The Best Right Way

Last weekend, I was on my way to pick up my daughter from her dad's house, and I accidentally passed the on-ramp for interstate, which is my normal route. With that option gone, what lay before me was a seemingly endless selection of routes.

It felt like suddenly there were 6 trillion options. I went through a ton of them in my head until finally (about 45 seconds later), I gave up and did the only thing that seemed wise at the time: "Google, take me to...."

Friends, this isn't just a destination I know; it's where I lived at one point in my life. I've been going there for a couple decades now, and yet, I found myself following the Google lady's voice commands to somewhere I knew the way to. Why?

Because I wanted to know the BEST route to get there, and for that, I needed help.

The next morning, I was reading the book of Joshua. In Chapter 9, a chunk of people groups banded together to fight against the Israelites, who, with God's help, were conquering their way toward the promised land. The Gibeonites, however, chose a different tactic. They duped the Israelites into a treaty by pretending they were from a far away land.

A couple verses stuck out to me, though. 

Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions,

but did not seek the Lord's counsel.

So Joshua established peace with them

and made a treaty to let them live,

and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them.

Joshua 9:14-15

The men were examining the Gibeonites' story, but they missed a crucial step: consulting the Lord.

To the Israelites' natural eyes, everything seemed as they said; it appeared they were from far away because their provisions were all nasty, crumbly, and stale. But because they didn't consult the Lord, they were deceived by their senses.

It made me think of my GPS moment the night before, and friends, I know I am not the first to make the God:GPS analogy. We've all heard it before. But I hope you'll hang with me here because this put a new spin on it for me.

Christians have an enemy; he is a deceiver. He would have me turn away from God's path for me if He can. And here's the kicker, y'all, it often isn't a path that looks like doom and gloom; it looks like a perfectly decent, respectable path, but one that isn't of the Lord.

When I met with my friend, Jackie, last week, she said, "Our choice often isn't between right and wrong, it's between right and almost right." Tell me that isn't one of the most brilliant things you've ever heard. I'm getting that sucker put on a bumper sticker (not really - I don't do bumper stickers).

But she's right. The only way to know whether we're going the right direction is to seek the will of the Lord, consistently, even in the seemingly simple things - even when you think you already know where you're going.

There are a couple areas of my life, where God has shown me at least a little piece of His plan for me, where I'm "going," you could say. But only He knows the best way for me to get there. If left to my own devices, I'll try to take the "quickest" or "easiest" route, only to land in a place God never wanted me to be. 

I know these things because I've screwed it up a time or twelve. I've tried to kick down doors that weren't mine, rush headlong into things I wasn't anywhere near ready for, and find positions at tables I had no business sitting at.

Friends, the results of that weren't pretty. God's grace is always there, and His mercy is new each morning, but His discipline stings sometimes. But that's what loving fathers do - correct their children.

I'm learning to consult the Lord, even when a decision seems like a "no-brainer," and then (the hard part), actually wait for His answer. I'm trying not to rush things. I'm trying to trust not just His plan, but His timing in it.

So, the next time you need to make a decision about life (or just heading across town), try consulting the only One who knows exactly which way you should go. It may not be the easiest route, but I promise it'll be the best. 

You Better Work

Remember back in middle school when just about every guy wanted to be a pro athlete? I'm sure there were a lot of girls who did, too, but the memory sticks out more vividly for the boys for me (middle school is also a much more distant memory for some of us).

How many pro athletes do you know now? Maybe one person you sorta kinda remember from school because you had that class together once? Why is that? If just about every boy wanted to be one, why aren't there more.

I'm sure there are countless reasons, but I'm confident many realized this: it's gonna take too much work.

The amount of drive and determination it takes to get to the professional level of any sport is commendable, but rare.

This week, a couple friends and I are headed to Minnesota for the Ezer Collective, a leadership intensive for Christian women led by speaker and author Jo Saxton. She and her business partner, Pastor Steph O'Brien, also have a podcast called Lead Stories. Today, they posted an interview with literary agent and writing coach Rachelle Gardner regarding the intricacies of becoming an author.

This is my calling! I was STOKED!

However, about 3 minutes into the podcast, I felt a familiar anxiety start to rise in my gut, and it usually precedes a powerful bout of insecurity, doubt, and fear. I'm starting to learn my lesson though, because before those nasty voices could even open their mouths, I called out to God to let me hear only what He would have me hear and to help me process it in a way that only furthers His purposes. 

