Download LifeDate Summer 2025 – Every Life Is a Story
by Virginia J. Flo, Director of Volunteer Relations
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you’” (Jeremiah 29:11-12).
It would be easy to think back on my life and dwell on some of the hardships, mistakes, and disappointments. But who wants to do that? It’s no fun and it takes joy out of life. Yes, I wish I hadn’t done that or said that or wish that just hadn’t happened to me, and I would have avoided a lot of personal misery. Yet, God showers us with His grace, and through His love and forgiveness, He gives us the strength to move on.
I love the words from Jeremiah where God makes it clear as He says He has plans for you and me. “Declares the Lord” is not a casual statement. He is declaring it! That’s like shouting it out—He means business! Because of God’s plans for me, I can come to Him in prayer, and He then makes another announcement: “And I will hear you.”
It’s not just a matter of He “maybe” will hear me; He makes it clear He “will” hear me. That affirmation has always stuck with me because there is never a time when I pray that my prayer is not being heard. It doesn’t mean I always get what I want, but I am assured God is there to protect me and will guide my life in the right direction if I turn to Him.
In my life, I have had many opportunities to call on the Lord for guidance. Sometimes I have been in the process of major life-changing decisions and, at other times, I was struggling to find the right answers for what others may see as a “what’s the big deal” situation. Let me share a couple of those special moments.
For fifty years I was a church choir director. I had the good fortune of doing that at three different churches. I made every effort to select music that clearly supported the lessons for the day. In my early days, I didn’t have the computer where all the music was listed and linked to Bible verses. I had a file cabinet or a listing of song titles at a music store, where I spent many hours going through their myriads of music sheets sorted by a particular church season or festival and again sorted by Unison, SA, SAB, SATB, women, men, children, and so on. After a period of time, I knew what was in my church files, since I was the one that put them there, and I had studied each one of them during my tenure. Since this was a part-time career, time was always a factor.
I learned to turn to the Lord, asking Him to guide me in the selection process. And it always hit me, mostly during the worship service after listening to the readings in that service and hearing the choir sing those words to the beautiful melodies, that the song was a wonderful fit. After worship the choir members often confirmed that, and even a congregant would make a comment that our anthem was meaningful to them. That wasn’t my doing, it was the Lord. He was there through the entire process leading the way; all I had to do was ask and follow. I will never forget those special moments, as God has been good to me in my life’s story.
Prayer is a valuable and power tool God has provided. In my business career—and still today—I make it a practice to pray before entering an important meeting: “Please God, give me the right words to say.” That’s how simple that prayer can be. If I forget, I can have regrets. I have the privilege to make presentations on the work of Lutherans For Life. I have done this many, many times over the almost twelve years since I joined LFL. I can’t tell you how many times words came to mind during my talks that I never thought of during my preparation. When it happens to me, I know the Lord had a plan for my talk that required His intervention to give me the guidance needed to say the right thing. When that happens, I am keenly aware and my entire being feels the joy. God has been good to me in my life’s story.
Everyone’s life is special as God created me and you uniquely to fit His plan. I hope and pray you, too, have those special moments in your life’s story that bring joy and fulfillment as you serve the Lord!