Monday, January 31, 2011

Never lose heart

King Solomon. The richest, wisest man of all time. A man, who in his own time, had such an abundance of silver and gold that it had the same value as dirt. The very thing that the worlds riches weigh upon were so plentiful that it actually lacked worth. And though this man had everything his eyes desired, he still felt that everything was meaningless. No matter how much he saw he was never satisifed, but left unfulfilled.

How often is that our mindset in today's world? Though we have everything we could ever need or want, we still find ourselves unsatisfied, unfulfilled. And we walk around, following the same routine, day in and day out, as if something is finally going to break and change. And we lose heart that this life, this world we live in will never change, that we'll walk through this life in a state of constant dissatisfaction.

Maybe instead of fixing everything all the time, we should be seeking something in our lives that is bigger than our problems, our fears, our discouragement, our unfulfilled hearts. Stop trying to fix and start laying those heartwrenching days, those difficult hours, those disappointing moments of life at the throne of Grace.

So, it seems that prayer might be part of the answer - setting our minds on things above and not on earthly things. Being open, honest, real with the Lord about those things that go on; allowing and inviting Him into the places of our heart that are dissatisfied, unfulfilled. And we may soon see that with Him in the center of our lives our mindsets change... suddenly the unfulfilled hearts find new refreshment in His grace and mercy.

Never lose heart that Christ has a plan for you.
Never lose heart that He is working for your good.
Never lose heart that He loves you and longs to bless you.
Never lose heart that He's there in the midst of the darkest hours of this life.
Never lose heart.

For He loves you.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Transitioning from 2010

NEW Year.

Isn't it amazing how every January 1st we get the opportunity to start a new year with a clean slate? Another year is gone and a new one has come. Man what a year 2010 was - full of challenges, change, and courage. One that I will not soon forget. Praise God for the trials. Praise God for the tests. Praise God for the mountains of difficulty that this life of mine brought this last year. There's not a moment that goes by that I don't remember His grace, His mercy, His love as the agony of life came. Praise our Faithful Father!

For the first time ever (I think) I have yet to write "new year's resolutions". I did not sit down and write a list of goals for 2011. I haven't even thought past the 1st day of 2011. And for some reason, that's totally okay with me. I don't need goals, I don't need resolutions - all I need is my sweet Jesus to walk beside me and guide my every step. Sure there are things I'd like to accomplish, like starting my own business or taking guitar lessons, but I know those things will come. Keeping our eyes on Jesus is what takes us from today into the eternal tomorrow. His plans and His will are what we should follow...

"in his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." - Proverbs

The Lord determines his steps. That is a morsel of truth that I've learned greatly this year. I'm a planner - always have been. But this year has taught me that no matter what I think I'm going to be doing, no matter what I have planned, He often has a different stance, a different direction for life. Over and over my "plans" for 2010 failed, but those failures were just what I needed to realize that it's not about me, it's not about my timeline - it's about Him, always.

So I sit here tonight looking ahead to 2011 and wonder "what's next?" And all I hear is the simple voice of the Father saying:

One.
Day.
At.
A.
Time.