Misconceived Notion

1 Kings 19:11-12

   ¹¹ “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper.

About 7 years ago someone said to me, “you will be a mother of many nations.”Depending how someone feels about being a mother of many nations this statement could be very encouraging or quite frankly very scary.  Of course, being unmarried with no children at the time, it didn’t mean very much at the moment.  So, I wrote it down and tucked it away.

I had always had a desire to have a healing home for troubled teenage girls. So, as I thought about the word, it became “clear” to me that the person was referring to the girls’ home I had always desired and felt God’s leading in. Little did I know, the word would begin to become much clearer in the years to come. In 2009, I accepted a teaching assignment with a public school in Florida, where I have become “a mother to many nations”. See, I teach incarcerated teen girls who are substance dependent. I have students who are Asian, Haitian, Native American, Puerto Rican, Caucasian, African-American, and Jamaican, from varying religions, socioeconomic statuses, and family backgrounds. My healing home for troubled teenage girls is found in my classroom every single school day.

In 1 Kings 19, Elijah is standing on a mountain expecting God to show up. First a mighty windstorm came followed by an earthquake and then finally the fire. We all would expect God to display his power in these ways, yet he came as the sound of a gentle whisper.

Prior to receiving my teaching assignment, I was constantly discontent because God was not showing up to give me the ministry he had promised me. He was not showing up in the way I thought he would. I was looking for Him in the wrong places. He could have given me the opportunity to minister to girls in more traditional church setting, but he chose to come quietly. Now, He has given me the opportunity to minister to teenage girls in such an unorthodox way and quite frankly the experiences are richer than they have ever been.

God doesn’t always show up the way we think he should. It could be ministry opportunities, finances, family situations, or worship experiences that we are “waiting” for him on. Rest assured, He may not show up the way we think he should, but he ALWAYS shows up.

Kasey Scott
Kasey is currently a high school English teacher, whose students are young ladies who are substance dependent and incarcerated. Kasey has a passion to reach into the lives of girls in desperate situations and show them the Hope that is available in Jesus Christ. She also is the VP and Director of Curriculum Design for Edvance Services, an educational services company she co-founded with her husband.