I've been taking a break for the past two weeks...a break from writing, Facebook, Twitter, and email that isn't needing my immediate attention. Sometimes it's really good to slow down and simplify your life a bit. I have needed some time to focus on the Lord and really seek Him on some issues in my life. The "noise" that was a part of my day needed to be turned off so that I could hear the Lord clearly. I have enough "voices" in my head as it is! Let alone the voices of all my online friends. (Please don't be offended. I love you all.)
I knew it would be difficult to be off of Facebook and Twitter. I really enjoy them both. However, they were taking up a lot of my time and frankly, as much as I enjoy reading about my friends' lives, it was getting to the point where my mind was consumed with everyone else's issues and problems and I couldn't focus on my own issues and problems. Does that make sense? I get very emotional when it comes to my friends and family. When they are hurting, I am hurting. When they are frustrated and having a hard time, I want to help them in some way. It's not a bad thing, but it can be if I get too emotionally involved in other people's lives to the point where it's bumming me out and placing a burden on me. This is something that I struggle with, so I knew I had to take a break for a while and get my focus back.
I have really missed the daily chatter and the socialization. I dislike not being "in the know." Yet, it has been surprisingly freeing not to have all the constant interaction. I've gotten a lot done around my house and have spent way more time with my kids and more time reading and catching up on things. It has also been easier to pray and talk to God throughout the day because the distractions are minimized. I won't be off of Facebook and Twitter forever, but the time I spend on them will be much less. I know that for sure.
Is there anything distracting you right now? Do you need to take a break? Even Jesus went away to be alone at times. As much as he loved his disciples and his followers, there were times when he just needed to be alone. In Matthew 14, Jesus learned that John the Baptist had been killed and he went away by boat privately to a solitary place to be alone. Sometimes we need to deal with our grief alone. However, Jesus didn't dwell on his grief, but returned to the ministry he came to do when he saw the large crowd that had followed him. It says in verse 14 that when he landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed all their sick. Later in the chapter is where he performs the miracle of feeding the five thousand (which was probably closer to ten to fifteen thousand when you include women and children.) Even though Jesus really wanted some time to get away and be alone, he took care of his followers because they needed him.
Immediately after feeding all of the people, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. As it says in verse 23, after he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Jesus always made room in his busy schedule to be alone with his Father. It was vital to his ministry that he spend time alone with God, just as it is vital to our lives and our ministries. It's OK to take a break. The world will keep on going while you take time out to have your devotion time with the Lord. Solitude is necessary when it's for the right purpose.
There are times when it's good to be alone, as long as you don't stay alone for too long. We need the companionship and encouragement from our friends and families and we also need to be aware of what's going on in their world so that we can, in turn, be an encouragement to them. We also need to make sure that we are still going to church and that we don't let anything become an excuse for staying away from God's house. Taking a break for a Sunday or two to go on vacation or a weekend getaway is one thing. But taking a "break" from church for several weeks in a row is not the way to go. Let the Holy Spirit guide you when it comes to taking a break. He will let you know when it's time to be alone, and when it's time to get back into the swing of things again. Originally, I was planning on being back on Facebook and Twitter tomorrow, August 1st. However, I still feel that I need some more time to continue seeking God right now.
Until I am settled in my spirit that I've heard what I need to hear, I am going to continue to minimize distractions. I am still available if people need me...I'm not taking a break from helping people or praying with them. I just may not be as "social" yet. Think about the things that may be distracting you. There really is freedom in taking a break.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Make A Wish
I'm going to be 35 years old tomorrow. Do you ever have those moments where your age just kind of hits you in the face? I'm not saying I'm old, but I think this birthday is hitting me a little harder than in the past. Maybe because I thought by now that I would have accomplished certain things, and I haven't...yet. I remember when my parents were 35. Now, that's weird. I was 14 years old. Our family went through some major heartache at that time and I remember watching the agony that my parents went through. In truth, if I had the kind of pressure on me right now that my parents had on them, I'm not sure how I would handle it. My parents were very strong and amazing people then, and they are even stronger and more amazing now. My girls may not remember what I am like right now, but in all honesty, I kind of hope they don't.
