A few weeks back I came upon Psalm 124. The first two verses read, "'If it had not been the Lord who was on our side," Let Israel now say"If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us.'" All my mind could repeat was, "If it has not been the Lord who was on our side." That day in prayer, I wrote a list of all of the things that could have been if it had not been for the Lord, who is on my side.

If it had not been the Lord, I would have married the wrong man: an unbeliever. If it had not been the Lord, I would have been trapped in a miserable marriage with a man who had all the symptoms of alcoholism. If it had not been the Lord, I would have divorced him. If it had not been the Lord, I would be living a life of bars, alcohol, drugs, and sex. If it had not been the Lord, I would never have come back to His embrace and my walk with Him. If it had not been the Lord, I would be at a job I hatedmaking others as miserable as I was. If it had not been the Lord, I would not have married Duncan, a godly man who genuinely loves me, even when I'm unlovely. If it had not been the Lord, I would not have stayed married to Duncan through a difficult time in our marriage. If it had not been the Lord, I would not serve in my church or be as involved as I am. If it had not been the Lord, I would still dislike women and cringe at the thought of being friends with them (sorry, gals). If it had not been the Lord, I wouldn't have my amazing children. If it had not been the Lord, I wouldn't know the joys of serving, sacrifice, prayer, or giving. If it had not been the Lord, you wouldn't be reading this right now and I wouldn't be writing. If it had not been the Lord, I would still be the unapproachable, cold woman that no one wanted to come near. If it had not been the Lord, I would not know unconditional love. If it had not been the Lord, I would be going to hell.

All too often we stop seeing the many things the Lord does in our life and we focus on what He isn't doing. He isn't answering my prayers. He isn't curing my friend. He isn't saving my family. He isn't getting me a job. He didn't get us that house. He isn't doing what I think He should do. We focus solely on what we think isn't happeningand completely lose sight of what He does do in our life. If it had not been the Lord, my life would look completely different. But He picked up this life out of the miry clay; He set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps (see Ps. 40:2). The song based on this verse goes on to say, "And now I know, I love You, I need You, though my world may fall I'll never let you go, my Savior, my closest friend, I will worship You until the very end."

That's what it's all about: knowing what He has done for us and what He will continue to do for us if we are obedient to His calling. There's a familiar word to believers and it's fitting: dayenu. It's a Hebrew word that's part of a song for Passover. Basically it means, "it would have been enough for us" or "it would have been sufficient." If the only thing Christ did was save us from hell, it would have been enoughit would have been sufficient. But instead, He gives us this life and all of the many things in it. He gives us joy, peace, provision, love, and a relationship with Him. But sometimes it's not even about what He gives us: Sometimes it's about the things He doesn't give us. Sometimes, the most important things are the prayers that aren't answered; the ones where He has a better plan.

If it had not been the Lord, I would be going to hell. Instead, He gave His life so that I may live with Him in eternity. If that was all He ever did, it would have been enoughit would have been sufficient.

I'd love to hear your "If it had not been the LORD," stories! Hearing people's testimonies always inspires me that there is NO ONE out of God's reach.