Mysterious Ways

I’ve heard all my life the phrase “God works in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform”. I believe that it is very true, and the happenings of yesterday reinforce it in my mind. I was off from work yesterday and I spent a few hours in the morning working on the project that has become “Bear Hugs Brigade”. Hopefully, all of you have read my last blog post that details what “BHB” is and how it came to be. As I was working on setting up some record-keeping files, I looked around at some of the Teddy Bears that had arrived earlier in the week. For a few moments, I began to question if what I was doing was indeed what God wanted. I started wondering if this endeavor actually could make a difference, or if this was something else that I would focus my attention on for a week or so and then let fall by the wayside when it seemed the need for it just wasn’t there. I began to ask God if there really was a need for something as trivial as an organization that gave away stuffed bears. Then, yesterday afternoon, I was sitting at the computer checking Facebook when I saw a post come through about a local family whose home had burned down. The post said that they had SEVEN children ranging in age from 11 years to 7 months. At that moment, it was as if God spoke audibly and said to me “Why do you question me when you know that I know what I’m doing?” The Facebook post was requesting donations of clothes for the children. I had no children’s clothes to offer, but I did have something I could contribute to these seven precious children who had lost their home and belongings: the comfort of a Teddy Bear for each of them. It was at that moment that I knew that God has put His hand on Bear Hugs Brigade and is going to use it to make a difference in the lives of children who need it. This Friday evening, I will be delivering seven new Teddy Bear Friends to seven little boys and girls who are in need of comfort right now. What a blessing to be able to do so!
Last evening, as I was collecting the names of these boys and girls, I read another Facebook post that once again reminded me of how God works in mysterious ways. I read that Angel Gail Watson, a 6-year old little girl who has been battling cancer for several years, had given up her fighting and gone home to be with her Heavenly Father. While my heart was broken that a young life had been cut so short, I could not help but rejoice that she would never again have to suffer the pain and agony that she had to endure for much of her short life. Angel (along with Liam Witt, who also ended his battle with cancer at the age of 6) was one of the inspirations for Bear Hugs Brigade. I wish that I could have given her a Teddy Bear Friend before the cancer overtook her young body, but for some reason that wasn’t meant to be. The natural reaction to a tragic event like this is to question God and ask “Why?” But then I thought back to the words He had spoken to me earlier in the day: “Why do you question me when you know that I know what I’m doing?” You see, it’s not our place to know the mind of God. We must just have faith that He knows what He is doing and that there is a reason for it all. After all, God works in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform.