"The joy of the Lord is your strength." ~ Nehemiah 8:10
God keeps putting that one in my head. Been tossing it around trying to really understand what it means. I think today I have finally begun to get it. I've learned so much these last few months....it's hard to sort it all out and put words to it. The biggest thing I've learned so far is that with God I can have peace. True peace. And joy. Not the kind of joy that you get with a new car or a new whatever thing that makes you happy. The kind of joy you get when things are not going well, when you find yourself in a dark valley. You are able to smile through it and stay CALM knowing that God has it all planned out and is working ahead of you for your good. Now that's what I'm talkin' about.
I'm coming out of a valley....headed back up the mountain. God has been with me all the way. Teaching me, showing me, "cleaning out" my heart and helping me see how things should be. It's exciting, scary, fun and exhausting.
My journey to finding my true self is on-going, but I finally see pieces of the real me coming out. Things I want to share with others and I've started to realize that I am fully capable of making a lasting impression on this world for the better. God gave me gifts and talents and He is showing me who to share them with. I'm letting Him choose and make those choices and, boy, is that a ton easier! He knows their hearts and He knows their intentions. He's a pretty good "wing man"! :)
As you know, I am a very impatient person....I believe I have described myself as having the patience of a flea. That's getting easier too. I have always wanted to know how the story ends before I start reading it. I realized, with the help of a very good, smart friend, that if I know how it ends, I either won't go through it or will "prepare to lessen the pain" and miss the blessing God has planned. So....for the first time EVER....I started a new book and am all the way to chapter 7 and haven't even THOUGHT about looking at the end! God is so good. :0)
JC is my BFF....
