Have you ever known anyone who lives securely in a passed down family business? They didn’t create the business, but they’ve been given the business and trusted to continue the work. Maybe they stepped into success only because of a birthright. They didn’t earn it, but it was passed down to them. It’s easy to kind of envy those people.

Have you ever known anyone who has no wealth of their own, but they live with assurance of the inheritance they are in line to receive. They’re not worried about retirement. They’re not stressed about saving. There are boatloads of money coming with their name on it. I recently met a man who lives on a catamaran in the yacht club here in the Florida Keys. He doesn’t work. He doesn’t have to. He told me his step-dad is a billionaire with no children of his own. All of that is coming to him. Hmmmm, must be nice, huh?

My sister, do you realize that truly is US!!!!! We’ve been invited into the family business and we stand to receive an unimaginable inheritance. Not because of anything we have done, but only because of who our Father is. We have no reason for worry over tomorrow.

Galatians 4:5-7, “God sent Jesus to buy freedom for us so that he could adopt us as his very own children. Now you are GOD’S OWN CHILD. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.”

I’m that girl! I have been chosen and adopted as a daughter, and now I’m an heir to all that is His. Woah. That’s my future. That’s YOUR FUTURE. And it’s absolutely REAL. That’s what is ahead for you.

I know it’s easy to wonder and worry about the future, but there it is – you are an heir to all that is God’s. What is God’s? Eternal paradise! A future where every single thing has been worked together for good forever. A future of perfection unlike anything we have ever tasted before.

And this today – this trouble we have – this is just the path on the journey to get there. The journey is short – the destination is forever, and when we get there – oh, it will be so worth it! We’re on our way. Today we are one day closer to that inheritance promised to us. My friends, that’s something to get ridiculously excited about.

I know how much fun I have at our BIG Life Retreats. Being with other girls who love Jesus and embrace adventure is just the best. To me, it’s a little taste of our future inheritance. I often imagine what Heaven will be like when we’re there together. Me and you – a never ending retreat of perfection in paradise. Better than Bali. Better than Hawaii. Better than the Amalfi Coast. A perpetual, never ending, mind-blowing paradise of perfection. And because of Jesus, I’m promised this. And if you’ve accepted Jesus too, then you will be there too. And we’re one day closer to it! We’re already on our journey there!

Isn’t it such an exciting day to pack your suitcase and know you’re leaving for vacation? You’re ON YOUR WAY. The trip has begun. You haven’t arrived yet, but you have on your vacation clothes, you’re pulling that suitcase, you have your tickets, and you’re boarding the plane to get there. And that’s us … we’re already on our way to our inherited promise of eternal paradise. I’m ridiculously excited about that. It’s literally happening. I’m almost there. You’re almost there. We’re going, girl!

We often use the letters RIP when someone dies. Rest In Peace. But I think it’s so much better than that. My RIP is the never ending eternal RETREAT IN PARADISE. Oh girl, I hope you have your retreat ticket too! You don’t want to miss it.

Now – what about that family business?

I have 3 children. Our biological son and our daughters who were grafted into our family through adoption. All 3 of them have an invitation to our family business. There’s an open position for them. At any point, they are welcome to continue our work. One day, you’ll hear from my daughters. Their stories will be used to guide other young souls who temporarily lost their way. My son, who battled addiction, will be a mighty force in setting others free. They will be adventure guides on retreats and prayer warriors in BIG Life. The family business is theirs when they’re ready for it.

Why? Because they’re my children. First dibs go to them. That’s simply the way it works. Oh what tremendous joy it would bring me to see my children continue the family business.

And we have been adopted as God’s own children! We are invited into the family business with Jesus. But, what is that family business?

Do you remember the story of Jesus’ parents losing him when he was 12 years old? For 3 days they frantically searched for young Jesus and finally they found him in the Temple. And what did he say to Mary and Joseph? He said, “Why did you seek me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s business?”

God has business. Jesus worked in that business. Now, check this out – Jesus says in John 14:12, “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works!”

We’re invited in as partners in the family business! YES – that person who has an established, working, successful family business to just step into, IS US!!!!!!!!!!

So, what’s the family business? What is the work Jesus did and we are to continue?

