When God Closes a Door.....

I am bursting with joy. I can hardly contain myself enough to type this. But I will force myself because a miracle developed before my eyes and I have to shout it from the mountaintops. A few days ago, a woman I will call Becky saw my pleas on Facebook for  baby shower supplies for a young lady who chose not to abort her baby through the efforts of the Cities4Life sidewalk counselors. Yesterday, she sent me a $200 check. Since the needs were great for this young mother, I was very grateful, though I  had recently found a group of enthusiastic Christian women willing to cover all the baby shower expenses. I knew the money could still be very useful in basic needs...like food or maybe one of the more expensive baby items she could not otherwise have.

Meanwhile, for three months I have been counseling one of my very favorite "saves" from the abortion mill.  I will call her Destiny. Destiny had had a very hard life, and had fallen into some bad choices that led to very rough circumstances. She had several kids, one with disabilities. I am purposely being vague so she will not be identifiable but so you will still get an idea of the obstacles facing her. She had no support. All her family urged her to abort when she found herself pregnant. They would give her money to kill the child, but nothing to help her raise him. She was completely dependent on government assistance.

When I first met her, I called out to her as she was about to enter the abortion mill.
"We can help you!" I cried.
She turned around, sobbing, and asked me,"How?"
She came to me, and I hugged her as she cried. She was a young, new Christian, and knew abortion was wrong but saw no hope, no way out. We got her a free ultrasound, set up a lavish baby shower where all the baby's needs for the first two years would be provided, and I began a now 3-month relationship with this young lady I have come to love. She has struggled to survive. She has given up much of the terrible and harmful lifestyle that put her in such a dire place, and as a result, has few friends. Her old friends would drag her down again, and she knows that. But it is lonely, pulling oneself out of the morass with no one on solid footing to help you stand.

I have mostly been a sounding board, encourager, and advocate, and have called many resources on her behalf. She lives an hour away, so I don't see her often, but we text each other several times a week. I have urged her to pursue funding for childcare and grants for school, as well as involvement in a good church with mentors that can guide and encourage her. She doesn't always sound receptive to my ideas, but I am skilled at nagging. With a new baby on the way, online classes made the most sense but she was resistant. I called the local college and found not only could she do online classes, but there were grants available for women like her. Still, I just could not sell her on the on-line classes idea. Her resistance was not surprising. Given the obstacles she had to overcome, it was overwhelming. However, she had recently had an interview for a job. She asked for prayer. I contacted my prayer team, and prayed up a storm. She needed affordable childcare as well, but was pursuing a promising lead. Finally, life seemed to be turning around for Destiny!

Yesterday, as I was looking at the $200 check from Becky, Destiny texted me. She had lined up childcare she could afford, but the job she had hoped for fell through. I was devastated! She had been so excited, been through so much and many people were praying this long-sought after job would materialize. She had felt very good about the interview, and believed the job was likely  hers. I was certain God would grant this perfect opportunity! Why oh why had He closed the door on someone who needed it so badly to open!?!

Then, Destiny texted me again, "So, I decided to apply for online school." (!!!!)She had already secured all the applications and discovered  she could get grants to cover nearly the entire cost. She was ecstatic. There was just one last hurdle and she would find a way. She had to pay a $200 "seat fee" for the school, but the rest of the $8,000 would be covered.

I looked at the $200 check in my hand and wrote to Becky. I asked if she was ok with using that $200 to seal Destiny's ....destiny.  Becky enthusiastically told me to use that $200 where God was clearly directing the money to go.


Sometimes I wonder why the struggles we endure last so long. Why does God tarry when babies are dying, when families are disintegrating, and when people who are trying so hard to change their lives and follow Him keep hitting roadblocks? I love what Charles Spurgeon has to say about this very thing: "We shall not grow weary of waiting upon God if we remember how long and how graciously he once waited for us."

Amen!

When I wrote to Destiny and told her the good news about the $200, she wrote, "God has made me smile today."
"Me too," I wrote back, "When God closes a door, He always opens a window."

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If you would like to affect someone's destiny through counseling women at risk, contact charlotte.cities4life.org for information and training.
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Philippians 4:19 

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 6:26 

Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Hebrews 13:5 

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Jeremiah 29:11 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Proverbs 3:5 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.

2 Corinthians 9:8-11 

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.