That being said, I am back! Aaaannnnndddd, I have a lot to say!
Oh 2012...you weren't my favorite. Now safely ensconced in 2013, and free to reflect on what has perhaps been my darkest year, I have a few things to say about it. Every event can either hold you down or propel you forward - and each one of us has to make that choice when adversity hits us. Smack in the face. When you weren't expecting it. Whew! So ok, dear friends....I am going to lay it all on the line. This post is not for the faint of heart. Prepare thyself.
Lessons Learned:
1. Life is HARD.
Truth.
No one said this was going to be easy. And yet...we still are shocked when life hands us a crappy set of circumstances. "In this world, there WILL BE troubles" (John 16:33). Not, 'there might be', not 'occasional setbacks', not 'only SOME people will have a bad day'. Nope. EVERYONE WILL have troubles. But, there is hope and peace, for God has overcome the world. You know what that means? It means, this too shall pass.
The storms are coming. Maybe they are already here. Maybe you're in the aftermath. But, rest assured...they will come. My pastor once said, "There are 3 types of people: those in a storm, those that just came out of one, and those getting ready to get hit by one." Not one of us is immune. But here's the great part - we can all prepare for them. We may not know what our individual storm will be or when it will come upon us, but we CAN get prayed up. We can arm ourselves with the Word of God and the TRUTH so that when the enemy sneaks in to lie, steal, kill, and destroy we aren't caught off guard. During the storm, we can praise Him. We can refrain from complaining. We can speak where we are going instead of where we ARE. We can get up, shut up, show up, look up, and believe up.
**I just made that last one up, but I like it! Because in a way, you have to believe up - more and better.**
After the storm has passed, we have to refuel, reset, renew, and sometime redo. But never forget - this battle belongs to the LORD. He is allowing this time in our lives so that we may emerge stronger and more resilent than before.
2. Hold on to your PROMISE.
There have been so many times this past year that I have wanted to give up. Just throw in the towel. Run away from home. Cover my face with my blanket and never get out of bed. And honestly, there were a few weeks in there that it LITERALLY took every once of strength that I had to get.out.of.bed.
Can I get an 'Amen' on that one?
I know that each one of you have also had those days when the "only" victory you could claim was that you get out of bed and got dressed and brushed your teeth. But can I tell you something? When those dark days threaten to swallow you, hold on to your promises from your God Who loves you and Who saved you. I challenge each of you to find your own specific promises and hide them so deep in your heart that you can't forget them. That they come to you automatically in times of despair and discouragement. I don't know what yours will be, but I will share a few of mine. I hope that these will get you started on your own journey of discovery:
(emphasis mine)
3 John 1:2 Beloved, I pray that in all things thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
Isaiah 9:1 Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress.
Joel 2:25-26 And I will restore or replace for you the years that the locust has eaten—the hopping locust, the stripping locust, and the crawling locust, My great army which I sent among you.
26 And you shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praise the name of the Lord, your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you. And My people shall never be put to shame.
Isaiah 54:10 Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed.
Isaiah 61:7 Instead of your [former] shame you shall have a twofold recompense; instead of dishonor and reproach [your people] shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double [what they had forfeited]; everlasting joy shall be theirs.
I acutally LOVE the entire chapter of Isaiah 61. It promises beauty for ashes and justice for the wronged. Please read the entire chapter. And then read it again. 47 more times if that is what it takes to realize that GOD WILL RESTORE. He promised. And I for one, choose to believe that truth. People may hurt me and let me down and lie to me and cheat me and shame me and disappoint me, BUT God never will. He will restore me. He will provide me with double my portion IN THIS LAND!! That means here on Earth in our lifetime people!
These are just a few of the promises that I have found for myself - they are there for you too!!! Go find them.
3. Love covers all.
Now, hear me. I don't mean it erases it. Or that it is some flimsy Hollywood version of two people running toward each other in a meadow of flowing grass in slow motion to embrace and then stroll into the sunset as the camera slowly pans away...NO.
