Little God Moments

         Have you ever met a stranger and just knew God orchestrated that meeting? After you meet them you think to yourself, this was a little God moment because God doesn’t do anything by chance, everything He does is for a greater purpose. This happened to me this week.

         After an encouraging and exciting time at the Ohio Christian Writing Conference, I turned right around and traveled to Bethesda, Maryland for my 12^th visit to the National Institutes of Health, (NIH). Even though I was exhausted from learning so many writing golden nuggets at the conference, I was excited to make this trip to Maryland to learn more golden nuggets about my rare gene mutation, MAGIS Syndrome. Most people wouldn’t enjoy going to a place where the usual each morning is having 15-20 tubes of blood drawn from their veins, but I do because the more I hear new information about my disease, God gives me not only closure but shows me what I have gone through hasn’t been in vain.

         On Monday I was eating lunch with my parents in the NIH cafeteria and my mom and I began to randomly talk about Asbury University. I graduated from the college in 2012 and it’s my parents Alma Mater as well. Suddenly a man appeared at our table and began speaking to us, “I’ve walked past this table a couple of times and noticed you keep repeating a certain word and that word is Asbury. Did you guys go there?”

         “Yes!,” I exclaimed. “I graduated in 2012.”

         “Well I’m John and I graduated in 2007. I worked in the admissions office while you were a student there.”

         “Oh cool! Lisa Harper who was the Admissions Director was my mentor.”

        His face gave off that “aha!” expression when someone figures something out. “I knew you looked familiar to me!” 

         What led after that became two old Asburians talking about the good old days and became new friends. I was able to share my story and how God has given me MORE and he explained he was a chaplain and on an Institutional Review Board. Before we parted ways he told me he’d keep me in his prayers as I continued on this medical journey.

         This encounter brought so much joy to my heart because I would have never dreamt I would have met someone who went to Asbury in the NIH cafeteria of all things! I began to think, what are the odds that my parents and I were in the cafeteria at the same time he was and he walked past our table as my mom and I were talking about our school? The truth of the matter is there isn’t any odds, but there is a God. Romans 8:28 says And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. I may never see John again, only feeling his prayers or someday our paths may cross again for another God orchestrated encounter. The reason as to why God allowed us to meet is uncertain and I may never know why it happened this side of Heaven. But here’s what I do know: this was a little God moment that had a good purpose.

         So here’s my prayer for you— as you travel on this journey I hope you have the same  “aha!” expression like John had when he recognized me because you recognize what you just witnessed was a little God moment. I pray that you have many experiences like this as God continues to write your story. For it’s when we witness those little God moments we know He isn’t finished with us yet.

You’re Enough!

Do you know remember where you were a year ago?

I do— I was about to attend my first writing conference— the Ohio Christian Writing Conference. I was so excited and so terrified at the same time. I didn’t know what to expect or know the do’s and don’ts of writing conferences. I felt like God had given me the talent to write and even believed He called me to share my story, but having the confidence to show my work to publishers, agents, and authors in the writing world, well it made me feel extremely exposed. What if they didn’t think I had what it took to succeed as a writer? What if they didn’t like the message I had to share in my writing? I was scared of rejection.

         I think that’s the reason I hadn’t ever branched out and attended a writer’s conference before last year. The fear of not being accepted and realizing I didn’t know how to advance in the writing world was so overwhelming and it held me back.

         Thankfully, God put the right people in my path and opened the doors that gave me the push to step out of my comfort zone. I went to that writing conference and God gave me so many divine appointments and my confidence began to grow in the calling God had given me and I realized that calling mattered. This past year that confidence has grown and grown. I’m continuing to put myself out there to people and God continues to confirm the calling He has given me. This week I read this quote by Kristen Strong and found it to be so fitting for this season of my life- “When God instills a God-sized dream in your heart He is telling you, YOU ARE ENOUGH. You know enough. You have what it takes. You may not think it or feel it, or see anything that proves it, but it’s true nonetheless.” This quote made my heart so happy because it was as if God was whispering to my heart, “Whitney, you have what it takes and you are enough!”  Even though there’s a lot  I still need to learn about this God-sized dream I’m excited about the fact that I’ve learned so much this past year.  

         And guess where I’m at now? Getting ready to attend the Ohio Christian Writing Conference again. I don’t know what God has in store for me these next few days, but I’m praying I’ll learn even more so I can be a better writer, I’ll receive an increased drive and passion to pursue God’s calling, and witness divine appointments.

