I am guilty!!!
Isaiah 53:7 ~He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet He never said a word.
Here I am Lord. Make me more like you. May the concern of my heart be you, not me. When I am right with you no one else needs to know, understand or see; yet I turn my back and look to man for validation. I take way too much to the phone before I lay it at your throne. Turn my thoughts to you Father. Because you know and you see, let that be enough to be well with me. Amen.
Friend, do you need to be encouraged today? I read the below quote recently, and it has become a “tattoo” on my heart because it is that beautiful to me. Maybe I love it so much because I grew up knowing the love of a horse, and the imagery is endearing and familiar to me; or maybe it is just simply that I know the beauty that only blooms from brokenness. Whatever the case, this quote captures one of the most hope bearing truths of the gospel. God is preparing you for things beyond your imagination in ways that sometimes only He knows and understands. I pray you find refreshment here today. “When a horse is finally tamed and trained, bearing the burden of saddle and human expectations alike, she is called broken. It is only then that she performs the duties expected of her.” ~from the book, Wild and Free
There are many things that I do, feel or say that shock me when I honestly look at my heart. Self-examination would be defeating, were it not for the good news of the Gospel. The Bible discusses every one of my flaws as a struggle for someone within its chapters. I am so thankful those things are there! Without God’s word I would either have to live a shallow life of pretend and denial; or under so much condemnation that anxiety, fear, shame and depression would likely be my best friends. The gospel is good news!
Keep the train on the tracks! Yesterday I was having a conversation with a wise, friend. I was seeking advice about an endeavor The Lord has blessed me with this fall. My friend said to me, “if you hear nothing else, hear me say this; you have to keep the train on the tracks.” Now, he was talking about staying on task, but those words have been ringing in my mind since yesterday afternoon. I went to bed hearing them, and I woke up hearing them. It is like a soft, resolute chorus that is on a continuous loop. Here is why friends; this is such a fundamental truth of life. In every part of my life, if I don’t “keep the train on the tracks” I am going to derail. My thoughts are a primary example because they can be like an out of control train headed for collision if I do not correct them quickly. My feelings work the same way. Thoughts are the ancestors of feelings, and I am susceptible to allowing the things I think to get me off track. When I do, it is a sure bet that my feelings are raging closely behind. Being a good mind manager is one of the hardest disciplines because it requires intention and diligence, but it is imperative to my stability. Relationships are also another area that this concept is so important. It is easy for me to let things go until they build up and all of a sudden a molehill has become a mountain. If I am caring for my relationships as I should be, the train should not get too far to the left or the right of the tracks before alarms sound that I need to make some corrections. Otherwise, derailment is inevitable. I could go on with examples because this principal is all encompassing, ranging from my nutrition to my quiet time. My prayer for me and you, friend, is that we remember to keep the train on the tracks whether it be our relationship, words, health or any number of life’s challenges. I am so quick to live my day from the poverty of my flesh instead of the power of my Father. Lord Jesus help us to remember today and every day that when we keep life between the lines of your word, the train will not derail without our permission.
We all have that situation that all hope seems lost. The soundtrack of our mind keeps playing, there is no point anymore; it will never happen or change. Even the people around us lose faith for us, but there is a deep, passionate part within our heart that ultimately cannot let go. An ever present whisper exhorts our weary soul, But God. It is tempting to go underground with this undying desire to avoid standing in shame before others. But God! Only God matters. Psalm 25:3 says~No one who hopes in You will ever be put to shame. Don’t give up, friend. Your hope is in Yahweh, not in man, not in the world and not in yourself. Hope sometimes hurts us, but it also holds and often heals us. You are loved today!❤️
I want to tell you this morning friend, that your life is an exquisite story. I know, there are parts that are broken, messy and maybe even down right dark. You are not an anomaly! That is a common denominator for all humanity. What you need to know is that your story, the broken parts, are what birth the beautiful parts; and someone desperately needs to know your journey. Your life is a gift that was created to be shared because it was written by the Author of the universe, and He pens masterful stories about messy people who blossom into majestic professors of hope. You, every part of you, is purposeful and of remarkable value in the kingdom of God. Believe in the power of the script He has written for you!
