Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Change, and What I've been thinking

Last week was a week of many revelations for me. However, I must begin by giving credit where credit is due. I recently finished "Pathway to Purpose" by Katie Brazelton. It's a book about aligning your hopes, dreams, and unique giftings with the will of God, so that you can begin operating in the purpose for which you were expressly created by God. I've been thinking about what my unique "mission" might be in life - what great big, important thing I could be doing for God. I've been praying for nearly a slid 2 years that God would reveal His will for my life. I've even talked to several people about how I felt like my "something big" was just on the horizon, a hazy shadow of a picture that I could almost put my finger on, but not quite. I've asked for prayers and advice from many trusted friends and all I've gotten are answers that leave me scratching my head, wondering: "Is that it, seriously. That's all you've got."

Well, the revelation I got this week was really just what everyone has been saying to me my whole life.

ONE - start where you are. If I am not faithful in the little things, in the humble beginning I which I currently find myself, it's foolish to think that God would move me into some bigger role. See, I've been a mother since April 1994, and for as long as I can remember I have thought of myself as "just a mom.". And, as such, I've been looking for the great big, important thing that's just around the bend.

HELLO!!! I AM A MOTHER!!! Really, what more important job is there in the world than the preparation of a young person for entry into the world as a n honorable, contributing, Jesus-loving member of society, equipped for living successfully in the eyes of God!? And here I am, here I have been, looking for my purpose! DUH!

TWO - surrender. I must be willing to surrender my own plan for my life to Gods plan for me and be willing to follow Him obediently WHEREVER He leads me, even if - and maybe, especially if - it's not what I wanted or what I thought I wanted.

THREE - a little less talk, a lot more action. Regardless of whether or not I am currently operating in a grand mission in service to The King, there are still things I can do. For instance, on my Pinterest page, I found a pin that touched a spark in me. I immediately thought, I could do that. I should do that. That thing: blessing bags for the homeless. A gallon zipper-closed, plastic Baggie that contains various personal hygiene items, snacks, and such. I found that Pin a few months ago. Want to know what I've done about it? Yup, you guessed it! Not a thing!

Another thing I've been thinking about is sponsoring a child through Compassion International. After all , my oldest son sponsors a child on the money he makes working, FOR TIPS, as a bagger at the commissary.

For the last few months, on these very pages, I have talked, at great length, about how WE, as Christians, could be doing so much more to alleviate the suffering in the world. Yet here I am being shown up by my 17-year-old. WHAT??!!

So, why this post? Well, this week, my family's challenge for Lent was to write a blog post about what we think needs changing and what we intend to do about it. What I have decided needs changing is ME! More specifically, what needs changing is my actions. How can I get on here, posting blog after blog about things needing to be different without doing anything about it? You can't lead someone by pushing them from behind. You can't lead someone by standing in front of them, trying to pull them along. All any of us can do is what we've been told by God and leave he results to Him. Beyond that, I can only do what I've been given and you all can only do what you've been given.

Starting today, I AM going to be the change I want to see in the world. That's my challenge.

What's yours?

No comments:

Post a Comment