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Category: trusting Him

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Isn’t it true that all hell breaks loose on Sunday morning when you’re trying to get the family to church on time? None of us wants to bicker with the spouse or threaten the children through clenched teeth…but it happens. The enemy wants to be sure that we are completely wound up and distracted when we get to church.

It happened to us this past Sunday. One of the worst yet!  There were some heated exchanges in the car and lots of tears.

Later in the day, after the cold silence wore off, I really wanted to talk about what happened. My hubby wasn’t ready. The Lord prompted me to be quiet and wait for a better time to talk. It was really hard! The old me would have pressed and trampled on my husband’s heart…but I gave him time and space to think things through.

Meanwhile, however, I kept stewing on things. I became so self-righteous while creating my long list of wrongs against me. While falling asleep that night, and when I woke Monday morning, it was all I could think about. Rehearsing what I would say and do consumed me.

In the midst of my stewing, the Lord spoke to my heart and showed me something new. When I get upset about something, the enemy often works to convince me that it is SO urgent that I must talk about it and work it out immediately. God reminded me that I have a lifetime to work out some of the recurring issues in my marriage. Very few things are so urgent that I must press my husband to talk when he is not ready.  Knowing that the feelings of urgency were coming from the enemy allowed me to stop and put my concerns in God’s hands. I finally had the willingness to trust Him and wait for the right time.

Later on Monday, I received an email from my husband with his thoughts on what happened on the way to church… and an apology. The very first thing he wrote was about how grateful he was that I gave him space! That was the hardest part, but clearly the most valuable. In the end, I received the communication from him that I wanted. Not by pressing him, but by backing off.

This lesson about false urgency is so valuable to me. When I am overcome with emotions and concerns about something, I really need to go to God and lay it all out before Him. If it truly is urgent, then He will confirm that for me. Otherwise, I will wait on Him and proceed with loving caution.

By Posted on Posted in God's word, hearing God, trusting Him No Comments

God has really been impressing on me the importance of listening to Him. My girls and I are studying the Life of David via my Chronological Bible. I am so impressed with the way that David listened to God. He really tuned in to what God was saying.

God speaks in so many ways. Through others, through the Bible, through circumstances, music, literature, nature, and also through the gentle and quiet voice of His Spirit. We just have to be attentive.

In the past week, God has spoken to me so much. I doubt it’s more than usual… I think I’m just listening more! Two specific situations stick out that I want to share.

My husband has been under immense stress of late. God has blessed his business beyond what we imagined and there is much work to do. I have tried to make suggestions about how to reduce his stress, but he wasn’t quite hearing me. One morning I was thinking about what to say to him before he left for work (at 6:00 a.m.). Suddenly, I sensed the Lord telling me to get out a piece of paper and write my husband a note. I couldn’t believe how clearly all of my thoughts came together and how concise it was. I gave it to him and he ran off to work.

He came home that afternoon and told me that the office manager had just called him into her office and told him many of the same things that were in my letter. I had no idea she was going to do that! She insisted on a couple of things that I was also very upfront about in my letter.

I was so blessed. I really felt like I was going out on a limb… I didn’t want to tell my husband what to do, especially in regard to his business. The Lord used both me and the office manager to tell my husband what was on His heart. My hubby received it as a word from the Lord, and it drew us together in a way that I did not expect.

I had another moment this week as I was looking at a picture of a butterfly. The Lord spoke to me these words:  You are the wing.

What?  Was that you, Lord?  Has my recent sleep deprivation and slight dehydration affected my mind? Where did this random thought come from? Why won’t it go away?

Sometimes, God speaks in abstract ways. I spent some time going back to Him to make sure it was His voice. I tried to analyze it. I tried to suppose what it meant. I started to panic and wonder if I could really trust myself to hear Him.  I thought back to past situations when I misheard or misunderstood His word to me. I was a mess… and had to text a friend as I sobbed in the el pollo loco drive thru. (Strange, I admit, but it was my only time alone the whole week!!)

