Wherever You Are

The Lord God called to man and said, “where are you?”  Genesis 3:9

Most of my mornings are spent in a water aerobics class, but I especially like the class on Saturday because of the teacher.  She works everybody pretty hard, and because she keeps us moving back and forth a lot, her favorite line is “Stop, wherever you are and breathe.”  At that point, you catch your breath, and she changes the exercise.

Wherever you are is a phrase I like to ponder.  On a daily basis, each of us is dealing with something no matter how large or small.  I try to pray for everyone that I know is struggling, but a lot of times I don’t know where a lot of people are in their life.

In the last few weeks, there were three examples of this. The first was a call  I received from an old friend in my hometown who recently lost her husband.  She called me by mistake, but when I returned her call, it was a chance to find out where she is in dealing with her grief.  I asked how she was doing, and she said, “You know, I normally say I’m fine, but the truth is I’m sad.”

The second happened as I passed a neighbor walking, and when I asked her how she was doing, she said, “OK”.  That’s not like her, so I asked her what was going on?  She replied that she is dealing with lung cancer, and it has been going on all summer.  She didn’t want to burden anyone, so she was valiantly charging ahead.  Her life right now is anxious and uncertain.

Later that day, a young couple who were high school friends of my children had a beautiful baby girl.  As they opened the door to me, their faces radiated where they are.  Their lives are full of joy and hope.

Each of us is in a different place, but the good news is that God can reach us wherever we are.  When I think of things I think we should remember in these different times, I come up with three things.

We should remember that people are praying for us wherever we are.  Just the knowledge that there are others lifting us up is so comforting.

We should remember that God through the Holy Spirit is working in and through us.  He has the power to reach us wherever we are.

We should remember to have faith that God will work all this out for good wherever we are.

No one is in the same place.  Our situations range from sadness to joy, fear to faith, but we all have the power to stop wherever we are, take a breath, and hand things over to God.  Let Him help us through our sadness, help us through our anxious times, and celebrate with us in joy.

Whatever road this life takes you down;  Jesus will meet you there.                        Jennifer Murray