And the king granted me

    what I asked,

for the good hand of my God

            was upon me.

           Nehemiah 2. 8

(Sometimes we do not recognize

     how God is working in us,

nor see His good hand

     in hard situations,

     until we see His faithfulness

              in the rear view mirror.

But we can trust Him.

And we can respond

   by being faithful to Him.

God is in this,

    and we are not aware.

God guides and God provides,

       in surprising ways,

not just stuff we may need,

      or pieces of the puzzle

      we don't think we need,

but even more,

 nurturing a deeper dimension

   in our relationship with Him.

Trust Me in this

      changes our journey.)

O LORD,

You are our God.

Our times are in Your hand,

    more than we can know.

Help us to trust You

           in our time of need

as You bring order

             out of chaos,

as You guide us in our work,

as You order our day,

as You give us strength

    when we are fresh out.

May we pray continually to You,

live faithfully before You,

love well,

and practice grace

      in unexpected places,

   over and over again.

Help us to realize that

    Your hand is over us.