And OH, did He ever deliver.

As I listened to the almost hour-long podcast, one overall theme really struck me: this "calling" of mine is gonna take a whole lot of flipping work. It will require every bit of the focus, drive, and determination of an aspiring pro athlete.

It's not like this is news to me exactly. I'm completely aware that I'll have to do a significant amount of work, but somehow, it always seems like the bulk of the work consists of some vague tasks in the distant future. That, my friends, is how aspiring authors and athletes remain "aspiring" instead of "professional." No one is paying you for work you might do in the future. 

The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,

while the soul of the diligent is richly supplies.

Proverbs 13:4

Have you ever asked your kids to do something, and, instead of obeying, they continue whatever mindless thing they're doing? When that happens, I might wait a little bit, but at some point, I look at them and say, "Dude. Get it together. I asked you to do something."

Today, when I listened to that podcast, God gently whispered into my heart, "Alissa, it's time to act. It's time to work. Rise up, child. I asked you to do something." (Please note that God is ever so much gentler and kinder to me than I am to my kids...because He's God. We're working on it).

So, as the time for this training draws near, I go into it knowing full well I have a lot of hard work ahead of me, not sometime in the distant future, but in the here and now. It should sound scary, but one thought gives me a lot of comfort: the Law of Marginal Gains.

My friend John-Erik Moseler often talks about this in his coaching. Basically, it's a concept that touts the profitability of very small changes CONSISTENTLY over time and was used by Sir David Brailsford in his training of the British Olympic Cycling team. With it, he was able to transform a program that had only won one gold medal in over 75 years to one that won seven out of ten medals in Beijing in 2008...and he did it in only six years, and all with 1% changes over time.

My point is that no one becomes Michael Jordan overnight. Michael Jordan certainly didn't. He practiced and practiced and practiced for YEARS to become the legend He is today, improving ever so gradually with each failed shot, each brick to the basket, each layup that landed just a bit too shy.

I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that if God has a future mapped out for me, then He will give me everything I need to achieve it...including the will to WORK. 

Commit your work to the Lord,

and your plans will be established.

Proverbs 16:3

And let us not grow weary of doing good

for in due season we will reap,

if we do not give up.

Galatians 6:9

*Source: https://hbr.org/2015/10/how-1-performance-improvements-led-to-olympic-gold

A Winning Wardrobe

I had it all planned out.

Don't most humbling, slap-you-in-the-face moments start that way?

A few nights ago, I lay in bed thinking about exactly which outfits I would wear for the 5 days I'm going to be in Minnesota for the Ezer Collective. I was bubbling over with excitement.

A few weeks ago, I picked up a couple adorable clothing items from a second hand store. I tried them on briefly at home to make sure they fit, and Josiah seemed to think they were okay, so I thought they would fit fabulously into my trip wardrobe. (I tried them on for Josiah because we don't own a full-length mirror; if I ever look jacked up from the shoulders down, you now know why).

One was a plaid, tweed jacket that would look sophisticated and fun with skinny jeans and a white t-shirt. The other was a gorgeous, sheer red blouse (with the tags still on it) with slightly puffy sleeves and a ruffled collar. You just really can't GET more "me" than that.

The sheer blouse had a cami that came underneath it, but the thing was super short. When I tried it on the first time I looked like the female version of Winne the Pooh - NOT a flattering look. After purchasing a replacement cami yesterday, I came home and flew to the room to try it on.

The new cami felt just a little too long for the blouse, so I had Josiah take a picture to show me. It was TOO SMALL. The blouse I just adored felt comfortable but was far too snug, so not only was it a little short for the cami, but the last button pulled around my hips and accentuated my rolls.

NOOOOOOO!

"That's okay, though, right?" I thought. "Because that tweed jacket is going to be AWESOME!"

However, once I put it on again, I quickly noticed something that had completely escaped my attention the first time: that sucker had shoulder pads.

I don't know if you know this, but anything with shoulder pads makes a broad-shouldered girl look like the shortest linebacker in the NFL. It's not a good look.

Knowing we don't really have the funds for me to go shopping for new clothes right now, I fell to pieces. With the board for my "She is clothed in strength and dignity" sign slung haphazardly across the tops of my closet's louver doors (you can read more about that here), I stared into my closet seething, angry, and shattered, feeling clothed in very little strength and not a shred of dignity. Instead, I was clothed in a lot of sadness and boatloads of disappointment. I wailed about how I didn't have anything nice to wear and that I guess I'd just wear my "stupid, ''mom clothes."

