“The heart of man plans his way,
but the LORD establishes his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (ESV)
I can do everything I know to plan and prepare,
but in the end, the result is not up to me.
I need to pray and seek wisdom and be a diligent steward of the gifts and talents God has blessed me with,
but in the end, GOD is all powerful and nothing happens to me that He doesn’t will or allow.
Sometimes He allows stuff I don’t particularly like.
Sometimes He works a miracle in the middle of an impossible situation.
Remember. God is Sovereign.
When you live grounded in that truth, the pressure to force circumstances is lifted. When you are confident that God is in control, you can experience peace in the middle of trial.
Ask God to help you practice His presence in your moments and your days. Ask Him to help you make wise decisions as you strive to be a good steward of your relationships, your time, your body, your money and your stuff. Love God and Love others.
Don’t stay still, waiting for Him to say GO.
Take the first step and stop if He says “no.”
When PinkGirl and I go to Disney, we often pray and look for opportunities to “speak life” to the people God places in our path.
I wish I could say “always” instead of “often” but I can’t.
Sometimes we forget. Sometimes we are obliviously self-involved.
But not today.
I posted this on facebook last night:
“I was reminded again tonight.
Everybody is #justadifferentkindofbroken
Sometimes, it’s all I can do NOT to abandon “appropriate” surface conversation and take someone by the hand, lead them to a quite corner, look them in the eye, and ask, “How are you, REALLY?” and really SEE them and LISTEN to them.
PinkGirl and I are going to Magic Kingdom tomorrow. Already praying we recognize God’s prompting when he nudges us to encourage the person or people He places in our path. yeah. we know we’re weird. but we’ve almost come to terms with that. #seepeople #edify #loveGodloveothers”
A friend commented:“Sometimes takes multiple conversations and kind gestures before someone will share. Trust is a big thing when you share your stuff. And you have to make sure that someone will walk through it with love and kindness.”
I responded this morning:
“I’m willing to put in the time. Since I asked God to break my heart for what breaks his, I have been amazed – and blessed – at how many times He’s equipped me to step out of my comfort zone and reach out to people – to see them and listen to them – in love, with no judgement.
In the beginning, I was blown over when someone – friend or stranger – shared something deeply personal, but now, it’s happened so many times that when I pray for God to show me who He wants me to reach out to, I already know He will.
“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24
I pray most of all for the Holy Spirit to nudge me, not only for the who, but the when. I also pray that He won’t let me miss the opportunity out of fear or oblivion.
Strangely, He nudges me OFTEN in a Disney waiting line. Strangers to friends in the time it takes to meet a princess.
Today, I find myself thinking I need to offer to pray for someone. Not sure if He’ll prompt me to do it, but if He does, I pray He’ll bless me with the courage and motivation to be immediately obedient.”
PinkGirl and I see Disney as one of our many mission fields.
Our mission is not to “save” people, but to serve people.
Our prayer is that, through whatever interaction we’ve had with them, someone might be drawn closer to Christ.
It’s not our job, it’s our prayer.
I know we risk ridicule and rejection, be we don’t hide our faith in these interactions. If the natural flow of conversation leads us to share something about our lives with someone, it’s not uncommon that we acknowledge our dependance on God and His influence on our lives.
So, if someone who wasn’t thinking about God and spiritual things before spending time with us, begins or continues to think about God and spiritual things after spending time with us, then our prayer was answered with a big YES.
Even if we never know it.
This is our Disney theme song:
(I love that the person speaking life in this video is a little blonde girl.)
Remember:
