Interruptions

The children of Israel were supposed to go straight to their new home in the promised land, but they “got lost” in the desert for 40 years. I’ve been wondering how this 40-year interruption in the desert looked.

Some of them gave up and stopped trying to find their way. Others complained about the wandering. And some of them didn’t make it to their new home. Yet some made it.

The same thing can happen to us in our lives. We set goals for ourselves, but then we get distracted by things that come up along the way. We might give up on our dreams, or we might just get lost in the details and forget what we are working towards.

As a single mom struggling to make ends meet, I relied on any assistance I could get, including the power company’s kindness in not turning off my electricity. During this time, I had a strong feeling that I could someday give away a car. I didn’t know which car it would be, and I’m not sure if I expected to be wealthy when I did this.

Instead of wandering for 40 years, I was a single mom for 16 years. At the time of this vision, I was driving a Toyota Camry. I couldn’t imagine not having it.

Then the unthinkable happened! Yes! You guessed it. I felt led by the Lord to sell my car to fund the next move.

See, the Lord was calling me to move from North Carolina to California. This was my third move (or wandering in the wilderness as a single mom). The Lord always miraculously provided for each move. Always!

But my car! It was my pride and joy, a 1988 Camry I had bought brand new. It was 11 years old, but I was attached to it. However, I was also devoted to my faith. I knew God wanted me to sell my car, and I was willing to do it to show my obedience. So, I did.

Life can be distracting. Are you distracted from pursuing your goals and dreams? Or are you stuck in a desert, losing sight of them? Don’t you worry, friend, just like the Israelites, you’ll find your way.

I continued being a single mom until 2012, when I married the man of my dreams. Then, one day, a few cars later in 2018, a single mom was sitting in front of me with a need. To be specific, she needed a vehicle.

I just had one vehicle, a Hyundai. I wasn’t super rich, though I had no debt. My husband was working out of state, and I remembered the vision from 1999 that I would give away a car.

I gave her my car. It had been almost 20 years since that prophetic vision.

I said to the single mom, “What did I think? Did I think I would have a fleet of cars when the time came to donate a car?” I didn’t think it would be so sacrificial. I am glad I wrote the ideas in my journal to be able to tell this story today.

You can read more about this and other journeys in my book, God’s Prosperity.

The point of all this is to encourage you to stay focused. Don’t let interruptions deter your dreams and plans like the children of Israel did in Moses’ day. Something to ponder on the first day of the new year.

Beliefs represented by individual authors are not necessarily shared by all members of ICW.