Tag Archives: Destiny

Do You Like The Path You’re On?

16 Jul

“You would like your path more if you knew what God is saving you from and/or what He is preparing you for.” I definitely connected with this statement from Pastor’s sermon this past Sunday  It brought to my mind many things that I have experienced in life but didn’t understand at the time. However; walking with God is a walk of faith – there are many things we won’t understand.

My mind tells my heart that if I understood “why” – then I could cope a little better. But, my heart knows better. My heart knows that I serve a God who loves me so much and wants nothing but the best for me. He has proven Himself to me many times – over and over again.

Life can be hard. It has taken me a very long time to realize that the choices I make definitely take me off God’s path at times.  Making some of life’s major decisions without seeking God first cost me years of uncomfortable consequences. Had I sought God and then obeyed His direction, I could have avoided many of the hardships I have faced in my life.

I look back at the hopes and dreams I had, and how I imagined how wonderful my life would be. I regret that I did not have a better understanding of the weight each of my decisions would have on my life – the present and the future. If I could have a “do-over” I wouldn’t do it. But, knowing now what it has taken me a life-time to learn, I would definitely be much more careful and deliberate about how I made my way down life’s paths.

I can see now that some of the things that caused me pain and heartache were my own fault. At the time they were happening, it didn’t seem so. I hate to admit it, but a great deal of my choices in life were decisions I made myself – not wanting advice from anyone or without seeking God first.

I did “pray” on the run – I muttered a quick prayer and told God what I wanted – after I had already jumped into whatever it was I was about to do. I thought my plan for my life was  whatever I wanted it to be. I never realized how self-absorbed I was. I didn’t mean to be. I didn’t realize God had a plan for my life and had I just allowed Him to, He would have directed me into the right path.

That all being said, even when we are on God’s path there can be difficulties. God’s path is not a straight road to a problem free environment. He cares more about our relationship with Him and our spiritual growth than our comfort. Though that may not be music to our ears, God’s ways and His plan for our lives bring great rewards in ways that can’t be imagined or described.

The incredible miracle of it all is that He is with us all along. He watches over us, and is always patient with us. He uses some of the consequences of our obstinate choices to teach us that He loves us and He can still turn our situation into something good.

I am thankful, beyond words, to now have a personal relationship with the God of the universe – the God of Abraham – the way HE intended. Though my path is not always easy mentally, and/or physically – I finally have the peace that I am on His path and that if I stay on it, He will keep me at peace and He will walk with me through every valley – AND – I will overcome any obstacle as long as I put my faith and trust in Him and not try to do it by myself.

God has a plan for each one of us. Don’t waste your time trying to do anything without Him. His Word promises that he will direct our paths, but first we have to talk to Him to find out what that path is. Ps. 199:105 – “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” NIV

Keep in mind that a lamp provides just enough light on a path to see only what is right in front of us. We don’t have to know what lies ahead. We need to be content to know that when God leads us we can trust Him no matter where that path goes. As long as we let Him lead we can’t go wrong, and even when we don’t understand what is happening we can trust that as long as we are following Him the outcome with be to our benefit.

The key to it all is that His WORD (the Bible) is the lamp – without it we can’t see where we’re going!

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What Is Beneath Your Surface?

22 Apr

Every morning is another opportunity to greet our God and see what wonders He will perform. Sometimes they seem barely noticeable. Sometimes they are very obvious. It’s up to us to remain sensitive to everything around us. In order to see the wonders of our God, we have to realize that He is everywhere. Nothing happens by chance. We can’t fathom the depths of His understanding or of His love for us. But, if we pay close attention, we can see it in the world around us.

Spring is a wonderful season to see the freshness of new beginnings. Plants that have been dormant begin to wake up and put on new growth.  Some of them produce beautiful life on their old branches that look dead in the winter. Some plants die back completely to the ground. But, when the time is right, they look new all over again. Throughout the winter they may have looked dead, but their roots were alive all along. They were in a season of preparation – a season of growing deep and sturdy roots so they could later spring forth with verdant growth.

We can identify with the dormant plants. Inside of each of us are roots that have been growing deep. They have been receiving nourishment and becoming strong so that when the time comes for us to flourish, we will have been prepared to face life as it comes at us.

God always allows a time of preparation for each of us. He knows life is difficult at times and in His wisdom and His love for us, He takes us through a dormant period of preparation. We are not who we are because we decided to be. We belong to God and He knew us while we were yet in our Mother’s wombs. He had a plan for each one of us and a purpose for our lives.

We may not have been aware of it. We may not consider ourselves worthy. We may think it’s too late for us. But, stop! Think of the root system. It has been through the winter – it may have been a long, rough winter. God knows just when to wake up those roots and give them the nourishment they need to produce the lush, healthy growth that has been there all along.

