Mari's Story
I LOVE to hear people’s stories. I love biographies, autobiographies, testamonies, even ballads. I love the stories of famous people, unknown people, Godly people, worldly people, influential people, simple people, wealthy people, or poor people. I find most people’s stories inspirational in some way because God is always there. Whether or not He is talked about or acknowledged, the Bible tells us that God was at work, reaching out to that person in love. Sometimes it’s obvious what God is doing in a person’s story. Sometimes, especially in tragedies, it is very hard to see.
Often times, people’s stories tell us more about God than about the person. The reason for that is because mostly our lives don’t unfold exactly as we had planned. Right? Mine sure didn’t. Telling you what I had planned for my life tells you more about me. Seeing what God has done with those plans tells us more about God.
I was born here in San Diego, the youngest of 4 siblings. We moved up to the San Francisco Bay Area when I was 5. In first or second grade, a school friend invited me to a vacation Bible School at her house. I remember memorizing Psalm 23 and earning a pocket New Testament. I’m sure I raised my hand when an invitation was given to accept Jesus as my savior. I remember staying inside after kids went out to play and a nice lady asking me if I understood what it meant to have Jesus as my savior. I understood to the extent that I was able, but I didn’t think much more about God for the next 14 years or so.
The amazing thing is that God was thinking about me. Psalm 139: 1-3 tells me
“O, Lord, you have searched me and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.”
So even though I wasn’t thinking about God, (and the Psalm tells me He knew I wasn’t thinking about Him; He perceived my thoughts; they were no mystery to Him), He was still thinking about me. He was keeping track of me. The New Living Translation says “Every moment you know where I am” (verse 3). And it’s a very good thing that He does.
I studied International Relations and French at UC Davis and lived in France during my junior year in college. My hopes, plans, and dreams included working at the United Nations in New York and traveling a lot. French is a good language for international politics and at that time in my life I could converse in French.
Psalm 139:4-6
“Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.
You hem me in - behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.”
The New Living Translation says, “You both precede and follow me.” God knows where I am and He goes ahead of me to prepare the way. He also comes along behind to make sure I get there. In fact, one of my daughters is named Geneva because God was paying attention to me before I was paying attention to Him.
During Easter vacation while I lived in France, I went to Germany to visit friends. From there, I traveled by train to meet my roommate back in France. But I missed my connection in Geneva, Switzerland. It was about 11 p.m., and I had German marks and French francs but no Swiss francs (this was before the Euro). A sign said the train station would close at midnight until 6 a.m. the next morning!
Train stations aren’t in the best part of town. I had no money for a taxi and didn’t know how to find a hotel where I could pay with a credit card. Fortunately, the God who “hems me in - behind and before” had put a phone number in my wallet 8 months earlier. Just to humor my stepmother, I had taken the number of her dear friend who lived in Geneva. I was certain I would NEVER use the number, but of course I did.
I spent a restful day with my stepmother’s friend and caught the train the next night to France. At that point, I had no active relationship with God and hadn’t even prayed for help. So why name my kid Geneva?
After I returned to the United States, Jesus made himself known to me in a way that affected my daily life. Years later when I was pregnant, I read my Bible one morning, and the Lord reminded me vividly of this incident in Geneva. It seemed His angels had been surrounding and guiding me as I had figured out what to do and called my stepmother’s friend. It was clear to me that God had been caring for me, even when I was ignoring Him. That’s when I decided to name the baby Geneva. Good thing she was a girl!
Psalm 139:7-12
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say ‘Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me’,
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.”
I am convinced that God’s hand was guiding me and holding me fast all those years that I ignored him. As I look back now, I can see his presence in specific incidents where I caught a glimmer of the truth, but didn’t hold onto it.
After college, I volunteered in the high school ministry at Marin Covenant Church, where I met and eventually married Greg. We headed off to Denver Seminary to pursue our Master’s degrees. My background in International Relations was ideal for missions, right? But before our first anniversary, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. My symptoms were mild, so I continued my seminary education. About 18 months later, Greg and I attended a huge missions conference called Urbana, but every missions organization told us the same thing: They would not send me overseas with Multiple Sclerosis.