I wrestled for a bit and decided on letting it go and waiting for God to show me what it meant. Those of you with different personalities might wonder why it took me an entire day to get there… but I am a work in progress!

A few days later, I ran into a friend at church and she drew me aside to ask a question. She wondered if I would be available to help her with something. At that moment… I knew what it all meant. God wants me to be a wing and bear some of the responsibilities and burdens with this friend and another friend that is closely involved. It’s a pretty minor thing now, but God has revealed the potential for our venture, and I am excited!

What a blessing to hear Him, and then understand. I was relieved to get some insight in only a few days. The Lord has spoken to me before, and it has taken long periods of time to bring it all to fruition so that I could see and understand. Waiting is the hardest part, don’t you agree?

What is God saying to you this week? Are you listening? Write down what He says, ask all of your questions, make all of your excuses, and then surrender. Lay it down. Let Him handle it. He will provide ALL that is needed. He will open ALL of the doors. He will teach you ALL that you need to know. He will carry you ALL the way!

“You will weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you.    And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide Himself any more, but your eyes will constantly behold your Teacher.    And your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way; walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left. Isaiah 30:19-21

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It’s been an interesting week.  Swimming upstream again, I’m afraid. After a few days of feeling like giving up (on everything) I needed the Lord to speak truth to me. What in the world was my problem??

Faithful as He is… the Lord answered straight away. He sent me to a certain passage in my bible, and I knew right away it was something I had already read recently. Irritated and impatient, I turned the pages wondering why we were going back there.

As soon as I read the words, I remembered. Ah, yes. We WERE here last week. The Lord had spoken some things to my heart through this particular passage. I remember feeling anxious about what He laid on my heart that morning. I wasn’t sure how to react… so I went with dismissal. I didn’t receive what He shared with me. I pushed it aside.

Somehow a week went by, and I guarded my heart from Him each day. Oh sure, I got up and read my bible each morning, but I closed up my heart. True, I prayed each day for help, for guidance, for freedom. But the walls were there.

I read these verses this morning, and they spoke to me so clearly:

Those who are far from You, Lord, will perish….But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge.”   Psalm 73:27-28

The first part of this verse is very likely speaking primarily of salvation. Those that are far from God will perish eternally rather than be with Him in heaven. Although I am saved and do not need to worry about an eternity away from Him, I do need to see the effects of the unconscious decision to guard my heart from Him.

I was feeling it after a week. I was far from Him, and I felt as though I was perishing. Melting emotionally and struggling spiritually. It is good…really SO much more than good for me to be near God. To open up my heart to Him and share the fear, concern, anger, frustration, or whatever else is occupying my heart and mind. It is good to stay close to Him.

The last part of the verse gave me a new perspective. Like the Psalm writer, I made a decision to make the Sovereign Lord my refuge. When you see the word Sovereign in the Old Testament, the actual Hebrew word there is often Adonai, which means “Lord and Master”.

So often, I run from the Sovereign Lord instead of seeking refuge in Him. I see the power that He has over me as my Lord, and I worry that He will lead me down thorny paths. I allow fear to rule my heart.

A decision to find refuge in the Sovereign Lord is one that acknowledges that He is the One leading and guiding my life. He is the One that will make decisions for me. He is the One that I will follow. When I find refuge in Him in dark hours, I am clinging to the One that led me to the difficult place I’m in. How perfect that He should be the One to protect me!

I believe that He is good. Always good. I believe that He is loving. The most loving of all. I need to remember that whatever He permits me to go through is the most loving and good thing that I need at the time.

I don’t understand all of the things that He shared with me last week. However, I am making a conscious choice to trust Him rather than distance myself from Him. I taking refuge in the Sovereign Author-of-my-life-story Lord. No matter what He has planned, I am safe in the shadow of His wings.