Yes, you read that right. With people just hours south of here mourning the loss of everything they own due to Hurricane Michael, I mourned the loss of two items of clothing, which technically fit, but looked hideous. Not my finest moment.

As the hot tears slid down my face, leaving salty trails in my makeup, even I was surprised at the depth of emotion I felt over this seemingly insignificant event. "Why does this hurt so much?" I asked myself. "Why am I so devastated?"

And then, like Jack and Jill on their return voyage down the hill, the fears and insecurities tumbled out of me. They were numerous, but it all boiled down to this: I am afraid of being overlooked or disregarded because I'm old and fat.

I was super excited about the chic and fun outfits because I felt like they really represented me well...and because I feel like I need to do and be so much more to compensate for the fact that I'm truthfully "just" an overweight mom with seven kids. Even now, that makes my eyes sting with tears.

Unfortunately, there's actually some truth there, but it's mixed up with lies - Cocoa Pebbles in a bowl of sour milk.

If two women, one bigger and one smaller, put on the exact same outfit, nine times out of ten, the thinner woman would be taken more seriously, considered more attractive, hired for the job, etc. In many ways in our society, being bigger puts you at a disadvantage. That's the cold, hard truth.

The sour milk in the bowl, though, is the idea that I need these people's approval in order to fulfill my God-given calling. After a fitful night of sleep (or NOT sleep), I rose far before daylight and headed out to the beach to get my bearings. I knew there was truth I was missing, but I needed to be away from everyone with my God to figure it out.

There, in my van, in the dark hour just before dawn, I cried out to God and heard back, "Is anything impossible for the Lord?" I knew it was from the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac, but I googled it to find its exact location (Genesis 18:14) . I didn't expect it to come up in three more places.

Oh Lord God!

You yourself made the

heavens and the earth

by Your great power and

with Your outstretched arm.

Nothing is too difficult for You!

Jeremiah 32:17

Look I am Yahweh,

the God of all flesh.

Is anything too difficult for Me?

Jeremiah 32:27

[Jesus] replied, 

"What is impossible with men

is possible with God."

Luke 18:27

And with those, this one popped into my head:

Now to Him who is able

to do above and beyond

all that we ask or think

according to the power that works in us,

to Him be the glory

in the church and in Christ Jesus

to all generations,

forever and ever.

Ephesians 3:20

My God can do more than I can even begin to imagine in order to fulfill His purposes for me.

• Sarah laughed when she was told she would bear a child because she knew she was too old. God gave her a child, Isaac.
• David was a shepherd boy no one thought anything of, not even enough to bring him in from the field while Samuel looked over Jesse's sons to see which would be king. God made him king.
• Elizabeth was too old to bear children and everyone thought she was barren. God gave her John, he who would pave the way for the Messiah.
• 
  

In each of these cases, God made his perfect plans work through imperfect, unlikely people. Why? To bring Him more glory because only HE could do those impossible things.

God asked Gideon to defeat the Midianites, who were oppressing His people. So, Gideon took 32,000 men with him to defeat the armies of Midian, a force that would probably have numbered in excess of 100,000. But the odds weren't stacked enough for God.

The Lord said to Gideon,

"You have too many people for Me

to hand the Midianites over to you,

or else Israel might brag:

'I did it myself.'"

Judges 7:2

Therefore, God made sure the Israelites knew no one but HE could have accomplished the victory by sending Gideon with just 300 men...and they defeated them not with swords, spears, and arrows, but with torches, trumpets, and terracotta pots - a truly divine upheaval.

Here's the thing: if I'm meant to connect with any of the women attending this thing in a way that will impact my future and God's purpose, then it won't matter if I'm wearing a burlap sac and Birks. 

It is not my wardrobe that will bring me through to my calling. It is not my gifts, talents, or bubbly personality. It is nothing other that the power of the living God working in and through me and my circumstances.

He gave me those tools, yes, but without Him, they still aren't enough to fulfill a God-sized purpose.

God will do what He wants, when He wants, through whom He wants, and if I'm willing to walk in obedience, there's nothing that's going to keep me from the calling He has put on my life.

