trust – View From My Shoes

Daily Distractions vs Dwelling

It is easy to get so caught up in everything around us that we miss the most obvious of instructions found in God’s Word.

While reading and preparing for Palm Sunday, I took special note of the verse, “His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfillment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into his glory, they remembered what had happened and realized that these things had been written about him.” John 12:16

The disciples had just retrieved the young donkey, and Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem under the shouts and praises of the crowd. The disciples knew the old testament. They knew what it said in Zechariah 9:9 about the Messiah. You would think at some point and time, they would stop and realize, “This feels eerily familiar. I have heard about this somewhere.” In the excitement of the daily events, they did not make the connections.

A couple of summers ago I decided to plant a mimosa tree in our front flowerbed. There was a mimosa tree outside my bedroom window growing up, and I have found memories of the pink flowers dancing just beyond my window year after year. I read the tag on the tree when I bought it. I read all of the planting directions. I knew what it said. I knew what to expect with a mimosa tree, but I missed some major connections. I was so caught up in the nostalgia of planting a tree from my childhood and filling a gap in our flowerbed, that I just let it go right by me. Towards the end of the first summer, I had a brief thought about how big that tree was getting. By the next summer, it all became very clear to me. I had planted a tree that not only made a huge mess, but also needed more space than was available in our flowerbed.

Hindsight is so clear. The disciples were busy worrying about the political scene, trying to stay safe, and excited about what they thought was going to happen. They missed all the signs that Jesus would be crucified for our sins. In many ways they were oblivious to his plan until after it happened.

There should be no judgment from us placed on the disciples. It is easy to miss Jesus’ plans when not paying attention. How many times do we get consumed attending to the revolving door of problems in front of us forgetting to go directly to the problem solver?

How many days go by with every minute spent checking off the never-ending tasks on a “to do” list only to later realize zero time was set aside for Bible reading or spending time in God’s presence? The day is gone with only time left for a quick promise to do better tomorrow.

If I had just stopped and thought about the planing directions, I would have saved myself from the now required annual lopping off of tree limbs and most likely eventual tree removal.

Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” We have clear directions from God’s word that we should dwell on daily. The benefits of putting aside the daily distractions to read, reflect, and remember can save us from so many problems.

Your Coffee Cup – Gratitude or Envy

Life is too short to not enjoy what you have or to always compare what you have with others.

In Matthew 20 there is a parable about a farmer who employs workers to work in the field for the day. Later in the day he finds more help available. Then again towards the end of the day he brings on even more workers. When everyone finishes that evening, all workers are paid the same daily wage.

Those contracted early that morning, although they were paid what they were promised, were upset that those who only worked a few hours received the same pay.

While this parable is most often associated with God’s grace and how His grace is for everyone equally no matter how long or to what extent they have served God, there is also a component of gratitude. Instead of gratefulness for their ability to work and that payment received, all the original workers could think about was that others didn’t work as long and were paid the same.

So often we do the same. Instead of being grateful for what we have, we look at others and want what they have. We want those shoes, that vacation, the life that seems so much easier than ours.

To illustrate this, I have a cabinet full of coffee cups that I cannot bring myself to get rid of even though I use very few of them. When I look at each cup, I am reminded of the person who gifted me the cup or the place where the cup was purchased. What I wonder is if I placed one of my coffee cups next to yours, what would I think about your cup?

Would I look at your cup and wonder if I could do something to fill it. Do you need more coffee? Maybe you need some sugar or some cream. Would I look at your cup and celebrate how lovely your fine china is compared to my seven dollar Buc-ee’s mug? OR even more disappointing, would I look into your cup just to make sure it didn’t have something in it that I didn’t have?

Can I truly share excitement for my co-worker when she gets a new purse to add to her collection while I currently can’t make that type of purchase? Can I honestly celebrate and enjoy hearing from a friend about how well her children are doing, when I have a child who is struggling?

Where do we fix our thoughts? There will always be someone who possesses more than you or appears to be living a better life than yours. Are you first satisfied and grateful with what God has given you? Does the love in your heart come through allowing you to look at others with enjoyment or empathy instead of envy.

Read through James 4:1-8 carefully. Maybe even write it out. “What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure. You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. … Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.”

So, how do we learn to gaze at the cups others wield so apparently effortlessly with genuine excitement? We draw close to God and seek to have a heart of humility.

If you have God, you have enough.

Three Essentials

If I could only tell someone three things about God, this is what they would be.

Recently Scott and I went on a super quick, unexpected overnight trip. We had nothing planned other than to just get out of town. Time to pack did not exist. I first and foremost grabbed my toothbrush. I also threw in a change of clothes, and snatched up my book bag on the way out the door. Despite the rushed exit, it was one of our most relaxing getaways ever, and I had the essentials I needed.

