God Is In Charge

Last night I was reminded once again that God absolutely is in charge. You know the saying, "Man plans and God laughs"? That definitely applied to me yesterday. I had committed to a business trip last minute that would take me out of town Tuesday night through Thursday afternoon of this week. For some reason, I didn't have a good feeling about it but I chose to ignore that feeling and kept forging ahead. God reached in along the way as I planned, trying to give me indications the timing was not right. Every time I tried to make the airline reservation, the computer would time out. Then when I finally got through to the site in a back door way, the airfare had increased. Not a lot, but enough to make me think. I decided to still move forward.

God reached in again to cause me to question my plans. My daughter became ill Monday and by late Tuesday afternoon, it was unclear she was going to school today. To complicate matters, both my husband and I were traveling so where I thought I covered the bases and had each of my girls staying with friends, it now appeared one of us would have to cancel our trip to stay home with Jenny. We talked and my husband graciously offered to change his plans if need be but again that gnawing feeling came through which I chose to ignore.

Well, God decided that if wasn't going to respond to his subtle nudging, He'd have to take more drastic measures. When I got to the airport last night, my flight had been delayed which meant I wouldn't make my connecting flight. They tried to get me on an earlier flight but their computer kept timing out. Once they got through that, the attendant needed an override which we had to wait a few minutes for. When the supervisor came over to enter the override, he said we're now too late to book that flight, we had just missed it by a "few" minutes! I now was beginning to sense I really was not supposed to go on this trip. The final answer came when my only option was to fly out in the morning but that would cause me to miss half of the meeting. Yes God, I heard you. For whatever reason, I am not supposed to go on this trip.

While I was disappointed I wouldn't make the meeting, I did feel comforted in knowing that God is there providing us signs all the time on what direction we should take. It's our decision whether or not to follow those signs. What was even more comforting was the reassurance that God will step in and make sure we're on the right path. He truly is there to protect us when we open our heart to Him.

A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps - Proverbs 16:9

God is in Our Silence

I was just reading something this morning that reminded me that God exists in our silence. All that has ever been created first emerged from silence. It is in the silence that life can takes form just like the notes in a symphony. Without the silence between the notes, we'd experience chaos and noise. It is in the silence that life and meaning are given to those notes.

The same holds true for our lives. We must embrace silence to fully experience the symphony God has created for us. If we are constantly pressing forward allowing no time for silence, we lose the music. It's no wonder we wonder aimlessly about searching for our purpose and sense an emptiness yearning to be filled. God reveals His unique purpose for us in our silence for that is where He resides and creates. We just need to allow ourselves to be still and silent to personally experience the incredible symphony He has created for us.

Be still and know that I am God – Psalm 46:10

Why Me?

How many times have you uttered those words? Lately, I feel like I've been uttering them too much. When faced with struggles, it's easy to succumb to that mindset. You start wondering why this is happening, it is just happening to me, etc. and that starts to the cycle of dwelling on the problem rather then searching for a solution.

I just read something this morning from Rick Warren of the famed "The Purpose Driven Life" and he challenges us to not ask "Why me?" but instead to ask "What do I do with this, God?" Very powerful because in asking that question, you are automatically reaching within and focusing your thoughts on finding a solution.

God does not let things enter into our lives accidentally. While we may feel like the suffering at times is unbearable, there is a reason for our journey and that suffering is part of the journey to teach us and make us even stronger and more Christ like in the end. The next time you're feeling overwhelmed with a situation, stop and take the time to ask God what you need to do or learn from that situation. Have faith that God will indeed show you the way.

"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." (2 Corinthians 4:8–9)

The Power of a Smile

I never realized how powerful a smile could be until a random encounter last week. I took my daughter Jordan for a doctor’s appointment at Georgetown Hospital. The trip to Georgetown was not easy with stop and go traffic all the way in and stress levels rising as we watched our appointment time tick away while stranded in traffic.

