Relationship with God

Have you ever moved to a new city, or even to a new school where you didn't know anyone?  It takes time to meet new friends.  It takes even more time to build lasting friendships.  You have to spend time with them in order to build that relationship.

It's the same with our relationship with God.  It's not enough that you invited Christ into your heart.  He wants a relationship with you.  It is not something that happens over night.  You have to spend time in His word.  You have to pray to hear his voice.  Most of all, you have to submit to God's will.

Growing up I was always sad & angry that I wasn't getting what I was praying for, or I wasn't getting it right then.  Most of all, though, I wanted Him to show me the plan that He had for my life.  However, when I see what lies ahead of me now, I know why He waited to show me His plan.  I would have fought God. 

You see, I never thought that God would call me into ministry.  Satan was lying to me.  He kept telling me things like "Women shouldn't preach God's word." I was never the best student, so Satan would use that to make me think that I'm not qualified to preach His word.

All my life I heard the phrase "God doesn't call the qualified.  He qualifies the called."  I thought I understood what that meant.  However,  the past few years He has given me a lot to think about.  He has been slowly teaching me (qualifying me).  He has put it on my heart to bring others to Him.

It started with little things like my Facebook page.  I didn't think twice about sharing a post that had cuss words in it.  Or complaining on Facebook about how things weren't going my way.  God put it on my heart that I wasn't being a good example.  So I cleaned up my Facebook page.

Next he started working on my relationship with Him.  He showed me that just because I went to a Christian school and went to church, that I still had a long way to go in my relationship with Him.  He showed me that memorizing scripture means nothing if I'm not living those truths.

One of my biggest struggles has always been my lack of patience.  However, when I prayed about moving back to NC, the answer was always "just wait.". When we came to the decision that NC was not where we were to be, there was a complete peace about it.  I can tell you with certainty that if the answer was "no" from the beginning, my very stubborn nature would have been to react with anger.  Instead, he waited and let us come to the conclusion that we are not to be there.

In waiting for His perfect timing, we stayed in PA & plugged into a church, plugged into His word, and grew spiritually.  This allowed God to work on our hearts & prepare us for what lies ahead.

So, when it seems like God isn't answering your prayers, remember that sometimes the answer is "no." His plan is perfect and sometimes the things that we want have to go by the wayside in order for his plan to be put into place.  Other times we must wait.  The answer may still be "no," but it could also be "yes," just not now.

Celebrating our Father

This past Sunday we celebrated the earthly fathers in our lives.  Whether they are still here on earth, or in heaven.  There were Facebook posts galore, special meals, and even gifts.  The hard working man in our lives were celebrated in many different ways.

It got me to thinking though.  How often do we celebrate our heavenly father?  How do we show or gratitude to Him for all the blessings that He has given to us?

Oh, we show up to church and worship.  We listen to the sermon.  How often does it stop there?  Are we taking time with Him daily to thank Him?

People (myself included some times) go about our daily lives without stopping to take the time to thank God for all He has done for us.  We find ourselves only reaching out to Him when we need help.  We don't like it when our friends only call us when they need something.  So why do we do that to God?

So here's my challenge to myself... You are welcome to join me.  I want to start each day celebrating God.  Thanking Him for all that He has given to me.  Praising Him through music every day and not just at church on Sunday.

How are you celebrating our heavenly father?  Leave me a comment to let me know 😀.

Controlling my Temper

Ephesians 4:26 says "And don’t sin by letting anger control you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry."  To me that says that we must be careful.  When we get angry, we have to pray & forgive.  It doesn't take much for anger to creep in & control our thoughts and actions.

When I was little, my mom counted when she was angry.  I always thought it was silly.  However, it served a purpose.  It helped her calm down and let go of the anger.  However, I am not always as quick to react as she did.  I want to fume about stuff that in the long run doesn't really matter.

Since this year I am working on being positive, I am working on how to better control my temper.  If I can better control my temper, then maybe I can curb the negativity.  How do you handle anger?  Let me know in the comments.

Change

I don't do well with change.  Yet it's all around me.  Changes at work and at home.  Let's not even talk about the kids growing up 😀.

In the past change always pushed me into a downward spiral.  However, I am looking at the changes before me & I can't help but smile.  I can see God at work.  I can see my children's faith growing as well as their bodies.

Is life perfect?  No... But God has blessed me so much more than I deserve.  With His help, I can get through anything that Satan throws at me.

Remember... Change isn't always bad.  God can use changes in our lives for His glory.  Ask Him for guidance.  He will direct your path.