“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
  
“So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?’ or `What shall we drink?’ or `What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:25-34

I think that worry is the natural tendency when things aren’t going the way that is culturally acceptable or when things aren’t going the way that we think they should be going which reverts back to culture. However, worry is the very thing that can distract us from hearing the still small voice of God. Worry (and fear) cause us to make rash decisions that can be contrary to the will of God, pushing us further from our purpose and goals.
There have been times in my life that I have known God’s Word, but have looked around and thought…hmmmm, God are you really taking care of us like the birds of the air and lilies of the field? You start to compare your life to the lives of others. You listen to the sometimes outright, sometimes subtle judgmental comments of others. You look at your life and see what you don’t have instead of what you do have.
I have blogged a lot about trusting God in trying times, but I feel that at this time in our nation that it is a very important topic and one that we, personally, have been walking out daily. Sometimes when going through similar situations and needing encouragement, the positive words of another who has or is traversing the road less traveled is a breath of fresh air. God will give you what you need to get through what you are going through. Stay the course. You were created to overcome: ”For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” Deut 20:4
Your enemies can be anything that keeps you from God’s purpose in your life. For us, it was certain ways of thinking, certain decisions we had made, some fears that we were dealing with, and certain relationships that were in need healing. If you allow Him, God will fight all of this with you. The battle may be ugly and painful as “things” and sometimes people are sheered away, but the victory and restoration is guaranteed and full of joy and peace.
My husband and I prayed for years that my husband would find what he was “suppose to be when he grew up.” He didn’t have purpose and nothing seemed to fit. He worked a job that he didn’t enjoy and that left him ultimately unfulfilled. He kept plugging away for many reasons, but mainly because it was a source that was providing for the family. He was paid very well, had a lot of power within the company, and drove a $60,000 company paid vehicle. The economy started to turn and my husband decided to start job hunting. He had interviewed with over 40 companies within the course of a year several of them looking very promising. He was only offered one job that paid a mere $20,000 as a salesman in which during the middle of the interview the owner of the company was asking Sean for operational advice and different ways in which to grow his company. The owner clearly valued Sean’s expertise but a reasonable offer wasn’t made.
Job interview after job interview, the rejections came, and Sean’s self-confidence dwindled. This didn’t make any sense to me. My husband was very good at what he did despite his young age. I started realizing and telling Sean that I didn’t think God wanted him to go out and get a full-time job. I didn’t know what God had for him, but I didn’t think it was what he was trying to do. In the midst of the inner struggles, Sean decided to go back to school and finish his Bachelor’s degree. Sean started gaining confidence as he realized that this time around he was actually a good student versus when he “did” college in his late teens and early twenties.
Sean has always had a strong sense of justice and an interest in politics and law. He had pursued being a cop in his early twenties, but his course had been interrupted. I had been pulled over once for going 3 miles an hour over the speed limit on the way home from class in college. It probably didn’t help that I was in my husband’s sports car. The police man wasn’t very nice to me as he wrote out the ticket; I cried all the way home. By the time I got home, I was a mess. Sean was enraged. He looked at the ticket and then asked again where I got pulled over. He responded with a “hmmmm…” and then told me to get in the car. We drove about 20 minutes to where I was pulled over. He got out and took pictures of the spot and the mile marker. He got back in the car and said, “We are fighting this one. He put the wrong county on the ticket. There is a discrepancy.” I filled out the ticket to inform the court that I would be fighting the charges and sent it in. There was a place to mark if I wanted a jury or not. I wasn’t quite sure what to put so I checked ‘yes’.
The day for court arrived. I was pretty nervous…well, outright scared. He assured me that he would handle it all and that I would not hardly have to talk at all. He had all his evidence gathered and was looking forward to the day. He even told me that the case would probably be dismissed as the state trooper more than likely wouldn’t show up to a case for a ticket that was only 3 miles over the limit. Sean was wrong on several accounts.
The court was in a very, very small town. We arrived to find a court room full of people. We were a bit late because we couldn’t read the officers handwriting and went to the wrong location. Several of the jury members were highly irritated that they had to show up for a court case for a speeding ticket. One of them even voiced that I should just pay the ticket like everyone else. I looked over to the left, and there sat the state trooper who had issued the ticket along with the Assistant District Attorney. We took our seats. Sean was excited, and I wanted to throw up.
The next step was jury selection; Sean thought this was the coolest of all. He went to ask his question, and the judge immediately stopped him. He said that he was representing me, and she said not unless he was a licensed attorney. I had a right to defend myself, but other than that it had to be a licensed attorney. I thought I was going to die right there in the court room. I passed on jury selection. The ADA stood on her turn and questioned the jury as if she was prosecuting a murder trial.
We took a short break, and the jury left the room. Sean asked if he could speak. The judge agreed. Sean explained that we really weren’t familiar with the process, but that the ticket was not valid. He argued that the mile marker and the county didn’t exist together and that the ticket was invalid. She gave a frustrated look in the direction of the confused state trooper and dismissed the charges immediately due to a technicality. She was blatant in her dissatisfaction with the officer. As the paperwork was being completed, Sean excitedly asked the state trooper what it was like to be a cop because he had always thought about going that direction. The officer had to choke out his response.
Years later, we still roll over laughing at these events. But it is events like this one that make me confident that he has found his passion. Once Sean had gained some confidence in regards to education, he began to believe that he could really reach his dream of becoming a lawyer or working in some capacity in the field of law, politics, and justice. Sean grew up barely passing and with little to no encouragement in his academic abilities. I asked him about a month ago why he didn’t pursue law when he first went to college, and he told me that he just didn’t have the confidence to do it back then and had never been encouraged to chase his dreams. If you are a parent, be very careful what you speak into the life of your children whether they are now a child or even an adult. You have to power to cause them to be a success or a failure. If you are a teacher or in any area of influence in the lives of children, the same applies. Every single word that you speak into them whether realized or not is a seed planted in their heart and mind. It could take years or even a lifetime to reverse the negative affects.
Many have questioned Sean’s decision to not seek a full-time job and chase after his dream. He has been told that he should think about his family first and be a provider. Together, we have stood firm on the path that he has chosen. For we know that the path that may be right or acceptable for both is not the path for all. We have learned that in knowing and following in the purpose that God has for you that it is not necessarily what others would chose for you or even understand why you are doing it. Isaiah 55: 8-9 says

