“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take” (Prov. 3:5–6, NLT).

Becoming a widow has presented challenges that require my total dependence upon God. It set me on a journey that I never expected to take, nor would I have chosen—but God is in control. I said, “OK, Lord. Take it all, but please don’t let my car break down.”

One day, I noticed my vehicle inspection was overdue, so I scheduled an appointment to renew my sticker. During the inspection, they also took care of a rattling sound that the car was making and ran a diagnostic test for a “Check Engine” light. When they finished, the repairs were more than $1,000!

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9, NKJV).

As I write this, our world is in turmoil. Nightly protests still rage around our country after the killing of George Floyd at the hands of police officers. In this new reality, I wondered what Google could teach me about peace. A .51-second search revealed 1.34 million hits! People are hungry for peace!

As I glanced over many of the summaries, I learned there are articles about the Peace Corps, peace prizes, peace poles, a peace college, peace endowments, peace gardens, peace institutes and peace protests. There are women for peace, Jews for peace, Buddhists for peace, religions for peace, musicals for peace and children for peace.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11, NKJV).

All my life, God has called me to trust and obey Him. I had no idea how old I’d be when I got married or if I’d have children or what my career path would be, but He did. Referring to Him giving us a future and hope, Jeremiah goes on to say that we are to seek, find and search for God with all of our hearts. And that’s exactly what I did.

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you will be also” (John 14:3, ESV).

I have heard this beautiful verse read many times in sermons. Preachers strive to describe what Jesus is preparing in heaven. Apparently, Jesus has a great construction company, and He has been building luxurious houses for the redeemed for more than 2,000 years. But the reality is that the verse just prior says, “In my Father’s house there are many dwellings.” So what did Jesus go to prepare?

Story by Shenandoah Valley Academy (SVA) Students