A Perfect Orchestration

I love looking back on a string of events to see how God was orchestrating them to a particular moment.
Last October I attended a moms conference, Hearts at Home, in Lansing. I went with my sister-in-law, Deidra, and...this might sound confusing...the church of her friend's sister. When filling out our registration forms we had to mark workshops we were interested in attending. Most of the group I was with was separated throughout the day for workshops and then we would come together for the large sessions. For lunch we could run through a room and pick up sack lunches. I had tried to call Deidra to see where they were eating but couldn't get ahold of her. I found later she had tried to call me, but I couldn't hear the phone ring with all the noise in the room. I grabbed my sack lunch and found a table with an empty seat. The women invited me to join them. While introducing ourselves, I noticed two of the women were from Muskegon, like me! We had moved there only two months before and so, besides Deidra and her family, we didn't know anyone else. One of the women invited me to her church's moms group, Fruit of the Womb.
Once back in Muskegon, I attended Fruit of the Womb only a couple times. Noah switched his nap schedule so it came directly during the time of the group and there was no way I was going to mess with that and have a grumpy child the rest of the day. By the time he dropped his morning nap altogether, I started taking a class at the Y, so I was still unable to attend. However, I still get mass emails sent out by the Fruit of the Womb leader.
Wednesday of this past week I stopped at a health club down the road from us, Norton Pines, to fill out an application for an evenings and weekends child care attendant. I don't need to work right now, but I thought it would be nice to make some extra money to get our emergency fund filled up. They asked me to fill out the application there and so I did. When I turned it back in to the women at the desk she kept staring at me. "You look so familiar," she said. "I don't know how I know you." "I just moved here from Grand Rapids a few months ago," I told her. "So unless I know you from there...I don't know either." "That's it!" she cried. "You went to Fruit of the Womb at Kainay! We met once." I told her I had and that it didn't work out for me to attend regularly. After having that connection, I could remember meeting her.
She lowered her voice as she looked at my application, "Would you mind if I took your phone number? I am actually going to be looking for daytime childcare." I told her that would be fine.
She called me the next afternoon. She told me that she has been working at Norton Pines for awhile during the evenings and she had recently been promoted to a daytime position. She has three boys, and would need childcare for the younger two, ages 4 years and 9 months. It came out to be only 20 hours a week, which was right up my alley since I wasn't looking for anything full-time. She told me she would bring them to our apartment and include their snacks and lunches. She also said that she has people for back-up in case I am sick one day, or Noah, or we have appointments or things going on. Then she told me the price she could afford.
It isn't much. Then again, I'm at home all day anyways and not making a penny, so any amount is more than I'm getting now. We said we would talk later in the weekend and try to set up a time on Sunday for her to bring the kids over.
I called Tim to tell him and when I told him the money amount he said, "No way. That is not enough for watching two boys in addition to your own and keeping your sanity." I told him we would talk about it later. Inside I felt crushed because for some reason I felt so strongly about taking this no matter the pay.
Then it hit me about a half hour later. Her name kept running through my mind and I suddenly remembered one of the mass emails I had been sent from Fruit of the Womb's leader almost exactly a month before. This woman's husband had suddenly died unexpectedly. He was in his mid-thirties and now she was left a young widow with three sons under the age of six.
I knew I had to take this job. The Bible tells us to care for the orphans and the widows. I can't even imagine the pain she is experiencing after losing her husband. In one moment she is thrown into being the sole provider for her sons. I don't know what I would do in a situation like that.
Tim and I talked when he got home, and even though he still isn't fond of the amount, he said I could at least try it, as long as I'm honest with her if I do find that I have a hard time taking care of the all the kids.
All night long I could feel God telling me so clearly, "Do this and trust me." I believe...and I am not doing it for this reason...but I believe that by obeying God in this that He will bless me. Maybe it will be by giving me the strength to get through an afternoon with someone else's kids, maybe it will be in growing me, but I believe that He is speaking to me.
Please pray for this family. Pray for me that I know how to respond to these young boys who have lost their father. The 9-month old will only know his dad through pictures and stories. It breaks my heart to think he will have no memories to replay through his mind. Even the 4 year old will probably have only a few. Thank God that their father was a Christian who is now spending his days worshipping in the presence of the Lord.
I look back on the events that got me to this point.
If I had found Deidra and the rest of the group for lunch, I would not have met those women from Muskegon.
I would not have been invited to attend the moms group.
I only attended the group twice but met Lori once.
I randomly decided to apply at Norton Pines, seeing Lori.
She actually remembered me.
She told me she feels like God has answered her prayers.
I believe He was orchestrating it from the beginning.