Jesus’ work on earth was making disciples. He chose 12 men, invited them to follow him, and personally taught them about God. He brought people to the Father. And quite simply, that’s the family business we are invited to be partners in.

After Jesus rose from the grave, he spent 40 days on earth as the resurrected savior. He appeared to his disciples and encouraged them to take over the family business. His departing words to them are, “Therefore GO and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28: 19-20)

The family business has been passed down. The work Jesus did of bringing people to the Father is now our work. We’re to love, to reach and teach. We’ve been saved, changed and made new to do this one work! 2 Corinthians 5: 18-20, “God brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave US this wonderful message of reconciliation. So WE are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through US. WE speak for Christ when we plead, ‘COME BACK TO GOD!'”

It’s not my job to save people. It’s not my job to change them. That’s God’s work. My work – your work – is to invite people back to God. We’ve been given this wonderful message of reconciliation. Reconciliation is an offering to return to a state of favor. That message is our work. We’re sent as God’s ambassadors to spread that message. As an ambassador, you are an authorized messenger.

Jesus was God’s authorized messenger. Now, as an heir of all that is God’s, including the family business, you are asked to be his authorized messenger!

Will you be about your Father’s business?

So remember those lucky people who just step into the family business because their parents started something good? Remember those fortunate people who have a promised inheritance that removes the worry and stress over their future? THAT’S US! THAT IS TOTALLY US.

We’re those blessed, favored, fortunate girls! We are those crazy rich, spoiled girls. That’s truly our story. We just never realized what we stepped into. We could never deserve it, but we’ve still been chosen for it!

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God made an investment in you. He intentionally invested potential within you and gives you time in this life, and he expects a return on that investment.

Is he getting it? What are you doing with what he has given you? How are you using what’s inside of you?

The truth is, we often short God on all he did for us. We belittle the enormous gift within us and dismiss all we could do and all we could be. Why is that? Why don’t we honor the gift?

I believe it’s because ultimately we’re scared. We fear failure. We fear judgment. We fear looking foolish. We fear screwing this thing up with the wrong choice and the wrong direction.

So here we are walking around as these prized masterpieces of God, carrying around a world of potential, living less than, little lives, while questioning our value and discounting our worth, missing the gift of time we’re in.

AND GOD ISN’T GETTING A RETURN ON HIS INVESTMENT.

Jesus tells a story in the bible about this exact thing. The story of the talents, or parable of the three servants. I will read from The Message translation so it we understand it on today’s terms.

Matthew 25: 14-30 MSG:

Jesus is describing the Kingdom of God and he says, “It’s like a man going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated responsibilities. To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left. Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master’s investment. The second did the same. But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and carefully buried his master’s money.

After a long absence, the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. The one given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. His master commended him: ‘Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.’

The servant with the two thousand showed how he also had doubled his master’s investment. His master commended him: ‘Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.’

The servant given one thousand said, ‘Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.’

The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.’

‘Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this “play-it-safe” who won’t go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.’”

Understand, girls, our master has given us something. What has he given you? An investment of time, talent and treasures. What are you doing with them? I ask because, sister, IT MATTERS. It matters what you do with what you have been given. The master will be returning and he will specifically ask you what you have done with what he invested in you.

He wants to trust you as his partner. But can he?

If God gives you 84 years of life, he will expect you to do a whole lot of living in that 84 years. What will you have to show for it?

What do you have to show for the years you’ve been given so far? How much living have you done? It’s easy to assume we will do more living in our later years and save up the anticipated returns for retirement. Ahhhhhh, don’t be so arrogant to assume you will be given that time.

I have a group of listeners who live in an assisted living facility in Missouri. A few years ago I went and visited them. There I met a fancy woman with a collection of purses she was so proud of. Then she began sharing her story with me. She said her husband had worked hard and made much money. They had big plans for his retirement. They were going to travel the world and do all the things they had never done before while building his business. The day came where he finally retired – and he died the next day of a heart attack. She never got to live that life she imagined. Now she sits in a tiny room with only her purses and her money.

Whatever day you’re saving up your living for may never even come. Are you saving up for when the kids get older and life gets easier? Saving up for next year or next summer? Well what if you don’t get that opportunity? What if your days are numbered and that number is far less than you imagined? None of us know. What we do know is we woke up today.

