Just thinking....

No title really on this one, lots of "thoughts"/themes running through my head and heart. I can't believe a month of summer has almost passed. I wish I could say I had accomplished all of my goals already, but that would be no, not finished yet. I am making progress though and that is a very good thing. Where is some of this coming from? Let's just say the refining process. When it is all said and done, I just want to hear Him say well done. I want my life to count for Him and when I look back on the day I want to know I did all I could for Him and made a difference.

Knowledge without application is just words. I've been hit with this a lot lately, personally and professionally. So many times people "know" about something, but if they can't take it to the next level and apply it, where does that knowledge get them? Scripture calls it being a hearer of the word and instead of a doer. Learning is a great thing, but if you spend all of our time learning and never putting it into practice, where does that learning get you?

Freedom....ask Him for it, but once you ask, be prepared for what He tells you to do next. He tends to get specific. At least with me, He does. He and I have that relationship where He can just tell me what to do, then it's my turn to do what He says or take a 40 year journey that should have only lasted 11 days. The problem comes when we don't do what He says, think we can get away with just doing it half way and try to keep the reigns. A pilot doesn't land a plane with half the wheels still up. This journey we are on is all or nothing, He wants all of us. All of our thoughts, all of our emotions, all of our dreams, all of us. He knows what makes us tick, what makes us smile, what makes us cry, and what makes us keep moving forward. The funny part comes in when we think we know ourselves better. Trust Him with your heart, mind, and soul. Trust Him with all of you.

Defeat...there is a line an old Dottie Rambo song that says "...defeat is just one word I won't use"... Defeat and can't go hand in hand. We let people defeat us, food defeat us, and even our thoughts toward ourselves. Tell yourself you can't do something enough times and you eventually start believing that you can't. Be who you are and you will walk through those defeated times with your head held high. Not because you are something, but because He is everything. He's got your back and just needs you to keep moving on this journey called life. Once again I have been reminded to be careful who you let into your life. Some are meant to speak into it, some are meant for God to use to speak into your life(aka sandpaper). Talk to God about your relationships, He will show you the difference. When He tells you someone is sandpaper, let Him use them to make you more like Him. Don't let them defeat you, remember their purpose and keep things in perspective. This season soon passes and you will be stronger when it does.

 Watch your words, don't say you can't do something if God says you can. He is given you much more power than you may even realize. Let Him exhibit it through you!! God has a plan and He thinks the world of you. Some seasons are for planting, some are for watching things grow, be patient and know that regardless of what season you are in God is at work.

Until next time,
~Melissa