HE Isn't Surprised

OK. So I was scheduled to speak for a MOPS group on the west side of the state this morning. I've been looking forward to this particular speaking engagment for quite awhile, in part because I was going to have a special guest there to hear me.

I got up and ready for the morning and was on my merry little way. I'd driven for nearly an hour when I heard the guy on the radio say something about cars in ditches and, "Be careful out there." I didn't even know what station was playing and figured it must be somewhere far away from me, because my surroundings were fine. For the moment.
Right about then I saw the tail lights and hazard lights of the cars in front of me. Glancing at my clock I wondered if I should call my contact person and tell her I might be late. After about 20 minutes of going no faster than 5 miles an hour, I placed the call. That's when I found out MOPS had just been cancelled today. Yes, when I was about 15 miles away from the church.

We will try to reschedule. Maybe it will be this year. Maybe next. I know this cancellation isn't the end of the world, but I was so looking forward to it! I was really tempted to be disappointed, and to let my disappointment color my day.

God used that extended time in the van, going really slow, to allow me to think about my circumstance and to make a better decision than wallowing in disappointment. I realized that when I was laying awake, praying that He would work in the hearts of women as I spoke to them today, He knew I wouldn't be speaking today. When I was putting on my make up, covering up my blemishes, He knew no one was going to see them anyway. When I was glancing at the clock, wanting to be sure I allowed enough time for morning traffic, He knew it wouldn't matter.
In fact, when we scheduled this date last summer, God even knew then that it wouldn't happen today. And I realized that's OK with Him. If God wanted to, He could have kept the snow away. If God wanted to, He could have made the roads perfectly clear. If God wanted to - but He didn't.
I have confidence God is in control, and works all things just as they should be. And as He gave me opportunity to think about that Truth while I was driving, I realized it would be foolish to choose disappointment. Why be disappointed in God's best???
Instead, I'm believing in Him. Perhaps there was a mom who needs to hear my story and she wasn't going to be able to be at the meeting today. Maybe I won't be rescheduled until next year because the woman who really needs to hear me isn't even enrolled in MOPS yet. I don't know the answer. But I know God does. So, I choose to trust Him.

Maybe this experience I had, which I'm sharing with you now, is something God intends for your good. Is there a circumstance in your life which surprised you and has left you disappointed, but which you realize God is ultimately using for good? Remember, He isn't surprised by our circumstances. And even when we don't like them, God is still good!