So, I'm heading to Minnesota in just over a week clothed in strength, dignity, and outfits I already own. I won't be clothed in what I've planned, but now that the fears and insecurities have been dealt with, I can go clothed in what I should have been thinking of all along: the love of my Heavenly Father, the strength that comes from knowing His great power, the power given to me in Christ Jesus, and the authority I have been given as the daughter of the One, True King. THAT, my friends, is a winning wardrobe!

Now, get thee behind me, Satan, and observe this outfit from the back. I've got work to do.

My Heart's Report Card

I could feel the sadness creeping in. It was heavy and thick, like Mississippi mud, and I tried to swallow it down, but it rose up, a knot in my stomach that threatened to crawl through my chest and escape as a ragged sob.

Sometimes, you just don't want to lose it in public...but sometimes you do anyway.

This weekend at church, we continued our "Rooted" series. First, we talked about being rooted in the word, and then in our relationship with God. Last week we talked about being rooted firmly in relationships with other believers, and this week, we talked about being rooted in our purpose.

It didn't really affect me until then end...until the worship team was singing about moving forward and Pastor Freddy prayed about clarity of vision. That's when the knot started forming.

Five years ago, I received a calling from God (and you can read about that here). He didn't ask me to do anything specific at the time. He just told me He was calling me.

I know it was real. I know He's calling me. I know He wants something very big from me.

But I still have no clear vision of what that is...and somewhere, deep in me, that weighs so heavily.

I remembered feeling like that another time at FLC, just over three years ago, when we visited on a Saturday night on a whim.

I was pregnant with Avery at the time, and Pastor Freddy was preaching on GOING: praying hard for God's will, but MOVING. I wrote a blog post about it because, even then, I felt the indescribable urge to move forward, but felt the hand of God holding me back until the time was right.

And once again, last night, there I sat on the front row, tears streaming down my face because I'm so ready for my vision.

Or am I?

Cognitively, I'm very aware that I'm NOT ready. I have six children. Five of them are still in our home, three of them are ages four and under, and we have yet another baby on the way. Taking care of them is most important right now, and I know I'm not ready for any huge responsibilities beyond that. Raising them is part of my preparation process.

Furthermore, I know that, should God give me more of His vision, I wouldn't wait for His timing. I like to jump in with both feet, and I would jump straight into the wrong thing. It's almost certain.

I think that's what made the overwhelming sadness so difficult to contend with: I felt like there was no reason for it! God's got this! I'm very aware...so why the heavy heart?

When I got home, I did some digging. I went back to the blog post I wrote three years ago, and it ministered to me.

First, it brought back to mind a verse that I should truly plaster all over the walls of my house just to make sure it gets plastered on my heart:

For the vision still awaits its appointed time;

it hastens to the end-

it will not lie.

If it seems slow, wait for it;

it will surely come;

it will not delay.

Habakkuk 2:3

It is exactly what I am sure of in my heart, and there it was, staring right back at me from God's Word. He is so good.

Secondly, however, it reminded me to look back and see the progress that's been made in the last three years, as well as completing a sound assessment of where He's still doing some major work on me.

I started two pages in my prayer journal: one for "lessons learned" and another for "lessons He's still teaching me." Then, I went back through almost every, single blog post I've made since the one in May of 2014. The results were both uplifting and sobering.

I was able to fill an entire page with lessons I feel God has worked solidly into my heart, lessons that have become part of my daily walk, part of who I am as a follower of Christ.

However, there was also 2/3 of a page of lessons He's still teaching me - areas where I may have picked up part of the lesson, but have continued to fumble or have just dropped altogether.

I felt both deep conviction and sincere gratitude. God has already given me my next steps: complete the ones He's already given me.

There are areas in my life - diligence, household management, self-doubt, confidence - where He's still teaching me lessons, and if they are not tended to before I go into ministry, I will crumble and fold under the pressure of the enemy.

Pastor Freddy even preached on that last night! He said, "Sometimes we have to go back and complete what God has already asked us to do in order to move forward into what He has next." At the time, however, I was unable to see how that applied.

I once was blind, but now I see - thank God for His amazing grace. It's time for me to move backward and pick up some things I've dropped in order to make sure I'm fully equipped for the road ahead.

I made a report card for my heart: in some areas I've got O's for outstanding and S's for satisfactory, but I've also got some big fat N's staring back at me for areas in which I desperately Need Progress. 

