Thankfulness and more.......

I've tried really hard on Facebook this month to participate in the month of Thankfulness ;-) so far so good...some days have been a little trivial and some deeper than others. I think God understands though...those little things that we call trivial are part of who we are. Those shows that make us laugh(aka Duck Dynasty) or those things that make us smile(aka white chocolate milk shakes at Steak and Shake).  I think, no I know God enjoys making us laugh and smile. He also enjoys when we say Thank You, because after all every good gift is from Him. I've also thought about where I'm at and where I'm headed this month, because face it if you are paying attention to the news, it is time more than ever for Christians to not be found lukewarm.

Most of all I'm thankful for what He has done for me. For those days when I feel like I've made a mess or things or like I'm a big old failure, a message or a text from a friend reminds me who I am. After all there is a difference in who I am and what I can do....He loves to remind me of that truth especially when I've seemed to forgotten it. Who I am, His princess...what I do, countless things! Balance comes when what you do comes out of the overflow of who you are. Some people love you for you, others love you for what you do. Know the difference between the two when deciding what to do. Too many times we change who we are for people who only want us to do something for them. Hear my heart....yes God said to love everyone and to go the extra mile, but I think we do ourselves a disservice when we take on trying to save the world without following His lead. We can get caught up in doing for God that we forget to spend time with God. When we reverse the two, things fall into place. Don't overwhelm yourself with so many "good" things that you miss out on "God" things. If He calls you to walk the extra mile, trust that He will walk it with you(which brings strength, wisdom, discernment etc.). When we open doors on our own, we walk through them on our own. When we walk through the doors God opens, He covers every word, action, and takes care of us as only He can. Now if you walked through a door on your own, confess and ask for forgiveness. He will meet you right where you are and help you to grow in the process.

Patience sweet reader, God's got more planned for you than you could ever imagine. He loves you right where you are and just wants you to follow His lead on this journey. He's such a patient guide though, because He waits until you are ready to follow His way alone. He's a patient Father in that He realizes sometimes a child needs to try things for themselves. He's gentle to pick us back up, clean the wounds, and say let's try this again. He loves you more than you love yourself and truly only wants what is best for you. He knows what makes you stresses you out, what frustrates you, and what makes you hurt. He also knows that sometimes these things will make you grow and make you more like Him. He holds you in the palm of His hand, trust Him to work it all out for your good. He promised in His word that He would.

Until next time,
~Melissa

One last thought: When your job starts to be too much(stress, frustration, paperwork overload etc.), slow down enough to hear His whispers and listen to His heart on the matter. He will remind you of a few things, I promise ;-) .....That's a blog to walk out before I write out