Life As You Expected?

Has your life turned out like you expected?  Had originally wanted?  Thought?  Mine sure has not!  I thought I was going to marry Alan Walne, have lots of money and never leave Dallas, Texas!!  I never thought I would be married to a pastor.  And then after years of being a stay-at-home mom, and then teaching in colleges in Texas and Tennessee, and having a great tenure providing training and development for businesses and industries, I never thought I would be working at Pier 1....in Indianapolis, Indiana!!

What about you?  Has your life turn out like you thought it would?  As I talk to women I discover that most of us are doing things we never expected.  Living places we never dreamed.  Experiencing things we never imagined.  Some hard.  Some great.  Some challenging.  Some disheartening. 

I have been thinking about Mary….you know, the Mary of Christmas!  I am pretty sure her life did not turn out like she expected!!  Pregnant and not married!  No baby showers!  Giving birth in a smelly stable instead of a beautiful birthing room at the local hospital!  On the run with a newborn from King Herod and she didn’t even have a stroller!!  Yep, I am pretty sure her life was not turning out as she expected.

You know, following Jesus is a beautiful, life changing, amazing journey that takes us to places we never would expect.  Intertwines our lives with people we never imagined loving.  Experiencing valleys and mountaintops that bring us to our lowest low and our highest high….all of it hand-in-hand with Jesus.

No, my life has not turned out as I expected….and I am grateful!!  Let’s say as Mary did in Luke 1 (and I paraphrase), “I am the Lord’s servant and I am willing to do whatever He wants!”  Whatever….even if it isn’t what I expect!!  Let's hold on to all things loosely!

Oh, and just a thought….if your life has turned out just as you planned….is it because you have done just that….planned it!!  Controlled it.  Manipulated it?  Like I said, just a thought. J