"I felt, for the first time in a long time, loved. I was grateful and as I closed my eyes to rest, I wondered what God had in store for me next."(p.37).
Sunday, the missionaries at church stressed how all of our good works even when done for church or other organizations are like Isaiah 64:6 says filthyrags.Many times we get caught up jumping through hoops in our lives and at times it becomes so monotonous that we forget the reason we are jumping. This does not mean that what we do for God does not mean anything, because when we do things unto God He is glorified. "Sometimes our view of God becomes so skewed by the world we sander away, searching for anything that might fill the void in our lives; never seeing the loving God who waits."(p.43). However, our righteousness is not through our deeds, but through His grace. The missionaries stressed to stop and "soak up God."Isaiah 64:6We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.
Resting in God may not always come easy. Because just like "percale sheets offered a smoother time in life [they were] good..not perfect..He still refines.."(p.37) True resting in God relies on Him to provide us with righteousness and to make the difference up when it comes to our deficits. When we are restless at times we can rely on our God for rest.
We can also be thankful for the "people [that] have been the glue [in life]..Look at the Creator who carefully placed the stones of those folks so you could step on solid ground. [So that you] never [fall] further than [your knees]... "God is perfect and through our imperfections, His plan is made complete."(p.42).
1 Corinthians 13:2 New Living Translation (NLT)
If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing.
Do you ever feel restless? Or have you ever been a shoulder for someone who was weary and needed God's rest?
I believe that all women are restless at different times in our lives. As we travel through the different seasons, as daughters, young married women, career woman, mothers of young children, mothers of teenagers, empty- nesters, grandmothers and all the many different seasons that we each pass through individually, we find adjustments to make. We have to readjust our priorities and commitments and sometimes we are at a loss of what is really important and what God really wants us to do. When I resigned from teaching at Southeastern Louisiana University in the spring of 1989 the following fall was very difficult for me. I was working in our business plus extremely involved in ministry but when the school bells rang and I was not going back to school my life was restless! I could not figure out what was wrong, why did all the sudden life seemed to spin out of control. After a short visit with our precious pastors, Jerry and Sandi Claunch, they helped me to realized that this was first time since I was five years old I was not going to school, either as a student or a teacher. It was a strange sensation! The smell of pencils sharpening was soon replaced with opportunities to minister to singles and families in our small group. The following year we attended Bible School which I am sure I would not attended if I had still been teaching full-time. New seasons can bring restlessness until we settle into the new responsibly that God has brought into our lives. And yes, friends and spiritual leaders can help us maneuver through these difficult days.
That is so true about seasons, sometimes when we are in a transition from one season to the next we can be very restless. My singles leader in Birmingham used to call this "a sling shot phase." Just like God had a purpose for David, but it was not until he picked up his sling shot that he began into his next season. God was with him all along, but it had to be in His timing...
I like that saying, “Sling shot phase.” Many times when we are restless, God is waiting for us to use what He has already placed in our hands. When Moses had the burning burn experience in the desert and encountered the Living God (Exodus 4), God ask him what he had is his hand. Moses answered, “Just a shepherd’s staff.” God used Moses’ staff, a simple rod-used to herd sheep, to show His power and authority. (Exodus 4:17 ”and be sure to take your shepherd's staff along so you can perform the miraculous signs I have shown you."NLT) When we use what God has already given us, our gifts and talents, we can help set His people free. When we step out in faith and pick up our sling or staff, we move to the next season of our life. Okay ladies, what is keeping you from picking up your sling or staff and moving into a new season of your life?
I believe that all women are restless at different times in our lives. As we travel through the different seasons, as daughters, young married women, career woman, mothers of young children, mothers of teenagers, empty- nesters, grandmothers and all the many different seasons that we each pass through individually, we find adjustments to make. We have to readjust our priorities and commitments and sometimes we are at a loss of what is really important and what God really wants us to do.
ReplyDeleteWhen I resigned from teaching at Southeastern Louisiana University in the spring of 1989 the following fall was very difficult for me. I was working in our business plus extremely involved in ministry but when the school bells rang and I was not going back to school my life was restless! I could not figure out what was wrong, why did all the sudden life seemed to spin out of control. After a short visit with our precious pastors, Jerry and Sandi Claunch, they helped me to realized that this was first time since I was five years old I was not going to school, either as a student or a teacher. It was a strange sensation! The smell of pencils sharpening was soon replaced with opportunities to minister to singles and families in our small group. The following year we attended Bible School which I am sure I would not attended if I had still been teaching full-time. New seasons can bring restlessness until we settle into the new responsibly that God has brought into our lives. And yes, friends and spiritual leaders can help us maneuver through these difficult days.
That is so true about seasons, sometimes when we are in a transition from one season to the next we can be very restless. My singles leader in Birmingham used to call this "a sling shot phase." Just like God had a purpose for David, but it was not until he picked up his sling shot that he began into his next season. God was with him all along, but it had to be in His timing...
ReplyDeleteI like that saying, “Sling shot phase.” Many times when we are restless, God is waiting for us to use what He has already placed in our hands. When Moses had the burning burn experience in the desert and encountered the Living God (Exodus 4), God ask him what he had is his hand. Moses answered, “Just a shepherd’s staff.” God used Moses’ staff, a simple rod-used to herd sheep, to show His power and authority. (Exodus 4:17 ”and be sure to take your shepherd's staff along so you can perform the miraculous signs I have shown you."NLT) When we use what God has already given us, our gifts and talents, we can help set His people free. When we step out in faith and pick up our sling or staff, we move to the next season of our life. Okay ladies, what is keeping you from picking up your sling or staff and moving into a new season of your life?
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