God invested TODAY in you. What will you do with it? He will ask. What will you say?

Will you arrive to the Pearly Gates of Heaven worn out or rusted out? Will you be worn out from all the living you did after using up every single moment you were given … or will you be rusted out from sitting and waiting, just thinking about all you could do but never really doing a dang thing about it? I have a feeling our Heavenly Father will be mighty ticked off by any rust spots on his girls. Don’t live and die a rusted out life.

I have a creed that describes life as I want to live it. It goes like this:

“I want a life that’s vibrant and beautiful. I would rather be worn out from living than rusted out from sitting. I want to wear bright colors and smile so big my cheeks hurt. I want to tkae risks and dive head first into things that take my breath away. I want to skid sideways through the Pearly Gates of Heaven with wild hair screaming ‘woo-hoo what a ride.’ And I want to make God giddy over giving this girl the gift of life.”

The truth is, most of us aren’t nearly as overwhelmed as we think we are. We’re actually underwhelmed. We’re bored with the way we’re living our lives. Somehow we’ve managed to take this wild ride called life and tamed it down to this monotonous series of tasks and lists of to-do’s and forgotten to actually LIVE.

In the story Jesus tells of the master returning after some time away and asking what each person did with what he had given them. Imagine if God called that meeting with you today and wanted to see exactly what you’ve done with the sum of your days, what would you have to show him?

So far he’s invested 18,270 days into me. What do I have for him as a return? What have I done with these days? 18,270 sunrises and sunsets. 18,270 mornings to wake up with gratitude. 18,270 opportunities to live ridiculously well. 18,270 days to show his love, to spread his joy, to live in his word, to be covered in his grace and to be in awe of his creation.

What have you done with yours? You can find exactly how many days he has invested in you by going to www.daysold.com and entering your date of birth. Take a good look at your number then ask yourself WHAT DOES IT MEAN. How do you honestly feel about what you have done with the time you have been given? How many days have you wasted and how many more are you willing to waste? Is today one of those days? One of those days where God will be missing his return on his investment of YOU?

God is expecting a return on what he has invested in you. What will you have to show him? He’s not interested in you playing it safe with this life. That’s why Jesus tells us this story. He is demanding better of you and I. Perfect is not part of his plan for you, but LIVING is. Imperfect, messy, authentic, genuine, give it a whirl, show up for it LIVING.

You count a dog’s life different than a human’s life. A dog’s year is equal to 7 of ours. They don’t live as long, but perhaps they don’t need to. They fit 7 times as much living into what they are given. Seriously, watch your dog. My dog Tank is always excited about life. He’s always happy. He literally smiles and puts his ears back when he sees the people he loves. He can’t contain his sheer excitement over calm waters. His whole body wags. And when he sees a fish, it’s a literal frinzy of sheer happiness. People line up on the coast to watch Tank swim and fish.

It seems to me God sure gets a good return on his investment in my dog. I wonder if he gets as much out of me?

Stop digging holes and trying to safely preserve all you have been given. God’s not interested in you saving up days of unlived life. He’s not pleased by your playing it safe and sitting it out. He’s not impressed by your pristine state of proper-ness and spotless, unstained days. I have to believe he takes delight in you simply trying, even when you fail.

Honey, he didn’t give you this life to live it scared. You’re not here to tip toe through your days afraid of getting it wrong. Show up for your life BOLDLY as the person you were created to be. Go ahead and be seen, be heard, and fall on your face when you screw this thing up. To this he will say “Good work. You did your job well!”

God knows exactly what he put within you and he says IT IS ENOUGH. If 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish could be enough to feed thousands, then surely what he has put within you is enough to do something!

Now, make sure he’s getting a good return on his investment of you. Don’t let today go by unlived.

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Yesterday, I stood in church and I sang the words, “Oh God, the battle belongs to you.” As those words passed my lips, I felt the Holy Spirit say, “Do you really believe that?” Sometimes we can sing songs or even quote scripture, and we don’t even realize what we’re saying. Do you really believe this battle belongs to God? Is he fighting here? Is he promising victory?

