Category: Trusting God

Sometimes life seems upside-down. When we draw closer to God, we begin to learn and trust that He has a plan for us and we can let go of many of life’s anxieties knowing that He has our best interest at heart.

No Matter the Weather

Posted on by Wendy
No matter the weather, God has us covered.
No matter the weather, God has us covered.

Yesterday at work, the most popular topic of conversation was that rain was headed our way. Weather is always a well discussed subject in rural Georgia, but lately it’s been the centerpiece of our thoughts as well as our conversations.

We haven’t had rain in 42 long days here and to add to our misery, a good portion of the north Georgia mountains are on fire. In a state known for its humidity, we have become much more like a desert lately.

Rain is one of those things that we don’t give much thought to unless it is interfering with our plans somehow, like a day at the pool or the 4th of July picnic. The other instance that causes us to really think about it, is times when we need it.

Rain is an interesting phenomenon. Too much of it makes the earth flood and causes all types of disaster and damage. Too much rain will kill crops.  Too little of it results in drought. Crops can’t grow without rain. Trees are weakened without rain. We would eventually run out of drinking water without rain.

It’s all about balance. Isn’t it always?

I found myself pondering the concepts of rain and drought all day yesterday. I thought about how our lives go through times of drought and floods as well.

Sometimes we find ourselves wondering if the rains of change will ever stop. There are seasons where we want more than anything for the earth to stop turning. We long for a day of peace where nothing changes and nothing new happens, good or bad. We get to a point where we truly believe that just one more thing added to our already heavy load, will actually drown us somehow.

We don’t dare ask, “what else can happen?” but we think it. We find ourselves praying for peace and stability and we wonder if God hears us.

But, then there are those seasons where we wonder if anything will ever change. We pray and pray for some spiritual rain, for guidance, for a new plan or the next step, or answers, and we find God is silent. We wonder if He’s even listening to our parched prayers as we send them upward.

He hears our prayers in times of floods and times of drought and in every season in between. He is at work in our lives in every season and those who are willing to stubbornly hold onto faith and stand fast, will see His work eventually. Neither His power nor His plan can be missed if we are always at watch for them.

The Bible assures us that we never walk alone. We get assurances like:

“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up, the flames will not consume you.” Isaiah 43:2

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Philippians 1:6

Our forecast reminded me that the weather, like our circumstances, will always change. Sometimes the change is welcome and sometimes it is not. Either way, God’s got this whatever your this may be.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

Focusing on the End Zone

Posted on by Wendy
We have to keep moving forward to where we are called.
We have to keep moving forward to where we are called.

Last Friday night was our high school’s last home game. It also happened to be senior night. There was a great turn out. Unfortunately, our team lost, but they played well. There was only one touch down and boy was it a good one.

A senior player named Roques Dowdy, ran the ball for a 79 yard touchdown. It was a joy to watch. He started off in a sea of players, all trying to take him down, but he kept his eye on the goal and kept running. Those pursuing him thinned out and Roques kept running. Finally, there was one lone pursuer and I felt sure he would catch him. He was so close. But, Roques kept his eye on the end zone and kept running only occasionally looking back to see how close his opponent was.

His drive and dedication paid off. He had a beautiful run and a touch down I’m sure he will remember for the rest of his life.

I thought about that run all weekend. I thought about how focused he was on where he was going. I thought about how daunting it must have been for him when he was surrounded by the opposing team, yet he kept moving towards where he needed to go. I thought about how even when he broke out of that pack and someone continued to pursue him closely, he only glanced back for a moment.

I thought about how we could all have that kind of drive in our faith life. We all have the ability to be focused on what we seek. But, why aren’t we? We all have the capability to not focus on the pack that we find ourselves in and to keep our eyes focused on God.

That run also reminded me that it’s smart to glance back occasionally and note that there is an opponent on the field. It would be foolish to pretend otherwise, but our focus should remain on the end zone and where we are called to end up, when we finish our run. Make no mistake, God’s team is much more powerful than the opposition.

That touch down run inspired me to ask myself the questions: “What is your end zone and how do you plan to get there? Where is your focus? ” Perhaps you need to ask yourself those questions too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

The Power of a Preposition

Posted on by Wendy
Being thankful is a choice.
Being thankful is a choice.

In the past few days, I have come across two different bloggers who commented on the verses from 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, which read: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Jesus Christ.”

It’s a very familiar verse for me and I see it quoted often. It’s meant to bring comfort. God has a plan even during the bad times.