The Holy Spirit reminded me again yesterday; the second time in a few months, that too often I get lost living for the completion of my schedule instead of the care of my soul. The difference in the two is one of panic versus peace, calm versus chaos and rush versus rest. As I am practicing this myself, my prayer for you today, friend, is that you may take some time to LIVE, not from a planner but from a place; a place that makes your heart sing. You are loved.
The Lord allows nothing to be wasted in His economy, especially suffering. What if everyone’s mission was to use every ounce of pain that has ever touched their life to bring hope to the life of someone walking a similar road. From our grief, The Lord gives us gifts to be shared to help others. It is the most beautiful thing when our greatest hurts intersect another person’s greatest needs. Someone once said, we are all just walking each other Home. What a wonderful gift, and the greatest pleasure of life, to walk alongside a fellow traveler and say, I know. I am here. I see you, but more importantly, Jesus sees you, and He loves you just as you are at this very moment. There is no need to clean up, change clothes or comb your hair. He welcomes you as you are. Just come.
Dare to believe tonight when it feels like everything is falling apart; Jesus is putting it together. When the whole world appears to be walking out, Jesus is walking in. The moment a sense of being lost enters in, dare to remember you have been found. Lastly, when your thoughts cry you are unworthy, inadequate or unlovable, remind yourself you are His prized treasure, loved and cherished, adequate and complete because He made it so.
It was June, the summer of 2005. We were preparing to move from Hoover, Alabama to Vestavia Hills, Alabama. Carter, my son, was six and Macey, my daughter, four. This particular week, the kids and I were participating in Vacation Bible School. I made a deal with them that if they learned our new address and phone number by the end of the week, on Friday after VBS we would get ice cream. Every morning on the way to church and every afternoon on the way home we practiced in the car over and over again.
Friday morning came and along our drive I asked Macey, “what is our new phone number going to be?” She answered with ease and efficiency. Then I asked Carter, “what is our new address going to be?” He too answered correctly and promptly. A silence fell over the car until a little voice piped up from the backseat. In the most curious of tones, Carter asked, “Hey mom, I was just wondering, what our new last name is going to be?” After I caught my breath from laughing so hard, I explained that there are some things we are born into, and they never change because they were given to us. I am not sure my answer made sense to him, but it seemed to satisfy his curiosity at the moment.
We have had to ponder a similar question a lot together over the past two years. His life was changed forever two years ago today, July 28, 2014 due to a traumatic brain injury. All of our lives were changed. Despite all the redirections, again I can tell Carter, some things will never change because they were given to us. The One we did not earn that was given to us for free will never change. Although our physical locations may change, and we change, our identity as a child of God will never change.
The moment we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are adopted into the family of God. Our identity, as his beloved son, or beloved daughter can not be altered by circumstances. He delights in us on our best days, and just as much on our worst days. No amount of good works or model behavior can earn us His love. They were imparted to us when we chose to believe.
Ephesians 2:8-10 ~God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
What a gift we have in Jesus. I cannot even fully comprehend the depth of His sacrifice. He has been a faithful friend to us through the hardest of times.
It is not because we have Him that our lives are easy. It is because we have Him that our lives are changed for the better. He brings purpose to our pain and consistency to circumstances that continually change.
Last night I was replaying the last two years in my head. I never knew looking back on my past tears would bring so much abundance to my present years. Situations that seemed like the hardest of times were in many ways the sweetest of times in retrospect.
Suffering is the soil most fertile for growth and change is often God’s conduit for the cultivation of hearts. We can joyfully and fully embrace our struggles because we later find we have walked out of them having found our greatest strengths.
We are all still works in progress in our family. It is a cradle to the grave process, but we can rest in the assurance that it is as it should be. Thank you Jesus for loving us in all our brokenness. Remind us everyday to rest in what was given to us and will never change-You. We love You Lord Jesus.