly in control!!
Ann Voskamp says
Powerful and beautiful and truth, Jen.
That song makes me tear up every. time.
And I have a moment just with that song.
Thank you. *Thank you*
Amanda says
My husband was approached by a recruiter several years ago for a position with a communications company in Alaska. We had only been married two years, living in Florida, with me a native Texan and him have lived his forst 25+ years in Pennsylvania. The first phone interview was followed by a socned phone ineterview, then two weeks later my kids were spending spring break with family and friends and he and I were flying to Anchorage from Jacksonville. It was an amazing three days, we prayed about the move, felt God telling us to go for it, put the house on the market, the first people to look at it made and offer and ended up buying it. Then, just after we agreed to sell, with two weeks left to close on the sale, the rescended their offer. We were stunned, and dissapointed, but God told us both clearly, as we packed up our things to continue with the sale. We moved into an elderly ladies house across the straight and paid her rent and all the utilities while she was visiting with a relative out of state. We found land and hired a contractor to start on the property. Then a hurricane came through and everything came to a standstill in the building process. Three days after the hurricane came through my husband got a call from his company offering him another position, but in Dallas, where my family was. He looked at me and smiled, closed his eyse for just a second, and said yes. We moved back to my home town. We stayed with my mother for ten months while we paid off our dent, searched for a good school district and a good home to buy. When we thought we had found the right one we made an offer on it. Nothing happend. We waitied the 30 days and made a second offer, nothing happened again. In the meantime my husband was very unhappy living in the city and missed being outdoors working and out in the country living. Then a buddy back in Florida called, tolh him about an opening back here in the Panhandle and my husband called the manager in charge to ask him about it. Needless to say, we moved again after only being back in my home state for ten months. God brought us to this area, this home, His house of worship here, and this community becuase he knew my kids and husband and I needed them, and they needed us. With everyopportunity that has come up when we move out in faith, even when it doesn’t make sense to the rest of the world, God has blessed us ten times over. So many other things have happened along the way, but please let you readers know that God really does have a plan for each life on this planet. We just have to be brave , listen, hear, and act in faith.
Kristen says
At 24 years old and unmarried, I found myself pregnant. Although I was old enough and self-sufficient enough (still living at home though) to be a mom, I was so unprepared for it. I didn’t know what to do. I was a mess with headaches, stress, restless sleep, depression. I explored options but realized I was not one who could have an abortion. I went to therapy, talked with friends, my dad. It was the therapist who asked why I had not considered adoption. He was an adoptee whose niece placed a child in an open adoption. I had never heard of that before, and frankly, didn’t think I’d be able to do it. But I started to pray over that idea and was able to talk to the niece about her experience. She had an incredible, God-inspired experience. Not perfect, but God-led. I prayed and prayed that night about everything. The next morning I woke after having the best rest I had had in 2 months since finding out. On the way to the drs office that morning, I heard a song by Elton John – Blessed –
Hey you, you’re a child in my head
You haven’t walked yet
Your first words have yet to be said
But I swear you’ll be blessed
I know you’re still just a dream
Your eyes might be green
Or the bluest that Ive ever seen
Anyway you’ll be blessed
And you, you’ll be blessed
Youll have the best
I promise you that
Ill pick a star from the sky
Pull your name from a hat
I promise you that, promise you that, promise you that
Youll be blessed
After listening and praying and crying through the whole song, God was speaking into my heart saying that yes, this child would be blessed, just not with me. I arrived at my drs and she asked if I had decided what I was going to do and I told her I THINK I’m going to do an adoption. So I started on a path of researching, discovering, and talking to anyone who was involved with adoption. Suffice it to say that God supplied everything single thing at the exact time i needed during the whole process. From telling my brothers, and extended family, to providing a family to talk to who had just completed an open adoption near where I lived and they were the ones who told me about the lawyer who was so wonderful to work with and also just happened to know someone who might be interested in adopting and then it turned out that the husband of this couple was the assoc pastor at my dads church. Oh my…God was/is sooooo good. The whole thing had His hand clearly writing the story. And when it came time to birth and say good bye, He provided abundantly. I would not have been able to do something like this without His providing and doing everything He did. It is His grace that got me through all the ups and downs the experience has put on my life over the years. But it has a happy middle – last year I got a letter from my birthdaughters dad saying that she wanted to meet me! So last October I did – and what a reunion it was. Although she is still young (15 now) it was soo good to reconnect with her parents and see how God has literally been working in her life all this time. He has her – heart and soul! For that, I am forever grateful and know that if she doesn’t want to have a relationship with me here on earth, she’ll be my sister in Christ in heaven for sure.
