Where He Guides, He Provides

Hi again!  I’m so excited that you’ve decided to continue with me on this journey of following Jesus and living with love and wanderlust.  What an adventure it is!  Like I mentioned in last week’s post, the Lord has already been so faithful to provide for me here in Arkansas.  Namely, I have a job!  In fact, I had a job within five days of arriving in Bentonville.  If that’s not divine provision, then I don’t know what is.  I’d like to rewind just a little bit in order for you to fully understand the magnitude of the Lord’s faithfulness in this blessing.

In the post where I announced my move to Arkansas (which you’ll find here, on my World Race blog), I said, “I wish that I had time to write about all of the guiding conversations, countless confirmations, and unexpected twists and turns that this journey has involved,” and since then I’ve had several people say to me “I want to hear about these confirmations!”  What a lovely reminder that we can never say enough about God’s faithfulness.  So here’s a little glimpse of how God confirmed my decision to come to Arkansas:

After weeks of prayer and changing my mind at least once a day about whether or not I was actually going to follow through with the decision to move, I finally told God, “Okay, off to Arkansas I go.  I’m saying yes to whatever it is you have for me there.  I’m saying yes to You, Lord.”  And less than 10 minutes later I had a comment on my post in the World Race alumni page asking about jobs in the NWA (Northwest Arkansas) region.  I was immediately encouraged (read: excitedly jumping up and down in the living room and talking so fast my parents could hardly understand a word I was saying), but I look back on that moment now and imagine God smiling and saying, “Precious Daughter, just wait and see what I have planned for you!”

Because over the next few weeks, that comment from a stranger on a Facebook group with over 2000 members turned into an email conversation with said stranger.  Which turned into another email connecting me to the stranger’s best friend, an employee of NWA Sunshine School and Development Center.  Sunshine School is a multi-faceted non-profit organization that enriches the lives of adults and children with special needs through therapy, education, and support.  If you know me at all, you know that one of my greatest passions is seeing individuals with disabilities live up to their greatest potential, and I sensed that the Lord was going to use this passion in a significant way when I got to Arkansas.  Fast forward to February 17th, about 2 1/2 weeks before my official moving day.  An email pops up in my inbox from the contact at Sunshine School saying, “We just had two positions open up in the preschool and I thought of you, Cassady!  We’ll start interviewing the first week of March – let me know if you’d like to be on that list!”  And that, my friends, is how God works.  His timing is perfect, His plan is greater than anything we could dream up, and His ways are higher than our ways.

So I arrived in Bentonville on Sunday, March 6th.  I visited Sunshine School for the first time on Wednesday the 9th, and scheduled an interview for Thursday afternoon.  On Wednesday evening, I was rejoicing over the Lord’s faithfulness in bringing me to Sunshine School, but I was, admittedly, still nervous about my interview the next day.  So the Lord led me to what has become one of my favorite passages of Scripture – 2 Chronicles chapter 20 – and gave me three very specific instructions.

“You will not have to fight this battle.  Take up your positions (show up); stand firm (stand up) and see the deliverance the Lord will give you (look up).  Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged. Go out and face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.” (2 Chron. 20:15,17)

Show up, stand up, and look Up.  That is all He asked of me.  Victory was mine, if only I would have the faith to lay aside my fear and claim it.  So the next morning, I showed up at Sunshine School a few minutes before my interview at 1pm.  With a deep breath, I stepped out of my car and stood up straight and tall in quiet confidence.  And just before I walked through the doors, I looked up at the heavens and smiled back at the Lord who has caused the light of His countenance to shine so radiantly upon this unworthy sinner.  And within an hour, I was offered a job as Sunshine School’s newest assistant preschool teacher!

I know that sometimes the Lord allows and even commands us to fight in the battles we face.  Some victories require more of us than we think we have to offer.  But sometimes, He asks just three small things of us- to show up, stand up, and look up.  That is why it is so important that we turn our hears to His voice in every situation and circumstance!   He knows exactly what we need to do, and His ways are perfect.  Thank you for rejoicing with me over His faithfulness!  How has He granted undeserved victory and favor to you today?  How is He telling you to approach the upcoming “battles” in your life?  I’d love to hear from you in the comments!  Thank you again for coming on this journey with me.

with love & wanderlust,

Cassady