         So what’s the point of telling you all of this? Well, I’m sharing all of this to encourage you on your journey of pursuing your God-sized dream. I don’t know what it is, but that doesn’t matter, because the truth of the matter is if God’s put a calling on your life, He will equip you to achieve it. Because of God’s equipping, you know enough and you have what it takes. You may not think it or see it, but with each passing step, God will tell you what you need to know. Stepping out of your comfort zone to pursue your talents and passions can be difficult, believe me, I understand this. So as someone who knows this all too well, I want to cheer you on to go all out and grasp everything God has for you because YOU ARE ENOUGH!

For Such a Time as This

          Have you ever felt isolated? Like no one totally understands who you are or what your purpose is? I think we all have felt this at one time or another.

And I have to believe this is how Queen Esther felt. Just to give you a little Bible story refresher, Esther along with her cousin Mordecai were Jews who lived in Persia. One night King Ahasuerus summoned Queen Vashti. Vashti refused to submit to the King’s authority so he vanished her as queen and began to look for a new queen. He gathered every beautiful virgin woman in the kingdom and Esther was among them.

Because of God’s divine intervention, Esther was chosen to be the new queen of Persia. I’m sure in that moment though, Esther didn’t see God’s hand in this. She was a Jew in a foreign palace and Mordecai was the only one who knew her secret. As if these changes and secrets weren’t enough, King Ahasuerus’ right-hand man Haman hated the Jews and Mordecai became his mortal enemy when he refused to bow down to Haman.

As you can imagine this didn’t sit well with the prideful and power crazed Haman. So he went to the King and told him the Jews were a threat to the Kingdom and requested that he be given the power to put all the Jews to death. The King granted this request and Haman went to work on his evil plan. When the Jews found out about the decree they were of course distraught. Mordecai sent a servant to notify Queen Esther of the devastating news. He begged her to go to the King to reveal she was a Jew so the massacre wouldn’t take place. Esther told the servant to explain to Mordecai that she could be put to death if she went to her husband without being summoned. Then Mordecai uttered these famous profound words: “…And who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

I understand why Mordecai persisted in convincing Esther to go to the King. He and all of his race had an unexpected expiration date. But I also get why Esther was so hesitant to go. She was totally alone. She was isolated from Mordecai and her race.  I mean the only way she could talk to her only mentor was through servants. No one understood her or what her purpose was. But I think when the servant gave her Mordecai’s profound words, Esther’s heart began to whisper, “Is this who I am? Is this my purpose?” 

I’ve felt like Esther before and I think it’s why I’ve always felt drawn to this famous queen in the Bible. Growing up kids my age and people around me didn’t totally understand who I was or what my purpose could be. When you live with an invisible illness that isn’t well known, people become skeptical of your authenticity. I felt isolated. From where I stood there was no one who completely understood what I was going through or had similar circumstances I could relate too. But in my early 20’s this changed and I gained many dear friends who accepted and encouraged me. They didn’t question whether my story was real or not. So the isolation I felt most of my life began to fade. 

In 2016 when I attended the dissertation of the student who discovered my gene mutation, finding out the name of the disease would be MAGIS Syndrome, a name that meant MORE in Latin, my heart whispered “Is this who I am? Is this my purpose?” In the last two years, I have found it is. That day at the University of Philadelphia was just the beginning. God called me to show people they are MORE than their circumstances. Where ever I share my story my message is the same,  You are MORE! But if I never experienced the years of isolation and loneliness, I wouldn’t be able to assure people that conquering their mountain is possible. You see, before I even knew it, God had chosen me. He called me. He set me apart. For such a time as this.

He did the same exact thing for Esther too. Esther heeded Mordecai’s wise advice and went to the King revealing her secret. Guess what? Her actions saved the whole Jewish race. Esther had been chosen. Esther was called. She was set apart. God used her for such a time as this.

I don’t know what you’re going through. Maybe you feel isolated. Maybe it seems like people around you don’t truly understand you or what your purpose is. But I want to encourage you that God will reveal to you in His perfect time exactly who you are.

Maybe you’ll save a nation.

Maybe you’ll share with people that they are MORE.

Whatever you live to do remember you are already chosen. You are called. You have been set apart. And God will use you in a mighty way for such a time as this.