Music is something that carried me through so much of that time and is so important to me now.
Jen (Balancing Beauty and Bedlam) says
oh Kristen – I know people don’t tell you enough, but thank you for that incredibly selfless sacrifice that you made 15 years ago.
As an adopted child myself, I can’t even imagine what my birth mom went through, but you give a small glimpse into that and thank you! You will have eternity to spend with that precious blessings. 🙂
Tonya says
When my 12 year old son was a newborn I was consumed with worry that something would happen to take him from me. For the first 18 months of his life I lived in fear of all the “what if’s” we are surrounded by in this broken world. I’ve always struggled with anxiety and, though a Christian, I had not yet learned to fully trust God to take car of me, or my beloved son.
One fateful night I awoke in tears from a very realistic nightmare in which my baby was killed in a car accident. I knew God was asking me to turn my son over to Him. I wrestled with God for over an hour, so afraid that I was going to lose my baby, but eventually I relented. I turned my child over to God and resigned myself to trust that God would get me through whatever came our way. Immediately the story of Abraham and Isaac came to mind and God told me that he doesn’t want to take my child away from me. He only wants me to realize that my child was and is His child first, and trust him with that. The anxiety over my son was gone and to this day it has not returned, but it’s been replaced with an unshakable peace.
As meaningful as that was, the part of the story that still gives me goosebumps is that my son is named Isaac. We did not seek a bible name and it had no significance other than we liked it. But from that moment until this day, every time I hear of speak his name I am reminded of who my Isaac really belongs to.
Karen Smith says
Yup, when I was five or not just quite yet five, the LORD told me the nun in front of me loved HIM very much. And when I was eight or seven HE told me JESUS is HIS Son and when I told HIM I did not want to serve HIM at twelve, HE told me HE’d put me in HIS sanctuary. And HE did. All my life. There are probably many other times but these are the most astounding to me. As I spent all my time with the LORD, at that age, it’s not surprising. It’s normal. Considered.
Lina says
I am always amazed at how often God uses music to still my crazy emotions/heart.
One time in particular I remember driving to encourage a friend who was having an extra hard time but I was so weary from my own life, I was asking God for my own encouragement and strength along the way. This friend lived 45 minutes from my house and upon praying that “please- show- me- you’re- with- me- God” prayer the Heavens opened up and started to rain – which I would not have thought profound – except that the song “God reigns” started at the exact same moment….AND the rain stopped when the song did. I was a crazy cloudburst of God’s love and answered prayer as I drove along the highway. Naturally I burst into my own rain (tears) along with it knowing that I was truly in His care and He would continue to give me the strength to encourage others.
Lina
Maureen M. says
16 years ago a job change for my husband took us 300 miles away from my home, family, dad who was in ICU, my job as a nurse in a busy neonatal unit, our church and our little girls away from everything they knew. My husband had to go on ahead and I was by myself with the girls, struggling not to be overwhelmed and wonder what in the world we were doing.
That day God sounded remarkably like Bryan Duncan and the song was “After This Day is Gone”.