The main verse we've concentrated on for our Rooted series has been Colossians 2:6-7:

Therefore, as you have received

Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him,

rooted and built up in him

and established in the faith,

just as you were taught,

overflowing with gratitude.

And very appropriately, that's where I ended up last night. I laid my head to my pillow overflowing with gratitude, knowing all God has already done, grounded in what He's still doing, and excited for what's to come.

That's another lesson from the past that He's still writing on my heart:

My adventure doesn't start

when I become the person I'm supposed to be;

my adventure is in the BECOMING.

Alissa Shea Coburn

"I'm Going on an Adventure"

December 30, 2016

And I'm enjoying my adventure. 

Calling Her Out

A while back, Alissa (who was pregnant at the time), dropped off our eldest at college for orientation and to meet some friends. We live on a peninsula in Virginia where the only way to get back and forth to her college is to drive through one of a pair of tunnels, both of which are notorious for bad traffic in rush hour.

She sent me a message earlier in the day to alert me that Destiny had to be picked up, not on Saturday as originally thought, but that day, which was a Friday afternoon.

In the summer. Pregnant. Kind of a tourist destination. Traffic. Really bad traffic.

Alissa told me a little while later that she had agreed to let her hang out a bit longer with some of the people she met there, so she could develop some friendships... because in turn, that would mean her college experience in the fall would be much easier. If she already some relationships in place, she wouldn't have to worry about making friends, starting classes, and landing a job all at the same time.

I responded with a really, really short sentence.

“That was gracious of you.”

That triggered a mechanism in her to defend her decision and go into a fairly lengthy line of reasoning.

I kind of had to interrupt her.

“Baby, I wasn't telling you that you were making a bad decision, or that you should do otherwise. I was trying to let you know that I see you acting graciously.”

The response?

"Oh."

She was caught of guard.

There are two very important issues that come to mind here:

1. I don't affirm my wife often enough if she feels she needs to get defensive over me saying I noticed something good. 

2. I must do a lot of complaining if I see her doing something good or gracious towards others, and I get that kind of reaction.

Both of those are problems, and both of those are MY problems.

I read somewhere fairly recently, though I can't remember where, that it's important to catch your kids “in the act” of doing something good. This made me realize that it's also important to do for your spouse, or probably for that matter, anyone who is close to you.

I am not exactly an encourager. I can be, but it's not really who I am. I will notice if you cut your hair. Hopefully, I will say it looks nice, or good on you, and I will smile supportively.

Alissa, on the other hand, is a master encourager. She will notice you cut your hair, tell you it looks gorgeous on you, ask you why you decided to cut it, then identify with your decision and do so with an exclamation of how glad she is that you came to your decision, then reestablish how much she likes it, and that she would've done the same thing if she were you. You can walk in a room with a new dress, new haircut, new shoes, coat, glasses, and my wife will become your instant cheerleader.

I get it. I'm happy you got your hair cut. If it looks good, I'll tell you. I can smile and nod and give a gold star as good as anyone, but my wife has a gift.

If anyone speaks, it should be as one who speaks God’s words;

if anyone serves, it should be from the strength God provides,

so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything.

To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen. 

1 Peter 4:11

Let me bring this back around to picking Destiny up in traffic...

What became obvious to me in that moment is, spiritually, I must either not notice gifts or growth, or I still kind of react the same way I would about a haircut: with a knowing smile, good job, looks good, and move on.

That's not who I'm supposed to be. I'm supposed to call my wife out on her spiritual advances, decisions, and strengths. I'm supposed to be there to sharpen her, to encourage her, to be her spiritual ally and cheerleader, but most often, apparently, I either ignore or condemn.

Where did I go wrong?

Part of that answer is being too busy. Part of that is paying enough attention to say I'm paying attention, but not really investing.

The tongue has the power of life and death,

and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Proverbs 18:21

If I'm not building my wife up, I am destroying her.

I think in a more peaceful, placid way she has tried to tell me that before.

I don't want Alissa to feel as though I'm her accuser. I'm not. I don't want that job, nor do I want the job description. I want her to know I care about her and love her, spiritually, physically, and emotionally.

But I can't do that if I'm only pointing out “growth areas,” and not patting her on the back when she gets it right, and I pray God will open my heart and help me grow in my encouragement of her and of others.

The point of all this: what we say matters...and so does what we DON'T say.

Give someone encouragement today.

