On June 6, 2007, I was at a low point in my life. I was deeply discouraged and broken hearted. That night, I got alone with Jesus and cried and prayed for something from him--a date to look forward to, anything to give me the strength to keep living. After some time in prayer, I heard "October 17th". I was unsure if this was really from the Lord, so I continued to pray and I saw "OCT 17". Finally, I prayed, "God is that really you?" As I looked over at the clock, I saw 10:17. The Lord was giving me this date to give me something to look forward to.
I waited for October 17th to come. I was not too excited or too anxious. I was simply living a normal life. On October 17th, my work day was different than the typical day but nothing significant happened. On my way home from work, I received a phone call from a dear friend and sister in the Lord, that remembered my testimony about October 17th. After we hung up the phone, the reality set in--nothing had happened. I cried in disappointment. I began asking the Lord, “Why has nothing happened on this date?” “Why did you give me something and then not allowed it to happen?” Then the sweet spirit of Jesus covered me and gave me relief enough to continue with my evening.
Jesus, through a series of events, reminded me of where He’d brought me and how He’d changed me over the last several years. He also reminded me of Pastor John’s teachings on the wise and foolish virgins and how God has the authority to change his mind in any situation. He can change His mind to test the heart and He was definitely testing my heart. Was I going to be a wise or a foolish virgin in the test?
The following Saturday night, Pastor John told the story of his father, Preacher Clark, not feeling disappointments in life because he trusted God's judgment beyond his will or his expectations. Pastor John mentioned being 'on ready' for God. I took this in and started to catch a glimpse of what God was trying to teach me. Up until this night, I was feeling disappointment and was not trusting God’s will. I had lost my ‘be ready’ for Jesus when nothing happened on October 17th, 2007. I decided (with the Lord’s help) that I wanted to be a wise virgin and really know HE can change His mind if that is His will. I also wanted to trust God’s will for my life and ‘be ready’ for whatever He wanted of me. This lesson has been quite valuable in many situations and I thank the Lord for allowing me to get the point.
A year later, one of our young boys, Jonathan, was seeking the holy ghost. His desire for Jesus encouraged other young children to seek the Lord and blessings fell like rain. Jonathan and other young children received the baptism of the holy ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues on October 17th, 2008. Later in the week of October 17th, 2008, I received a phone call from the same dear friend and sister that called me October 17th, 2007. She reminded me that the date of October 17th was the exact date the Lord had given me a year earlier and was the same date all the young children received the holy ghost. Later that month, I realized our dear Uncle Joe that meant so much to so many of us, went on to be with the Lord on October 17th, 1996. One of his favorite songs was, “You will always be a child in my eyes.” It really is sweet to have our eyes opened to the things of God. Only God could put these dates together and give me something in life to look forward to! What more could you look forward to than watching a group of young children grow in God and hear their testimonies about what He has done for them. We have a good God!