Love is catching your sick son's throw up in your hand and calmly rinsing it off in the sink so you don't freak him out even more (can you imagine throwing up for the first time?? Talk about traumatic!) It is losing sleep to rock a teething baby back to sleep. It is cooking a meal for a friend because they are going through some crap too - and while they don't have a clue about what you are dealing with, they NEED you. It is giving until you have nothing left to give. And then giving even more. It is refusing to give up when everything seems hopeless and lost. It is falling on your face and crying until there are no tears left to cry and praying until your voice is gone and there aren't even words.
It is choosing to try one.more.time. It is forgiving the unforgivable. Because you know what? Aren't we all unforgivable? Haven't we all been given a second chance through the cross? It is holding their hand when news comes, it is laughing in the face of trouble. It is snowball fights and Elmo and playing trains and walks in the rain and hard conversations and compromise and time out and deep breaths and sometimes it is walking away from those that hurt you. Sometimes love is moving on. Sometimes love is hanging on. Sometimes you wish death would come so you could part! Sometimes worse is so much worse than you ever could've imagined and you cry out to God 'Really??? THIS is Your plan for me??" And then those moments, like all the rest, pass too. And love is what is left.
Not feelings. Choices. Love. Commitment. The good stuff.
4. Give Grace. Then give more grace.
If I had to sum up 2012 in one word, it would be grace.
It is an often overlooked virtue, but it is so essential. And so many of us lack it. We are so stingy with it. As if there is a certain finite amount of grace to go around and if we give it away, it will be all gone and we will be left lacking something.
Grace is something that we were all given by our Heavenly Father, and yet we seem to be hardwired to withhold it from the people that we encounter on a daily basis. Why is that? Someone said to me the other day, "I feel so inadequate because I see all of the things I have screwed up in my life and then I look at {him} and he's got it all together -a perfect life." Isn't it funny how we all think everyone else has it 'all together'? Comparison is the thief of joy. Just as being judgemental and critical vanquish grace. Grace says, everyone is fighting a hard battle, so let's be gentle. Grace says, but by the grace of God, there go I. Grace says, I once was lost, but now I'm found.
People! We didn't get here by ourselves!
Is it really that hard to smile at the cashier in the suuuuuuuper slow checkout line? To not blow your horn at the car in front of you that is driving slower than you want? To compliment the lady at the store/restaurant/anyhwere in public that has an upset toddler instead of muttering under your breath about what a horrible parent she is? Who knows what is going on in their life? What they are dealing with? Aren't we called to be the hands and feet? So as His hands and feet, I don't think He meant for us to be kicking people while they are already down!
I encourage you to partake in random acts of grace and kindness. Not because of some facebook fad or current events. But because NO ONE (not even you, dear friend) deserve grace. And that is why it is so beautiful. Send a letter (or text if that's your style) to a friend telling them they are a blessing to you. That you like something about them. Make a meal for someone. Donate clothes or toys that you don't need anymore. Be generous with praise. Value people. If your words to someone were the last that they heard, would you be happy with what you said?
Give second chances and for goodness sake, get off your high horse! If God is no respecter of persons, then why in the world do we pass judgement all the time?? You just wait, Mr. and Mrs. Perfect....ALL have sinned and fallen short. No one deserves to be defined by their past. By their mistakes. We are all just one blink of an eye away from destruction. Judge not my friends...judge not.
There will come a time when I will look back on 2012 and I will only remember the strength that I gained, the triumphs, the beautiful and poignant moments. Time will have blurred the ragged edges of pain and hurt. I will stand victorious and smile and say, "2012, oh that was nothing. Lessons learned, gold refined, what a blessing that year was in my life."
I look forward to that day.
Blessings - Laura Story (such an amazing song to remind us all and that trials are blessings)
Until then, I thank God for giving me just enough life for the step I'm on...
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