But, this week, after two different writers pointed one that one preposition makes a huge difference in that passage, I really sat up and took notice. I don’t believe in coincidences where God is concerned.

The Holy Spirit had something to tell me. Both writers said that the Scripture says to give thanks in all circumstances, not for all circumstances.

Those two prepositions have really swirled around in my head this week. Isn’t it amazing how one little word can change everything?

We aren’t called to be thankful for the sickness, or for the tragedy, or for the disappointing circumstances. We are called to find something to be thankful for in those dark times.

We aren’t called to be thankful for sickness, but we are called to be thankful for all of the people who reach out to help during the sickness, who would never have had the opportunity to do so otherwise. We aren’t called to be thankful for the breakup, but we are called to be thankful for renewed relationships with family and friends that may have come from it, or maybe even  renewed relationship with God, that would never have happened without the breakup.

Rejoice always because we get to go to heaven one day and live with Jesus. No matter what happens to us here on earth, we are travelers here, not permanent residents.

Pray continually. Never stop praying because prayer changes everything whether we can see it or not.

Give thanks always. There’s always a reason to give thanks and God always has a plan.

These are verses to live by and I have held them close to my heart the past few days. Perhaps you need to hold them close too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

He’s Got This

Posted on by Wendy
Be at peace. He's got this.
Be at peace. He’s got this.

A couple of days ago, we had person after person, come into the office and complain about the heat. I even heard a few grumbles about how it had never been this hot before in Georgia, in November.

After I arrived home, curiosity got the better of me and I Googled it. Turns out, November 1, 2016, was not the hottest Georgia November on record. That distinction went to November 1, 1961.

It’s not that it’s the hottest November on record; it’s simply the hottest November many of us remember. There is a difference.

That little revelation got my wheels turning and I decided to do a little election research. We’ve all heard that this is the nastiest and weirdest presidential election in American history. Turns out that’s not true. One Google search turned up article after article, listing anywhere from six to ten elections that were just as bizarre.

One of the first was John Adams vs Thomas Jefferson back in 1800. Yep, the Founding Fathers were not above dirty tricks and mudslinging. There was Grant vs Greeley in 1872, where the country was very divided on women’s suffrage and Hayes vs Tilden in 1876, where the electoral votes and popular votes didn’t match. In 1920, Eugene Debs ran a campaign from prison. In 1948 not a poll existed that had Harry Truman defeating Thomas Dewey. Yet, Truman won.

The inherent narcissism of the human race, has every generation believing that this is the worst thing that has ever happened, whatever it may, be from weather to politics. A little search in history, usually proves us wrong.

I get it. Things always look the bleakest when they are happening to us, personally. But, as bad as cancer looks to us now, what did the Bubonic Plague look like to the people who lived in the 13 and 14 hundreds?

Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” It goes on to talk about how we don’t remember men of old or in other words, the people who came before us.

This verse should not only bring us comfort during these times when the world seems so unsettled and strange, but also in our personal lives. There is nothing that we are going through that hasn’t been experienced by others before us, not sickness, or financial issues, or relationship issues, or job issues, or even spiritual issues.

Since God breathed life into Adam, He’s been willing to faithfully stay by our side through all of the uncertainty, if we keep our focus on Him. He will see us through whatever we face if we only trust and obey Him. His word gives us countless reminders if we commit to reading it.

There’s nothing in 2016, that is new to Him. He’s got this.

A hot November day reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

He’s Always Working

Posted on by Wendy
May we never forget that God is always at work.
May we never forget that God is always at work.

Yesterday at church, a representative from Gideons International came and spoke. He’s a friend of our pastor’s and he comes every year. He always has an inspirational story to tell and this year was no different.

One evening in 1898, there were two traveling businessmen who were out on the road. He pointed out that back in that time, most business required lots of travel because there was no internet or e-mail. On this particular night, one of the men checked into a motel. Sometime later, another man came looking for a room, but was told there were none.

I’m sure he must have been frustrated and discouraged, away from home, weary from work and travel and nowhere to rest. Can you relate?

The person at the front desk asked the man if he was willing to share a room with another traveler who had checked in for the night. The man agreed.

Can you imagine a scenario like that these days? Can you imagine two perfect strangers agreeing to share a room for the evening? Can you imagine a motel employee even asking?

We got absolutely no back story on the conversation or emotions of those two men that evening. My writer’s mind races with the possibilities. Were they annoyed? Were they uncomfortable? Was the first man gracious? Was the second grateful? Were either the least bit frightened? Personally, sleeping in the room with a complete stranger would terrify me.

