Seasons

It's what you do with the good season that makes you strong enough for the difficult one.

Are you stuck in a pouring rainstorm? You know, the kind of rain that blows sideways and ruins the trees in your backyard? Or are you relaxing in the middle of a sunny beach listening to the ocean waves and soaking up the summer breeze? Maybe you're just enjoying the nice fall weather and you're somewhere in the middle.

Stop and think about whatever season you're in, and let's talk. First, let me remind you oh so honestly that God is constant. He does not change. Ever. Isn't that the best news you've heard all day? What he said thousands of years ago is still just as true today, so you can believe his promises--every single one. Open up that Bible and read it! All kind of wisdom and life-secrets are in there, and free for the taking! :)

So what season are you in? 

A good season- What are you doing today to prepare for hard days? This is your chance to load the ammo, fill up your cup, and stockpile Ramen noodles. The way I prepare for these harder seasons is with fanatic discipline. I could make a goal to run a marathon next week, but if I don't train for weeks and months, I'd probably only get 10 miles in before I quit. Am I right? A long, slow, walk is going to take me much farther. Do you need to read the Bible every morning? Meet with an accountability partner every week? What is it? If God is a part of your life every day, you're not going to wake up in a hard season and suddenly forget him. God is constant, and we should strive to be like him. Start now, and don't just pray to him when you're in trouble. He wants to to talk to you all the time. For heavens sake, I tell him jokes, ask him about my groceries, and then pray for miracles and complete healing from life-threatening illnesses. Nothing is off-limits!

A difficult season- What are you doing to remember God's faithfulness? Are you marching on each day with constant love and trust in the God that never leaves you? What are you learning? Allow this time to help your heart to grow. What a blessing! If you never had hard times, you'd never have an opportunity to grow your trust in God! If we are only happy in the good times, where is the fun in that? It's in the hard times that you have a chance to prove that what you say is true, and that you really are who you say that you are. Believe it or not, I've learned to pray for these hard seasons in life, because they have made me into a much more beautiful person in every way, stretching me to be more flexible, loving, kind, generous, understanding, and thankful than every before.

"Don't grieve God. Don't break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don't take such a gift for granted." -Ephesians 4:30

God is for you.

The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all of our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. 

Psalm 103:8-12 NLT

Rough Waters

Sometimes life has rough waters, and sometimes it's easy sailing. All I know is that whatever ship you choose to cross the ocean, choose carefully. If you had told me what the last 60 days would have looked like a year ago, I may have cried. I'll start with the hard stuff and end it well. Please wait for the magical finale. In my life, these are not just coincidental, these are truly amazing works of God, my Father, who daily bears my burdens...

Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness.Let the whole world know what he has done. 

1 Chronicles 16:8

• Our AC went out for the billionth time, so we lived in a hot house for a few days...weeks. Well, we have these really awesome friends, the Hamiltons, who let us move in with them for that 105 degree week, and greater still, our home insurance plan covered our new $7,000 AC unit so we only spent a measly $300 to replace it. Don't you think God knew?
• Our roof got pelted with hail, so insurance said we needed a new one. So we have this really awesome friend, Josh, who hooked us up with a roof for less than the insured amount just so we didn't have to pay anything out of pocket, and there was even some leftover. Who does that for people?! Don't you think God knew?
• Our house was robbed of all electronics, and more than that, we felt so violated and unsafe. Well, we happen to have the most wonderful support system on planet earth, who not only cared about us, loved us, and helped us, but gifted us with THE most wonderful blessings to replace what was lost. Don't you think God knew far far FAR in advance?
• We've been doing Dave Ramsey's Financial University, and that means no spending on pretty much anything. Anything. Yep, go ahead and duck tape those shoes back together (just kidding...kinda). We've been in this class for 6 weeks and already piled over 10x our normal amount on student loans. Never did I know that was possible.
• Jonathan and I shot the most gorgeous wedding a few weeks ago, and our 7 hours of footage was stolen (and hard drives) during the robbery, including all of those amazing photos! Good thing God is in the business of showing off and answering prayers, because the camera cards, which happened to be already erased, were not at our house that day, and were able to be recovered by a company far, far away. Thank you Lord! I'll take it.
• Our family has been plagued with sickness after sickness this month, including the throw up bug. Good thing we are now immune and have a healthy, happy, and walking baby boy!

And because I have seen God's faithfulness in the past, I will trust him with my future. My grandfather is in his last season of life, and I have been experiencing never-ending dizziness that has yet to be diagnosed. Even so, I choose to sail on God's ship through these continuing rocky waters. Cheesy at the analogy might be, it really paints such a real picture in my mind, because I know that there is a beautiful beach waiting just a few miles ahead, and God is going to get me there if I just listen to his directions, one turn at a time.

From his abundance we have received one gracious blessing after another. 

John 1:16

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name goes all the glory for your unfailing love and faithfulness. 

Psalm 115:1

Regain Your Balance

A young student once asked an accomplished fighter, "Teacher, you never lose your balance. What is your secret?"

"You are wrong," the teacher replied. "I am constantly losing my balance. My skill lies in my ability to regain it."

So often we focus on the bad in our lives. We talk about what's going wrong, what we fail to do well, and the one microscopic thing that we believe is our greatest fault. Focusing on the wrong things is like rejecting a piece of award-winning cake because the frosting around the edge is crooked. Although it's great to have self-awareness, it's important not to let that paralyze us from moving in the right direction!