This has been a very rough year for me. I won't bore you with the details, but there have been way too many times when my girls have seen me cry...and way too many "get well mommy" cards given to me by my babies, especially Hailey. It has broken my heart time and time again when they have asked if I will take them to the park, or the mall, or anywhere, and I haven't been able to. I have seen and felt their disappointment. The same goes for my wonderful husband. He is amazing and I am so thankful for him. He takes care of me no matter what and truly lives up to the "in sickness and in health" part of our wedding vows. The same also goes for my friends. They have been such a support to me as I've battled with all these physical issues. They have brought meals, watched my girls, picked them up from school, sent me cards, stopped by with flowers, left gifts on my doorstep...the list goes on and on. I am so grateful for them. My parents and sisters and extended family have also been incredibly supportive from afar. They pray for me on the phone and make me laugh. They send me cards to let me know I'm in their thoughts and prayers. I love my family and I love my friends. But, no matter how much my family and friends support me, I want this to be over. That's just the honest truth.
I am thankful for what the Lord has been teaching me, and I will continue to praise him no matter what comes my way. I will always trust him. Sometimes it's easy to be brave and put on a happy face, and other days it's pretty dang hard. I made a decision last fall that I was going to be honest with my friends about what I've been dealing with. For the most part, I think it was a smart move. Why lie to people? There are those who know the details and those I've chosen not to share a lot with, but people deserve the truth. They deserve to know what you're going through, especially if they ask how they can pray for you. Tell them how they can pray! You don't have to give all the details, and you don't have to go around talking about your problems to everyone you meet. But tell the people you're close to how they can pray. They're asking because they care about you. And let the other people know the gist of what's going on so that they don't come to their own conclusions. I've learned that lesson the hard way.
I will blow out some candles on my gluten and dairy free birthday cake tomorrow and make a wish. They say if you tell your wish it won't come true, but I will tell you what I'm wishing for anyway. I wish for the day when I wake up with no pain and no vertigo. I wish to be able to take my kids wherever they want to go. I wish for blessings to be heaped on my family and friends for all their prayers and support. I wish peace and comfort for all of the people in my life who are suffering, as well as for those I don't know. I wish for wisdom and discernment. I wish to make a difference in the lives of the people who have been trafficked and enslaved. I wish for the salvation of all the people in my world who don't follow Jesus, as well as the rest of the world. I wish for them to know the freedom that comes from living their life dedicated to him. I wish for people's eyes to be opened to what is happening in the world right now. I wish for the local churches around the world to grow and grow. I wish for many things, but they are more than wishes. They are prayers. They are prayers that have been prayed to a living God who hears each and every one of them. They are prayers that I believe will be answered, and wishes that I believe will come true. What do you wish for?
This has been a very rough year for me. I won't bore you with the details, but there have been way too many times when my girls have seen me cry...and way too many "get well mommy" cards given to me by my babies, especially Hailey. It has broken my heart time and time again when they have asked if I will take them to the park, or the mall, or anywhere, and I haven't been able to. I have seen and felt their disappointment. The same goes for my wonderful husband. He is amazing and I am so thankful for him. He takes care of me no matter what and truly lives up to the "in sickness and in health" part of our wedding vows. The same also goes for my friends. They have been such a support to me as I've battled with all these physical issues. They have brought meals, watched my girls, picked them up from school, sent me cards, stopped by with flowers, left gifts on my doorstep...the list goes on and on. I am so grateful for them. My parents and sisters and extended family have also been incredibly supportive from afar. They pray for me on the phone and make me laugh. They send me cards to let me know I'm in their thoughts and prayers. I love my family and I love my friends. But, no matter how much my family and friends support me, I want this to be over. That's just the honest truth.
I am thankful for what the Lord has been teaching me, and I will continue to praise him no matter what comes my way. I will always trust him. Sometimes it's easy to be brave and put on a happy face, and other days it's pretty dang hard. I made a decision last fall that I was going to be honest with my friends about what I've been dealing with. For the most part, I think it was a smart move. Why lie to people? There are those who know the details and those I've chosen not to share a lot with, but people deserve the truth. They deserve to know what you're going through, especially if they ask how they can pray for you. Tell them how they can pray! You don't have to give all the details, and you don't have to go around talking about your problems to everyone you meet. But tell the people you're close to how they can pray. They're asking because they care about you. And let the other people know the gist of what's going on so that they don't come to their own conclusions. I've learned that lesson the hard way.