But, we do get some information, as it turns out, the important information. As the two men got ready for bed, they learned that they were both Christians, something that people at the time, must have been more open about. They decided to do their nightly devotion together and they both felt that God was calling them to do something more.

They prayed about it and Gideons International was eventually born from that chance meeting that evening. They felt strongly about getting God’s Word into the hands of as many people as possible and decided that hotels were a great start. They felt that once people actually read the Word, the Holy Spirit would be activated and lives would be transformed.

They spoke to different Christian groups and churches in the years to come about placing Bibles in various places. In 1908, some churches got behind funding the hotel idea. Between 1899 and 1971, a hundred million Bibles had been handed out or placed.

In 2015, they hit the two billion mark. Let’s pause a moment and let that number sink in.

Two strangers just happened to share a room together one evening. They just happened to pray together and they just happened to have a dream together of sharing God’s Word with as many people as possible.

They got to see some of that dream accomplished, but God kept on realizing that dream and in 116 years, two billion Bibles had been passed out to people on the street, to college campuses, prisons and to soldiers in the military. They were also placed in hotel rooms and hospitals, not only in this country, but around the world too.

I love this story because we get to see God at work. These men were not placed together by coincidence. It was part of God’s plan. He was at work then in the lives of those men. He is at work now in your life and in mine.

This story reminds me to not get frustrated and to keep my eyes open when life looks bleak. It reminds me to trust God. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Courageous Faith

Posted on by Wendy
Courageous faith can change lives.
Courageous faith can change lives.

In my current Bible study, I’m reading the book of Joshua. It’s one of those Old Testament books full of action and easy to teach to the VBS crowd and the teens. There are lots of miracles in it.

What caught my attention this time, was the very first chapter, where God is about to have Joshua lead the Isrealites to the Promised Land. At last, after forty years of wandering, there is light at the end of the tunnel. In verse six, God tells Joshua to be courageous and then in verse seven, He tells him to be very courageous and reminds him to obey the law.

Then in verse nine God says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Three times God tells Joshua to be courageous, seems like He was trying to make a point.

Skip ahead to chapter two and we find Rahab the prostitute. That’s her title at this point in the story, but Rahab has decided to stop living in fear and to make a change. Rahab tells the Israelite spies that her people’s “courage has failed,” and “their hearts are melting in fear,” because “the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.” Joshua 2:11b

Rahab decided that she knew who the real God was and she decided to help His Israelite spies and then she boldly asked them to save not only her, but her entire family. They agreed.

When Jericho fell, the Israelites kept their promise to Rahab, the way God always keeps His promises to those who are faithful.

Think about that for a moment. One woman, and not even a revered woman, a prostitute, found the courage to acknowledge God and put her faith in Him and because of her courage, her entire family was saved.

Rahab went on to have a son named Boaz. Boaz married Ruth and they had a son named Obed, who had a son named Jesse, who had a son named David, yes that David, King David. So, yes, Rahab is in the lineage of Jesus, not too bad for a prostitute who decided to change her ways.

Rahab’s decision to choose God, secured her place in history. She chose courage and not fear. She chose faith.

I find some parallels with Rahab’s time in history and our own. There’s so much fear right now. As Rahab put it, there are hearts that are melting in fear, fear of the election, fear of terrorism, fear of violence, lots of fear.

I see it on the news everyday. I see it on Facebook everyday. The Book of Joshua reminds us that God’s people are not to live in fear. Joshua was told to be courageous and have faith. Rahab chose to be courageous and have faith.

Their faith not only got them through very dark times, it also lead to much brighter times ahead. Perhaps there’s some wisdom in their story for all of us.

Maybe we all need a little more courageous faith these days.

A morning Bible study reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Fall Reflections

Posted on by Wendy
God's amazing artsitry
God’s amazing artistry

Even thought it’s late October here in Georgia, most of our leaves are stubbornly hanging onto the trees. Most of them in my yard are still green too, but as I look around, I have begun to notice that there are many on the ground as well. But, the ones on the ground are brown. It’s like they went from green to brown without turning the brilliant color that they always do. They skipped the beautiful part.

As I was scrolling through some pictures the other day, the one above caught my eye. I really love that picture. The brightly colored leaves reflecting in the water, capture some of God’s greatest creativity. Because of the way light works, we get to see the brilliance twice, once looking directly at the trees and then again in the reflection.

My sweet mama took that photo and felt inspired to send it to me. I was so glad she did.