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Know God’s will for you life and stand firm. Do not be swayed by the negativity or lack of belief in others. Not many can understand or even encourage you in the work that God is doing in you. We have experienced it first hand. However, we cling to the people who speak life into us. We follow God’s peace. We rely completely on Him for all things. We embrace the process and know that He is strengthening character through the trials and hurdles. We see struggles as future testimonies to God’s amazing grace. We delight in challenge as it is another opportunity for God to show up and for us to spread His goodness and glory.
For those that have been following the last couple of blogs that started with "Our Christmas Blessing", we started to think about January finances this morning and grinned at each other knowing that God was already taking care of it. I received a call this afternoon from a lady interested in attending my boot camp. She said that she saw an ad in the paper. I stuttered through the phone call very confused. As soon as the call ended, I picked up the paper that came in the mail that morning, flipped through the pages, and saw the write up on my boot camp. I had no idea that this was going to be in the paper. In fact, the only people that knew that I would be continuing after the first of the year were the 3 women already in the boot camp because they had asked me if we could continue. I received 4 phone calls just this afternoon in regards to the boot camp. Free advertising in a local newspaper for a boot camp that no one knew about…..another way that God provides and proves Himself faithful. Again today, I cried tears of joy at the overwhelming love that I felt. When you stand firm…when you allow yourself to be unmoved…YOU MOVE THE HEART OF GOD. He loves you unconditionally, and He is looking for ways to bless you and show you His love when He finds you in a position to recognize that it is all from Him.


Glory Lily
God values you more than the lily above yet look at how much beauty radiates from this lily.