Morning Smack Upside the Head
Since moving to Washington, it is no secret to anyone close to me, that I
have been sad, a little bit mad and somewhat confused about why this
happened now. You see, I was very involved at our church for 15 years, I was the Student Ministries Director for 10 of those years and that ministry is what gave me purpose, I was passionate about it and really felt like I was doing exactly what God wanted me to be doing. Well we left that church about three years ago and I was a bit lost. We began attending a great church. However, we did not get involved, but it was good because we needed some time to heal from some hurts we experienced serving and needed some time to refocus as a family. Well after attending for about a year, we knew God was telling us it was time to find a church where He could once again use our gifts and talents.
So we started looking. However, Mike (my husband) was working on Sundays, so we could only visit churches with a Saturday night service. This made our task of finding the spot God wanted us a little simpler, because not all churches have a Saturday night service. After about a month, with a "well let's just try this one before we decide" visit to yet another Saturday night service, we found, New Life Community Church. A church we could get excited about! That first night, the worship time touched both Mike and I in a way that we had not experienced in a very long time. We left and knew that is where we would stay.
Fast forward a year and a half, we were involved with a few ministries and some plans and opportunities were getting pretty exciting! Then, my husband gets a promotion at work. Yes, this should be great news, but it required us to move...and I was not excited about leaving all that was happening at church. However, it is hard to turn down a promotion (especially after going through two years of job loss). So very quickly, plans were made and we were on our way.
Like I said at the beginning, I have been sad. I think I have cried more in the last 5 months than ever in my life. I have cried for a lot of things. I miss my family, I miss my friends, but I think most, I miss my opportunities to serve. I know, I know, there are churches everywhere, and to be honest, I thought we would get here, quickly find a church we knew God was leading us to and start serving. However, that has not been the case. We have visited or listened to messages at churches all over our area and still no certainty that we are in the right place. I can not help but wonder, how on earth can this be right if we can not find a church where we feel God is directing us to?
Here comes my smack upside the head. This morning during my personal Bible Study and time with God, I read this: "God often has a greater purpose than just ourselves! Don't just ask what am I supposed to learn from this? Think bigger! Rather ask: Lord, how do You want to bring glory to Yourself through this? Whose life are You touching? To whom are You spreading knowledge of Yourself through this circumstance? The minute we make God's actions only about ourselves, we immediately limit our ability to see all that He longs to accomplish! It is never just about us; it is always about Him!"
Is this a new concept to me? No. And for those of you who are smiling and nodding and thinking, "See Erin, just settle down," I ask, what is it that you are not trusting God with today? In what situation do you need to remember that "it is always about Him"?
I sat and prayed, again surrendering myself to God's plans, letting go of my own wishes and wants, asking God to help me want what He wants. I urge you to do the same. Take time right now and lay it all at God's feet.
If you would like me to pray for you, I would love to do it! Just send me an email! Also, the Bible study I quoted and am working through right now is called, "Ezekiel: Every Life Positioned For Purpose. Knowing Our God and Understanding Our Calling" by Erica Wiggenhorn. It is available on Amazon.com.
So we started looking. However, Mike (my husband) was working on Sundays, so we could only visit churches with a Saturday night service. This made our task of finding the spot God wanted us a little simpler, because not all churches have a Saturday night service. After about a month, with a "well let's just try this one before we decide" visit to yet another Saturday night service, we found, New Life Community Church. A church we could get excited about! That first night, the worship time touched both Mike and I in a way that we had not experienced in a very long time. We left and knew that is where we would stay.
Fast forward a year and a half, we were involved with a few ministries and some plans and opportunities were getting pretty exciting! Then, my husband gets a promotion at work. Yes, this should be great news, but it required us to move...and I was not excited about leaving all that was happening at church. However, it is hard to turn down a promotion (especially after going through two years of job loss). So very quickly, plans were made and we were on our way.
Like I said at the beginning, I have been sad. I think I have cried more in the last 5 months than ever in my life. I have cried for a lot of things. I miss my family, I miss my friends, but I think most, I miss my opportunities to serve. I know, I know, there are churches everywhere, and to be honest, I thought we would get here, quickly find a church we knew God was leading us to and start serving. However, that has not been the case. We have visited or listened to messages at churches all over our area and still no certainty that we are in the right place. I can not help but wonder, how on earth can this be right if we can not find a church where we feel God is directing us to?
Here comes my smack upside the head. This morning during my personal Bible Study and time with God, I read this: "God often has a greater purpose than just ourselves! Don't just ask what am I supposed to learn from this? Think bigger! Rather ask: Lord, how do You want to bring glory to Yourself through this? Whose life are You touching? To whom are You spreading knowledge of Yourself through this circumstance? The minute we make God's actions only about ourselves, we immediately limit our ability to see all that He longs to accomplish! It is never just about us; it is always about Him!"
Is this a new concept to me? No. And for those of you who are smiling and nodding and thinking, "See Erin, just settle down," I ask, what is it that you are not trusting God with today? In what situation do you need to remember that "it is always about Him"?
I sat and prayed, again surrendering myself to God's plans, letting go of my own wishes and wants, asking God to help me want what He wants. I urge you to do the same. Take time right now and lay it all at God's feet.
If you would like me to pray for you, I would love to do it! Just send me an email! Also, the Bible study I quoted and am working through right now is called, "Ezekiel: Every Life Positioned For Purpose. Knowing Our God and Understanding Our Calling" by Erica Wiggenhorn. It is available on Amazon.com.
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