Recognizing the Work of God

About a month ago, I started a new job.  As I look back at the process and timing, I can easily recognize that it was completely God at work.  Do we fully and completely trust in Him and His promises? 

I had decided to pray a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux leading up to her feast day, October 1st.  My intention for the novena was for a new job.  I ended up being offered a new job on the last day of the novena.  This seemed almost unreal.  Was this just a coincidence or God?  Two weeks later, on the first day of my new job, I woke up to see the organization I had just finished working for in the news, and not for good reasons.  An arrest was made that morning.  The crazy and perfect timing of me starting a different job seems unbelievable.  I knew in that instant, without a doubt, that it was God.

The prayer and desire for a new job, I realized, was secondary.  Although that was my petition for the novena, what I was actually praying for was greater trust in God and confidence in His promises.  Part of the prayer each day was “Your trust in God was complete.  Pray that He may increase my trust in His goodness and mercy as I ask for the following petitions…(x).  Pray for me that I, like you, may have great and innocent confidence in the loving promises of our God.”  Those are some powerful and life-changing words.  To be able to trust God in all things is a sign of true faith.  We can see this in St. Therese and so many other saints.  Their lives are great examples of how we can grow in our trust and love for God.

We can pray for a lot of different things but ultimately, we need to be able to trust God and believe fully in His goodness, love, and mercy, regardless of how He answers our prayers.  The more we trust God, the more it spills into every aspect of our lives.  When we trust God, it becomes easier for us to see Him working in our lives.  It becomes easier for us to recognize the gifts and blessings he pours out upon us.  It becomes easier for us to count on His timing rather than our own.  The next time you pray for a specific intention, you may just be praying for greater trust and confidence in God’s goodness.
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God, thank you for loving us and providing what we need when we need it.  You created us and know our every need.  Give us the desire to do Your will and to trust You with our lives.  Help us to see Your goodness and mercy in our lives every day.  May we never fail to recognize You in our midst.  Amen.