In Genesis, right before Abram goes to settle on the outskirts of the land of Canaan, he splits off from his nephew Lot and his extended family. Being honorable, Abram allowed Lot to choose the way that he wanted to go and said he would happily go the other way. Lot chose to go towards Sodom and Gommorah, where he settled with his family. 

Fast forward to Genesis 14 and the political tension of fighting kings finds its way to Lot’s doorstep. Where Lot thought was going to be a good place to settle actually placed him and his family in a dangerous situation. They were taken captive and all their possessions were stolen; this is a classic example of the evilness and brokenness of the world interfering with the good plan that we create for ourselves. In Genesis 14:11, it says that Lot and his family were “carried off” because he was living in Sodom” (NIV). 

I can think of countless times in my own life where I felt “carried off” by difficult circumstances, shame, or the crushing consequences of my own sin or choices; it’s because I’ve been in the wrong place – distant from God. Sometimes it looks like I’m losing my patience with those I love most. Sometimes it’s a phone call from a doctor or a friend with bad news across the line. Other times it is struggling to forgive myself as the Lord forgives me – sitting in my own regret. 

The truth is, every single one of us are human and every single one of us lives in a broken world. We are going to hurt each other, we are going to participate in and experience war, illness, loss, doubt, grief, relational tension, sin, etc. The good news is that this, these kinds of moments, are often when God does His best work. The stage is set for a miraculous and holy interference. 

In this case, God used his family connection and who Abram was “allied with” (v.13) in order to save Lot. Word got out to Abram that his nephew was in trouble and this immediately started a series of events that would become Lot’s rescue mission! As soon as Abram got news that Lot was in trouble, the Bible says he “called out 318 trained men in his household to go in pursuit as far as Dan” (v.14). Abram then took things a step further by dividing them up in the night and sending them as “far as Hobah, north of Damascus” (v.15).  The total distance from where Abram began “near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite” to “Hobah” was about 300 miles! It is evident that for Abram, no distance was too far when it came to recovering his family. 

Not only was this a win and restoration for Lot and his immediate family, this event also brought glory to God because Abram was able to conquer his enemies along the way to recovering his nephew. The king of Salem even recognized this, blessed Abram and honored the Lord (v. 19-20). Many times throughout the Bible, it is mentioned that God will often work things out not only for our good (Rom. 8:28), but also for His own praise. Psalm 106: 8 says (of the Israelites) “Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known” (NIV). As some of you may know, I recently came home from a 9 month internship at Walt Disney World, which I started in August of 2025. I was supposed to be there until June 5, 2026, but ended up having a health scare and needed to return home in April. I felt a lot like I was being “carried away” from fully completing something that I had wanted to do for so long. While I am grateful for the time I did have there, and the people I met along the way, my program had its fair share of ups and downs. I was confused and frustrated with God when I returned home because I didn’t have a chance at a “proper” goodbye or closure from that season of life. 

I am beyond grateful that my health scare was only a concern and that I am okay in that regard; yet, a small part of me wondered why God would allow that to happen. But then, I look around and see all the ways that He was working, pursuing me, behind the scenes. When I had to leave Orlando so abruptly, I felt a lot like Lot probably did – taken away from a place that I had chosen to call home and a little life that I had built for myself there. However, after all this time, I can see that God was after my heart and giving me the opportunity to rest. I am now enjoying days with my family, working for my dad’s company, weekends with my boyfriend, visiting friends who are closer to home, having the chance to write, and so many other blessings that I could have never known the weight of while I was still in Florida. 

This is just one example of how God sees the bigger picture and even when we feel that we are “taken captive,” He is always working on our behalf; the biggest example of this is the Gospel. When we were “yet sinners” Christ came to this earth, lived a perfect life, died on our behalf, and rose again to grant us full victory and restoration to the Father (Rom. 5:8). As I think about all the pain and turmoil that Jesus experienced on the way towards and on the cross, my heart is both grieved and full of gratitude. Here was a man, both fully human and fully God, accepting the full wrath and judgement that we deserved in order that we might be saved. Like Abram going “as far as” it took to get to Lot, though, Jesus went as far as the cross to reach us – to give us an opportunity for new life. No distance is too far for the Lord to come in pursuit of us. He is truly the Shepard who will leave the 99 to find the one. To find the one wandering, like you and like me. 

By believing in his death, burial, and resurrection and calling on His name, He can become your personal Savior today (Rom. 10:9-10). If this is a decision that you want to make, I encourage you that you can, from any place – at any time! I would also encourage you to talk to a trusted mentor and tell someone about your decision to follow Christ. Isaiah 53:4-5 says “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds, we are healed.” 

