Can God Work in My Life?

pregnant contemplation

The other day I was catching up with an old friend, Barbara. During the conversation, I asked a seemingly simple question, “So, how many kids do you have now?” There was a pause like she wasn’t sure. She replied with hesitation, “Well, five, well no, six, well five.” After an awkward pause Barbara decided to share her story, which shed light on the possibility of Divine intervention in our lives.

Barbara and her husband had always wanted a big family. In her mid-forties with five kids it felt like their dream was complete, that is until bouts of nausea sent her to the pharmacy for a pregnancy test. It was positive! But that was not the only test that came back positive. Barbara also discovered that she was carrying a child with Down’s Syndrome.

Barbara’s world was turned upside down. How would they manage? On their joint incomes, they barely made ends meet for their large family. Barbara also had some soul-searching moments where she questioned her ability to meet the needs of a child with Down Syndrome and take care of her existing family. Some people would question her doubts, but I think Barbara was simply being courageously vulnerable. Who would dare to ask such a question out loud? She wasn’t being selfish – Barbara was being real.

Over the next few months, Barbara and her husband found themselves riding an emotional roller coaster trying to figure out what the best decision was for their family. After what seemed like an eternity of struggling, they decided that it was optimal for their unborn child to be adopted so that she could grow up with the love and special attention she would need. That was a brave decision.

Is God participating in my life?

We’ve all asked this question at some time or another. I know I have. We don’t meet the Divine easily, even in the presence of “belief.” It often takes unusual or sometimes extreme circumstances to shed light on this question.

Barbara and her husband reached out to their faith community to see if there was a family who would be willing to adopt their child. Silence.

beautiful babyThe birth was just a few days away and still no welcoming family. Barbara felt desperate. She told me that during that time the enduring words of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. encouraged her. 

“Difficult and painful as it is, we must walk on in the days ahead with an audacious faith in the future. When our days become dreary with low-hovering clouds of despair, and when our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, let us remember that there is a creative force in this universe, working to pull down the gigantic mountains of evil, a power that is able to make a way out of no way and transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows. Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”  – Dr Martin Luther King, Jr

Barbara shared that this is her favorite quote, and “were the words on my lips as I took a thousand deep breaths, praying, God make a way.” and He did.

Behind the scenes, there was a force of love, call it God, at work. Barbara’s younger sister, Dana, received an inspiration that she should ask Barbara if she could adopt her child. Not knowing anything about the circumstances of the pregnancy or the dilemma Barbara and her husband were facing (Barbara had kept that to herself) the revelation seemed outlandish. She couldn’t imagine asking Barbara to give up her baby. She was inclined to dismiss the message she had received. It seemed so weird.

Two days before the birth, Barbara broke down and laid out all her troubles to her older sister, Leslie. It was a relief of sorts but still no solution. Leslie asked if she could share Barbara’s situation with all her brothers and sisters. When Dana heard the news, she understood why she had received the unusual message from God to ask Barbara to adopt her child. Dana has one teenage daughter and a desire for a bigger family, in addition to having the resources and time to care for a child with Down Syndrome.

This story is a testament to the reality that God is indeed participating in our lives.

God as a facilitator

Barbara’s story shows there is something in the universe that connects us beyond this physical plane that we live in.

We are connected to God and each other in undeniable ways. I believe that God brings people and circumstances together. There is a dance going on around us to support our hopes and dreams and fill our needs. That dance may happen in real time or take decades and lifetimes, but that dance is happening.

Religions often focus on the Will of God with a capital W. Sometimes it’s even interpreted that literally everything that happens is meant to happen. I think it’s a little more complicated than that. The Divine Principle offers a layer of subtlety through a discussion of the role of Universal Prime Energy in the dance of life.

God works behind the scene

Einstein eloquently showed the relationship of give and take between energy and matter – E=MC2. Invisible energy can change into visible matter and matter can change into energy. The Universal Prime Energy of the Universe is the substance of God. But what is the mechanism by which God relates to the created world?

seeking GodFor energy to act it must have a conduit for its action. Similarly, in order for God to act in creation or in people’s lives there has to be a base for interaction. By reflecting God’s nature, we share common elements with God, making possible the flow of energy between God and us. When Universal Prime Energy (the external form of God) acts in the world it becomes an active force.

God infuses the Creation with Universal Prime Force, which is directed energy that brings things into relationship with their correlative partners, providing the energy and impetus for existence, action and multiplication. It’s the energy that keeps the electrons and protons circling, the heavens spinning and binds people together.

Experiencing God in Action

An invisible God can and does act in the world. The visible and invisible are fluid, enabling connections beyond just the physical plane. God is a facilitator who acts to bring things and people together for a greater good. When we come to know this God, we can gain confidence in our lives and experiences.

“God exists, and He is our Parent. He lives and carries out His work in each person’s life.  He exists without form. If you think of Him as large, He is infinitely large, but if you think of Him as small, He is also infinitely small. Every human being possesses a mind, but can anyone locate the mind with confidence and certainty?

Energy clearly exists and sustains life, but energy is invisible. In the same way, God absolutely exists with attributes of eternality, changelessness and uniqueness, but He cannot be seen with the human eye.

We truly know God only when we feel Him in our heart and understand the reality of His existence in the course of our daily life. We know God’s existence only through experience.” – Sun Myung Moon

I know Barbara cannot doubt God’s existence or how He facilitated care for her child. It brought their family closer together. God prompted the most perfect of solutions.

Have confidence. Whatever you do, think that you are carrying it out in partnership with God because there is more to this world than meets the eye.

 

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