I will blow out some candles on my gluten and dairy free birthday cake tomorrow and make a wish. They say if you tell your wish it won't come true, but I will tell you what I'm wishing for anyway. I wish for the day when I wake up with no pain and no vertigo. I wish to be able to take my kids wherever they want to go. I wish for blessings to be heaped on my family and friends for all their prayers and support. I wish peace and comfort for all of the people in my life who are suffering, as well as for those I don't know. I wish for wisdom and discernment. I wish to make a difference in the lives of the people who have been trafficked and enslaved. I wish for the salvation of all the people in my world who don't follow Jesus, as well as the rest of the world. I wish for them to know the freedom that comes from living their life dedicated to him. I wish for people's eyes to be opened to what is happening in the world right now. I wish for the local churches around the world to grow and grow. I wish for many things, but they are more than wishes. They are prayers. They are prayers that have been prayed to a living God who hears each and every one of them. They are prayers that I believe will be answered, and wishes that I believe will come true. What do you wish for?
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Worry Is A Waste
Over the past few days, I've been thinking about what it means to worry. I have been a worrier all my life. I admit it. I've gotten a little bit better about not worrying as much as I've gone through a lot of physical suffering this year. You would think it would be the opposite, right? Well, I guess it could have created more worry, but the truth is that God has been teaching me a lot. He has been drilling into me the fact that he is always with me and that I can do anything with his help. However, he is very gentle with me. There have been times in the past few months where I've felt like a fragile little child...trapped, wounded, and scared. God knows how to handle me with care. When I say that he has been drilling into me the fact that he is always with me, I mean that he has been showing that to me every day in a very real, but gentle way. He provides me tangible evidence that he hears me when I call on him. Someday I will share what that evidence is. Most of all, he gives me scriptures in his Word that are exactly what I need to read at the moment to bring me comfort, courage, strength, joy, peace, etc.
To worry means to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts. It is a state of restlessness and agitation, producing mental disturbance, uneasiness, foreboding, anxiety, and painful uncertainty. It is so powerful that it can even gain control of your physical body if you let it. I know this from personal experience. You are the only one who can control how much you worry about something, even when people tell you things that are worrisome. You may get bad news about yourself or someone else. You may lose your job suddenly. You may see on the weather report that a tornado or hurricane is threatening your home, or the home of someone you love. You may be worried when your child is late coming home from school, or a date. There are many things that can cause us to worry. However, the worry I'm addressing is about things that haven't even happened yet.
There have been times when I've been lying in bed unable to sleep because I've gotten myself so worked up worrying about something. I'm sure most of you have had the same thing happen. Worry consumes us with fear and paralyzes us. It can cause us to think irrationally and sometimes even lead to poor decisions based in fear. It can hold us back from our true potential and cripple us. It's pointless, fruitless, and can ruin just about anything...our physical bodies, our relationships, opportunities, promotions, travel plans, etc. Worry is really hard to control once it crosses over a certain point.
To some extent, worrying can be a good thing, if it's in the form of genuine concern. It can help us to discern certain questionable situations, solve problems, change plans that need changing, and keep us aware of the situations around us. However, when it crosses over into obsessive worry it becomes a problem. Obsessive worry is when you can't stop the horrible thoughts running around inside your head. When you can't ever see the positive side of a situation because you're too worried about what "might" happen. You're too afraid to move forward because you are paralyzed in your mind. You start to have a physical reaction and you have trouble breathing, or you start sweating, you get a massive headache, or you begin to experience pain somewhere in your body. When worry begins to affect not only yourself, but your family and friends as well, then you know you have a big problem. Our worry not only holds us back, but it can hold others back as well. We can pass our fears on to other people, and that's not good. You can worry someone else and ruin their day. The person may not have had a thought in their head about anything bad happening to them, but with one sentence out of your mouth, you can plant a negative seed in their mind that can grow into a full blown tree in no time. That's why it is so important to get worry under control. It's not just for our own benefit.