A couple of nights ago, I got into an argument with my husband, Jonathan. We were talking about how I many times failed to listen to him, and many times added too much input instead of simply letting him air his feelings...and he was right. I didn't mean to do it, and I didn't realize I was doing it. I could have been really discouraged or embarrassed. I could have beat myself up for talking too much and told myself I was a terrible wife, or held in feelings of insecurity and resentment. I didn't though, because those things aren't true. I know my identity in Christ, and can therefore move in the right direction because I have the greatest teacher to learn from! If the purpose of our relationship is to resolve arguments, not win them, then isn't the correct response love? Jonathan was trying to help me, and I knew it. In that instant I could have tried to change him, or I could haven't owned my own fault in the situation. I could have fallen over and lost my balance, or I could fight to regain it. So...I decided right then that I would improve 10%. I probably wouldn't change overnight, but next time we had an argument, I committed to myself that I would be intentional to listen at least 10% better than I did the time before, because before long, I would be a world-class listener, right?! :)

So here's my question. What are you doing to grow by 10%? Where do you need balance the most in your life?

What about letting go of some control? Your quick reactions? Your uncaring attitude? The finance struggle you'll never win? Your sarcasm? Reigning in your tongue? Ouch. Hurts, huh? We all struggle at different things, but what can do to regain identity in Christ is equally important.

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Ephesians 4:22-24

The real you is a hand-picked magnificent masterpiece of God and he had plans for you long before you were born. You are precious to him, and letting one small thing get in the way of knowing that would be the biggest tragedy there could possibly be. You, yes YOU, are an overcomer, and you can definitely improve by 10%! I don't even know some of you and I believe in you! Before you know it you'll be up to 80% and wonder how the change occurred so quickly. Believe in yourself, and allow God to show you where you should change yourself. You're worth the effort. Give yourself a chance.

Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

 Ephesians 4:32

Safe

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.

Psalm 56:3 (NIV)

I have this bad habit.

I worry when Jonathan is gone. Now I'll be the first to admit that I'm a recovering worrier. You could even call me an ex-worrier in counseling. I've had this struggle my entire life. 

So Jonathan left this past weekend, and of course, before bed, this thought went through my mind, "Michelle, you better check all the locks, because someone is going to break in tonight and kill you if the doors aren't secure." 

Wha?!?!?!?! I know. That's ridiculous, right? 

But my dear readers, I actually thought it might be true, and began to worry. I wasn't I-don't-want-to-see-that-horror-movie scared, I was I-need-Jonathan-to-talk-me-off-the-ledge scared. But why?

The Bible tells us that Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44), and he'll do anything to get us off course. For me, he knows that scaring me into a worry frenzy is the best way to ruin my confidence in God, and I can choose to believe Satan's lies, or I can choose to believe God's promises. God never leaves us. If you struggle with worry or fear, take heart, because God is bigger! I slept just fine last night because God was with me, and I decided long ago that I would refuse to worry, because God holds each day of my life in his hands and knew me before I was ever born. Why would I not trust him in all circumstances?

This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him.

Psalm 91:2 (NLT)

God is Trustworthy

If God says he'll do it, he'll do it. 

I've never had to lay awake at night wondering if God was going to come through on a promise. Have you? I'm willing to bet my life that you haven't, and you know why? Because he's completely trustworthy. In fact, he cares more about you than  you could possibly even care about yourself. He's your biggest fan.

God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried through? 

Numbers 23:19 (NLT)

Need a place to study the Bible with a community? Check out http://shereadstruth.com/ and join us on a YouVersion reading plan adventure! Or, study the entire Bible for free through an easy, online study tool at Biblex.com.

Real Conversations

God, I feel like a mean person today. I keep saying things before I think about them. That's not typical me, or is it? Why is today so hard? I keep letting myself down over and over. Will you help me? I'll always help you. Stop, and remember who you are in me and stop living for yourself. You like to say what you like to say, but I have better plans for you if you'll follow my instructions. I'm trusting you to make the most of each moment. Help me God? I'm an amateur, but I want to be better. I'll help you. Just ask me first in every situation. I can't help if you don't ask. You're right. I should ask you first, because I trust you most.

Hey Michelle, you know that money you just made? I'd like for you to put that in the offering. Sure thing. How much? Half? All of it. But God, I was really wanting...well...stuff. I'm just being selfish for no reason. Gosh, red-handed again. I'm such a stingy person. You're not a stingy person. You're a generous person, and you believe so wrongly about yourself. I'm going to take care of your needs. Don't I always? Right now, there's someone that needs it more than you need new shoes. I want you to be generous, and I'm helping you practice. You don't need it, Michelle. Don't just say that you love me, prove it by listening to my voice. I trust you, God.

God, I'm lonely, and I feel misunderstood. I understand you completely. I made you and I will care for you. Remember Isaiah 46? I'm going to be with you for your entire lifetime. Do you trust that I will love you for eternity? I trust you, God. Now go ahead. I'm listening, and I'd like to hear about your day.

God, sometimes when I am working, I look up and feel overwhelmed by the time. A wave of panic rushes through my body because I see the clock and how much is left undone, and I begin to feel my body temperature rising and a wave of panic overtakes my mind. In those moments, just stop and talk to me. Pray. Ask me for what you need, because I have an endless supply of help, if you only trust me. I'm asking you to change. Nothing is too big for me to handle. If you make time for me, I promise that you will have time to finish your work. How's that for a promise? Nothing is more important than time with me. Nothing. I trust you, God.