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Guided By an Unseen Hand – Part 2

Just two months ago, I wrote about trusting God’s hand even when you can’t see his plan. In a short time so much has changed, and yet the challenge to walk by faith remains.

After a year and a half of waiting, praying, trusting, my husband was offered a new job. But it didn’t come in the package we expected.

The trials of the past year opened our hands. Eventually we told the Lord we’d go anywhere—we just wanted to be used by him to make a difference.

And he answered.

My husband was offered a job nearly four hours from where we currently live. We’ve both grown up in the same area our entire lives. Our extended family resides here. Our friends are here. The church we’ve served in for over a decade is here. We’ve walked through tough times, celebrated the good things, and raised our children alongside other couples in this community.

So would we really leave?

The answer seemed clear. It was time to go.

Over the past month we’ve explained to our children that we’re setting out on a new adventure. We’ve told our friends—sometimes through tears. We’ve started packing our boxes.

Leaving is rarely easy, especially when you’ve spent you’re entire life in one place.

Had the calling to go not been so clear, I would’ve second guessed our decision far more. Our children have cried. I’ve cried. We constantly navigate the emotions that come with change.

But now I can see the unseen hand. I can see how he’s loosened my grip over the past year. I can see how he’s changed my perspective and reminded me of what’s really important. I can even see him working on my children’s little hearts, as scary as it is for them to experience real change for the first time.

At every step he’s met us and provided—often at what seemed like the very last moment. He’s never been late. He’s never let us run out. He’s guided, directed, and protected in ways we couldn’t image.

So today I’m still walking, trusting his hand like never before.

I’m trusting there will be friends for us in this new place. I’m trusting there will be genuine community. I’m trusting our kids will find their way and love our new location even more than our current one.

I know we’ll shed some tears when we pack the final box. I know we’ll still have questions and maybe even a few doubts on hard days. I know just like our current season, the new one will have both joy and sorrow intertwined. In those moments I’ll hold on to the word of an old song I’ve been singing in every other hard season:

God is too wise to be mistaken;
God is too good to be unkind.
So when you don’t understand,
When you don’t see His plan,
When you can’t trace His hand,
Trust His heart.

God’s hand has been all over the past year and a half. I just couldn’t see it as I walked through the darkness. But now I can look back and see how he used all of it for good.

Have you walked through a season you didn’t understand until the end? If you’re walking through a difficult season now, how are you trusting his heart?

Amanda DeWitt is a freelance writer, coach's wife, and mom. She completed her bachelor’s at Dallas Baptist University and holds a M.A. in media and communication from Dallas Theological Seminary. When she's not typing away at her computer, she's chasing her two little boys or watching her husband coach high school football.

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