Yes, Babydoll, you have come a long way since last posting. I agree that you don't just sit around waiting and expecting...you use the time wisely to learn about yourself and God and the plan that He has for you. You learn about His character, His faithfulness. You learn to hear His voice so that you can be obedient to His will.<P>I do not agree that an all-power, all knowing God cannot do anything about our relationships. We have seen His hand in our lives. We know that He can turn negative into good for His purpose. <P>The example of Job explains this I believe. We do not know what the purpose or reasons are for our sufferings, nor were we there in the beginning to know what the plan is. God is God and we are too finite to comprehend what He is about. <P>I do believe we ask God for His direction in our lives and that we don't have to settle for "well, what do I do now?" Some of us have been told to remain in the situations we are in, some have been told to get out of the way and let Him complete His work. <P>In all things we seek His face and His will for our lives, whether we understand them or not. You are correct that He does not cause the bad things of this world, though He often gets blamed for it. He may allow it to occur as He did in Job's case though. If we are willing, he can use it for our good. <P>In 1991, my husband was killed in an auto accident. The night before, my husband was horribly drunk, and making all kinds of nasty accusations. I calmly hit his with some cold hard facts and it floored him even in his stupor. It was at that point that I shared the gospel with him and prayed with him. The next day was so different for him, peaceful, serene, full of plans for our family and on and on. That evening he was going to go to an AA meeting and though I don't normally believe in certain type of spiritual encounters, I had a shadow pass through me that reminded me of the shadow of death that we read about in the story of the Isrealites and the Pharoah. I knew without a doubt that if my husband left, he was not coming home. I begged him to not go.<P>He did go and he didn't come back. Was it of God or of the evil one, who knows? And does it matter anyway? My relationship with the Lord increased in a dramatic way over the next three years. Could God have stopped it? In my opinion, by all means! But if I am looking for his view on things, then I have to accept that He had all of our good in mind. <P>Did the evil one have in mind to create doubt or bitterness or rage? Did God protect my husband in that the night before, he relinquished something he had not let go of before. Babydoll, I have no idea. But I know God is faithful to me and I will trust Him for the outcome of it all.<P>We have been told to conform our thoughts to His, not His to ours...we hold onto the truth and to His promises because faith, believing and not seeing, is what sustains us. We know that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.(Eph 6:12)and that because of this we always have to be on guard, especially after victorious times because the enemy is a sore loser.<P>Continue to learn and grow Babydoll. May God enlighten the eyes of your heart that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for believers. <P>Thanks so much for giving us the update Babydoll! Keep in touch!<P>Father, continue to teach Babydoll in the things of you. We thank you for the hope that she has now, for the Christian counselor that she is going to. Give her your wisdom in what it is You would have her do as she picks up the pieces of her life. IJN, Amen.
