Three Words

Beth Moore’s post from her Living Proof Ministries blog inspired me to reflect on the past year and ask God for three words that characterize 2011 for me. I offer you this same opportunity. Please share your three words with us and a short (or long) paragraph explaining each.

I'll go first J I call mine the three A’s.

ACCOMPLISHED- God sent and used (and continues using) my husband in Phoenix, Arizona among a group of Romanians, building relationships, teaching, discipling, and instilling the vision of discipleship. He has done and continues doing a wonderful work in it. What previously sounded ridiculous and impossible turned out to be incredibly fulfilling as I finished my first two years of college and received a degree at 32 years old. God relieved my back pain and allowed me to start doing something I have always desired to do- run. And (most days) I enjoy and look forward to it. God confirmed gifts in me and has begun stirring them up, teaching me to walk in obedience, and blessing the fruit of that labor and obedience. Yes, this has been a year of witnessing God accomplish much in and through us.

AWARENESS- My daughter, Korrie (my oldest child) turned thirteen, became a teenager, and officially made me old! It’s been wonderful and eye-opening in so many ways. Every single day she surprises me and I realize that she’s unlike any other child of God. He is miraculously forming her into a woman after Him, despite my failures and short comings as her

mother. My son, Joseph (my youngest child) hit the double digits turning ten, and made me old again! Through this process of watching my kiddos develop their own personalities and relationships, I am learning that God is in control of every aspect of their lives both large and small. And I am unspeakably grateful to be used by Him in such a way. I am also keenly aware of how quickly they are changing and growing and will be leaving the nest to begin their own adventures filled with happiness, joys, heartaches, and struggles.

AWED- My Lord has poured out His love upon me in ways I could not even imagine, allowing me to draw closer to Him and gain a deeper, richer understanding of His adoration and compassion for me. And with this understanding comes an awe and a realization that the more I know Him and His love, the less I understand it. He is so incomprehensible, yet personal in a way I cannot fully receive. I only pray that this New Year brings more awe, more understanding, and a deeper sense of who He is, how He loves, and who I am in Him.

I cannot wait to read about your three words!  Won’t it be fun to look back at these words next year and reflect on the changes God faithfully walks us through? Please, please, please share and don’t be shy!

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Forgetting and Remembering

This may sound like one long ramble, and I apologize ahead of time.  However, if you endure to the end, you will find I do reach a conclusion.  I anticipate reading your conclusions as well!

Today I am meditating on forgetting, yet remembering. In Isaiah 43:18-19, God instructs us NOT to remember the former things, nor to consider the “things of old.” Yet, a few chapters later He tells us we ARE to remember the “things of old” because He is God and there is no other; He is God and there is none like Him (Is 46:9). His Word commands both and we know there are NO contradictions with our Lord. Ugh, can you see why I become so confused? This is why we must take all of God’s word, chew on it for a while, spit it back up, and then chew on it some more.  Sounds not only tedious, but kind of gross, I know. However, the result is well worth the effort and risk. 
 

While meditating on this thought, I am lead to Paul’s words of forgetting those things which were behind in order to reach forward to that which lies ahead (Phil 3:13-14). So, maybe forgetting assists us in moving forward. Ok… if remembering keeps us from moving forward, is it because of the types of things we are remembering?  Is it that we are supposed to not remember the bad, ugly things of our past? No, that can’t be, since I’m convinced that God allows some of the most difficult times in life to teach, train, and draw us closer to Him (such as the life of Job: James 5:11). So, it’s not about forgetting the bad and remembering the good (my previously referred scriptures say nothing of that anyway).

After more chewing and spitting up, I go to the words of 1 Chronicles 16:12- Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth. For now (and if I am wrong God will reveal even this to me, maybe through you!), I find my answer in this small verse. The purpose of remembering is to recall what God has done (His marvelous works and wonders) in my life and in the lives of those who have left us a testimony.  I am told to forget however, because I cannot move forward if I am stuck in one place, focused on the things I have or haven’t done. Focusing on my successes can lead to pride, while focusing on my failures can lead to doubt, fear, or frustration. In short, it comes down to removing myself - forgetting the 'me' of the past, and focusing solely on Christ- remembering who 'He' is and what 'He' has done.  This will strengthen my faith and grow my love and knowledge of Him. I must take me out of the equation! Clear as mud? J

Run For It!

Run For It!

I’ve recently contracted a bug: the running/workout bug. Isn’t it exciting to realize you are capable of doing something you never thought you could? How exhilarating to press on and push forward, then look back and see just how far you’ve come!  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m no marathon runner. It would actually be more accurate to call myself a jogger rather than a runner. However, my accomplishment of being able push myself for thirty minutes is hardly a small one in my eyes. Yes, there are those moments when I start looking at fitness giants tackling four hour marathons or even triathlons and my thirty minutes quickly morph into something hardly worth getting excited about. Aside from these occasional moments of comparison and discouragement, my running experience has been such a blessing.  And I am learning a few things about myself in the process.

1. I can only go as far as I push myself.  I will consistently lose momentum at the one mile mark if I don’t push myself to go further.  Once I push harder, forcing myself beyond that mile, then I begin building endurance, get stronger, and will go further the next time.

2. I am discovering parts of my body that do not like to cooperate. My somewhat smaller, weaker leg will burn and scream in protest, many times convincing my brain and the rest of my body that unless we stop now we shall surely die. Or my lungs will ache, unable to suck in adequate oxygen, alarming my brain of some imagined danger. However, these parts of my body are just that, a small part of a larger body, and they must not be allowed to decide that I will not reach my full potential.

3. Small goals lead to success! Large goals can result in death. I can tell myself to run to the next stop sign and then feel great accomplishment when I reach that stop sign, or even go a little further. However if my goal is not the next stop sign, but the next five stop signs, and I don’t make that goal, I am setting myself up for discouragement, failure, and a lack of desire to get out there tomorrow and set another goal.

As a follower of Christ I can take these small lessons in daily running and apply them to my daily walk: 1. I can choose to stay where I’m comfortable and never reach my full potential in the gifts God has given me, or I can take a risk, ask God to use me, and make myself more available to Him. This makes my faith and walk stronger each day. 2. I have an obligation to my Lord and His people as a part of the body of Christ. I can choose to actively fill that role using the gifts God has placed in me (such as writing something small and sharing it daily), or I can hold myself and the body as a whole back by complaining, grumbling, or not trusting what God is doing when the road is difficult and sometimes painful. 3. Rather than having unrealistic expectations, I can set small goals for myself and then walk in them.  Rather than decide to read the whole bible in a year, I can tell myself to read for 5 minutes every day for a week.  Now that is something I can do! I can likewise support others in their “small” successes, encouraging them to go just a little further each day in this walk with Jesus.  I pray that this blog is one way I can accomplish that!

Comments, opposing views, additional insight?  Please do share!  I am having a blast sharing with you and I truly hope you feel free to do the same!

At the time, discipline isn't much fun. It always feels like it's going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it's the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. So don't sit around on your hands! No more dragging your feet! Clear the path for long-distance runners so no one will trip and fall, so no one will step in a hole and sprain an ankle. Help each other out. And run for it!

~Hebrews 12:11-13 (The Message)