Whether today you find yourself in a difficult trial, the weight of regret, or struggling with sin, know that God has and is always working behind the scenes to redeem us and restore us to Himself. He is in fervent pursuit of your heart and no distance is too far for Him. 

As always, love and prayers from me. Please reach out to the seenheardandloved instagram DMs with questions or prayer requests!

God Bless, 

-Laci Rae <3

I’m confident that many of us sat in Sunday School Class and heard about Noah’s ark. Maybe you sang about in the Junior Choir at church, like I did, or maybe you just have a basic knowledge of it. Noah builds the ark. Animals enter two by two. Everyone and everything on the ark is saved while God sends a massive flood to wipe out the rest of humanity; His heart was grieved by their sin. 

It is accounts like this one that I come across and my next thought usually is: I’ve read this a million times. But as He promises, God’s Word is alive, active, and partners with the Holy Spirit to give us fresh eyes. As I studied this account again yesterday, one little word stood out to me: “recede.” This word has a simple meaning – “to gradually diminish.” Noah and his family were waiting on the waters to do this very thing, before they were able to exit the ark.

While reading, I felt prompted to study the number of days that Noah was in the ark – both during the flood and while he was waiting for the waters to recede. He and his family were there for a little over a year. What I can imagine was a frustrating moment for Noah, was that when about 200 days of raining had gone by, he was still stuck in the ark for longer. Though it was his method of provision and an image of the saving grace of Christ, I can imagine that in a practical sense, Noah was ready to go back outside. We are probably all familiar with what it is like to be inside for a long time and going a little stir crazy!

Verse 3 of Genesis 9 says that “the water receded steadily from the earth” and verse 4 informs us that on the “seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat” (NIV). Hard to picture a boat on top of a mountain? It sure is! But that is exactly where Noah, his family, and all the animals that the Lord had chosen, landed. From that time forward, Noah and his family still had to wait about a while before they could go out of the ark. He waited 40 days as the waters receded, sent out a dove twice (over two 7 day periods), and even after the dove didn’t return to him and he saw that the ground was dry (Genesis 8:14), he still had to wait until the “twenty seventh day of the second month” before God called him, his family, and all the creatures out of the ark. 

Each time that Noah sent out the dove, and it returned to him – indicating that there was still flooding – I can imagine the discouragement and frustration he felt. Perhaps he was thinking, towards God: You sent this flood, can’t you dry it up any quicker?!? If that’s what he was thinking, or tempted to think, then I guess Noah is a lot like me, in that way. I have had my fair share of times wondering what is taking God so long, and admittedly, still think that way sometimes. If you find yourself in this same boat (no pun intended!) then there is hope for all of us, friends. 

Sometimes, God moves gradually, but through this, He teaches us patience, endurance, and how to look to Him for guidance (like Noah patiently sending out the dove!). God could have caused the flood waters to recede immediately, but Noah and his family would have missed out on these lessons of reliance on the Lord. We can also see the excitement when Noah does receive the breakthrough, the moment when he knows he will be able to leave the ark soon. Verse 11 of Genesis 8 tells us that when Noah sent the dove out for the second time, it returned to him and “there in its beak was a freshly picked olive leaf!” (NIV). By faithfully waiting, the moment of change was at once very powerful and the following blessing was abundantly above what Noah could have imagined! 

When God first dealt with the sin of humanity, he punished Adam by cursing the ground (Genesis 3:17-18), and while humans still have to tend the land to bear fruit, here God promised Noah that he would not curse the ground again (Genesis 8:21). He honored Noah’s obedient heart and sweet sacrifice to the Himself. We also see in chapter 9 that God gave his family “everything” (v.3) in regards to the plants of the earth. The waters went down gradually, and awaiting Noah’s family was a blessing and a new promise that was specific to them and them alone. God loves to bless and abundantly bless His children! Be encouraged today that God has seen and will honor your obedience – and perseverance – with Him! 

Not only is this account a lesson in persistence and reliance on the Lord, but it is also one of protection. One easy to miss detail that I mentioned earlier is that before the waters start to recede, “the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat” (Genesis 8:4). The mountains of Ararat are between 12,000 and 16,000 feet high; woah. Talk about a wild ride if the waters had receded all at once! Not only did the Lord give Noah a specific design for the ark that would keep them safe during the storm, but He also accounted for how the ark would fair during the aftermath of the storm. God could have caused the waters to recede suddenly (as opposed to “steadily”), but being the good Father that He is, He kept His chosen individuals safe. Sometimes what feels like missing out is actually us being held securely by the Father. Today, do you trust that He knows what is going on outside the boat and sees the bigger picture? And do you trust that the circumstances that feel so long and hard in your life could somehow be His protection? 

