Today we celebrate our country’s birthday, our independence
day. What does this mean to you? For me, birthdays are a way to celebrate
life, new beginnings. I wonder if the 56 men that signed the signed
the Declaration of Independence realized the magnitude of greatness that was
taking place.
Sadly, I think many of us get focused on our own independence. Rarely do we reach out to others. We fall into the pit of isolation and even
self righteousness. We even try to be
our own Savior. Of course, we never say
this aloud.
Jeremiah
17:5-8
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who draws strength from mere flesh
and whose heart turns away from the Lord.
That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;
they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives.
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who draws strength from mere flesh
and whose heart turns away from the Lord.
That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;
they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives.
But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in him.
They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”
whose confidence is in him.
They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”
As the season of drought crept in, I forgot who I was. I tried to trust in my own strength for so
long, but I couldn’t live up to my expectations. I kept choosing to continue drinking,
instead of choosing to trust in God. I was so focused on easing my pain. I
forgot that the great physician was the one that could not only ease my pain, but
show me how to ease the stress that was causing all the pain.
Every breath can be a new beginning if we let it. I see God using the powerful tool of
journaling to speak to me. I will admit I
had no desire to start this process. I
rebelled. I felt that it was a waste of
time; I can justify with the best of them. So often I justify an area of my life, that I’m
not quite ready to let go of. “Every man’s way is right in his own eyes.”
(Proverbs 21:2) The very moment that I became
open and started seeking His heart, the words just started flowing. I couldn’t stop them. Notice, I didn’t say the moment I sat down. My
heart wasn’t right. I was still trying
to do it on my own.
The truth of the
matter is when we draw close to HIM, He draws close to us (James 4:8). There is freedom that comes when we realize
that the Lord is all we need. I think He’s
waiting for me to really start taking Him seriously, taking Him at His
word. I’m starting to see things in a
different light and even wonder why it’s taken me so long to get here.
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