What battle are you currently facing? What is your real life situation of stress, uncertainty and threat? Think about that relationship right now. Think about that circumstance. Think about that worry you’ve been carrying around and fear of what may happen next. Is there a sickness? Is there a problem with someone you love? Is there a divide that seems to only be getting bigger? Is there a hurt? An injustice?

Is it your marriage? Is it your child? Is it your family? Is it you?

Is it your home? Is it your job? Is it your future? Is it your health?

Where’s your battle? Is that really God’s battle? Is God in this? Can his power be at work here? Could he change it all around? Could he do the impossible?

David was the one who first spoke those words, “This is the Lord’s battle.” Do you know when he spoke it? When he was staring up at a skilled giant enemy warrior named Goliath. Goliath was in full armor, holding a sword and a spear, ready to crush little shepherd boy David who stood there in his shepherd clothes, holding nothing but a slingshot and 5 smooth stones from the river.

David responded to the threats of the giant with absolute confidence – not in himself – but in his God. 1 Samuel 17:47, “This is the Lord’s battle!” You see David never declared this battle as his own, this battle belonged to God. And when the battle belongs to God, first it’s not about you and what you can do, and second it’s already won.

David knew something – he knew the stories of God’s power. He knew the battles God had won before with the most impossible odds, and he knew when he sought the Lord for his battle plan, the ultimate victory would be claimed.

Now back to your battle. The situation that threatens or worries you. The thing that has been causing pain in your life. Does this battle belong to God? What I’m asking is, will you let God be in charge of this and trust his plan? Or will you opt for your own ways of worry and stew in the questions, the hurt and the anger? Girl, you can make yourself absolutely sick over this – or you can let God have this battle.

What’s your choice?

I bet right now you have something going on in your life or in your family that is worthy of a full blown breakdown. Something that frustrates you, stresses you, or hurts you. Something you so want to change, but you are powerless to change it. May I remind you once again that you are not Jesus. You cannot save them – you cannot fix them – you cannot change them. That’s God’s job. It’s his battle.

Does that mean we sit back and do nothing? Oh absolutely not. David did not see the giant fall by doing nothing. David let the battle be God’s battle and he let God give him the battle plan. All he had to do was walk it out in faith because it was already guaranteed to work.

Wow – how about that? God has a battle plan and your only job is to walk it out in faith. If you will, it’s already guaranteed to work. Now, here’s what that does NOT guaranteed. It doesn’t guarantee it will always be easy, and it doesn’t guarantee it will always make sense.

In your Bible there are hundreds of stories of battles. None of those battles were easy. Sacrifices had to be made, training had to be given, and long journeys had to be taken. Battles meant some losses. And in these stories of battles within our Bible, we find battle plans. And quite honestly, these battle plans do not make sense. But, when the battle belongs to to God, you have to trust his battle plan.

My sister, have you asked God for his battle plan for you today? What should you do? What should you say? What’s your next move? And don’t count on it making sense or even feeling right – remember, God’s ways are not your ways. They are higher, better and bigger. But if the battle belongs to God, then you must trust his battle plan!

Think about Moses leading the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. We’re talking about 2 to 3 million people fleeing and they’re being chased by an Egyptian army. Then they come to the banks of the Red Sea. It was a dead end. Crossing the sea with all these people was not an option. They would drown. Fighting the Egyptians was not an option, they had no weapons, no training and no plan. So, they were stuck. The Egyptians would soon find them stuck on the shores of the sea and kill them all.

But Moses sought the Lord for his battle plan. God, what do we do? Where do we go? What do I say?

The Lord said to Moses in Exodus 14: 15-16, “Tell the people to get moving! Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea. Divide the water so the Israelites can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground.”

Let’s be honest – that makes absolutely no sense. Pick up a stick and raise your hand to divide the entire sea, then walk through on dry ground. Uhmmmmm, say what God?

That was the battle plan. Moses had a choice – trust in the battle plan and raise his hand in obedience, or don’t. We always have a choice.

Verses 21-22, “Then Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!”

The battle belonged to God. The battle plan didn’t make sense, but when it was followed in faith, a way was made.