He sang about how God has given us the faith to live through today, so He can have tomorrow, the next day and the day after that. I thought to myself, “I can do today.” Thank You, Lord! I can only say that the tears streamed down my face that the God of the Universe would speak directly to me.
It was such a testimony to me because where we moved to was the best place ever to raise our sweet girls. And since then when things get tough, I remember His faithfulness and the sweet lessons learned.
Marinalva Sickler says
I can imagine the turmoil of thoughts before God’s voice sounded through the song. It’s so good to imagine how He cares for us.
Gwen says
Just today–I have a traumatic brain injury–and the past week or so has had terrible headaches and more tears than usual. I was here after a very hard physical therapy today, and its like I heard God say out loud: Sing. I opened my Bible and it was on singing the words to The Lord and making music to Him. I did that and my heart felt better.
Other times, as I sit alone, alone and lonely and sad, I have felt physically felt Jesus sit down beside me and put His arm around me…so real I had to look. I explained to my husband later it was not like a man sitting there but my Friend and Lord Jesus, just quietly sitting with me and letting me know, really know, that in this oh so hard journey He is with me. Right beside me. Oh my head hurts so I must close.
Renae says
E
Renae says
My husband and I were at the end of our marriage. We had decided to see a lawyer. The night before it was to happen, I prayed, “lord I know this is not your will, but please, I Need your help, I need an answer”
The next morning I woke up and klove was on the radio. The song “healing begins” was playing. The Lord spoke to me so clearly, that He was going to heal us.
I spoke to my husband about it, and he literally said ok “one more time!”
We went down the long road of counseling, and long story short we are preparing to leave the country together as missionaries !
I am so grateful to God!
Renae says
My husband and I were at the end of our marriage. We had decided to see a lawyer. The night before it was to happen, I prayed, “lord I know this is not your will, but please, I Need your help, I need an answer”
The next morning I woke up and the radio was on the radio. The song “healing begins” was playing. The Lord spoke to me so clearly, that He was going to heal us.
I spoke to my husband about it, and he literally said ok “one more time!”
We went down the long road of counseling, and long story short we are preparing to leave the country together as missionaries !
I am so grateful to God!
Brooke Burger says
For our family the son was “He’s my son”. It hits too close to home and I have also pulled over to the side of the road to cry.
Beth WIlliams says
My story is not anything big…but just a nice one of fears being calmed. Over 9 years ago my hubby and I were dating. He asked me to come over to his house for dinner & I said ok. The night of the even I was scared…”what will happen, what could happen? I had only known/dated him for about 2-3 weeks.
I always have Christian music on when I’m in my car. Driving down the road just a few feet from my house I heard the song “God is in Control”. The chorus was ringing out and I yelled at the top of my lungs “God is in Control”. At that moment all fears were gone. It was as though the devil fled and peace came over me. We ended up having a wonderful evening together and shortly there after got married.
Jen
Praying for your son’s future! God is awesome & speaks in mysterious ways!
Sarah says
I’m starting my day with this post. What an (in)couragement!
God told me to come to Him because He loved me the night I became a Christian and then, gradually, my whole outlook on life changed.
In 2005 at a wedding, someone I’d never met told me: “I think that’s the most important thing – to glorify God in whatever you do.” Well, God’s voice sounded a lot like George that day! I had been genuinely trying to do what was right, but now I had a question I could ask myself. Does it glorify God? and if not, don’t do it. Things were much simpler then and that was when freedom started to come.
The following year, I was wondering who would look after me when I got old. I had sponsored children in the Philippines, but they were so far away. As I sat on my bed, God spoke to my heart. “Even to your old age and grey hairs, I will sustain you.” He didn’t tell me how, but that’s a moment I’ve gone back to again and again when I’ve wondered about the future. It’s good to know He’ll always look after me.
