Just Stand By Me

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalms 37:4

As a young child, I always seemed to have more courage if my father was standing next to me. There was no way that my father would let me fail!

Once I got married, it was hard to let go of my father! I felt that I had to confer with him about every situation.

Then, I had an encounter with my heavenly Father and little by little I had to let go of my natural father.

I was recently asked to speak at a conference in a city near my father's hometown. Instead of staying at a hotel, I asked the church to book my flight to the airport close to my father's house and from their I would drive to the conference. They were more than happy to grant my request.

When I finally arrived, nothing seemed to be going as I had planned. I made arrangements with my father to allow me the use of his car while in town. Unfortunately circumstances out of his control did not allow him to make it in time to loan me his vehicle, so my sister had to take me on the first night! My father felt extremely bad about everything that I had to endure, so he decided to take me himself on Sunday morning.

I was shocked! You see, my father has never heard me speak. For the past decade my husband and I have done conference throughout the U.S. and abroad and my father had never taken and interest. He just knew I spoke of something.

When he arrived at the church he saw an old acquaintance, who asked him "Are you visiting?" He said "Yes! Just visiting!" He never mentioned to this old acquaintance that I was his daughter! When I finally took the pulpit, I began to share with the audience, that today was no ordinary day! My father was in the crowd and he had never heard me speak! I asked him to raise up his hand and wave! He did! His friend was shocked and told Him "you are her father?" He said "Yes!" and said nothing more.

When you submit to God your desires, you can trust that he will bring them to fruition. Your plans are found only when you intersect the road of His plans.

You see a long time ago, I had a desire that my father would hear me speak to multitudes, but my true desire was that he would just "STAND BY ME" and be filled with honor.