Who Are You?
It’s the beginning of October as I sit in an Atlanta hotel room writing my latest blog post. I arrived here from Florida after spending some time with my precious friend who is gifted at extravagant hospitality.
It’s the beginning of October as I sit in an Atlanta hotel room writing my latest blog post. I arrived here from Florida after spending some time with my precious friend who is gifted at extravagant hospitality.
I keep hearing the same message over and over: Rest. Specifically, rest in the Lord. My first reaction is that, for the last year and half, that’s all I’ve been doing. More accurately, it’s all I’ve been able to do. But if I stop long enough to actually evaluate what I call rest, I learn that my rest is nothing like the rest God is drawing me into.
Have you ever been at a crossroads and desperately wanted to know the right way to go? You question your options and you genuinely don’t have the answers. Should you go with the riskier option that, if you’re right, would result in the better payoff? Or should you be more practical and take a stand, even though this decision will be harder to walk out?
I love books. I recently came across “Experiencing Success God’s Way,” written by Charles Stanley (2000). I was intrigued by the idea of success from God’s point of view. I know He supports success, but I’m always leery of the fake prosperity gospels that some churches proclaim. I was curious to see what Dr. Stanley had to share. What exactly does success look like by God’s definition?
I love when the Word of God reveals a new perspective or another way to experience Him. Without fail, a revelation always brings refreshing and floods us with a new level of freedom.
Haven’t we heard at one time or another that we all have lessons to learn and, if we don’t learn those lessons, then we’ll continue to repeat the experiences, getting the same results over and over. In short, that’s what Henry Ford said, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.”
Kenny Chesney has a song with lyrics that say, “Everybody want to go to heaven, but nobody want to go now.” That’s okay because it should be that way—we have a lot to see, do, accomplish, and experience about God on this side of eternity.
“Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and He brought them to their desired haven.”—Psalm 107:28-30 NIV
For years our family traveled extensively in order for my oldest son to chase his dream of being a pro motocross (mx) competitor. He had a love for adrenaline and made it his mission to prevail in every challenge. He had wisdom and skill that exceeded his years. The sport brought him joy, and my husband and I were so very proud of him. I’ll admit that my pride was shadowed by fear so I relied on prayer to calm this mother’s terrors.
I rarely feel the need to use social media to defend my views on life, God, politics, etc. In the few times I’ve taken part in discussions or initiated them, I had a strong desire to chime in on the topic. While I take joy in being kind to every human being, I’m well aware that my particular voice/vibe attracts a certain tribe, and, therefore, I’m surrounded with more likeminded people than not. The main reason I refrain from social media declarations is because I’m convinced differing opinions are conversations best had face to face.