Anonymous says
I have had MANY times when I feel God is talking directly to me and often it is through the radio/song. One that comes to mind quickly is the day before the one year anniversary of my mother’s death. I was riding in the car with my family and I was thinking that I couldn’t believe that it had been a year since I’d seen her, how much I’d missed her, etc. My husband was listening to “his station” and I heard the lyrics “I need a sign to let me know you’re here” (Calling All Angels by Train) and at that exact moment I see a sign that says “SIGNS”! It was for a business that makes signs, I guess, but to me it was much more! Another time I was driving and I saw a tractor trailer that had just tipped over. There were people pulled over to help and the driver was out walking around. I just kept driving saying a silent prayer for the driver (thankful that no one was injured and hopeful that the man didn’t loose his job) as I listened to a Christian radio station (a national station on Sirius). Wouldn’t you know that as soon as the song ended the DJ says “lets say a prayer for all the over the road truckers…” That MUST be more than a coincidence!! I felt like it was God saying to me “I am here. I hear you.” I feel like if we really pay attention, these signs are all around us and boy oh boy, when they happen I feel a surge of Faith fill me up! LOVE!!
Tami says
Although our very good friends had been barren for years, my husband and I conceived in the first month that we tried…on my way to tell my friend about my pregnancy, I asked God how I could tell her without upsetting her. Walking there, at one very specific turn in the road, He told me that he had it covered and she would get pregnant soon. Only 3 months later, she was pregnant! I cannot go past that place without remembering His care and faithfulness.
Mary Beth says
Four years ago in 2009, I began to hear the Lord very clearly ask me “will you believe me for a miracle?” Some times I would hear this question in my devotion time and other times throughout the day at random times. This question came to me many times and I would always answer yes. Several weeks to a month after this first started, my 18 year old son was in a car accident, where he rolled his car several times. His seat broke during the crash, which allowed him to be thrust back, preventing his neck from being severely impacted like it could have been. He climbed out of the car with a terrible gash on his head. It is a terrible call to receive to hear that your child was in a car accident, to hear the sirens and know they are coming to help your child and to approach the scene….I will never forget it. He was taken by ambulance to a hospital, kept overnight, scans done, stitches given, etc. He was released the next day. Randomly on that day following the accident, I was cleaning in my kitchen and the Lord said to me “that was your miracle”…….it had never even occurred to me in the shock of the accident and the prayers and care for my son immediately following the accident but I KNOW God did give my son a miracle. It is now four years later and he suffers from some neck pain now and then but otherwise has no ongoing issue from the accident. I remind him of this scenario many times, telling him God has a great plan for his life! Thank you Lord for the miracle you gave to my son, to my family!
Linda says
Wow, your story is my story too. When my daugher was born at 2 pounds, it was the most stressful time of my life. Ever. And leaving her at the hospital every night was heart-wrenching, especially in the beginning. Early on this journey, Twila’s “God is in Control” came on the radio and I cranked it up and sang it at the top of my lungs through my tears. It was very therapeutic and it spoke volumes to me, as it did to you. I purchased the CD and played it every night on my drive home from the hospital (almost three months). It really helped me cope. Thanks for sharing your story, which I see is only the beginning of one! I have never forgotten how her song — and God’s love — has impacted me.
Karla says
Our world would tell us that these miracles were coincides!!! My Father tells me that they are miracles. When dealing with a very rebellious teenager I struggled to “hold on” to her. I finally “released her” to the care of my Heavenly Father knowing that I could not follow her around and keep her out of danger, but, He could! One day while on my way to do some chores, I turned on a road to soon and there to my shock was my daughter (who was at the time grounded) getting out of her car with a guy I had never seen before. Through a series of things that “happened…but not by accident” I found out that this guy was a convicted rapist and was in town living at a half way house!!! I thank God for turning my car down that “wrong” road that day!!! So many times in my life, God is so real…that it is almost “creepy”. How great to be reminded that our lives matter to Him…no matter how big or how trivial our problems may seem to us…they all matter to Him!!! I thank Him for His realness and praise Him because I really can’t do this life without Him!!!