As I was enjoying that photo and feeling a little cheated that my trees don’t look like that this year, I was reminded that there are likely several reasons for that. For one, Georgia has had record high temperatures this fall. It’s been regularly in the eighties. It doesn’t feel like fall. Then there’s the fact that we are in extreme drought. I’m no tree expert, but I suspect that the lack of rain, may have something to so with the leaf color.

But, the fact is, we are still in the season of fall. Even though it’s hot and dry, even though it doesn’t feel like fall, or look like fall, it’s still fall. The leaves will eventually drop and it will turn colder. Thanksgiving is on the way despite the way the landscape looks at the moment.

Haven’t we all found ourselves in a dry season like this one? Haven’t we all found ourselves longing for some cool and refreshing air? Haven’t we found ourselves longing for some beauty and color when everything seemed drab and brown?

Even in those dry times, if we look back carefully, we can see that God was at work even when it didn’t feel like it at the time. Those times can serve as a reminder to us when we find ourselves there again, that God is in fact at work in the background. Even though our skies may not be emblazoned with beauty, there are still glimpses of hope if we are willing to actively seek it.

The Bible tells us that: “God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5b

The brilliance of those leaves reflected in the pond, comes from the light provided by the sun, the light created by God. The picture reminds me that even in seasons of drought, seasons of beauty are always on the way. This journey on this side of heaven will always be filled with both.

If we find ourselves in a time of drought this fall, we can hold onto the hope that Thanksgiving and reasons to give thanks, are still on the horizon, even when we can’t feel them or see them. That’s called faith. God is at work and we never walk alone.

A photograph reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

 

Exactly What We Need

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes hope shows up when we least expect it.
Sometimes hope shows up when we least expect it.

A couple of days ago, when I got home from work, I let my dogs out and took a few minutes to enjoy the quiet. I was the first one home so it was really quiet. I sat down for a minute and checked my Facebook feed. The first post I saw was a post about the upcoming election and how America is doomed.

So much for the peace. It seems like everyone on Facebook has something to say about the election and yet everyone is tired of hearing everyone talk about it. Do you see the pattern of chaos here?

I’m tired of hearing about it. I’m tired of thinking about it.

But, the very next thing that popped up on my feed was an article from the Christian Post and it was written by Max Lucado, one of my favorite authors. I took the time to read it.

It was like a breath of fresh air reminding me that it doesn’t matter who our president is, God is still sovereign. He is still in charge. He’s in charge today. He will be in charge on November 8th and He will be in charge on November 9th, too.

Lucado also listed Biblical kings who were not Godly people, but God used them just the same. He then backed it up with scripture. My favorite one was: “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.” Proverbs 21:1

Yep, that one is from one of the books of wisdom.

As I took a deep breath and shared the post, I felt restored. Lucado didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know, but God sent me those words at exactly the time I needed to read them. My peace was restored.

I was reminded that God is in control and for me to have any anxiety about the upcoming election, shows my doubts about His control. As I thought about it that evening, I was also reminded that God’s timing is so amazing. The Lucado post showing up right after one more election post, was no coincidence. He always gives us what we need when we need it.

The following morning, there was a note on my desk from my coworker. She had gone to the playground to search for a lost pedometer that a grandparent had called about. The note informed me that she didn’t find it, but she did find a quarter and she taped it to the note.

I laughed about it and shared it with Ivy before our morning prayer. We prayed for strength and peace and to see God and to be God for the people around us.

As the day began and people began to come into the office, one of the teachers came in who had been having a horrible morning. Her child had forgotten her snack and her lunch and they had a hard time getting out of the house, period. She was frazzled and she hadn’t eaten breakfast and was going to get a bag of chips, but was a quarter short.

And there it was, shining on my desk, taped to a note. Ivy and I smiled at each other as I handed the teacher the quarter that was meant for her. God knew the day before, what she would need that morning.

He always knows and He always provides. Whatever road you find yourself traveling on today, don’t lose faith. Hold onto hope. Watch for God. Wait for God. He’s in control and He will show up at exactly the right time with whatever it is you need.

A quarter taped to a note reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

We Are Not God

Posted on by Wendy
Dogs can't understand why humans do what we do because they are not humans.
Dogs can’t understand why humans do what we do because they are not humans.

We have two dogs at our house, Piper and Sandy. I love them both dearly. They are around eight and ten years old we think. They both came to us as full grown strays. They arrived at different stages in our lives with very different personalities. One is large and one is smaller. One is male and one is female. One has long hair and one has short hair.

