This love is real and it's for you!!!

We are studying Ephesians for one of the group studies Ben and I attend. I read this verse written by Paul to the Ephesians:

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:16-19

So, I’ve definitely read this verse before, but I don’t think it had ever really clicked. I usually just kept reading as if it was just a small part of the letter. This time I read the verse and I was astonished! What is that? How does that happen? Where was my mind before? How many important sayings or phrases or verses have I passed over (in all the literature I have read) like they were just a small part of the story?

THIS TIME when I read, I finally understood how Paul was feeling. I have felt this love! I have seen this love! I watch this love continue when things are falling apart around me! I am still experiencing this love! It is unlike anything you can put into words or anything that is imaginable. I can’t explain. You just have to feel it and God is standing there waiting for you!!!

No, I am definitely not crazy. No, I am not part of a cult. No, I am not imagining things that are not there. No, I’m not giving you a sales pitch. No, I’m not trying to scare you (yet). No, this is not demonic. This is real!!! This is amazing!!!

If you haven’t felt this love it’s not surprising. No worries! It took me a long time in my Christian walk to get to this point (because I was not serious about my relationship with God). What took me years to understand, could take you only days, weeks or months, depending on how devoted you are to your relationship with God.

The Bible is filled to the brim with verses just like this. Any verse could grab you just like this one grabbed me this week. The Holy Spirit leads us to understand different things at different times. I pray that God leads you to understand this love sooner than later!!!

God Bless you on your journey!

What was your big event?

Many Christians have something in common with the way they began following Christ-that one, big event. That big event (either negative or positive) led to a major life change. For example:

-A church retreat

-A bad dream

-A friend that got your attention

-A big mistake

-A hospitalization

-Losing something/someone important to you

-An accident

-Newly acquired knowledge

-A joyful moment

-A new start

-A night with a parent or family member

-A special sermon

-A testimony

-A Bible verse

-Your pastor’s advice

-Something that scared you for life

-A movie

-A novel

-A journey

Has one of these big events ever happened to you? When everything just “clicked” one day and you understood why it was so important for you to turn your life in a different direction, more specifically-to follow Christ. Have you had a realization that maybe life is about more than you are living for?

Unfortunately, my big event came as a series of large mistakes. Thank goodness those mistakes don’t have a hold over me anymore. What happened to my life, because of those mistakes, was amazing! God got my attention.

Since then, I have traveled down a road I could have only hoped for when I was living selfishly. Growing my faith, my understanding of Scripture, my relationship with God, and my spiritual fruit are all elements of my journey and my destination. It’s a journey in which I am striving to make God the ABSOLUTE most important aspect of my life. Hopefully along the way I can convince others they are missing out when God is not in the picture.

If you have not experienced your big event, then I pray that you and your “Godly” event are on a collision course!!!

Are You Worried?

Lately, it seems I have been surrounded with people worrying. Don’t get me wrong-I don’t mind it at all, but it weighs on my heart that these people are struggling so much.

What are some common worries (I’m sure each of you could tell me fifty reasons for worry and stress in your life), but for the sake of this post I will name some I have heard lately:

-There’s not enough work.

-There’s not enough money.

-I don’t have enough help.

-I have too much to do.

-There’s never enough time.

-I’m gaining too much weight.

-I’m not getting enough sleep.

-There’s too much to pay for.

-I don’t know who to turn to for help.

-I don’t know what to do with my life.

-I don’t have enough energy.

-There’s always a never-ending work list.

-Things aren’t going my way.

-I’m late for so many things.

-I don’t have what I need for my family.

-Everything’s falling apart.

-My relationships are struggling.

-I don’t want to be away from my family even to go to work.

-I am so mad at my husband/wife. I am always worried about our marriage.

-I don’t want to travel.

-My family member is sick.

-My friend is dying.

-There’s no way to help all those who are in need.

-I’m not living in the right city.

-I can’t stand my boss.

I know some of these statements have come out of my mouth in the last few months. Have any of them come out of your mouth? Have you been thinking these things day after day? It’s not wrong to think or say these things. Unfortunately, it IS life-damaging to let them control your life.

Take it from a worrier…I have a type A personality, many OCD tendencies, was raised in a family with a few “undiagnosed” family members with OCD, and I am an introvert who tends to over-think everything. It used to be that every day my house needed to be clean with everything in its perfect place. I was on an exact, to-the-second schedule and if anything messed that up my anger would flare. I was worried about the groceries. I was worried about the bills. I was worried about the gas we used driving around in our cars. I was worried about everything my family was wearing. I was worried about the way I looked. I was worried about my marriage and my friendships (and many, many more things). Wow! What a life of unhappiness and discontentment. Only recently did I find out that that is no way to live and I found my solution to my problems: Stop worrying!!!