Kristy says
When I was seventeen years old I had two brain aneurysms. One ruptured and I walked around with it bleeding in my head for a week. I was very sick. My parents and I were told I had the flu, even after having a seizure in the doctors office.. We didn’t think it was just the flu. I remember my mom telling me she prayed asking God for a sign and to know what to do. After having another seizure that same day, my mom and dad rushed me to the hospital. The Holy Spirit was with us the whole time. He confirmed what hospital my parents took me too and made sure the right doctor took my case. After having a few tests, I will never forget laying in the hospital bed, with my daddy by my side, feeling the most wonderful, overwhelming and comforting sense of peace. I knew instantly it was from my Heavenly Father! I remember looking at my dad and telling him I was going to be okay. He of course agreed, but he hadn’t experienced the peace I did. God’s peace spoke that to every fiber of my being. I didn’t know what was wrong at the time, but I knew no matter what I was going to be okay. During my stay in the hospital, involving surgery to clip the second aneurysm, Twila Paris’ ‘God is in Control’ and Audio Adrenaline’s ‘Hands and Feet’ played on the Christian radio station my parents had playing my room over and over. This was a comfort to my mom and dad and they knew God was letting then know everything was going to be okay. Thirteen years, two brain surgeries and many neurologists appointments later, I am doing great. Only because of the grace of God. I am a wife and mother of two who is so blessed to be alive and healthy. I love that I always get goosebumps when I just think of either song.
Lessons Learned in 3D — A New Series | 3dLessons4Life's Blog says
[…] Music is a powerful, healing force in our lives. Love this post by Jennifer and this word by Beth. The five worship songs that are on my favorite playlist […]
Rose says
I so needed this today. I usually read these posts on the days they are posted, but I am behind. This post is one of those moments for me. I needed to be reminded of God’s past presence in my life and that He will reveal himself to me even though I feel so alone right now, I am thankful to all of you who took the time to share, I found your stories comforting.
Rose says
I so needed this today. I usually read these posts on the days they are posted, but I am behind. This post is one of those moments for me. I needed to be reminded of God’s past presence in my life and that He will reveal himself to me even though I feel alone.
Rosario says
I am often amazed that the God of creation, our powerful and glorious Father, knows each one of His creatures by its name! Not only does He know us personally but many times He orchestrates or engineers situations so that recepient of this grace knows without a doubt that God directly intervened…that He really knows and that He does cares. Yes, He has used the creative medium of song to bring much healing and restoration in my life and He has used it also to bring conviction and repentance. I have found encouragement and strength, mercy and grace, and love and peace through classical hymns and contemporary Christian music. Even though I a middle-aged, I was raised in the CCM culture of the 70’s and continue to appreciate its evolution. We serve an incredibly awesome God and am blown away that He showed His love for me by sending Jesus to give us the gift of eternal life!
kathleen says
Hi! Music is huge in my family..we sing loud & proud; but we’ll also sit back and listen.
My 3 daughters all have health problems, won’t go in to specifics with this post. That said, our 2nd daughter us 9 1/2; in her short life she’s had countless procedures and 19 major & minor surgeries. Her heart is fragile to the point that when she’s sedated, it stops for a few Hi! Music is huge in my family..we sing loud & proud; but we’ll also sit back and listen.
My 3 daughters all have health problems, won’t go in to specifics with this post. That said, our 2nd daughter us 9 1/2; in her short life she’s had countless procedures and 19 major & minor surgeries. Her heart is fragile to the point that when she’s sedated, it stops for a few seconds. She has a fire, always has, for God and ‘His songs’. When she was 3 1/2, she required major surgery. We received several phone calls during this 8hr surgery letting us know ‘her heart stopped but we got it going again’ seconds. She has a fire, always has, for God and ‘His songs’. When she was 3 1/2, she required major surgery. We received several phone calls during this 8hr surgery letting us know ‘her heart stopped but we got it going again’. Following surgery she was moved to the PICU, tubes all over her and so so pale. She woke the the next morning and we were told her breathing tube could removed. Her first words? ‘Mommy, sing Here I Worship’. So sweet was her whisper, so beautiful her request. I sang ‘Here I Am to Worship’ many many times that morning and to this day it tears us both up. Songs bring up memories and this ones a biggie for us.
