The Bigger Picture

We all have something that we said we would never do. You know that list that includes things like..... get married, have kids (definitely not more than two!), go to Africa as a missionary, go back to school, pay off all your school debt, adopt a child, learn a foreign language, run a marathon.... The list goes on.

But, unfortunately, most of the time so do we. Life moves forward at a rate faster than most of us can keep up and we keep adding to the list, but we don't take anything off. They stay there because we unconsciously have made the choice to NOT do it, rather than mark it off because we have done it! We don't actually do anything on the list so it keeps growing.

Now, I am not saying that we view all things in life as a list, but in our head it's on THAT list.

The "Abraham" list ~ the one where you see nothing but impossibility in that one thing really happening
The "Mary" list ~ the one where circumstances would have to be different for that to work out
The "Moses" list ~ the one where you are certain that you are not equipped to do this or that certain thing

Well, so far, the above lists would include the father of many nations, the mother of the Christ child and the man who led the Egyptians out of the land of slavery. They all thought they were incapable or that what was revealed to them seemed impossible, but they, like us, were only looking at the small picture called "right now." The biggest hurdle called "me."

We know people and we hear stories of things happening in which only the hand of God could have made it happen. We are moved and may even thank God for his amazing work. But, we fail to see how we too can be used in His bigger picture.

So, how do we do that? We open ourselves up and we grow. We let God work in us and change us and mold us into His hands and feet. We seek His Kingdom and His righteousness first. We stop building our own little lives and we ask how He wants us to help build His Kingdom. Then, one day without warning we are on a plane across an ocean to serve another people group, we are trusting in Him sustaining us as we train for the marathon to help make a difference. We are preparing for a home study in the process of adoption, we are hitting the books each night getting through school with His grace.  

growth

The list is getting smaller because of His work in us.

Of course we have all heard the expression ,"Never say never!" Certainly with a God like our God, we should never say never. First, because He is capable, but also because "never" is a selfish expression of what we think is possible or not possible. So, shame on us for reading about the great possibilities in His word, for listening to the stories of His amazing work in others, but not really believing. Not really taking the possibility, that He may want to use us, seriously.

We are all someone to Him.
We are all a possibility to Him.

Let Him see in your heart an authentic desire to grow and be used for things that you have always said you would never do.

Chiseling Away

God has been at work in me, refining and chiseling away all that is not good. (A lifelong process!) I am amazed at the many different ways He chooses to open our eyes to new truth, or rather truth packaged in a way we have not seen it before. His Truth is never new, it is timeless and never-changing, how wonderful to really count on something in this crazy world!

Right now, this book is making a huge impact on me.....


If you need a book that will encourage you, inspire you, challenge and change you.  Give this one a try! You can also find daily encouragement with Ann

SHE

She knows your heart.
She knows your shortcomings.
She knows your kids...really knows them!
She knows why you make the kind of choices you make.
She knows what you need even when you may not be sure.
She knows she can say that "one" thing to you, because, well...it's her and she can!
She knows how to pray for you.

She sometimes remembers your birthday. (Which you actually love about her!)
She might know your favorite cookies.
She might remember where you were born, or she might not know at all.
She never asks you those kind of questions that get under your skin, because she knows they get under your skin.
She doesn't doubt you, even when you sound crazy!
She never sees you as an inconvenience.

She tells you if you have too much on your plate, because she loves you.
She calls from a long way away at an odd time, but you talk anyway, because that is a treasured moment to get to chat.
She knows what makes you fearful,even if you haven't said it outloud.
She nods her head and finishes the sentence when you can't quite get the words out.
She will listen to the "real" you talk openly and honestly without judgment, harsh questions or accusations. 
She will take your child with her on her family vacation if it means that she can help you do something you can't yet believe yourself, that you are going to do.

She is there.
She is available.
She is trustworthy.
She is strong.
She is truth-driven.
She is walking alongside.
She is encouraging.
She is honest. 
She is authentic.

She is.......
   the kind of friend that really makes a difference in your life every time you spent a    moment with her.  

I hope that you have this kind of woman in your life.  I also hope that we are all striving to be this kind of woman in someone else's life.