Life would be a lot easier if I would do things God's way the first time.
Instead, I try my way first. I usually jump into something headlong without giving much thought to what God would have me do. If, by chance, I do give thought to God's preference, I typically don't give it a second thought. I file God's idea away for future reference and proceed to approach life my way.
When that doesn't work, I try my Plan B. I sit down and explain to God why He should have honored my efforts during Plan A. I lay it all out for Him, showing Him my flawless logic, drawing diagrams when necessary, and rehearsing the pros and cons. I show Him the error of His ways in withholding His blessing from me when I do things my way. And God listens. He listens to every word. And when I am done trying to persuade Him, I try Plan A again. I may tweak it here or there, but it retains its original purpose: to accomplish my goals. And those goals are usually to be happy, to feel satisfied, and to experience no pain.
That's reasonable, right?
You're not gonna believe this, but Plan B never works for me either.
In fact, Plan B usually leaves me drained, discouraged, and desperate - desperate enough to go back to God, hand Him the pieces of my broken goals, and ask Him to put them all back together. He always receives me with open arms and compassionate eyes. While He is overjoyed that I have finally come to Him, He's also sad that I had to experience so much hurt in order to finally be willing to depend on Him. That was never His plan.
God's plan is for Him to always be my Plan A.
If I would just go to Him first with each decision I face instead of insisting on taking the scenic route, riddled with pot holes and construction zones...
If I would just spend time listening for His direction instead of petitioning Him to do things my way...
If I would just trust Him enough to take care of me, like He says He will, even though His plan is mysterious and unconventional to me....
...life wouldn't be so hard.
I might even find it enjoyable...
The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11
Showing posts with label priorities. Show all posts
Showing posts with label priorities. Show all posts
5.14.2011
1.17.2010
Passion
Today at church Ernie talked about passion. He described passions as God-given gifts that are unique to individuals. They are given to us from God so we can use them for God. Each person's passion(s) is their primary way of impacting the world for the cause of Christ.
Ernie asked us to think about what our passions are and whether or not we are using them to show the world Jesus. Two passions came to my mind: writing and digging into the Word of God.
I discovered my love of the Bible shortly after my conversion at age 16. I surrendered to God in the summer of 1999, and my Christmas present to myself that year was a Bible. I accepted that Jesus is the one and only God because I saw how others were impacted for the better by him, and, ultimately, because I experienced firsthand that he could be trusted. As C.S. Lewis puts it, "I gave in and admitted that God was God." And upon admitting that, I found myself wanting to know everything about him. So much so that I decided to major in Biblical Studies and Theology. I could not think of a better way to spend my time than learning more about God and how to communicate those truths to others.
I have always been a writer. I was reading when I was 4 years old, loved books growing up, and started writing my own short stories somewhere around 8 years old. I moved to writing song lyrics/poetry during my I-hate-everyone-and-everything stage in my early teens. My first year of college I wrote a series of devotionals out of a need to think through the Bible while studying at a school that would rather have me throw the Bible out the window. I've also written in blog format for several years, sharing stories about my family, observations of life in general, and testimonies of what God is doing in my life.
I've felt for a couple of years that God wants to use my two passions in a big way, I've just never been clear on the details. And I certainly have a lot of obstacles preventing me from fleshing that out right now. For one thing, time is not a luxury I have. Raising two small children affords me about 30 minutes/day of solitude. There is a lot competing to fill up that half hour. (In fact, I was just interrupted by my 6 month old.) I can choose to meet with God, exercise, write, rest, read, watch TV, or, God forbid, clean when I finally get time to myself. But I can't do ALL of those things everyday. That being the case, I struggle finding the time to develop my passions and to actively pursue using them for God. I don't know what the solution is, but I'm guessing it doesn't involve putting my passions on the back burner until my children are older.
Ernie asked us to think about what our passions are and whether or not we are using them to show the world Jesus. Two passions came to my mind: writing and digging into the Word of God.