Psalm 139:13-16
“For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.”
My story is not so much about me as about God. My life has not turned out as I planned. It has been so much better. He knows me better than I know myself . I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000. Before that, my sister had been diagnosed with a very aggressive breast cancer. The doctors might easily have overlooked my cancer without the red flag of my sister’s history. My sister passed away in 2002. We don’t know why things happen, but I know all the days ordained for me are written in God’s book. I’ve been cancer free now for over 5 years.
Psalm 139 tells me that God knows me, knows where I am, knows my thoughts and my words. I cannot run away or hide from him. He created my body. He knows the number of my days. How well do I know Him?
Psalm 139: 17-18
“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would out number the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with you.”
How precious ARE God’s thoughts to me? Do I want to know God as badly as He wants to know me? Have you ever been in a one-sided or lop-sided relationship? Whichever side you’re on, it’s uncomfortable. God created us to be in relationship with Him and our life works the best when we are.
Some translations say, “how precious are your thoughts about me“ or “concerning me.” WOW! Do you want to know what God thinks about you? Do you want to know His thoughts? If you’ve ever been in love, you know the desire to know exactly what the other person thinks of you. Love letters may be a lost art in this day of cell phones and e-mail, but if you’ve ever received one, it is a treasure. The Bible is God’s love letter to us. It tells us His thoughts, including His thoughts concerning me. I’ve shared with you how Psalm 139 is God’s truth about my life. The amazing thing is that it’s true about your life as well.
It takes effort to get to know people well. You have to spend time together and share some experiences. You pay attention to what they tell you and notice how they feel. You listen and learn their likes and dislikes. It’s the same with God. He already knows you completely, and He’s given you the bible so that you can know Him. Will you make the effort to know Him better? If you do, it will be worth it.
Mari's Story
I LOVE to hear people’s stories. I love biographies, autobiographies, testamonies, even ballads. I love the stories of famous people, unknown people, Godly people, worldly people, influential people, simple people, wealthy people, or poor people. I find most people’s stories inspirational in some way because God is always there. Whether or not He is talked about or acknowledged, the Bible tells us that God was at work, reaching out to that person in love. Sometimes it’s obvious what God is doing in a person’s story. Sometimes, especially in tragedies, it is very hard to see.
Often times, people’s stories tell us more about God than about the person. The reason for that is because mostly our lives don’t unfold exactly as we had planned. Right? Mine sure didn’t. Telling you what I had planned for my life tells you more about me. Seeing what God has done with those plans tells us more about God.
I was born here in San Diego, the youngest of 4 siblings. We moved up to the San Francisco Bay Area when I was 5. In first or second grade, a school friend invited me to a vacation Bible School at her house. I remember memorizing Psalm 23 and earning a pocket New Testament. I’m sure I raised my hand when an invitation was given to accept Jesus as my savior. I remember staying inside after kids went out to play and a nice lady asking me if I understood what it meant to have Jesus as my savior. I understood to the extent that I was able, but I didn’t think much more about God for the next 14 years or so.
The amazing thing is that God was thinking about me. Psalm 139: 1-3 tells me
“O, Lord, you have searched me and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.”
So even though I wasn’t thinking about God, (and the Psalm tells me He knew I wasn’t thinking about Him; He perceived my thoughts; they were no mystery to Him), He was still thinking about me. He was keeping track of me. The New Living Translation says “Every moment you know where I am” (verse 3). And it’s a very good thing that He does.
I studied International Relations and French at UC Davis and lived in France during my junior year in college. My hopes, plans, and dreams included working at the United Nations in New York and traveling a lot. French is a good language for international politics and at that time in my life I could converse in French.
Psalm 139:4-6
“Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.
You hem me in - behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.”
