Free to Go

The other day Jane Taylor was walking around the playroom with a pink blanket. She kept putting it over head, pretending to hide, and thinking it was wildly funny whenever she reappeared from under it’s cover. Like any fearless child, she took the game to a new level by putting the blanket over her head and instead of just sitting there, she began to walk. She did this over and over again, allowing herself to move blindly around the room without a worry of if she would bump into anything, or trip over something. She just went – trusting that I was there to guide her and move her along the way. Which, OF COURSE, I did. Her only job was to laugh.  

While she was walking around with no view of what was in front of her I found myself saying “I wish I could do that.” I wish I could walk forward not worrying about what I might run into up ahead. I wish I could do it with laughter instead of with fear. I wish I was as confident in the fact that someone is watching over me the same way I was watching over Jane Taylor in that particular moment.  

The thing is God calls us to do this very act every single day. He is always asking us to move forward, without being able to see what comes next. Not only is He asking us to move, He is asking us to trust Him along the way. To know that if we fall down, He will pick us back up. If we get hurt, He will heal our wounds. If something blocks our path, He will redirect us to another one. He wants us to take steps blindly, full of trust, in the direction He is calling us to go.

 In the book of Genesis, Noah is asked by God to grab his family, some animals, and to hop on an ark. Just get on an ark, float around for a while, and one day you will send out a bird, it wont return, then you can get off. Sounds pretty simple. Right? But what do you think Noah thought during that time? Do you think he had moments of fear? Do you think he ever worried when a week went by, it was still raining and they were still floating along? Or did he have so much faith and trust in God’s plan that he was able to sit back and not worry with each day that passed where he was surrounded by water?

My word for 2019 is trust. I want to be able to put my full trust in God and His plan for me. It is something I know I should do – but being a person who likes to be in control I’ve had a real hard time handing that job completely over to Him. Especially when God’s plan and mine don’t match up. He has never failed me and I know that He won’t. Knowing it, and believing it are two very different things.

My prayer is that we will all be able to walk confidently through each day knowing that the Lord is in control. That even the messy parts of His plan for us are perfect. That through the good and the bad He is shaping us to help be a light in His kingdom. That we are free to go forward, blanket over our head and all, because He will always guide us along.

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” - Psalms 20:7 ESV

Are you listening?

Photo by GiventoLove on etsy.com

News flash! I am busy. So are you. So is your boss. Your dog even has a busy schedule. We live in a busy, crazy, non-stop world. A world that encourages us to do more, be more, earn more. I realize this is brand new information for most of you.

So, when I get a day where I have nothing on the schedule and could technically just relax…guess what happens… I fill it up with things to do and people to see. Even on a day of leisure, I still watch the clock, plan out each hour, and try to be home at a “decent” time. 

But, as we are often told, plans don’t always go as expected, and this particular day was no exception. I ran into Whole Foods to grab dinner around 4:00. I remembered thinking, “Ok, I will be home by 4:30 with plenty of time to check off a few items on the to-do list.” While wandering around the hot bar, trying to avoid the oh-so tempting mac & cheese, and searching for something Adam might want for dinner, I bumped into a dear friend that I hadn’t seen in months.

With the way we started to talk and the topics we began to cover, you would have thought we had never missed a beat – all while standing smack dab in the middle of the hot bar.  I mean, we were literally talking about universal health care and how the government is dropping the ball while holding our paleo, organic, overpriced (yet worth every penny) dishes.

I was so excited to see this friend, but I knew that once we started chatting, there was no way I would be home at 4:30 like originally planned.

Instead of letting the hands on the clock get to me like they normally would, I decided to just let it be. Everything that I needed to get done at home could wait until tomorrow.  Being in the moment was where I needed to be. So I sat down with my friend and just listened.

Sometimes all we need is to just be still and listen. We need to fend off the distractions of the world and be present. I think that’s the lesson God was trying to teach me that day. Not just with this particular friend, but with a lot of encounters I had that day. I had the time, so I needed to make that time count. Life doesn’t always have to be about staying on schedule. Life can be sporadic, yet still be intact.

It’s easy to miss the important moments. Some of the moments are with friends. Some of the moments are with family.  Some of the moments are with God.  It’s usually not on purpose, but staying focused on doing things our own way can cause us to miss what He is trying to say.

What would your life be like if you took just 5 minutes each day to listen to God? To have some time with just you and him? I have been asked this question before, and I will admit (although its absolutely horrible) that my first response (in my brain of course) was “I don’t have 5 minutes to spare”. Terrible. I know. But it’s the truth. 

So, now, I am challenging you… and myself… to take 5 minutes each day to listen to what God is trying to teach you or where he might be leading you. I try to complete at least one devotion a day in order to focus on His love for me. I have linked some of my favorite daily devotions below. 

No matter how you listen to Him, know that He is talking to you. He wants to be there to guide your path and answer your questions. He is love. 

Go-to Devotions

First 5 - an app that will wake you up (literally, it has an alarm) with a different devotion each day

Jesus Calling - A classic. I have both the app and the book. 

Savor - I can't say enough good things about this devotion. I love the way she challenges you and comforts you all at the same time. It also comes with recipes!