EVER HAD A DAY?

by Rita Prochazka

UPDATE BY DEBORAH MALONE:

Ladies let me take a minute to update you with what has been going on in my life the past several months and why we haven’t been as consistent with our posts. When Rita and I started this blog, “Bloom in Your Winter Season,” we did so to encourage other women in their winter season as they continue to serve God. I hope we have done just that with the numerous women we’ve had over the past couple of years. In the meantime, I compiled a book/ Bible Study by the same name, “Bloom in Your Winter Season,” using “seasoned” women from the Bible that God used in mighty ways. It has done well, and we continue to get feedback on how it has encouraged women to keep on in their ministries for God.

But back in May around my 70th birthday, I learned I would be needing a total knee replacement, and it was scheduled for July 16th, 2024. I am now a little over two months out from surgery and beginning to get back to doing some of the things I love to do working on my blogs and books. However, during the recovery period I was not able to keep up with the blog and fell behind getting guest interviews. So, for the next few weeks we will be using devotions from the Bible Study, “Bloom in Your Winter Season,” and I’m thrilled to say we will be starting off with our very own Rita Prochazka! Please hang in there with us while I heal (and also Rita as she had foot surgery). We hope you enjoy the devotions we will be posting!

EVER HAD A DAY?

by Rita

“And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” Luke 1:45 ESV

Have you heard the expression, “It’s been a day?” Recently a friend said that to me, and I knew immediately what she meant. It had been an exasperating day with twists and turns that left her wondering what would happen next.

As we read in the verses of Luke 1, Mary and Elizabeth’s “day” was filled with joy, laughter, singing, and companionship. It was filled with praise to God, who had blessed them each with a miracle. One older, barren mother to birth the boy who would proclaim the One to come, and the young virgin mother who would give birth to the One to come, the long-awaited Messiah.

Can you imagine what they must have felt as they looked at each other, then at their stomachs, both showing signs of the children within?

How to explain the feelings, the mystery of it all.

But as women do, I think they also spoke of their other, “It’s been a day” experiences. Don’t we recount the challenges before the good happens, trying in our hearts and minds to understand it all?

The months and years of Elizabeth’s barrenness, her longing for a child. Zechariah becoming mute, and just out of nowhere, the long prayer for pregnancy after that. Mary would have shared about the angel’s appearance and her shock, wonder, and obedience that followed his proclamation. She wasn’t married to Joseph yet, and the gossip was already being whispered around the neighborhood. Both women had their “day,” and it had been a long one. All in preparation.

I’ve had my share of “it’s been a day” experiences. Many, in fact. They have sometimes been as inconvenient as a flat tire, a burned dinner, or, more seriously, an ill child. One of my daughters battled health issues as a teen and was so ill I took her to the hospital. They kept her overnight for testing, and as I drove home, I cried, praying and entrusting her into God’s hands and the hospital’s care. My husband was out of the country, so I felt very alone, but I truly wasn’t. That was “a day.”

God knows about these days. They are in His plans for us. The day may not make sense. The day will come when we are young and when we are old. The day molds, shapes, refines, and makes us more like Christ. We are imperfect beings who need our perfect God. Even amid a challenging day, there is immense peace in our obedience to His call.

Mary and Elizabeth obediently walked where God had taken them – a journey neither thought they would ever experience. But when they did, they knew who to trust. As seasoned women, we should remember the days that stretched our faith and caused us to lean hard into Him. It was all for preparation. These days make us more like Christ. We should remember and celebrate the good days, the love-filled, fun days that are a gift from Him, the days that show us His unlimited love, so we can live with a heart of gratitude.

BIO: Rita’s call to short-term mission trips has placed her in many unique places worldwide. She’s writing a book highlighting her experiences and the people she’s met in her ministry. Rita lives in Michigan with her husband, Mark. They have three children and four grandchildren. You can reach Rita at ritaprochazka73@gmail.com.