The New Living Translation says, “You both precede and follow me.” God knows where I am and He goes ahead of me to prepare the way. He also comes along behind to make sure I get there. In fact, one of my daughters is named Geneva because God was paying attention to me before I was paying attention to Him.
During Easter vacation while I lived in France, I went to Germany to visit friends. From there, I traveled by train to meet my roommate back in France. But I missed my connection in Geneva, Switzerland. It was about 11 p.m., and I had German marks and French francs but no Swiss francs (this was before the Euro). A sign said the train station would close at midnight until 6 a.m. the next morning!
Train stations aren’t in the best part of town. I had no money for a taxi and didn’t know how to find a hotel where I could pay with a credit card. Fortunately, the God who “hems me in - behind and before” had put a phone number in my wallet 8 months earlier. Just to humor my stepmother, I had taken the number of her dear friend who lived in Geneva. I was certain I would NEVER use the number, but of course I did.
I spent a restful day with my stepmother’s friend and caught the train the next night to France. At that point, I had no active relationship with God and hadn’t even prayed for help. So why name my kid Geneva?
After I returned to the United States, Jesus made himself known to me in a way that affected my daily life. Years later when I was pregnant, I read my Bible one morning, and the Lord reminded me vividly of this incident in Geneva. It seemed His angels had been surrounding and guiding me as I had figured out what to do and called my stepmother’s friend. It was clear to me that God had been caring for me, even when I was ignoring Him. That’s when I decided to name the baby Geneva. Good thing she was a girl!
Psalm 139:7-12
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say ‘Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me’,
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.”
I am convinced that God’s hand was guiding me and holding me fast all those years that I ignored him. As I look back now, I can see his presence in specific incidents where I caught a glimmer of the truth, but didn’t hold onto it.
After college, I volunteered in the high school ministry at Marin Covenant Church, where I met and eventually married Greg. We headed off to Denver Seminary to pursue our Master’s degrees. My background in International Relations was ideal for missions, right? But before our first anniversary, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. My symptoms were mild, so I continued my seminary education. About 18 months later, Greg and I attended a huge missions conference called Urbana, but every missions organization told us the same thing: They would not send me overseas with Multiple Sclerosis.
Psalm 139:13-16
“For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.”
My story is not so much about me as about God. My life has not turned out as I planned. It has been so much better. He knows me better than I know myself . I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000. Before that, my sister had been diagnosed with a very aggressive breast cancer. The doctors might easily have overlooked my cancer without the red flag of my sister’s history. My sister passed away in 2002. We don’t know why things happen, but I know all the days ordained for me are written in God’s book. I’ve been cancer free now for over 5 years.
Psalm 139 tells me that God knows me, knows where I am, knows my thoughts and my words. I cannot run away or hide from him. He created my body. He knows the number of my days. How well do I know Him?
Psalm 139: 17-18
“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would out number the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with you.”
How precious ARE God’s thoughts to me? Do I want to know God as badly as He wants to know me? Have you ever been in a one-sided or lop-sided relationship? Whichever side you’re on, it’s uncomfortable. God created us to be in relationship with Him and our life works the best when we are.
Some translations say, “how precious are your thoughts about me“ or “concerning me.” WOW! Do you want to know what God thinks about you? Do you want to know His thoughts? If you’ve ever been in love, you know the desire to know exactly what the other person thinks of you. Love letters may be a lost art in this day of cell phones and e-mail, but if you’ve ever received one, it is a treasure. The Bible is God’s love letter to us. It tells us His thoughts, including His thoughts concerning me. I’ve shared with you how Psalm 139 is God’s truth about my life. The amazing thing is that it’s true about your life as well.
It takes effort to get to know people well. You have to spend time together and share some experiences. You pay attention to what they tell you and notice how they feel. You listen and learn their likes and dislikes. It’s the same with God. He already knows you completely, and He’s given you the bible so that you can know Him. Will you make the effort to know Him better? If you do, it will be worth it.