Charlotte Ballard
Letting God Take Control
Charlotte Ballard admits she had some pretty grand ideas when she enrolled in Embracing Purpose: “I wanted to do something big and totally self-satisfying!” she says. Sound familiar? We make plans, set goals and want to achieve them—as quickly as possible. But after finishing the course and exploring a few options, she recognizes that nothing panned out until she took a backseat to God.
In response to an email asking Embracing Purpose graduates what they were doing with the insights and lessons they had learned during the course, Charlotte wrote:
“I am at a very good place in life right now, and it has everything to do with finding the love of Christ in service to others.”
Charlotte admitted feeling discouraged over failing to discover a specific mission to pursue right away. After many prayers asking for guidance, she felt directed to make a difference at home in her family relationships. She told me that the close ties and trust they shared deepened to a remarkable level as they learned to wait on the Lord and discover what He wanted for them.
“What a blessing! C.E. [ex-husband] and I were remarried last year after being divorced for 20 years. I have been led to mentor two young women and work in a soup kitchen in the city. C.E. is now taking a class at church to learn how to mentor young men. I have been blessed beyond what I deserve.
“Through the past few years, I have learned an important lesson that is a basic principle in Embracing Purpose: To be truly fulfilled, we must do what God wants, however grand or humble it is. I love the women I mentor and care deeply for the homeless and hungry who come for lunch at an inner-city church. I just love what I do, and I love the Lord for blessing me this way and filling my heart with great satisfaction and joy. I would tell any woman who embarks on this adventure not to give up, but instead to keep praying and give thanks to God for who He is. He listens and He answers in His own time.”