Meet
VOT STORY
Debra Tomlinson from Alpharetta, GA
A DIVINE APPOINTMENT
M
y husband, Ric, received lab work from a routine physical, and the results were not favorable—highgrade urothelial carcinoma. We were numb! It felt surreal. What do you do when the shock wears off and reality sets in? Millions of people have faced cancer and serious diseases. When it hits you personally, what you believe surfaces! Ric said, “Our response is a reflection of our faith, and faith is something you exercise in difficult circumstances.” As believers in Jesus, we look to Him first for help! The Lord directed Ric to a urologist in Stuart, Florida, and would have bladder surgery at Palm Beach Medical Center. As I was sitting in the waiting room, I met a lovely lady named Janet. We shared our situation and realized we were both women of faith. What a sweet spirit she had! When she was leaving, she gave me a beautiful magazine called Voice of Truth. Returning home, I began to read the magazine. Each morning, I looked forward to my cup of coffee and the Voice of Truth stories! It was filled with hope and encouragement. When I reached out to thank Janet, she said, “I love God-ordained appointments!” A friendship began as our hearts were knit together with God’s love, His Spirit living within us! I am so thankful the Lord put us together...my divine appointment! God cares what we go through! Did He have another purpose for me as well? 1 THESSALONIANS 5:11 (NIV)
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 92
I like this quote: “A divine appointment is a meeting with another person or persons that God has specifically and unmistakably arranged. The Holy Spirit sets up such encounters because someone needs what He can offer them through you.” As I was reading in Voice of Truth, this quote resonated with me: “Experience God’s extravagant love and your exquisite purpose through the Women World Leaders’ Podcast that focuses on teaching, inspiration, and encouragement.” The words “Extravagant Love” jumped of the page as I have been writing booklets for the past twelve years entitled “Extravagant Love.” I wanted to share with my family and friends the love of God, His goodness, and His glory in our everyday life. I don’t consider myself an author, as nothing I’ve written has been published, but I delight in writing what the Lord is teaching me. My husband and I will be going to MD Anderson in Houston to determine the next steps for his bladder cancer. We never know what divine appointments await us! I will be taking my Voice of Truth magazine with me! May God lead me to be someone’s divine appointment! Thank you, Women World Leaders, for asking me to share my divine encounter with Janet in this beautiful magazine.