I had always been taught (in church and school) that God asks us to give our worries to Him.

Matthew 6:25, "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?”

Matthew 6:27, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

It made me so upset to hear this from others and read these verses because I never felt God could completely take all my stress and anxiety away. Other people could figure it out, but I couldn't. I always told myself that I wouldn’t be able to stop worrying. I couldn't forget about the problem because then I wouldn’t be able to take control of the situation to fix what was broken. I guess I truly thought if the issue was going to be solved, worry would help push me to the solution. FORTUNATELY, I was very wrong.

I have a challenge for anyone that is reading this. Maybe you are someone that has learned how to give up your worry to God. But, if you haven’t accepted God’s offer to take your worries away then just humor me on this: Try to make it through ONE day giving every worry to God. Here are some “techniques” (if you will) to help you. You may adopt different techniques, but this is how I got started.

1) Pray to God. Tell him what you are worried about (Tell him everything that you are worried about at that moment. Don’t sell him short. He can handle it.). Ask Him to take that worry into his hands and off of your heart.

---------WARNING---------- Do NOT stop there. You have a little bit of work to do also. This was my error for most of my life. I would say a prayer and then start worrying again as soon as I said “Amen”. Then, I would wonder why God didn’t take away all my stress. Unfortunately, for us “chronic” worriers it is not that simple. Take some deep breaths and read on…

2) After you pray, you get back to what you are doing…but you start to think about all those worries again. Well, pray again. Tell God you are still worrying. Ask him to help you get through the next five minutes without worrying about something. If you finish your prayer and start worrying again, pray again. Continue this cycle. Don't get frustrated. This is how you need to start.

-(Oh…and for some of you who require practicality, you can pray while you are doing whatever you are doing. God is always listening. You don’t have to go into a quiet, dark room and get down on your hands and knees. You don’t even have to close your eyes. Just turn your focus internally to God instead of externally on your work for a few moments. )

3) You have to learn a new habit. I’m sure you have heard or read how difficult it is to give up “bad” habits. All of your life your habit was to constantly worry about one situation or another, and let it control your actions throughout each of your days. It is going to take some time to learn how to give God your worries, and the stress and anxiety that come with it. God will be with you to help you every step of the way.

4) This is not a simple task. Please don’t give up. It is more worth it than you could imagine! Continue to replace your worries with prayer to God. God is faithful!!! He will answer you! He will begin to change your thoughts and your actions as long as you ask it of him.

-I have to be honest with you. I spent the first few days praying about every three to five minutes. I was ready to give up my control to God, and I soon found out the more control I gave to God the better the situation turned out.

If you try this, set a goal for yourself to try it for a full week or longer…the end goal being FOREVER. Eventually, you will automatically give your worry to God without even thinking about it first. Also, this works for every trial in life revolving around: anger, resentment, negativity, impatience, sadness, denial, and more. If your “bad” habits are focused on one of these topics I just mentioned, then follow the same steps inserting that topic instead of worry.

DISCLAIMER: Do you know who God is? Do you trust God? Do you have faith in God that he is our Creator? If you said “no” to any of these questions, start by learning more about Him. Knowing and understanding God’s character leads to complete trust in Him. Sometimes it is difficult to depend on (and give your worries to) someone you don’t already trust.

DISCLAIMER: I am not helping you forget about important issues in your life. I am helping you learn how to NOT let the issues control your thoughts and your actions. For example: It’s okay to think about how to complete a project, but instead of worrying about the end result, just concentrate on what you can do this hour or what you can do today. Tomorrow will eventually come and you can start working on it again then.

Here is a little more I’ve learned about worry:

-“Do not be concerned with the impression you leave on other people, be concerned with the impression you leave on God.” (A. W.) No more worrying about what others think of your clothing, your hairstyle, your imperfections, the way you do things, etc. God made you the way you are.

-Are you always worrying about money? Stop now! Ask God to take this worry away. When we trust in the Lord, he always provides for our needs.

-Are you worried about your marriage or your relationships? Have you let God be a part of them at all?

-Are you worried about the way you are raising your children? God wants us to expand his kingdom. Give this worry to God. Focus on teaching your children about God. Maybe do devotion with them every night. Give them Godly discipline. Have family prayer times scheduled. Let them know what God is doing in your life.

(All of these topics really require their own full blog, but for now I am sticking to a small paragraph for each. ) :)

When God is your focus instead of worry: He will help you through hard times (yes, there will still be difficult times in your life). You will have clothing to wear. You will have food to eat. You will have money to pay your bills (everyone will have different amounts-how much God knows you need). You will have rest. You will have the energy you need to accomplish you life’s tasks. Your life plans will be complete. When things don’t go your way, they will still not be burdensome…

ALL WHEN YOU MAKE GOD THE FOUNDATION IN YOUR LIFE.