|
God has done some pretty amazing things in my life, but I want to share with you how He led me to what I call, The Umbrella Book. In January 2012, I was working for a pet care company. My boss was out of town, which meant I had to cover the dog walking jobs she would have handled along with my regular jobs. I live approximately 20 miles north of Seattle, and it was the middle of winter; it was cold, windy, and raining. I arrived at my first job and grabbed the umbrella out of my van to take Barley on his 15-minute walk only to discover that my umbrella was broken. I had so many jobs to do that day that I didn't have the time to drive home to get another umbrella and put myself behind schedule. I could run to the store and buy a new umbrella but the reason I'm walking dogs in the pouring rain is due to a lack of finances so the thought of purchasing a new umbrella was quite frustrating. Yes, I spent the entire walk going back and forth and completely obsessed with my need for a new umbrella and had not yet decided what I was going to do. I’m almost back to Barley’s house when I see something off to the left of the sidewalk, in between two bushes; I see what appears to be a large, black umbrella. The first thing I think is, "It must be broken, and someone has just tossed it in the bushes." Of course, I have to check, so I pick it up. It's really big and really sturdy. It doesn't look broken, so I pop it up and examine it....it doesn't even look used. Then I think, "Well, there must be a bus stop here, and someone stashed it and plans on picking it up when they get off the bus." No bus stops around. I can hardly believe this...I have an umbrella...that was crazy. Four months later, I'm on an hour-long walk with my own two dogs, Rudy and Kebo. The weather was fine when I left about 30 minutes earlier, but all of a sudden the sky gets really black, and I look up and said out loud, "Wow...it looks like it's going to let loose." I look down at what I’m wearing, and I think, "Oh no, all I have on is this light flannel jacket, and I didn't bring an umbrella." As my eyes were looking down at my jacket, off to the left of the sidewalk, in between two bushes is what appeared to be an umbrella. Of course, the first thing I think is, "No way, it's not possible; it must be broken, and someone has thrown it away." It's tiny, leopard print and had never been opened. I pulled the velcro and popped it open to examine it. It was in perfect condition. The second that I put it over my head, it started to rain. As you can imagine, I was in shock. One umbrella could have been a coincidence, but this was not a coincidence. Once at home, I called my mom, my daughter, and my husband. I remember my husband saying, "I bet this has some spiritual significance for you?" "Well, of course, it does; God is telling me, “He has me covered.” I'm not sure how much time passed; a few days or a week or two, but I just couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this. God giving me two umbrellas in the bushes is incredible, and I was thrilled, but there's something else He wants me to know. So I grabbed my laptop, went to Amazon, and typed, "God's umbrella." The second that I saw the cover of Peggy Joyce Ruth's book with the huge purple umbrella that said Psalm 91, God's Umbrella of Protection, I knew that whatever was in that book was what God wanted me to know. I couldn't order it quickly enough. The revelation of reading the Psalm 91 book has taken me to a whole new level of faith and trust in the Lord. I am one of those people who were standing in the open field in Peggy Joyce's dream. I finally understood the importance of what comes out of my mouth. I truly love the Lord, and I chose to dwell in the shelter of the Most High and abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I've memorized Psalm 91 and find myself quoting it a lot. It's been almost exactly seven years since I found my two umbrellas in the bushes, and God gave me tangible proof that He has me covered. I believe that He's not yet done with my umbrella testimony. I've given out many books and shared my story with anyone that allows me an opportunity. I choose to dwell in the shelter of the Most High... He is my refuge, my fortress, my God in whom I trust! -Laurie Kent Get the Book!
4 Comments
|