His Preparation is as Unique as His Child

The question on the Bible Study lesson was, "How has God shown you His goodness in preparing you to know and receive the Messiah?"

I thought back over the years of my life with great thanksgiving. God had positioned me in infancy in a family that was available to what He had to teach them. My parents taught me about God, who He is and what He does, in our home. They prayed countless prayers on behalf of each of their children. Godly grandparents prayed alongside them and testified of God's goodness and grace. My dad taught me to see God revealing Himself in nature. By observing my mom's journey with depression, she taught me to see God's hand in the very hard things in life. My parents brought us up in a church where we were well catechised and taught the truths of God. They sacrificed financially to send my brothers and I to a Christian School. I wrote these things down on my lesson and added how thankful I was that He had set a hedge of protection around me in many ways. He prepared the soil of my soul for His saving work by the Holy Spirit, through His Word and life's circumstances.

I looked at the word, "protection" that I written and the question hit me. What about the ones who had not been granted the same provisions and protection. Why hadn't one been spared from addiction? Why had another been raised in a home ruled by achoholism? Why had this one been hurt so by sinful choices of parents? Why had I been raised in a church while another never entered a church building until adulthood?

The answer God gave me is that He has a plan of redemption that is as unique as each of His children are. When He draws one to Himself from the pit of addiction, He displays His power and care in a different way than when He fosters one of His little lamb's from infancy. Consider how He calls one for years through an inner sense of longing with no words to convey it. Then  He answers that longing with the presentation of His gospel in adulthood. In doing so, He shows the purpose of our lives; we were created to know Him and nothing else will ever fill that void. The child who has never known a time when she has not loved God does not testify to this aspect of God's character to the same depth as the one who has known the empty, longing years. The one who has suffered great verbal abuse from an earthly father is equipped by that experience to testify of the tenderness of her heavenly Father in a different way than the one who has been raised by a godly earthly father.

God's way of salvation is perfect for each of His own. He is such an immense God, all the salvation stories won't fully reveal the aspects of His character. But, like a beautiful gem catches light and displays radiance when moved in different directions, the direction He takes to bring each of His children to Himself illuminate a bit of who He is. Each of our stories has been planned out personally by our Heavenly Father to best fashion us for heaven and glorify Him. Never compare your story to another's and wish you had their story. Your salvation story is yours and yours alone, prepared uniquely for you out of God's great love for you.