As you go throughout the next week, month, year, or however long until your personal breakthrough comes, remember this; what feels like prolonging could be a lesson in the immeasurable value of perseverance in the presence of God, even when we don’t always see or hear Him. What feels like prolonging can also be protection and the shaping of a beautiful testimony. When the waters do finally recede, may you be safely carried straight to the blessing that the Lord always intended for you to have! 

I love you all, praying for you, and God bless, 

Laci Rae

A Model of Noah’s Ark built to Biblical Scale at the Ark Encounter in KY!

Learn more here: https://arkencounter.com/about/

Hey Friends, welcome back! Last time we talked about God’s gentle and delicate hand as we’re awaiting His divine blessing. You may say, “Laci, that’s all well and good, but what about how painful it is to look up and still see no change?” Well, I know that feeling all too well and today we’re gonna talk about just that. Hopefully, you walk away with some encouragement for how to have an expectant heart while waiting for your circumstance or season to change! Let’s dive in!

In the book of Acts, we learn about the apostles’ persistence in sharing the gospel and kick-starting the early church. They performed miracles in Jesus’ name, they went constantly up against religious authority regardless of the consequences, etc. They were pretty cool guys for the kingdom of God, to say the least. Particularly, in Acts chapter 3, Peter and John were going to the temple one morning for the 9 am sacrifice. Verse 2 tells us that, “a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple;” (NKJV). So here’s a man, who every single day, because of his inability to walk, had to be carried by others to the temple just to petition people for the money he would need to eat that day. Talk about feeling hopeless and desperate.

But don’t miss this — he was positioned at a gate titled “beautiful.” Sometimes, we feel such a desire to walk through such a gate when we can’t, that we miss what God wants to do by having placed us there. The Word says the man was expecting to receive something from Peter and John (v.5), he just had no idea what, yet. Your waiting is beautiful because it gives God a chance to move. We can’t skip over the rest of the story. The Word says this, “Then Peter said, ‘Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God” (NKJV).

The lame man, as promised to us in Ephesians 3:20, is given “exceedingly and abundantly more” than he could have ever ask, think, or imagine. But it came through the direct power of Jesus and how His disciples stewarded their authority in Him. Next, consider verse 10, which states, “Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.” His healing became a testimony to others.

Even when you don’t have all the answers or understand why God is or isn’t doing something, your waiting or hardship is a beautiful position because God can give you daily provision (the alms/ money for the man), while also working up something better for your good and more importantly, for His glory. Your change could come at any time, and in the meantime, a powerful testimony is under construction.

Lastly, consider our Savior. Jesus — who knew that the outcome of going to the cross would be his resurrection and God’s victory (Matt. 16:21 and Matt. 20:19) — can sympathize with our waiting. The fact that He knew the outcome didn’t change the physical and emotional pain that He endured on the cross for the sake of our sins. He says in Matt. 7:46 from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Here’s the truth: knowing the outcome of a situation/waiting period, or not knowing it, doesn’t change the pain we endure. Even our Savior, knowing the end result, felt overlooked and abandoned by the Father. Do you believe now that He understands how you are feeling?

In reality, Jesus was beautifully positioned so that His blood could atone for our sins. Maybe your suffering, your position, is for the good of someone else — whether you could help them now or later in life. Then! Three days after His death, God’s glory was displayed through the resurrection of Christ! This is our greatest hope. We have a Savior who understands that not every position always “feels” beautiful, but that it can make room for God to move in a mighty way. And that is where and why we can find expectancy in our waiting.

Your pain and waiting may be an essential instrument in a future testimony. If we’re truly living for God, then we should want His glory to shine through our lives and be expectant that for His name’s sake, He hasn’t left us or forgotten us. My challenge is to choose a bigger picture perspective when your position doesn’t seem so beautiful. One that believes the story that God is writing for you will be one of victory and inspiration to others. David says in Psalms 37 that he’s “never seen the righteous forsaken.” Right now, you may feel hopeless and ready to give up on trusting God with your situation. Maybe you have even begun to accept the bare minimum with little faith that God can move in your life again. But even in your worst pain — like the lame man and like Jesus — you are beautifully positioned to experience His provision, His presence, His blessing, and His glory.

Friend, choose to believe that the turmoil you feel today will one day be a powerful testimony. One even better than your wildest dreams –because you serve a good and faithful Father.

Hiya folks! I’m Laci! Writing to encourage you in your walk with Jesus! If this helps you, feel free to share with friends and subscribe to become part of this community! With questions or concerns, please DM my instagram @seenheardandloved

Thanks for tuning in! See ya’ll next time!

P.s. as a general rule I’ll try to post a new blog every month or so! Some months I may post more, so make sure to subscribe and turn on notifications to stay updated! Love ya’ll, but Jesus loves you more!

– Laci Rae :)