In Matthew 6:25-27, Jesus is teaching about worry. He said, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap, or store away in barns; and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Vs. 34, "Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Jesus tells us not to worry because he knows what worry can do to us; especially worrying about the needs that God promises to supply. As I already mentioned, worry can damage our health. In addition to that, it causes the object of our worry to consume our thoughts, it disrupts our productivity, it stunts our creativity, it negatively affects the way we treat others, and it reduces our ability to trust God. How many of these things are you experiencing? Here is the difference between worry and genuine concern - worry immobilizes, but concern moves you to action. Planning for tomorrow is well worth our time, but worrying about tomorrow is just wasting time. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. When we plan well, with God's guidance, it can alleviate worry. But, when we become obsessive worriers we are consumed by fear and will find it very difficult to trust God. We need to make sure we don't let the worries about tomorrow affect our relationship with God today. He knows what we need and his plans for us are good. Trusting God doesn't mean that bad things will never happen to us. It means that we trust him in the good times, knowing that we can also trust him in the bad times. God is with you, he loves you, and he is for you. So, don't worry!
Romans 8:38 says, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
I really liked this article: How To Stop Worrying So Much. I hope you enjoy it as well. Let's be warriors instead of worriers.
To worry means to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts. It is a state of restlessness and agitation, producing mental disturbance, uneasiness, foreboding, anxiety, and painful uncertainty. It is so powerful that it can even gain control of your physical body if you let it. I know this from personal experience. You are the only one who can control how much you worry about something, even when people tell you things that are worrisome. You may get bad news about yourself or someone else. You may lose your job suddenly. You may see on the weather report that a tornado or hurricane is threatening your home, or the home of someone you love. You may be worried when your child is late coming home from school, or a date. There are many things that can cause us to worry. However, the worry I'm addressing is about things that haven't even happened yet.
There have been times when I've been lying in bed unable to sleep because I've gotten myself so worked up worrying about something. I'm sure most of you have had the same thing happen. Worry consumes us with fear and paralyzes us. It can cause us to think irrationally and sometimes even lead to poor decisions based in fear. It can hold us back from our true potential and cripple us. It's pointless, fruitless, and can ruin just about anything...our physical bodies, our relationships, opportunities, promotions, travel plans, etc. Worry is really hard to control once it crosses over a certain point.
To some extent, worrying can be a good thing, if it's in the form of genuine concern. It can help us to discern certain questionable situations, solve problems, change plans that need changing, and keep us aware of the situations around us. However, when it crosses over into obsessive worry it becomes a problem. Obsessive worry is when you can't stop the horrible thoughts running around inside your head. When you can't ever see the positive side of a situation because you're too worried about what "might" happen. You're too afraid to move forward because you are paralyzed in your mind. You start to have a physical reaction and you have trouble breathing, or you start sweating, you get a massive headache, or you begin to experience pain somewhere in your body. When worry begins to affect not only yourself, but your family and friends as well, then you know you have a big problem. Our worry not only holds us back, but it can hold others back as well. We can pass our fears on to other people, and that's not good. You can worry someone else and ruin their day. The person may not have had a thought in their head about anything bad happening to them, but with one sentence out of your mouth, you can plant a negative seed in their mind that can grow into a full blown tree in no time. That's why it is so important to get worry under control. It's not just for our own benefit.
In Matthew 6:25-27, Jesus is teaching about worry. He said, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap, or store away in barns; and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Vs. 34, "Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Jesus tells us not to worry because he knows what worry can do to us; especially worrying about the needs that God promises to supply. As I already mentioned, worry can damage our health. In addition to that, it causes the object of our worry to consume our thoughts, it disrupts our productivity, it stunts our creativity, it negatively affects the way we treat others, and it reduces our ability to trust God. How many of these things are you experiencing? Here is the difference between worry and genuine concern - worry immobilizes, but concern moves you to action. Planning for tomorrow is well worth our time, but worrying about tomorrow is just wasting time. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. When we plan well, with God's guidance, it can alleviate worry. But, when we become obsessive worriers we are consumed by fear and will find it very difficult to trust God. We need to make sure we don't let the worries about tomorrow affect our relationship with God today. He knows what we need and his plans for us are good. Trusting God doesn't mean that bad things will never happen to us. It means that we trust him in the good times, knowing that we can also trust him in the bad times. God is with you, he loves you, and he is for you. So, don't worry!
Romans 8:38 says, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
I really liked this article: How To Stop Worrying So Much. I hope you enjoy it as well. Let's be warriors instead of worriers.
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