One of my closest friends just retired this week from the United States Army.  Her career started as an inexperienced Second Lieutenant and peaked as a Colonel, and reflecting on its entirety, I couldn’t be more proud.  Her combat boots saw action in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia.  In the United States, those boots touched numerous military bases, including the headquarters of the Department of Defense, the Pentagon itself.  But as of this week, her life is about to change.  Drastically.  She must have dozens of questions: What will I do?  Where will I go?  What’s next?

We all go through times of transition.  Sometimes we know change is coming and other times we are blindsided by it.  Either way, it might help to know God saw it coming and is planning to help.  Psalm 121:8, “The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in.”  Wherever you’re headed, God has you covered.  He’s not going to abandon you in this time of transition.  God is even instructing His angels to guide you in this change.  “Look, I’m sending an angel before you to protect you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared.” (Exodus 23:20) God is arranging things in your favor!  You don’t have to be worried or afraid.  You can take a deep breath and choose to trust.  Instead of looking back, look forward-then you can embrace the beauty in this next season.  “He has made everything beautiful in its time.”  (Ecclesiastes 3:11)  Here’s my suggestion: grab a blanket, sit back, and expect to be amazed.  Here’s why: the future before you is a fireworks display: exploding with beauty, bathed in light, and sparkling with possibility.