Joy says
I read this blog through an email that I subscribed with this website, and I just thought it was kind of neat that you mentioned about Twila Paris; my mom and I went to a concert Feb. 23 with Twila Paris, Steve Green, Wayne Watson, and Larnelle Harris, and Twila did the same song, and there were some other songs they sung that ministered to me; oh how God knew that I needed this, the next morning my niece came over and told us some bad news, and we needed those words that God is in control! Also the night of the concert, listening to the songs and sometimes they would have the words up on the screen to read and sing along, I thought about my dad too and the comfort that God has brought us since he past away early December; God is so good, using music to minister to us! Happens sometimes when I listen to the radio as well.
jane says
I think music is often the way God communicates. Ask the ladies in my Bible study. I requently say “There’s a song that……”
Personally, “Break Away” (Kelly Clarkson) kept playing when I was in a job that just wasn’t good for me anymore. I took it as a message that I needed to break away from that job, even though I had a young daughter to care for and no other job lined up. I put my trust in God, and by the end of the summer I had a new job – one I just “happened” to see in the paper but didn’t really understand the position! God works in mysterious ways 🙂
Blanca says
Nine and a half years ago, my precious one month old daughter was diagnosed with rsv. We went home with antibiotics and she seemed to feel better,..but on Sunday she stopped nursing. I took her to the pediatrician’s monday morning. When I saw the doctor’s face as he measured her oxygen level I knew it was not good. His words “she is giving up we have to get her to the hospital now!” were unbearable. I thought he was asking me to take her to the er but no he called an ambulance to transport her to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, although we had a hospital that was closer to where I live. They would not let me ride in the back with her. Instead I sat in the front crying and praying. All of a sudden I realized I didn’t hear the siren. I looked up and everything seemed to be in slow motion. I read the exit signs and the mile marker sign. I looked over to the speedometer and saw that we were going at 80mph…yet everything was so slow and calm. Suddenly a feeling of peace overcame me. I have never again felt that peace. I knew at that moment that she was going to be ok. I knew this was my God, assuring me to have faith, to put everything in his hands. She was in the hospital for 5 days and was released on Thanksgiving Day. My precious child is so spirited and has an I can do anything attitude.
Thank you Jen for sharing and for inspiring so many of us
Holly G-M says
There have been many moments like that where my world felt like it was going to crash and just the right song came on at just the right moment and it forever changed how I looked at that crisis. However, there is one song that has dug deep into my soul and repeated itself for every negative moment, Nicole Nordmans “Sunrise.” “You are Sunrise, You are blue skies and how would I know the morning if I knew not midnight.” It has become my theme and even wound its beautiful way into the inspirational novel I wrote and published not that long ago. I discovered, whilst writing, that the main characters story was her going from “Midnight to Morning” and that is what stuck.
tori says
I want to share this testimony in fulfillment to my vow to the prophet that helped me with the case. I was happily married for 4years and blessed with two children some how i got into some troubles with my husband issues that He would overlook before He beat me up and left me and the kids leaving us with no source of revenue i tried several means to get him back yet no positive outcome. After a while i was left with no option than to request for a divorce even though i loved him like my life. Because he had some connections he turned me down until i read an article were a woman gave a testimony on similar issue so i contacted the prophet who helped me with the case and i won it. I decided to testify so that people can also gain from me the way i gained from that article i read so here is the prophets email in case you have any problem or similar case prophetsalifu@yahoo.com,prophetsalifu@gmail.com