Can It Be a Wonder of God?

Psalm 40:5 says "Many, O Lord, my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare"

I've spent some time recently talking to my BFF (as I like to call her - I know it's childish, but we are childish at times) about life altering events. We both have had, what I would call, a life changing event that has done just that - changes our lives forever. Our discussions have mainly been around what it is that God expects of us when these things happen to us. Does God expect us to pick up the pieces, essentially forget what has happened to us and leave it behind us and move on? That's the question we have been pondering and discussing. After talking to her about this some more last night, I came across this passage. Sometimes I don't look at life changing events as wonders of God, but I think they are. I don't believe that God wants us to forget what has happened. I don't think we can. I think we, as His children, have to look at these trials in our lives as life changing. God, I believe, expects us to change. Not to forget it happened - not to forgive and forget, but to remember and reorganize our thought patterns.

I have 4 very dear friends. In the last 2 years, each one of them has had to deal with cancer. Two of them have a form of leukemia, one has breast cancer and one has thyroid cancer. Each cancer was diagnosed at varying stages. Their lives have been affected by cancer - and on the periphery, so has mine. I've been changed by their experiences, and I can't even imagine how they have changed because of their experiences. Cancer is a frightening thing. I have walked through the valley and been on the mountain with each of them during their experience. Throughout each one, even though I wasn't the one with cancer, I struggled with my relationship with God - asking the ever popular question, "Why?". This is the the type of life altering event I'm talking about. It might be childhood abuse, a tragedy in your family, or cancer. What does God expect us to do to move forward?

I think Psalms 40:5 says it for me. He's done many wonders - the passage doesn't say good or bad wonders - it just says wonders. My belief, after living through a life changing event and experiencing the walk through with others, is that life altering events are wonders of God. He does not expect us to forget and move on. He expects us to embrace the changes that it brings; incorporate those changes into our relationship with Him and dwell on the day to day grace He gives. I don't feel that I will ever get over the events in my life that changed me. I don't want to get over them. I don't want to move past them. I have embraced them (okay - still working on embracing them all) and God has used them in powerful and mighty ways. Like the verse says, if I were to speak of the wonders that God has done in my life, they would be too many to declare. What about you? Life altering events don't have to be huge (can't even write that without thinking of that terrible car dealer guy "Huge Rochester, Huge!")....they don't have to be big in the eyes of others - just life changing and altering for you. While you're going through them, they don't seem like a wonder of God. From one daughter to another, trust His daily grace - sometimes that is all that you can do - live day by day knowing He will get you through. Then, when you feel like you have the strength and power, accept that the trial brought you to a new place - a place of change - and use the change for His honor and glory. It's not about forgetting - it's about the change that it brings.