If I only had a few minutes to tell someone about Jesus, what three things would I tell them? Knowing I didn’t have time to plan and outline the whole story starting with Adam and Eve, through Abraham and into the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, not to leave out all the wonderful stories of the old testament and the new testament church, what would I tell someone?

You are loved!

You are loved with a vast love that is impossible to completely understand. Ephesians 3:18-19 tells us, “ May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high and how deep His love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God”

You may not feel lovable, you may not have experienced the love you are worthy of in past relationships, but God’s love is real and is there for you. That is the first concept I would want everyone to hear. Just like having my toothbrush is essential for an overnight stay, knowing that God loves you is the linchpin to understanding Him. He made you uniquely just the way you are and loves you unconditionally. You are designed by Him for His purpose.

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:10

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;” Psalms 139:14

God Loves YOU!!!

You are forgiven!

No matter what ugly darkness is in your past, you will be forgiven if you ask. 1 John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”

God is so willing to forgive us. His word tells us over and over again that our sins will be forgiven. Not just forgiven, Isaiah 55:7 says they are generously forgiven. Colossians 2:13-15 says the record is cancelled for ALL of our sins. Hebrews 8:12 says our sins will never be remembered again. I don’t know why, but accepting that God has forgiven us is sometimes easier than forgiving, ourselves?

Last week I made an extremely selfish decision. I was disappointed in myself. I confessed; I know I’m forgiven. Unfortunately, I’ve had to repent for this before which is so humiliating. Here I am doing it again. I keep reliving that moment and wishing I could go back and redo that extremely selfish moment. I am forgiven; it is in the past. I know that. Yet, I am still struggling to let it go. There is freedom in forgiveness. We have to step into that and trust we are forgiven as well as forgive ourselves.

I pray that you can accept your forgiveness and give yourself the grace that God has so generously given us.

You are not alone!

This journey of life is hard. I look around and see the hurt and loss that people have to suffer through, and my heart breaks. The good news is, we don’t have to live life alone; God is ALWAYS with us. Yes, even in those times when I would lie in bed thinking I had to get these tears to stop or my face would be a swollen mess the next day. Yes, even when problems were flying at me faster than I could count and many with no foreseeable answers. God was with me. God’s quiet, unintrusive Spirit is always there.

He doesn’t stand up and yell, wave his hands and say, “Look, I’m over here.” No, He is the calm that can be felt when you stop and take a deep breath. He is the peace that is under all the chaos. He is there just as he promised, patiently waiting to be recognized. We have to learn to look for Him, but He is there, and His Spirit will guide you.

“This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you where you go.” Joshua 1:9

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.” John 14:16

“I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” Hebrews 13:5

Right now, stop and take a deep breath. Sit in quiet stillness with God and know you are loved, you are forgiven and you are not alone.

Tell God What, Not How.

God wants to hear from us, but he also wants us to trust him because He knows best. What does that look like?

Recently, at the close of a meeting, a roofer friend of mine lightheartedly requested prayer for a “good” hail storm. I immediately spoke up that I wasn’t praying for any kind of hail storm. He added that his business simply needed one good hail storm. I countered that not only would I not pray for his hail storm, I was going to pray against it like we were playing a game of prayer connect four and I could block his prayers. After some back and forth, I somewhat jokingly conclude with, “I guess we will see who God listens to.”

While this conversation was friendly banter, not a real conversation about prayer, there are some prayer questions that come to light from this conversation.

One, God hears all of our prayers equally. He already knows what we need and is waiting for us to talk to him about it. Jesus tells the disciples in Matthew 6:8, “For your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” and in Psalms 34:17 God’s word tells us, “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;” Even if one person is praying for a sunny day and another one is praying for rain, God hears both of them.

In complete selfishness, I have prayed against others before. I can remember a time my late husband, Jeff, was praying to get a different job, and I was praying that he wouldn’t get it because I didn’t want to move. God knew the desires of both of our hearts, and He undoubtedly heard both of our prayers. So what does God do? Eenie, meenie, miney, mo? NO!

We are 100% expected to be specific in our prayers and requests with what we need or desire. God wants to hear from us about our concerns and our needs. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for what He has done,” Philippians 4:6. The problem is, instead of telling God what we need, we tell him how to do it. He wants to know our needs and our desires, but we need to leave the way our prayers are answered up to him.

Tell God your what, but leave the how up to Him!

Yes, pray that your child will return to the Lord, but let the Holy Spirit work his divine plan. Yes, pray and let God know you need financial help, but let God take care of how your financial needs are met. His plans are so much better than our plans. Proverbs 16:9 “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” Instead of praying for a hail storm, just communicate your business needs to the Lord. Let Him know the struggles, then let Him go to work.

“‘My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

Look at how Jesus modeled this for us in Matthew 6, the example prayer given at the request of the disciple seeking to learn how to pray like Jesus. In this model prayer, Jesus asks for daily bread; he tells God his need. Take note however, he doesn’t tell God how to provide the daily bread. When my late husband and I were praying for God to enact our contrasting plans, God knew what was best for our family and what we needed more than either one of us could possibly predict. I wish I would have been mature enough to pray for God to provide Jeff with a job he loved and take care of our family how he saw best.

Try it right now. Tell God your needs; tell him your fears. Now, put your faith and trust in Him to do for you what is best.

Understanding Trust in an Untrustworthy World

What is trust? Trust is believing that something or someone is reliable and true.

Who do you trust? What do you believe to be reliable and true? Personally it gets harder and harder for me to trust anything I hear or read. A couple of weeks ago, Scott and I were watching a news event. For the fun of it, we started flipping back and forth between two different news stations. You couldn’t even tell that they were covering the same event because their reporting was so drastically different. How do you know which one to believe, which one to trust, or can you trust either one?

Oh, let’s talk about social media or just the internet in general. I get these crazy ads on my feed. “My skin has never looked better.” picturing a lady who is supposedly 60 years old, with skin that looks 20. You used to be able to say, “if you can see it, you can believe it.” Not anymore. There is no way I believe that photo is real. I don’t even know that Google is trustworthy. One day it says eat more fruit. The next day you search and read that fruit has too much sugar and shouldn’t be eaten. Who knows?

While helping Blakelynn learn to ride her bike, she would constantly remind me that I promised to not let go. She struggled to trust that I would keep my word. consequently, I had every intention of letting go as soon as she was balanced. No wonder we grow up and have trust issues.

We have become conditioned to question everything, trusting very little.

Let me tell you, God and his Word can be trusted. Yes, when you hear someone describe God, it is easy to doubt or wonder because it sounds too good to be true. A God who loves us, who sent his son to take on the sin of the world. A compassionate God who provides grace and mercy. A God of hope, joy, and peace. (1 John 4:16, John 3:16, Luke 6:36, Hebrews 4:16, Romans 15:13) I could keep going. There is no way to succinctly summarize the greatness of God. Just listing some of my favorite attributes, begins to start sounding like one of those impossible to believe social media ads. God’s goodness and power is not a fake ad. It is real.

The disciples spent three years with Jesus. He told them explicitly that he would die, but would rise again in three days. However, even when the disciples went to Galilee, the designated meeting place, there was doubt. Matthew 28:16, “Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him – but some of them doubted!” How could they doubt? They just saw the resurrected Jesus in person.

God is too much for our human minds to understand. So, if you find yourself doubting that God’s word or promises are real, you are not alone, but don’t linger on those thoughts. Don’t let those thoughts take root. When you start to wonder if God could love you, trust that you are worthy. When you wonder if God hears your prayers, trust that he does, and keep praying. When you wonder if God could use you, the answer is YES! When you have doubts, go to his word; find a scripture that holds the truth you need, and put his word on repeat in your mind.

“God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it out?” Numbers 23:19

Again, we cannot understand God. He is more than we can understand, but we can trust him.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart. And lean not on your own understanding In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.

God has a Plan

God has a plan. He just needs us to trust, surrender and obey.

This is the time of the year where many churches and individuals are wrapping up a season of fasting. As Scott and I approached our fast this year, we had multiple conversations about the purpose of fasting, what comes from fasting, and Biblical directions for fasting. Which by the way doesn’t say that we only fast in January. I just had to throw that in as an extra comment.

Anyway, these conversations about fasting led me to reminisce of the summer after my senior year in high school. I had plans to head to OSU. I had been accepted into the College of Education and my parents had put down money on my room deposit. What I had been planning for several years was well underway. However, I was fasting one day that summer. I don’t know if it was something we were doing as a youth group or just something I felt compelled to do on my own. I can tell you, I remember very clearly fasting that day. I was actually babysitting at someone’s house who had great snacks. It was hard. As I was praying through my fast, I felt the strongest direction that I was not to go to OSU, but to go to NWOSU in Alva. Talk about an abrupt change. I didn’t know anyone at Northwestern, my parents would lose their deposit, but I felt very strongly that is what I was to do.

As I was reflecting back to that point in my life, I realized it was right there that God completely changed the trajectory of my life. It wasn’t just a college change. It was a change that set me on a different path. It was at Northwestern where I met my late husband. It was actually through my sister coming to visit me that she met her husband. Both of our lives would be completely different, but God had a plan. “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:10

What stands out the most to me is there was an 18-year-old girl, and God had a plan for her life. He was directing her and guiding her 40 years ago to get her to where he needed her today. “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'” Jeremiah 29:11.

God knows right now where you are and what you are going through. He has a plan for you and wants to guide you through life as you surrender to him. You may be looking around at your current circumstances and wondering where God is right now? Let me tell you, he is there. Even in the darkest of times, God can be found if you look, trust, and obey. I don’t have to go all the way back 40 years to see God at work. He was there when life was hard. His plan prepared me for those hard times.

He has a plan for you; you can trust him.

The thought that God was directing my life 40 years ago to get me to where I am today is evidence of how much he loves us and cares for us. He is always working on our behalf. “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6.

Trust the plan; it is a good one.

Reflecting on My Retirement Decision

Everyone faces decisions on a daily basis. This is just a summary of how I recently arrived at a major decision in my life.

Most of you who follow or read my blog know me personally, so you know that I just recently announced my retirement. I’m hoping that decision gives me more time to write and the ability to be a little more real. There are topics that I think about putting in writing, but hold off because of how it might be wrongly translated at work.

I wanted to start by writing a little bit about how I came to the decision to go ahead and retire. It started with a comment from a couple of people about what retirement might look like for me. Then I read the book, From Strength to Strength, by Arthur Brooks. Next my son made a statement that really caused me to reflect on some whys in my life. I can’t list everything that happened in the last few months, but everywhere I turned, something was pointing me into the direction of retirement.

Changing topics for just a bit. I changed up my daily prayer routine about 8 months ago. Over the years, I’ve kept prayer journals, prayer lists, prayer cards. Whatever feels right at the time. A while back I decided that in addition to my daily prayer list pertaining to whatever is on my mind, I would make a monthly prayer list. This list would never have more than 5 needs on it, and I would deeply pray purposely for those 5 needs each and every day for a month. I also attach a scripture to each need and pray that scripture over the need as well for the entire month. There is no biblical reason for this method. It is just a combination of things I have read and something that was on my heart to do.

Back to my decision about retirement, for the month of December, I have been praying Isaiah 43:16, “Thus says the Lord who makes a way through the sea and a path through the mighty waters.” I have been praying this pertaining to the continuous promptings towards retirement. I have prayed that the Lord would show me what he desired as clearly as he made a way through the sea. I asked for direction that was so clear I could follow it and a path so wide that I would know where to step and where to go next.

The purpose of Isaiah 43:16 is to encourage the Israelites, remind them how powerful God is, and assure them he can deliver them as they were under the rule of Babylon at the time it was written. For me this verse assured me that God provides for our needs. My current need was reassurance that I was following what he desires for my life. I have always felt that teaching was my calling. I want to make sure my retirement keeps me on the path that God has for me. A path where I honor him and serve him. A path where I can be used for his purpose.

I don’t’ know what you are going through, what decisions you are trying to make or what waters you are navigating, but if you ask, God will show you the path or he will provide the deliverance you need. Commit to following his will, and his desires will be made known to you.

Navigating Life: Listening to the Holy Spirit

Jesus promised us a helper who would guide us in life. Are you paying attention to your navigator?

Scott and I spent almost 40 hours in the car over my last break. We listened to podcasts, sang some tunes, read, and had great conversations about future plans. We love time together in the car. Scott drives twice as much as I do, but I take my turn every now and then so he can get a break. As I was driving on a section of the road that I almost always drive where we transition from I30 to I49 at Texarkana, Scott nonchalantly ask if that factory looked familiar to me. I kinda shrugged it off and kept talking. After a quiet pause, Scott casually asked another question. “Do you think you are on the right road?” Without much thought I answered, “of course. This is how we always go.” For the third time, Scott calmly stated, “I think we are going north.” You can guess, that I denied that was even a possibility until Scott motioned to the compass on the rear view mirror and pointed out that we were in fact going north. I still don’t know how or where I made the wrong turn, but I obviously did.

Sometimes in life, we do the same. We are traveling down the road of life: living, surviving, keeping our head just above water while possibly unknowingly making a wrong turn. It could be a seemingly insignificant decision, behavior or habit, and we might not even realize this action is placing us on the wrong path. However, the Holy Spirit is quietly pointing out to us that we need to change or we need to adjust priorities. It may not even be a mistake. It may just be the Holy Spirit quietly, discreetly nudging us to change paths. “And when he (Holy Spirit) comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment ….When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth” John 16:8 & 13.

Change is hard. Personally, once I recognize something needs to change, it usually takes multiple attempts and lots of prayer to get there. It’s not like driving down the highway and a simple U-turn gets your problem fixed. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit keeps whispering in my ear and God is there to provide strength and a path to help me get back on the right road.

Again change is hard, but just think what would have happened if Scott hadn’t been paying attention and noticed that I made a wrong exit? I would have kept going north for possibly miles before realizing I was going the wrong direction. Not only should we listen to the small nudge from the Holy Spirit, but be thankful for it. Listen and make the change as soon as you can.

Another thought, change is easier with a friend. Find someone you can trust and let them know what is on your heart. Ask them to help either by providing support or by providing accountability. Three verses come to my mind that confirm this is a good practice. I included them at the end. Yes, God is there and will give you all you need, but that just might be in the form of a friend.

Finally, consider that you might be the friend who someone else needs to help them get on the right path and stay there. Pray that God will help you be that person.

Scriptures:

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” Romans 12:2

“God is at work in us.” Philippians 2:13

“Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another that you may be healed.” James 5:16

Purpose of Fruit

Just as a tree produces fruit to reproduce, so should we.

Scott and I have a crabapple tree in our back yard that provides beautiful pink blooms in the spring and deep dark foliage in the summer and fall. It is a beautiful tree except for the fruit that falls off of it each year. These little round balls of mess get on the dog’s feet leaving pink stains everywhere. There is also a blanket of seeds around the tree that get chunked across the yard by the mower. Worst of all, you guessed it, more trees growing all over the yard. Little science lesson here, the main role fruit plays other than a tasty snack is to spread seeds. This is referred to as seed dispersal, and allows the plant to reproduce.

In John 15:16 Jesus tells his disciples, “I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit.” We are to bear/produce fruit. How do we do that? Two steps. First, earlier in John 15, Jesus says, “abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.” We have to abide, linger, remain, dwell, with God to produce fruit. We have to spend time with Him daily to produce fruit. Secondly, Galatians 5:16-23 instructs us to walk in the spirit, not in the flesh. It then explains that when we are full of the Spirit, we produce fruit. The fruit here is listed as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” God clearly desires that we produce fruit.

I want to circle back around to the purpose of fruit – to reproduce. Jesus didn’t command the disciples to produce fruit to look good. He also didn’t command them to compare how much fruit they could produce. They were to produce fruit to glorify God and spread his love and faithfulness to others. We are to do the same.

I don’t just ask you if you are producing fruit. While that is necessary, the question for today is are you sharing your fruit and planting seeds? Are you loving others? Do you model patience and kindness with the people who cross your path? How are you share your fruit and plant seeds?

Trust God vs Doing it Yourself

Why do we try to solve our own problems instead of just trusting God? This is what He desires.

When Scott and I are driving somewhere new, we take completely opposite approaches. If I have any sort of idea where I’m going, I’m determined to find the location on my own. This often involves a U-turn or two. I use Google Maps only when I finally realize I cannot find the location, or if I’m going to be late because I keep backtracking. Scott on the other hand will use Google Maps right from the start. He has no problem trusting the map and letting it guide him. He just plugs in the address and heads to his destination without any worries. I however try to rely on my own skills. Grant it, this often resorts in honking horns as I abruptly change lanes or undue stress because I’m at the wrong place. Frequently I end up using the map despite my best efforts.

We have the same options when it comes to trusting God with our lives. Many times as Christians we feel we need to do it on our own. Maybe it is the theory that I got myself into this mess, I can get myself out. Maybe it is if I work hard enough, I can make this happen. If I keep pouring into this relationship, it will get better. I have to fix this before anyone finds out. Honestly, it can be any problem you are facing. We try to figure it out ourselves instead of trusting God. Otherwise, we wait until we have tried it ourselves and are out of options. Only then do we decide to reach out and ask God for help.

Proverbs 3:5-6 tell us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” This Proverb tells us not only should we trust God instead of ourselves, but when we do, He will direct our paths. Just like the time and stress I could save by using a map, we can save ourselves heartache and costly mistakes. We also experience a lack of peace that wouldn’t be necessary if we acknowledge God by trusting our problem to Him. We must let go and trust Him.

Right now ask yourself, what are you trying to do yourself that needs to be turned over and trusted to God? What is keeping you up at night or always on your mind because you are working around the clock to solve a problem that God wants to help you solve? Take that problem and place it in this this verse. Make it a personal prayer.

I trust in you Lord with all of my heart to _________. I am not leaning on myself, but calling out to you so you can direct my path.