Speak life, give grace, love well.

But encourage each other daily,

while it is still called today,

so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception.

Hebrews 3:13

Walking in the Dark

Last Saturday night, Josiah and I made the decision to walk to church. It was a beautiful night, and he and Phinehas ran ahead because Phin says he's "super fast." It was pretty darn adorable.

On the way home, however, it was dark. We took the back way home, and parts of the walk were just about pitch black.

He was no longer thrilled by the adventure.

He whimpered a little and said, "Daddy, I can't find our house! I can't find it!"

Josiah took his hand and guided him home. When we got close, though, and Phinehas finally recognized our house, he let go of his daddy's hand and ran to take a shortcut, tripped on the curb, and fell flat on his face.

Don't worry...he's okay (the new house has some pretty stellar, cushy grass).

He quickly scrambled up, again scared by the dark. But Josiah called to him, he found his daddy, and they walked to the house.

This little display was right on the heels of a sermon on Peter's response to Jesus walking on the water...and I immediately saw the connection.

And Peter answered him,

“Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”

He said, “Come.”

So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.

But when he saw the wind, he was afraid,

and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me."

Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him,

saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.

And those in the boat worshiped him, saying,

“Truly you are the Son of God.”

Matthew 14:28-33 (ESV)

• Phinehas stepped out into the dark. He let his father lead him, but then he got distracted, tried to take a shortcut, and fell. He called out, and his father saved him.

• Peter stepped out of the boat. He followed Jesus's lead, but then he got distracted by his fear, looked at the wind instead of Jesus, and he began to fall. Peter cried out, and Jesus reached out and saved him. 

God calls us into the dark. He calls us out into the storm. He calls us to walk in circumstances only He can make successful.

Do you know what we do? We avoid it.

We tell God he's wrong. We ask to be the other disciples...the ones safe in the boat.

We SING about walking on the water, though, right?

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders.

Let me walk upon the water,

wherever you would call me.

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander,

where my faith will be made stronger

in the presence of my savior.

(Hillsong UNITED, Oceans)

We sing about it, with loud voices and hands raised. But when it comes down to it, we're control freaks.

What if calling us out into the water means job loss, friend loss, discomfort, pain, hurt, abandonment...a presidential candidate you think is deplorable (pick your side-it matters little).

We want the growth that comes from God calling us, but we want to do it from the safety of the boat.

Then, if we DO embrace the calling, we sometimes lose sight of the Caller, and we fall.

• Maybe we get a little overexcited and let go of the Father's hand. We try to take a shortcut to our calling. We fall.

• Maybe we get overtaken by fear at the size of our obstacles, forgetting that we serve and Almighty God, and we let discouragement overtake us. We start to sink.

Either way, we take our eyes of the One who called us and we lose heart.

We err. We're human. But it isn't the screwing up that's really important...it's the calling out.

When he spoke about Peter's fear of the wind, Pastor Freddy said we "assign supernatural powers to the natural."

Wind and waves were nothing to Jesus. They had seen him calm them before, and in this narrative, he's even out taking a stroll in the storm. Jesus was not scared of the weather and waves.

However, I would say the converse is also true: we assign natural powers to the supernatural.

We forget how BIG God is. We forget He already knows we're going to fall.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me

were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

Psalm 139:16

God already knows you're going to fall; He's trying to teach you how to respond to it.

Call out.

Reach Up.

I have fallen on my face quite a few times in my life, and I wish I could say my first response was to call out to God and seek His will. Instead, I've often tried to manipulate circumstances and solve the problem in my own power.

Like Peter, God has called me out into the storm to meet him, and I got out of the boat, lost sight of Him, and started to sink.

But instead of calling out to Him, I decided to try to dog paddle my way to safety.

But God is working on me. With each calling, and each fall, I'm learning to call out to the only One who I know has the power to save me. I'm learning to keep my heart soft and responsive to His voice...and His correction.

Where are you today, friend?

Are you in the middle of the storm, discouraged and scared because you've forgotten what a powerful God we serve?

Are you full of excitement for the adventure ahead, but so excited that you're trying to take shortcuts to get to the end result? Manipulating circumstances to bring a desired result? Are you asking for a fall?

Call on Him today. Lean in close and listen for His quiet voice. Let Him determine your steps and strengthen your resolve...correct your course.

It's not always fun or easy, but it's always worth it.