Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: A prophet to the nations— that's what I had in mind for you."
Life has been extraordinarily busy these past 6 weeks. I love this time of year because I get to travel around and encourage leaders to reach their communities with God's love during the summer months. There's something that energizes me when I get to inspire others. I love that God created me to do this. I do believe using this gift is part of God's plan for me.... but... somewhere in this busy season a thought was planted in my mind that I think more of myself than I should, that my God given gifts are not what I think they are and that I don't have any substance in my life. Those statements rattled around in my brain for a couple of weeks and I didn't dismiss them. At first, I was reminding myself of who God says I am, but the concept of God's plan for me became fainter and fainter. And to top it all off, my body has been racked with pain due to illness and, I didn't just feel like it...I was actually losing my footing.
Last night, I was shuffling through these thoughts and three words came to mind: empty, barren and fruitless. I started to go through my life's check list and there was a reason to check every item on my list when it came to each of these words. For some reason, I found holes in each part of my life-physically, relationally, financially, spiritually, emotionally, and everything else. When I woke up this morning, I felt so bogged down and hopeless, wondering how I could escape this day. But I do what I do each day-do what's on my to do list. I landed at my 7 am meeting and went through the motions of smiling and acting like I had my act together. A woman from our gathering looked directly in my eyes and reinforced this verse to me. She quietly spoke into my heart and began to do a little CPR into my soul. After the meeting was concluded, another member put his hand on mine and shared an encouraging word that I do believe was from the heart of God.
I'm so very very thankful for a Heavenly Father who is an encourager and full of grace. Everything isn't fixed...there's still some healing to take place-in my body, my mind and my soul. But I am so grateful to have friends who sense the heart of God and have the courage to speak what He puts on their hearts. I'll be praying Psalm 23 in the near future.
God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing. You have bedded me down in lush meadows, you find me quiet pools to drink from. True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction. Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I'm not afraid when you walk at my side. Your trusty shepherd's crook makes me feel secure. You serve me a six-course dinner right in front of my enemies. You revive my drooping head; my cup brims with blessing. Your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life. I'm back home in the house of God for the rest of my life.
