“You must act according to the decision they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they instruct you to do.” Deuteronomy 17:10

Sometimes God makes us choose a path. We can choose to accept Jesus as our Savior or not. Free will exists in our salvation. I think He also lets us choose more common paths as well. How do we overcome obstacles in our path?

Fifteen years ago, we were considering a change of career. Instead, we ended up at our local mall to just window shop and think. I was following Korbin, and Mary was with the girls. Korbin was just two years old. I watched as he hobbled straight toward a trash can, and he was looking back at me laughing. I knew he would run into it, but I could not reach him. He hit head first and then bounced backward. I could see he was not hurt, but he was ticked off. I remember getting a strong sense of peace, like God saying, “Right or left, I will go with you either way. Just don’t keep going in the same direction.” Decision made.

When he was diagnosed with being on the autism spectrum, we faced many decisions about a year later. We knew very little, and the pressure seemed to be significant. But, early on, we had an important decision to make. Do we stay in Hays, or do we move closer to more established help?

There is a school with a reputation for success, but it was 3 hours away. This move meant going to an experienced team. It also meant a complete reset of our family. I should mention that when we started this journey, we did not know the team who would end up working with him here. At that time, he was three years old. We were told we had about two years to reach him to top off the pressure. They told us to progress beyond that would be negligible. In some areas, this advice was correct, but in some ways, it was wrong. I think they did that to make sure we got to work. It worked.

I told a friend of mine what we were considering. He was typing on a computer, and he never looked up. He just said, “Did I ever tell you that my wife is an expert in autism?” No, he had not. Long story short, we decided to stay in Hays. God revealed the team He had assembled one year at a time. Sometimes the leap of faith is to survive.

Sometimes the leap of faith is to go. We know a family is currently faced with the same decision. Someone told us once that if you have seen one person on the spectrum, you have seen one. They are all different, and all require various interventions. For this family and their child’s spot on the spectrum, the choice moves toward help.

Sending them encouragement seems like a small token, but I want to do just that. The family is scared and worried. They do not know many of the answers, but they have many questions. God will reveal those answers in His own time, but the time it takes to get a response can seem like forever.

Mary and I will join a long list of people, sorry to see them go. Everyone who knows them loves them. But we also join a long list of people who will admire them for the courage and faith it takes to make a move. We are proud of them.

Did you know there is more to this article?