The Path Chosen For Us

I really liked this quote that I read in Victory in Jesus by P.G. Mathew. I wanted to share it because I know some of you reading this are going through very difficult trials right now.  The quote is in reference to Joshua 3:17.

Crossing an overflowing river was not what the people would have chosen for themselves.  But when we walk with the Lord, we do not have to worry about the unforeseen difficulties we will face.  We can have confidence that they are appointed by God, and that he wants to take us through them to make us spiritually strong.  The way may be new to us, but it is not new to God, and we can be assured that God, who has been faithful to us in the past, will be faithful to us in the future.

This word is encouraging to me.  The past year has been a tumultuous time for us.  We experienced tremendous joy at the birth of our sons.  However, intermixed with this joy was a heavy dose of anxiety.  Jonathan stayed in the NICU for 12 days.  Matthew stayed at Children's Hospital for 5 days.  Since their release, weight gain has been slow and not exactly steady.  My heart sank as my beautiful babies were labeled Failure to Thrive at six months of age. (Numerous blood tests were conducted, all of which came back normal.)  The saga continues and, in the next few weeks, they will be evaluated for developmental delays.  OUCH!  I certainly did not choose to travel this route.  Yet, I know that the Lord marked out this path for me.  I do not fully understand why I have to go this way, but I know that God is faithful and this is all part of His plan to strengthen me spiritually.