None of our time has been truly wasted, though it may appear that way to us. The rough, hard times in our lives are not wasted. God turns everything around for our good, if we love Him and acknowledge Him as Lord of our lives. We can’t just give in to defeat.

God sent His son, Jesus, to die for us. We may not have looked so beautiful as some on the outside. But, on the inside, God has been working. He knows what our lives will produce if we will yield to Him. After all, He had a plan from the beginning for us. He knew us before we took our first breath. He knew each step we would take, each mistake we would make, every word we would speak – before any of it happened. His plans for us are good and not evil.

God is calling us to give Him control. Let Him be the loving, forgiving Father we need Him to be. He can make us beautiful. He can take all the unseen root system and make it flourish as He intended from the beginning. We will all be amazed at what God can do with our root system, if we will just let Him. Today is the day!

Jer 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
NIV

Ps 139:13-16
3 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
NIV

 

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Are You A Background Person?

3 Jun

I can’t get Ruth out of my mind. There is so much hope and encouragement in her story. Ruth’s story makes it clear that God has a plan for all of us. Ruth was a “background” person. She wasn’t particularly special to anyone but God. She didn’t hold any notable positions or move up the ladder of success. She didn’t do anything to get the attention of those around her – except – just be herself!

We don’t need to promote ourselves to any kind of special position in order to be used of God. I’m just taken with the fact that Ruth had an entire book of the Bible dedicated to her and she didn’t part the Red Sea, or build an ark — see what I mean? Ruth just humbled herself and took steps to do the honorable thing. God had a plan – He had a future planned for her even after it appeared she lost everything!

Notice that God sent someone into Ruth’s life that could disciple her. She would have done the same for Orpah (the other daughter-in-law). They each had the opportunity to be blessed by God. However; Orpah chose to remain in the pagan world she knew. She couldn’t let go of the things she was comfortable with. This is a clear example of how God gives us all the opportunity to be blessed by him. It is our choice – He gave us the choice – a free will.

I don’t think this means that God gives us only one chance. I believe that He sends many of His disciples our way over our lifetime. God is a good God. He wants the best for us. We can’t blame Him for things that go wrong when we make bad choices.

His Word, the Bible, has already been written. The principles are set. The Scriptures are given to us for example. The people written about are like us. Through our reading of them we learn about God and His ways. His Word is new every day. It is alive and progressive! It is not old and out of date.

As you read the Bible, God helps you to understand it. You will read something that “jumps” off the page and speaks to your heart – it will be just what you need. I believe it is vital to our lives, especially in today’s world.

Some of His promises are conditional. His offer of salvation is to everyone, but in order to receive His perfect will for our lives we have to develop a personal relationship with Him and seek to make the right choices. To be able to make the right choices we need to know what He says in His Scripture. We need to spend time talking to Him and then listening with our hearts to His leading.

We won’t become perfect. We will still make mistakes. The difference is that if we are seeking to know God and seeking His will for our lives, He will see to it that all things work together for our good.

Notice how Ruth, after she chose to go with God – through Naomi – God began to open doors for her to see that she came into the blessings He had in store for her. She just lived out her life. She listened to godly counsel from Naomi and God led her to a renewed life.

Ruth struggled along the way. She had to make many choices to be obedient to the one God had put in her path to help her. It took courage, and faith. Ruth may not have even known she was using her faith. We all use our faith – either in God or in something else. The point is, she continued to make wise choices. She continued to humble herself.

I don’t know how long it took for all this to take place. The important thing is that she didn’t give up. She lived her life day by day and God led her out of the wilderness and into a life of His love and blessings.

I hope you, the reader, can see in Ruth’s story that God is truly no respecter of persons and that His goodness and favor depend so much on our choice to follow Him.

He is merciful to us. He is long-suffering – He waits for us to turn to Him. Just knowing about Him is not enough. We must really know Him. It won’t happen over night. It takes a lifetime. He is an amazing God, so amazing. The more you get to know Him, the more you want to know Him. It doesn’t get old or boring. In my opinion, God is the only thing in my life that is fresh and new every morning – I can’t wait to see what He is going to do next.

Of this I am certain, God has never failed me. Oh, there are many things that don’t go like I want them to. I’ve had many failures in life – made some very bad choices. But, as long as I continue to serve Him and seek Him, He turns everything into good for me. Even when things go opposite to what I think I want, in time I see that God knew best all along. My Momma used to say “God is so smart”! He truly is. He knows our hearts and our longings more than even we do. Trust Him. Give your heart to Him wholeheartedly. You won’t be disappointed.

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