By Miriam from Nigeria
From the start of my journey from Nigeria to the country I am in now, God’s hands have been guiding me. I know because of how reassuring the trip was. Every delay, every decision, every person I met and interacted with—even the taxi driver that brought me right to the gate of the monastery, were a lead to the next step I needed to take to bring me here. Though it was a very long and tiring trip, I knew God was orchestrating my every move.
I arrived at the monastery very early in the morning, while it was still dark and I was warmly received at the gate by a woman and two young men. My heart was racing very fast. I wasn’t sure what this whole new experience would be like.
As soon as I took the final turn into the building I would be staying in, I felt a sudden sense of déjà vu. I felt like I had been here before. But how was that possible, when everything and everyone felt unfamiliar? My mind didn’t dwell on that, as I was very tired and just needed to sleep.
A few days later, it hit me! It was a dream I had last year. In the dream, I was trapped in a place, but then I found my way to a building, and there I met a woman who was with her children. She assured me they will lead me to safety. The building and people in my dream looked just like this building and the woman and two young men who received me. I remember the dream and the feeling I had afterwards. I thought it was a very strange dream, and I pondered the meaning of the dream, but let it go after a while.
But here I am today. Now, the dream makes sense to me. God showed me what would happen to me, who would help Iead me to safety, and where I would end up—in an Orthodox monastery, with Orthodox Christians. I would never have imagined that this would be my life!
God has been in the details of my life. He showed me the future, I just didn’t realize at the time. But now, more than ever before, my trust in Him is complete because I know that He is taking care of me. He prepared these people and this place as part of my present phase in life, just like Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
One person who has been playing a major role in God’s plans for me, especially in a time like this, is an Orthodox priest. God has been speaking to me through this priest, and using him to lead and guide me. I am certain of that now. I am so thankful to this priest, for his endless support and for being a vessel and channel that God has been using to shepherd me. He has been a strong encouragement and pillar in this journey through the unknown. Because of his availability to be used by God, I am assured that God is taking care of me!
God is indeed in the details of everything that pertains to us because His ways are really not our ways, all we have to do is to just trust Him in the process.
