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April 2016 April 2016 – In The Wright Direction

Month: April 2016

Hang Onto The “But”

Don’t you just love a good “but?” Every beloved story has one…Snow White ate the poisoned apple, but love’s first kiss was able to wake her from the queen’s spell.  Rocky seemed destined to lose, but at the last second, he stood up and conquered the Russian, Ivan Drago.  It’s unbelievable how one small word can make such a big difference.

Webster’s defines “but” as being “used to introduce something contrasting with what has already been mentioned.”  Quite simply, it means something is about to change.  It means things ain’t over yet!

I’ve been reading through the book of Acts and in God’s perfect timing reached chapter 12 where I got to see just how powerful a “but” can be – especially when God is the author of the story!  King Herod recently had James put to death and when he saw how popular it made him with the Jewish people, he became determined to persecute even more believers.  He arrested Peter with the intention of bringing him to trial after the Passover.  It seemed Peter was doomed to the same fate as James but

The night before the trial, Peter was sleeping chained between two guards (can you imagine the faith required to sleep?) when an angel woke him.  The chains fell off his wrists and he was able to simply follow the angel out of prison and into freedom.  This story gets me fired up every time, but this time, God showed me the importance of what was happening between Peter’s imprisonment and his release.

Acts 12:5 says, “So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.”

I’ve been struggling with a situation with one of my children and I am hanging onto that “but” like a life preserver.  That “but” meant Peter’s story wasn’t over.  It means my child’s story isn’t over either. “But” brought us to the part of the story where we get a glimpse of the prince on the white horse, a vision of change on the way.  But it’s what’s on the other side of the “but” that made the difference…”the church was earnestly praying to God for him.”

That is where you and I can claim our hope and peace when we feel imprisoned by circumstances beyond our control.  The same hope and peace that allowed Peter to sleep when his life was on the line is available to each of us as believers when we hit our knees in prayer.

“My child is going through a hard time, but her Mama is earnestly praying to God for her.”

“Yes, my soul, find rest in God: my hope comes from him.”  Psalm 62:5

While Waiting To Be Healed

“But we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”  Romans 5:3-5

Those who know me, know I’ve been praying for a physical healing.  But somewhere along the way, I’ve been given something much better…a spiritual healing.

Seven months ago, I was the healthiest of my adult life.  Working out had become a fun and important part of my day so when I injured my back and needed surgery, it felt like someone slammed on the brakes and placed me on the sidelines of my own life.  Since then, my back has healed right on schedule, but the resulting nerve damage continues to keep me from doing some of the things I love.  I don’t have feeling in a large portion of my left foot so running, jumping and skills that require balance are on hold for now.  Nerves take time to heal and that’s frustrating for this impatient girl to accept.

Sometimes spiritual healing takes time as well but often the healing comes through the waiting process itself.  In my case, I didn’t even realize I needed spiritual healing until God got my attention physically.  He used a difficult time to pull me close and show me what I’d so easily overlooked when everything was going my way.  As crazy as it may sound, I’m actually thankful for my back injury and everything that’s come with it.

God hears and answers our prayers but those answers can be hard to recognize if we don’t ask for grace to see through His perspective.  Blessings often come disguised as setbacks instead of opportunities for growth.  I’d spent the weeks leading up to my injury praying for God to make me a tougher Christian, one who doesn’t give up so easily or back down because I’m afraid I won’t measure up.  Overcoming my physical obstacles with God by my side has done just that; I’m now stronger in every way!

Not only am I stronger, I’m more compassionate, I’m getting more patient (against my will) and I trust God more than ever before.  I’ve seen that regardless of what happens in this life, HE is all I need to get through.  He’s provided all the grace, encouragement and assurance I need and I know He always will.

God takes what we would never choose and turns it into what we would never want to do without!

Don’t get me wrong, I still have the occasional pity party.  I still see my limitations each time I’m faced with something I’m not yet able to do, but those limitations look small next to God’s provision and all He’s teaching me.  God is the Great Physician but we must keep in mind, He is far more interested in healing our hearts for eternity than healing our very temporary bodies.

Whatever you’re struggling with, pray for the grace to see through God’s perspective.  Allow Him to heal you spiritually and use what seems like a setback to make you more like Jesus.  I’d love the chance to pray for you…email or message me and I will do just that!

Thanks for taking the time to read what God has been doing in my life!

Come On In!

Welcome to my new website!  While I enjoyed my old site location, it kind of felt like renting and this feels like “home sweet home.”  I could never have done this without my good friends Trey and Christie Dedman.  Christie for encouraging me when I was too chicken to venture out and Trey for building my site and never laughing (at least not out loud) at my enormous lack of techiness.

It’s been a while since I’ve written and I’m both excited and nervous.  Thanks for sticking with me and joining me for the journey!

Also, if you’ve received my posts by email in the past or would like to begin doing so, I need you to enter your email address in the subscribe button to the right.  You can also connect with me on Facebook.

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