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March 19, 2023

March 19, 2023

By Kimberly Hobbs

EMPOWERING LIVES WITH PURPOSE:
When we face big jobs or important responsibilities, I would hope we all want to be successful in what we need to do.
Our best way of accomplishing big tasks is to go directly to God with our details. He wants the very best for our lives in all we do, especially for Him. We need to ask for His guidance.
I love sharing this story which many of you may already know. It’s worth repeating if some may not have heard it. It’s the “sea turtle” story. In short, it’s a story of faith.
During the planning stages of the Summit in 2019, my faith in “pulling it off” was lacking. It was a monster to me. I prayed daily, asking God for help and direction as we drew closer and closer. Our original venue dropped at the very last moment, and we were STUCK!
One day while out on the boat with my husband Ken, I needed a confirmation that this event was going to happen and with success, in Jesus’ name! I decided to pray for a sign from God that day; I had never done this before and made it super crazy absurd. Never seeing a live sea turtle in our waters in my life, I knew this request would be almost next to impossible! I prayed it, and we set out that day for an all-day excursion. As I prayed for something so absolutely outrageous, I would know 100% it would be a “God thing” if it happened, and I’d see one.
My personal confirmation from God that all would be well would be the icing on the cake if I saw a live sea turtle that day on the boat.
Understand, I had never seen a sea turtle before in the wild, ever. They are extremely difficult to find or see in nature!
Off Kenny and I went on the jet skis and then some boating time. A day with God to clear my head and heart and seek His word. We began the day, and I prayed over the Summit continuously, as I had done other days but even STRONGER with intensity, all while asking God for my “sign.”
It’d be a sign, directly from Him on the water, which would allow me to actually see a “sea turtle” and tell me that He had me and not to fret. I asked Him for this crazy request early enough that morning, just before setting out on the water for the day…
All day long on that boat, I prayed and wondered if God heard me. ???
I sought God intimately, and I did not tell Kenny of my request to God for whatever reason. It was my own heart to ask God, and I kept it personal. Maybe my lack of faith that I’d really see one, or maybe so as not to hear anything negative from him and be squelched of my belief…I don’t know why I didn’t share my “ask” of God, but I kept it between God and me.
Kenny and I both listened to scripture together like we often do. It was a gorgeous day out on the water. We listened to worship, and all the while, I kept looking to God, wanting to see my sign. I did it all while internally praying for my turtle to show up.
From early morning to mid-afternoon, no turtle anywhere in that ocean. I didn’t stop or give up praying or asking for my sign from Heaven.
“God, would You see the Summit to completion for me, and with a promise through the times my faith staggered, would you provide a big venue larger enough to accommodate the hundreds of tickets sold and be able to serve food?”
I wanted to see that turtle soooo badly that day. As we headed back to the boat ramp and left the ocean, we headed back toward the intercoastal waterway…
Out of nowhere, and almost as if we were having a crash on the water, my husband leaped and screamed. I had no idea what was happening, and I leaped from my seat. “What’s wrong???,” I said.
We swerved on the ocean with no one in sight or nothing around us! I looked into the water, and out of nowhere, the largest sea turtle you could imagine in your life emerged from the depths of the sea! A Goliath turtle ascended to the water atop the sea and swam right beside our boat in the crystal clear water.
My eyes popped out of my head! Quick enough for me to scream and literally spring up out of my seat to look at him, he swam right alongside the boat with us for several seconds. Long enough to see his large eye as he glanced up at me, which brought me to tears. He almost swept the side of our boat; I won’t ever forget the sight.
Goosebumps galore, I knew it was God. Within just seconds, he was gone! Just like that! Never to be seen again.
It was God’s sign and promise to me.
That day I will NEVER forget, ever…it was a reminder the Summit was His burden to carry and would be in His hands until completion. I only had to do the work He called me to and release the worry!
God cares about your responsibilities. He wants to see you do well; He wants you to succeed. Don’t be afraid to ask for success in what He’s called you to do.
Always keep in mind, however, that He may define success very differently than you do.
The Summit was God’s miraculous story that year. He exceeded all our imaginations of what we could imagine. We lost our first venue at Life church, but God provided a better one at Keiser University campus Auditorium and a place to serve food within. The list goes on through the joy of that confirmed faith walk. My planning the rest of the Summit with Him was without any doubt.  God had us…
Walk so close to God that you’re able to put aside what you might want for yourself in order to succeed at what God wants for you.
I’m crying as I write this. I urge you to include God in ALL your plans.
Proverbs 16:3
“Submit your works to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.”