I love them differently, but equally, because they are different, but they don’t always accept that fact. They tend to get jealous of one another and jockey for my affection. I can’t really explain my feelings for them to them because they are dogs.

Sandy has seemed to had some stiffness in his joints lately, so we bought him some glucosamine tablets. They are chewable and we give him one every morning. They seem to keep more comfortable. He’s able to run up and down the stairs more easily. He needs them.

Piper doesn’t need them. She’s smaller and younger and her joints are fine. But, when Piper sees us give Sandy a tablet, she thinks it’s a treat and she gets jealous. In her eyes, he’s getting something special that she’s not getting. I can’t explain it to her because she’s a dog.

My Piper and Sandy situation has really weighed on my mind over the past few days. I wonder if that’s how God sometimes feels about us. He loves us as equally, but we are different, so He shows us in different ways. We often don’t understand because we are not God. We are humans.

He also gives us different things at different times because it’s something we need at the time. To those of us looking at someone else’s blessings, we can perceive that, that person always gets more or better than we do and we get jealous. We may wonder why we don’t get those extra blessings. In our focus on other people and their gifts, we can lose sight of the fact that we may appear the same way to others looking at us.

Either way, we often don’t understand because we are not God. We are human.

The Bible tells us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

We forget though, don’t we? We think we know best. We think we know what we need more than God does. We become jealous like Piper is of Sandy’s glucosamine tablets.

But, when we lean into scripture, the Holy Spirit will whisper in our ears that we are loved. We are treasured and our Heavenly Father knows exactly what we need. Not only that, but He will provide it at exactly the right time. Learning to believe that is called faith and it’s something we can all use a little more of these days.

We are not God. My dogs reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Trust and Obey

Posted on by Wendy
Obedience to God, changes everything.
Obedience to God, changes everything.

Our Old Testament reading in church last week, was on Naaman. I have always appreciated that story and found myself reading through it again. It’s found in 2 Kings 5.

Naaman was a valiant warrior and the Bible says that through him, the Lord had given victory to Aram. We might want to take note here that Aram was not Israel. The Bible is clear that God doesn’t only control the destinies of His people; He controls the destinies of all nations. That’s a fact that as people of God, we might want to hold close at the present moment.

Also, take notice that, the Bible says through him, the Lord had given victory. God has always been in the business of using people to have His plans accomplished.

But, Naaman had a problem. He had leprosy. A servant girl, who was a captive from Israel, told her mistress, Naaman’s wife, that there was a prophet in Israel, Elisha, who could cure him.

I wonder if that lowly servant girl had any idea what part her faith would play in Biblical history. Her faith, her courageous testimony, encouraged Naaman to go and seek the man of God. There are no small parts in Kingdom building.

Naaman went, all puffed up, I suspect, bearing gifts. He was a proud warrior, after all; surely Elisha would be so thankful for the gifts, that he would be honored to cure him. Naaman certainly was not a picture of humility, a trait sorely missing in our own world too.

Elisha did not rush out to greet him. He sent a messenger to tell him to wash himself seven times in the Jordan River and he would be cleansed.

Naaman was insulted. How dare Elisha not come out and meet him! He wanted Elisha to wave his hands over his skin and heal him. Naaman wanted to be healed in the way that he chose.

But, God’s ways and man’s ways are rarely the same. God does not serve man. Man is called to serve God. God was willing to heal Naaman just as God is willing to heal us, but it’s rarely with the snap of fingers. Healing takes time and often effort on our own part and oh yeah, obedience.

Elisha told Naaman to wash himself seven times in the Jordan and he was so angry about the instructions, that he almost walked away sick. How often do we do the same? How often do we have the promise of healing within our grasp if we will only humble ourselves and obey God?

How often do we choose to walk away because of our own pride and stubbornness?

Naaman almost missed it. He stomped away angry, but his servants intervened. God had placed faithful people in his life, even though he didn’t have the faith required; the servants did.

Naaman grudgingly did it God’s way and he was immediately healed. Even though he wasn’t happy about it, he did eventually follow Elisha’s instructions.

Do we find ourselves, like Naaman, grudgingly following God’s instructions or do we find ourselves not obeying at all? Do we find ourselves with faithful friends who can encourage us to get on the right path when we are willfully following our own way?

Naaman’s story has so much to teach us about ourselves. It teaches us about the dangers of pride and about the rewards of humility and obedience. It teaches us about the value of faithful friends. It teaches us about the love and patience of our God. It teaches us to trust. It teaches us faith.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you did too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