When you say yes, you say no
This has been repeated throughout this week in multiple encounters. When you say yes to something, you are saying no to something else. Even more applicable, when you say yes to anything that is outside God’s will, you are saying no to God. “Be very careful, then, how you live- not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is (Ephesians 5:15-17, NIV). How many times have you felt pressured to say yes to a request only to immediately regret that response before it has fully left your lips? How many times have you said yes out of obligation or duty, but lacked the sincerity in the yes? How many times has your yes limited someone else’s yes? That has been this week!
Born Again
The concept of being born again was something I never understood nor heard about in all the years I attended church as a child. It wasn’t until adulthood that I began to understand this term. Jacob’s story of his wrestling match clearly depicts being born again. Not only was Jacob given a new name, Israel, he battled his sinful nature throughout the night in order to become the father of the twelve tribes of Israel. Jacob had to struggle throughout the night and he did not give up in order to come to his true identity and be born again. His physical strength alone could not win the battle, he could not overpower that which he battled alone. Even as Jacob came to this realization, he refused to let go until he was Blessed. In the end, Jacob receives his blessing and is not only physically transformed, with his permanent limp from his damaged hip, but also spiritually transformed.
Jacob’s Ladder
I love it when I see Jacob’s ladder or rays from God peeking through the clouds in the sky. It is an immediate reminder of our connection to God and heaven above. Jacob “Had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it” and then God said “I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying…all peoples on this earth will be blessed through you and your offspring…I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go” (Genesis 28:12-15, NIV). These rays of sun that touch the earth are our reminder that we are Blessed, God is with us, and He is always watching over us- what a beautiful reminder.
A garden of God’s Blessings
My two favorite seasons are Spring and Fall. Fall because I love the colors as the leaves change and Spring as everything comes to life and I hear the return of my favorite birdsongs. “For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations” (Isaiah 61:11, NIV). God promises us a garden full of life and blossoms filled with righteousness and praise…what an amazing garden that will be. In order for this to happen, the soil has to be rich and ready for the growth. I feel like my faith is the same. The soil continues to be nurtured from others as well as from the roots as my relationship with God continues to grow.
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks
Life has been a whirlwind lately. It doesn’t happen all the time, but sometimes it feels like all my worlds are at full throttle at the same time. It has felt that way these past few weeks. I know time will slow down and I know these are the moments that pass, but I don’t want to rush to the next day or the next moment. I want to be present in the here and now, no matter how hectic or stressful it may seem. I don’t know if you have those days, or how often they may come, but Rob reminded me that it is these moments when we need to double down in our rejoicing and thanks.
A refreshed soul…
I don’t know about you, but sometimes life just gets hectic. It feels even more hectic when I am away from my home, my tribe. Our whole family has Oura rings and my first night away from home was a late night and my Oura ring, that never tells a lie, said my sleep was the worst I have ever had. I had a full day of training ahead of me and I knew it would be a long day. The next night, another night away from home, I slept better, but I had a long way to recover. Still, I woke up early in the morning, did my workout routine, and took on the day. Focusing on rest enabled me to face the day with a new sense of energy and it led to amazing connections.
When God changes what was meant for evil to good…
Every Saturday I put together a plan for what I plan to write on during the week from my inspirational moments or thoughts that I jotted down in my notes. Today, I had a plan to write about this chaotic world we live in and the noise that invades our lives. I have been leading my neighborhood in the John Eldridge study of “Get Your Life Back”, and one of the items he shares is that we humans are not meant to bear all the negativity that we get exposed to in the world. As our worlds have expanded, we have increased our exposure to hardships that we would have never personally experienced. When a tragic event happens across the world, we see it, hear about it, and feel it countless times as it is shared across news platforms and social media. It’s exhausting. That is what I was going to write about…and then God happened, doesn't he always?
A solitary place to pray
During one of Rob’s deployments, I found this amazing little mountain house that was built in the 1920s. It was a home that I dreamed of as a kid. She had good bones and I imagined all the memories created there through all the years. It was a two story white farmhouse with a front porch that faced the road. It sat on over 20 acres of land and had a creek running down the middle of the property. The minute we drove up to the property, I knew this would be our home. It was a solitary place, you had to drive over 30 minutes to the nearest grocery store (that has its own challenges when a dog steals your Thanksgiving turkey-story for another day!) To anyone else, it looked like an old farmhouse in the woods. To me, it was peace.
God wants a personal relationship with you
So many moments to share today! Someone asked me if God is more active now than in the past or if I am seeing God in more things now that I have a relationship with God. I personally think the answer is yes to both. Everyday I find more and more people that are open about their faith and willing to talk openly where many used to be cautious. I also see God at work in ways that I overlooked in the past. I had a couple of those moments today. It was a hectic day- it started early and I had to travel for work which always puts an additional stress on the day. When I landed at the airport, my stress level was high as I was trying to figure out where I was going for my first meeting realizing I was already late. As I loaded the vehicle and turned on the car-remember, I was late before I started and had to exchange vehicles, praise music began to fill the vehicle. I just smiled and whispered a thank you God for reminding me that He was there. Godwink.
Godwinks everywhere
Sometimes we overlook the small things, the things that seem insignificant. Today was a day of a lot of small things that continued to remind me how God is always there. These small moments remind me that nothing is coincidence as I stand in awe of God’s miraculous creation of this perfect harmony that we call life. Each instrument playing its individual part and coming together to create music that could never be created on its own. “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or auhtorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:16-17, NIV)