"Life Was So Different This Time Last Year"

Because it was different, and it still can be, twice over,  this time, next year..

Because I  saw this quote on Instagram years ago and quickly assumed it would only apply to me if I experienced some major life change like getting married or having my first child.

...Because I was wrong.
 And life can be so different 365 days from now all because you took a step... you said yes - you went out on a limb..

I chuckled to myself when I heard someone say, "I had to break up with my fears; they wouldn't let me be great.."

Metaphor it may have been.. but real talk? Most definitely..

It may be different for you -
I had to break up with procrastination...busyness and faulty prioritization.

I had to be honest with myself, and I realized that it's one thing when you strive towards a vision for your life and you're not seeing results, but it's totally different when you're honestly not striving, you're honestly not trying.. you're just floating along, following all the rules, doing almost everything "right" - but you're settling... because you know there's more. It's different when for whatever reason, you've turned a deaf ear to some of God's suggestions..

I had to wrestle with what I believed God put in me as a child and began to give more attention to it. I had to take my eyes off of everyone else and ask myself if any works were being added to my faith..... if my actions really demonstrated that I believed God, for me?

Was I taking chances or lying down in the pit of mediocrity? 

Was I giving God something to work with or was I unreasonably committed to just sitting back and watching Him work?

***

Now --  I believe in the timing of God. I believe that all things (delays, denials, divine duties, and distractions) can be worked together for our good;  I believe that He orders the steps of those who belong to Him, and that your process is necessary for wherever you're headed... but to cooperate with your Heavenly Father, and respond - in real time, to the tugs on your heart, is crucial in aligning yourself with His will for your life.

One thing I've learned and continue to learn, time and time again...

... I can't expect things to turn around on the wrong side of obedience. I cannot ask God to repair, restore, and redeem what I have not surrendered. Not that He isn't a good God, and not that His sufficient grace doesn't spoil me from time to time, but real change.. like the one we ideally pray for, doesn't just appear without our surrender.

I can't run like Jonah, hide like Adam, and be too busy to spend time with the Lord like Martha, and expect REAL change.

I had to admit what I was avoiding and why I was avoiding it.

IT - being obedience.


I had to part with the shame of what was left unfinished and allow myself to begin again..
I had to respond to those tugs.. I had to obey.
I determined in my mind, that I would face my false starts and fake finishes -- "fake" finishes because they never do leave - you never really forget what you should be up to. If you're assigned to anything, it won't let up... you'll have to return at some point.

Revamp? Fine. But you will return.

***

Thank God for His grace, and the courage to continue..

Thank God for redemption... All. Things. New.

I think about the story of the Ten Lepers - how, "as they went, they were healed..." (Luke 17:11-16)

Their encounter with Jesus, the Healer, shows me two things.. 1- They knew who to go to for change..2. Once they obeyed the orders, to GO and show themselves to the priests, they were healed.

If there's just ONE thing 2014 taught me, it's that if you consider something missing, lacking, or broken...it may take movement on your part to recover all.., a decision to not avoid the assignments staring you directly in the face, to lay hold of that which has laid hold of you... those daily unctions given us by the Savior - the ones that say, "GO."

At some point we have to decide to be better stewards, to press towards the mark... for His glory and someone else's benefit. It doesn't pay to ignore tugs on your heart - but it does make sense to show our faith by our works -- to trust God, and take a leap...

And perhaps... just maybe, 1 year or 6 months from now, for no other reason than that YES in your heart, and the movement in your feet, you'll look up and realize  - - -

"Life was so different, this time last year..."

NO -  you haven't arrived, but life is not about arriving as much as it is staying in motion..
You're moving... you're well on your way, and you know what?

                                                  ... God is an awesome redeemer of time.

Say Yes.

XO

My sisters and I, shortly after we talked about our dreams.. what we were NOT doing, and what we could do individually and as a unit to further God's work in our lives. It called for sacrifice and discipline..It wasn't long before we implemented weekly prayer calls. Yikes!! on MERGING 4 schedules...  lol

We started writing, and God opened doors for us to share..

Good Day NY - #OnlyGod... You can't make this stuff up.

After Opening for Vashawn Mitchell at The Hubb.

After sharing at Church Without Walls, meeting Pastor Donnie McKlurkin and his sister, Andrea Mellini.

**** SCRIPTURE REFERENCES****

Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Ecclesiastes 7:8: "Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit."

Philippians 3:12: "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me."


Psalm 18:32-33: "It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights."

Philippians 3:14: "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

John 15:14: "You are my friends if you do what I command."

Romans 8:28: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."