30 Before 30: Seeing it From A Panoramic View

Yesterday was a year since I began working for my current company.  Last night as I began to pray with my sister/prayer partner, it hit me, wow it's been a year!  And I was filled with praise and worship for God.  It was a reason for celebration!  So I just began to list the reasons why I needed to celebrate.  And as I'm writing this it reminds me of Joseph's own plight.  My old job was not all the way hell, but it had a lot of people who claimed to be men and women of God who in turn tried to do everything to stop God's light within me from shining.  From harassment, racism, sexism, and a jealous spirit, I went through possibly everything a person could go through at work and survived all by God's grace.  I specifically thanked Him for these areas of breakthrough:

1. God moved me from a place of persecution and being overlooked to a place where I could grow comfortably and safely.  
2. God elevated me in ways and taught me to be a woman of integrity at all times
3. God put me around people who are invested in my growth and success.
4. God accelerated the times so to speak; things that would have taken me probably 20 years at my old job only took 9 months.
5. In being here, at this particular company, in this particular building, God gave me inspiration and clarity about my own future plans.
6. I finally got the promotion that I had been waiting for, and it was better than I could have ever imagined.
7. God gave me peace in my work environment and most of all, confidence in myself and the gifts He has given me.

I titled today's 30 Before 30 "Seeing it from a Panoramic View" because like Joseph, I recognize that by my testimony, others who are in the midst of difficult work environments can press in faith.  If I would have seen the middle I would have ran away and buckled in fear.  Fortunately, the cliche stands true, God did not put more on me than I could bear and because of His grace and mercy on me, and His equipping me with everything I needed, I got to the other side and I am able to look back.

I'm reminded of a story my home church pastor told once during a sermon.  He spoke of a father and a daughter who were driving together.  Suddenly a storm came up, to the point that it was raining so hard, the daughter, who was driving, could barely see ahead of her.  She saw cars pulling over to the side of the road and she asked her father, "daddy, should I pull over?"  To her he replied, "keep moving forward.  Keep driving."  She kept driving, but she saw more and more cars pulling over.  Again she asked, "should I pull over?"  Her daddy said, "no, keep moving forward."  The rain really began to come down on her and she was going up a hill.  Again she asked, "should I pull over?"  Her daddy responded, "keep moving forward. Just trust me."  Finally, she saw the clouds break ahead and before she knew it she was out of the storm.  Her daddy then said, "now pull over."  The daughter pulls over.  She asked him, "why are we stopping now?"   The father tells her, "Let's get out of the car."  So they do, and he says, "now look at what you have come through.  All those cars are still in the storm because they gave up in the midst to wait it out, but because you kept moving forward, you are on the other side, to safety."

To you I say, keep moving forward!  You will soon be able to see the full plan, if you trust God to unveil it to you.

~Marquita