February 21, 2011

Closer To The Sun

Change is such a funny thing.

Sometimes we hate change . . . but it can also be exciting.

Sometimes we get too comfortable in our current circumstances and start to think things will always be the same (guilty as charged) - oftentimes that can be a comfort, but it can also be drudgery. I think it's good to get outside of our comfort zones - how else will be know what we're capable of, or what God has for us if we are too afraid or complacent to step out of them? I am a fan of challenge and progression.

Unexpected change . . . life throwing you a curve ball . . . can be blessing in disguise.

I don't remember the first time I heard this quote, but it just came to mind:

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.
-Charles Swindoll


It reminds me that there's a difference between reaction vs. action in life . . .

My natural reaction at times is to allow fear and my silly predictions of the future take control. On the opposite end of that, I can take action and choose to trust God with my future and choose to seek Him daily . . . I can do all that's within my power in my current circumstances and leave the rest to Him. And I can stop freaking out about the future.

Trust is a funny thing. When we choose to trust God, our worries start to melt and lose power over us. However, it is extraordinarily difficult. So often I try to rely on myself and I allow what I can see in the present dictate what I project will happen in the future.

And you know what I've discovered? God's plans are so much better than anything I could come up with on my own. Whenever I let go of my sense of control and let Him have the reins, I am always amazed at the outcome. (I guess He really does know what He's doing - why am I surprised?)

I laugh at myself for being so afraid to trust God. But I am perpetually guilty of withholding that trust . . . guilty of not believing that God will take care of me better than I could ever do on my own. Who I am kidding - if God is who He says He is, I have absolutely no excuse to not fully rely on Him with every breath and aspect of life.

Another action we can take is to be thankful. When you stop and realize all that God has given you in salvation it will blow your mind. Then add to that His provision over your life. It's too easy to focus on the things that we don't have and to compare ourselves to others. That's why it's so important to add thankfulness as a way to daily surrender.

Aaaaanyway, that's just my two cents for today. I was inspired by this devotion I've been working on and how important it is to make a daily choice to trust and be thankful. I have by no means mastered this, and I am more often a hot mess than anything else . . . and again I am just reminded of God's faithfulness throughout my crazy, ADD-esque life.

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
Colossians 2:6-7

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us . . .
Ephesians 3:16-20

February 10, 2011

Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air
I know I can count on you
Sometimes I feel like saying "Lord I just don't care"
But you've got the love I need To see me through

Sometimes it seems that the going is just too rough
And things go wrong no matter what I do
Now and then it seems that life is just too much
But you've got the love I need to see me through

When food is gone you are my daily meal
When friends are gone I know my savior's love is real
Your love is real

You got the love

Time after time I think "Oh Lord what's the use?"
Time after time I think it's just no good
Sooner or later in life, the things you love you lose
But you got the love I need to see me through

"You've Got The Love" - Florence + The Machine

February 6, 2011

enough

I'm done with winter.

It's not just the cold, but the lack of sunlight that slowly wears away at my soul.

Last weekend it was sunny and in the 70's . . . and I felt like I could die happy - all of my cares just evaporated when I stepped outside.

I don't want my circumstances to dictate the state of my spirit - but not only does the temperature outside tell me it's winter, but this season of my life feels like a winter as well.

Do you see what it does to me? It makes me extra dramatic.

Anyway, I'm just praying that this month will fly and that I can put things into perspective instead of dwelling on being stuck in a rut right now. I guess I'm human after all. It's times like these that I know joy runs deeper than happiness or my circumstances, and I'm thankful that there's more to life than my limited human understanding of it.

O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.
Thus I will bless You while I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.

When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches.
Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
My soul follows close behind You;
Your right hand upholds me.
Psalm 63:1-8
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