“Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: See, the virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭7‬:‭14‬ ‭CSB‬‬

I feel like God used to give signs a lot in ancient times. He spoke with prophets and even sometimes with random people. When reading the Bible it seems like God made His presence much more apparent and His will much clearer then.

But maybe that’s because we only have stories about the times when these things did happen, some written by the prophets themselves. There are many more times when God was silent or appeared to do nothing. There are many more people who lived and died and never witnessed a miracle like those in the Bible. Those stories aren’t in the Bible, of course.

Would there be any stories from my life in the Bible?

Well, actually yes. God did give me a very important sign once. At the time I was a workaholic. I was dying inside because all my energy, identity, and time was being poured into my job. I was miserable and a bit desperate. I prayed to God about whether I should quit my job to find balance. The problem was that as a single woman, there would be no way for me to continue to afford to pay my rent if I quit. I felt God was asking me to quit. To trust Him. But I was terrified. So I asked for a sign.

Shortly after that, I was at church and a couple mentioned they would be relocating to Asia for work. I asked if they’d be selling their house. I don’t know why I asked. I wasn’t in the market to buy. I was simply curious.

Their reply was that they were keeping their house but looking for a house sitter. They then asked whether I would be interested.

That was my sign. It was a big, blinking neon sign. I could practically hear God saying, “See, you can trust me.”

I took the house sitting gig, quit my job, and my world changed for the better in countless ways. And God has taken care of me ever since because I continue to try to trust Him.

Dear God,

Thank you for the way you have revealed yourself to me over the years. You have shown me your love and your provision. Forgive me for trying to rely only on my own strength. Forgive me also for still being afraid to listen to you. Open my eyes to what you are doing in my life and guide me along your path even if it looks a bit frightening.