Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Engagement, Turtles and Fortune Cookies


As of 11pm last night…….. I’M ENGAGED! I had already been preparing today’s entry entitled “False Expectation”, which I will post next week, but I just had to share this news with all of you!! One day I’ll probably share the journey that Brian and I have been on, and how he proposed, but I really feel like sharing about what’s been going on in my heart.


As of late, and honestly for longer than I’d like to admit, the Lord has been speaking to me so much about surrendering, waiting and timing. (see my post from May 23rd!) Over an over these themes would seem to pop up everywhere I turned; clearly the Lord was trying to communicate something to me and for the most part, I knew He was speaking about my desire to get married.


For example, a few weeks ago Brian and I were driving to my apartment. We had just had an intense conversation about “our future”, and I was extremely frustrated! I suddenly saw something in the middle of the driveway. It was a turtle. I got very excited, I’m not an animal freak but for some reason turtles excite me! I picked him up and drove him the rest of the way up the driveway. I decided that I should let him go, which was tough even though he’d only been my pet for 5 minutes! It was a beautiful day and after he crawled away, I decided to grab a book and read outside.


I have been reading the book Dateable and going through some of the reference materials for a teaching series I’d been doing for my youth on purity. The books have cool doodles and fun artwork on every page. I can remember as I was reading, still feeling frustrated about the conversation I had just had on the way home. I turned the page and in the bottom right corner of the very next page was a small doodle of a turtle walking off the page! I’m sure I’ve shared this before, but anytime something out of the ordinary happens several times, or I see an object or theme multiple times, I know that the Lord is trying to communicate something to me. So, I asked the obvious question- “God, what’s up with the turtle thing?” He replied with- “Slow and steady wins the race.” Clearly I knew exactly what he was referring to, and I honestly wasn’t very happy about it! I have really grown tired of hearing about so many people around me getting married and moving on with their lives. There was no denying though, He was in control and He saw the big picture.


A few weeks later I had yet another turtle encounter! I was driving home from visiting a friend who lives about 3.5 hours away. I was just enjoying my drive, when suddenly I saw the biggest turtle I have ever seen, (besides the mammoth ones at the zoo) crossing the road! I actually had to swerve slightly to avoid him. Yet again, “Slow and steady wins the race”.


By this time, after three close encounters of the reptilian kind, I think I got it. I did however, have one final experience. I think after He knows I’ve finally grasped the truth He’s been conveying, He likes to make me laugh and jokes with me; I love how divinely personal our God is. So, last week I was out eating Chinese with my family celebrating my sister’s high school graduation. Now I am in no way condoning the use of fortune cookies as a valid means of seeking spiritual guidance or direction, but God will use anything He wants to reinforce a point, or in this case, make me laugh! I opened my cookie, and this is what it said: If a turtle doesn’t have a shell, is it naked or homeless? What kind of fortune is that? I have never read anything so random out of a cookie in my life! Clearly it was nothing of consequence, nor had any other value than to make me smile. That’s why I love Him.


All of that to say, He knew that it would be way more special to get engaged the way I did and to have walked such a journey to get to this point. I’d love to say that I’ll never doubt again. It was truly worth the wait.


Daniel 2:20-22

"Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.”

3 comments:

Jeanette Hanscome said...

Congratulations Shannon!

Deb said...

>> I actually had to swerve slightly to avoid him. Yet again, “Slow and steady wins the race”. <<

Or maybe it was a sign that turtles really shouldn't travel on the interstate. ; )

Debra

Julie Garmon said...

Love your post. Thrilled for your upcoming wedding!

Love,
Julie