Fortunately, the office was flexible and willing to still see us once we got there. We were quickly sent down to have x-rays taken. As we sat in a small room waiting to be called, I still felt so stressed from the ride in and then started thinking about all I had to do that day which only increased the stress level. I sat staring straight-ahead when this teenage boy, I’d guess to be about 14 years old, was wheeled around the corner. We instantly made eye contact and he immediately smiled at me. I smiled back but that moment will forever remain with me. This teen’s face was horribly disfigured. It wasn’t clear if he was badly burned or in a horrific accident but the injuries sustained were obviously very severe.

In light of that, he still managed to hold his head high and simply smile. He wasn’t going to let whatever had happened to him hold him back. So powerful!, This young teen found the strength and courage to move beyond his injuries and chose to be a light to the world.

How many of us choose to hide behind our problems rather than be that beacon of light to world? It’s amazing the power a simple smile can give. It reminds us that this world really is about kindness and love. We may spend our days stressing about everything else but when the day is done, none of that really matters. I feel so blessed by that encounter and he probably has no idea how important that smile was. I’m thankful he felt empowered to shine his inner light to world. Yes, a smile can change a life; he certainly changed mine!

Embracing Each Moment

We are told the greatest gifts of life come when we can learn to live in the moment but doing so, especially in today's world, seems almost impossible. We have so many things pulling for our time and attention that it is so hard to shut it off and only focus on what's right in front of us, right now.

I was reading something earlier last week when I suddenly felt an acknowledgement from within that true happiness comes when we learn to live in the moment and embrace everything about that moment. It's funny, I wasn't even reading anything about "living in the moment"; it was as if someone randomly whispered it in my ear. I suddenly understood why we should not worry about the past or future, they honesty mean nothing. The only thing we really truly have is the moment we are presently in and there is always goodness in some form within that moment. If nothing else, that moment is bringing us another breath to experience life.

We are closest to God when we live in the moment. God does not bring fear, doubt or anxiety – those are emotions we bring on to ourselves when we live outside of the moment. They are byproducts of our thinking about the past or the future and distract us from fully experiencing all the goodness of that moment. We can absolutely experience the fullness of God when we learn to live in and embrace the moments of our day and in turn, acknowledge His divine presence in our lives.

Be Ready For The Blessings

I was flipping through the channels the other night when I stumbled upon a new show hosted by Oprah on her OWN network. I can’t recall the name of the show but in true Oprah style, she said something within minutes of my tuning in that reached deep within.

“You have to be ready for the blessing when it shows up”. I felt her words reach deep to my core but wasn’t exactly sure what they meant. As I thought about it, I realized exactly what she meant and how timely it was for me to hear these very words. We’re often so busy planning ahead and looking towards our future that we don’t even recognize the blessings that are right in front of us each and every day. We keep moving forward failing to acknowledge the now and the blessings of the moment. The blessings continue to show up but we’re not ready or more likely, we’re not living in the moment to fully appreciate those blessings. We don’t expect the blessings so we don’t prepare for them.

The Bible has shown us that God has a multitude of blessings in store for us but we need to be fully aware and ready for them to show up. This doesn’t mean standing still and waiting for them to fall into our lap but rather being aware and thanking God for all those little blessings he sends our way each and every day!

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” - 2 Corinthians 9:8

It Takes Discipline of the Mind

I'm reading "Working with the Law" by Raymond Holliwell for the third time now. I absolutely love this book-every time I pick it up, I find new insights!

My latest "aha moment" is around discipline. Holliwell writes of this one woman, "She lacked discipline in her mind except where others demanded it." The moment I read that sentence it really clarified something I've been allowing in my life. I am disciplined in meeting everyone else's needs but when it comes to being accountable to my own tasks and needs, I fall short. My tendency is to give attention to whoever or whatever enters my mind at the moment versus taking planned disciplined steps towards completing something. No wonder I have so many personal projects half way done. Had these projects been for a client, they would have been done!

That little distinction between allowing myself to be disciplined to respond to others needs and not when it comes to my own is tremendous. It's exactly the nudge I needed to bring clarity around why I always feel busy but not getting anything done. I need to give as much attention and relevance to my own tasks and projects as I do for others. I can then take planned action and start getting these things done. I need to make room for my life and start treating myself like a client. Sure enough, once again the answer lies in changing your mindset!