I discovered my love of the Bible shortly after my conversion at age 16. I surrendered to God in the summer of 1999, and my Christmas present to myself that year was a Bible. I accepted that Jesus is the one and only God because I saw how others were impacted for the better by him, and, ultimately, because I experienced firsthand that he could be trusted. As C.S. Lewis puts it, "I gave in and admitted that God was God." And upon admitting that, I found myself wanting to know everything about him. So much so that I decided to major in Biblical Studies and Theology. I could not think of a better way to spend my time than learning more about God and how to communicate those truths to others.
I have always been a writer. I was reading when I was 4 years old, loved books growing up, and started writing my own short stories somewhere around 8 years old. I moved to writing song lyrics/poetry during my I-hate-everyone-and-everything stage in my early teens. My first year of college I wrote a series of devotionals out of a need to think through the Bible while studying at a school that would rather have me throw the Bible out the window. I've also written in blog format for several years, sharing stories about my family, observations of life in general, and testimonies of what God is doing in my life.
I've felt for a couple of years that God wants to use my two passions in a big way, I've just never been clear on the details. And I certainly have a lot of obstacles preventing me from fleshing that out right now. For one thing, time is not a luxury I have. Raising two small children affords me about 30 minutes/day of solitude. There is a lot competing to fill up that half hour. (In fact, I was just interrupted by my 6 month old.) I can choose to meet with God, exercise, write, rest, read, watch TV, or, God forbid, clean when I finally get time to myself. But I can't do ALL of those things everyday. That being the case, I struggle finding the time to develop my passions and to actively pursue using them for God. I don't know what the solution is, but I'm guessing it doesn't involve putting my passions on the back burner until my children are older.
6.22.2009
My Two Cents on Jon and Kate
The best thing you can do for your kids is make your marriage relationship a higher priority than your kids.
The best thing you can do for your marriage is make your personal relationship with Jesus a higher priority than your marriage.
If the above two sentences are not true of your life, then YOU ARE NOT DOING WHAT'S BEST FOR YOUR KIDS!
There is nothing easy about life, especially if you have eight kids, your life broadcast all over the world, and paparazzi incessantly stalking you so they can publish false things about you.
But truth is truth:
-kids NEED their parents to have a healthy marriage
-a marriage NEEDS each spouse to actively pursue Christ in order to be healthy
The best thing you can do for your marriage is make your personal relationship with Jesus a higher priority than your marriage.
If the above two sentences are not true of your life, then YOU ARE NOT DOING WHAT'S BEST FOR YOUR KIDS!
There is nothing easy about life, especially if you have eight kids, your life broadcast all over the world, and paparazzi incessantly stalking you so they can publish false things about you.
But truth is truth:
-kids NEED their parents to have a healthy marriage
-a marriage NEEDS each spouse to actively pursue Christ in order to be healthy
7.21.2008
The Dreaded First Post
My life revolves around three things: God, Elian, and Lexi. I'd like to say that rotation is always in that order, giving just the right amount of time and attention where it is due. But I'd be lying. And you'd know it.
Most of you can guess that my sweet little girl, who's almost 15 months old, receives most of my energy throughout the day. So most of what I write will be about her. The other two desires of my heart, God and Elian, may pop up occasionally, although I'm pretty sure my husband would prefer comments about him kept to a minimum.
I'm not sure how often I will find myself with both the time and the energy to write, but I'll do my best.
As for now, Lexi is throwing plastic balls at me, which is her way of telling me to come play. See you later!
Most of you can guess that my sweet little girl, who's almost 15 months old, receives most of my energy throughout the day. So most of what I write will be about her. The other two desires of my heart, God and Elian, may pop up occasionally, although I'm pretty sure my husband would prefer comments about him kept to a minimum.
I'm not sure how often I will find myself with both the time and the energy to write, but I'll do my best.
As for now, Lexi is throwing plastic balls at me, which is her way of telling me to come play. See you later!
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