God’s Greatest Gifts in Unexpected Places: Reframing Setbacks
The forest smelled like damp ferns and a hint of smoke from the smoldering campfire. As I sat alone on the porch of the tiny cabin, I embraced the serenity of one of God’s greatest gifts: the treasures found in his created world.
The song of a nearby hermit thrush ushered me into an ethereal world, and I watched as droplets of morning rain clung to the railing like teardrops.
I was just beginning to quiet my mind when they arrived.
Two little boys barreled out the door full of laughter and the unbridled desire for adventure. As they struck the earth with their homemade jackhammers and asked me dozens of questions, I mourned the loss of my quiet moment. And then, as if my Creator were speaking, I saw the scene for what it was.
The quiet moment with the raindrops was not the gift.
The noisy boys were the gift.
God’s Greatest Gifts Hidden in Life’s Challenges
Much of my life, I’ve overlooked God’s greatest gifts because they’ve arrived in unexpected packages.
As a teacher, I didn’t understand that the boy who often tested my patience and refused to obey my directives was one of God’s greatest gifts. That dear boy taught me how to love people when they seem unlovable. God also used him to prepare me for the most challenging moments of motherhood.
When I endured severe pregnancy sickness for nine months—three times—I knew that the baby growing within me was a gift. But the sickness never felt like a gift. It didn’t feel like a gift as I lay on the couch and missed Christmas dinners, graduation ceremonies, weddings, and events that mattered deeply to me.
Looking back, I see that the work God did in my heart through those three pregnancies was a tremendous gift. The illness felt unbearable at times, but God used it to soften my rough edges, humble me, deepen my capacity for empathy, refine my priorities, and teach me about gratitude.
Furthermore, every setback in my career—every closed door and disappointment—has eventually revealed itself as a gift. These setbacks were God’s form of protecting me from paths that weren’t best for me.
Interruptions As Gifts
As I watched our little boys play outside the cabin, it was true that their presence had interrupted my quiet moment. Interruptions rarely feel like gifts.
However, many of life’s interruptions—the interruptions that are more serious than noisy children—hold God’s hidden gifts as well.
Are you facing any interruptions to your plans today?
Were you hoping for Plan A—or even Plan B—but God set your feet on the pathway of Plan Z?
There are gifts hidden within this different plan. These gifts will probably come in unexpected packaging, packaging such as a difficult diagnosis, an unexpected job change, or an unforeseen challenge with a loved one.
Every part of your circumstances won’t feel like a gift. But if you look hard enough, you just might realize that the gifts are hidden throughout your difficult circumstances.
Everything Is Grace
A friend of mine often repeats the phrase, “Everything is grace.”
In other words, everything is a gift from God.
The same God who offers blessings like songbirds on summer mornings also permits losses. Yet he threads the losses with blessings, too. These are the gifts we only receive through adversity.
In every moment, whether joy-filled or frustrating, we have a choice: Look for the gifts or grumble about the challenges.
In every moment, whether joy-filled or frustrating, we have a choice: Look for the gifts or grumble about the challenges. #Godsgifts #gratitude #perspective Share on X
I haven’t learned to count every challenge as grace, but I’m inching closer with each passing day.
A Free Devotional for When Life Is Hard
God is waiting to heal your heart, lift your head, and pull you from your lowest moment. Rays of Light for the Dark Days is your daily guide. This free online devotional will inspire, comfort, and uplift you. Click here and I’ll send it to your email inbox—no strings attached.
Calling all moms and daughters—and parents of boys!
As the parent of two sons and a daughter, I have a heart for helping parents develop deeper relationships with their children and with God. Our kids, ages 6, 11, and 14, share this vision. They have helped me write three family devotionals for parents or grandparents to read with the children they care about.
God’s Warrior: Devotions for Boys Who Want to Grow in Courage and Strength is for boys ages 5-13. Now, more than ever, our world needs men who are willing to courageously carry God’s love into the world. Written with input from our two young sons, Aiden and Caleb, ages six and eleven, this book will help the boys you care about find courage and strength in God. Find this life-changing devotional book here.
Devotionals for Girls
Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith is written for girls ages 7-12. It includes 60 devotions with Scripture, conversation starters, and a shared journaling section for moms and daughters after each devotion. I wrote this book with the help of our daughter, Bekah, when she was eleven. Find this one-of-a-kind shared devotional here.
Heart to Heart: A Mother-Daughter Devotional With 50 Devotions for Teen Girls is for teenage girls ages 13-20. It includes 50 devotions, each with a shared journaling section to help moms and daughters connect through writing. This is a great book for moms who want to communicate about awkward topics—like dating, sexuality, peer pressure, and more—but don’t know where to start. Bekah and I will help you right here.
All three books are available in print and eBook form here on Amazon. They are also free on the Kindle Unlimited plan, which you can enjoy with a free three-month trial! These books make great gifts, and you don’t need to be the parent of young children to read them. Share them with your grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or the young ones you love.
Learn Why Willpower Doesn’t Work and Experience God’s Deliverance and Healing
God wants to work in your life to accomplish what you’ve been unable to do through willpower alone. Lean Into Grace: Let God’s Grace Heal Your Heart, Refresh Your Soul, and Set You Free shares practical ways to experience God’s freedom, healing, power, and presence in your life. Find this life-changing book as a free eBook on Kindle Unlimited or for 12.99 in print right here. (If you do not have Kindle Unlimited, you can try it out with a free three-month trial!) This book will transform your life and revitalize your relationship with the Lord!