What if God is making a way through the battle you’re facing, but he’s not going to force you to go his way? What if it’s now up to you – it’s up to you to seek his battle plan and follow it in faith. It’s up to you to be quiet when he says to be quiet, even when you’re bursting at the seams to say something. It’s up to you to be still when he says to be still, even when that little fighter within you is trying to throw punches and gang signs. It’s up to you to speak in love when he prompts you, even when everything inside of you wants to lash out and hurt them back.

Lord, if this battle belongs to you, then I have to trust you for the battle plan. Guide my steps today. Guard my mouth today. Quiet my mind today. I submit my will to yours.

The absolute coolest story of God’s battle plan is found in 2 Chronicles 20: 1-26. I encourage you to grab your Bible and read this true story today. It will take you less than 5 minutes.

Jehoshaphat was the King of Judah. His people were facing a gathering of enemy armies who had all come against them at once. Verse 3, “Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting. So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the Lord’s help.”

Notice he didn’t pretend to not be bothered by what was happening. No, be real with God. Bring your real fears and your real emotions to God. Beg the Lord for guidance. Yes, fast and pray! Ask everyone to fast and pray with you. Faith doesn’t mean you won’t feel fear. Faith means you can have fear, but fear doesn’t have you.

Now, here’s what happened. The Spirit of the Lord came upon one of the men and said in verse 17, this is what the Lord says, “Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march out against them. But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. He is with you. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!”

There’s their battle plan against a unified enemy army that far outnumbered them. March out against them, take your positions, stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. And don’t let fear have you! Don’t let fear make you hide. Don’t let fear make you so sick you can’t march forward.

Now it’s up to them to either follow the battle plan in faith, or not. It’s always our choice.

They chose to trust God’s battle plan. The next morning they got up and walked towards their enemies. They put singers in front of them as they marched. Singers that sang praises to God. Singers singing, “Give thanks to the Lord, his faithful love endures forever!”

Verse 22, “At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies to start fighting among themselves!” When Jehoshaphat and the army of Judah arrive, they find all of their enemies had killed one another. Not a single one of their enemies still stood.

That’s what happens when you let the battle really belong to God. That’s what happens when you seek God for the battle plan every single day, and you obediently trust it in faith. That’s what happens when you trust God enough to deny what your human tendencies want to do, and instead listen for his direction. That’s what happens when you have fear, but you don’t let fear have you because your faith in God is bigger than your circumstances.

You don’t have to have confidence in you – you have to have confidence in God. This battle belongs to him! Seek his battle plan.

What is God telling you to do today?

God, this battle belongs to you. I’m trusting you with this. Now, I’m begging you to guide me in what to do today. Do I go or do I stay? Do I say something or do I be quiet? If I am to speak, what do I say? Show me the way. Which way do I turn? I’m trusting you.

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Our God is a healer, redeemer and restorer. His desire is to guide you to living the best life he imagined for you from the very beginning.

His answer to your request for healing and restoration is YES. Do you believe that? Yes, he will heal you. Yes, he will restore that which is so broken right now. Yes, he will redeem that which seems too far gone and beyond hope. Yes he will, and yes he is.

Right now, at this very moment, he is healing and saving. He is doing a work you cannot fathom and you do not yet know. Just as you can’t see God, but you believe he is real, you cannot see what he is doing on your behalf here, but you can believe it to be true.

Jeremiah 17:14 says “Oh Lord, if you heal me, I will be truly healed; if you save me, I will be truly saved. My praises are for you alone!”

As a response 13 chapters later in Jeremiah 30:17 we hear from God when he says ” ‘But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the Lord.”

It’s not a question of WILL HE. Will he provide? Will he guide? Will he make a way? Will he heal? Will he save? Will he restore?

ABSOLUTELY, WITHOUT A DOUBT, HE WILL.

What you do not know is how or when.

Jesus is unlimited, so stop limiting his power in your life to do things when and how you believe they should be done.

This year I’ve seen some of his miraculous works in my life, and they totally were NOT how imagined they would be, nor were they when I thought they would be best. But Jesus is not limited to my human concepts of restoration, or my timeline apparently. While it all seemed to be growing worse, Jesus has been behind the scenes doing things I can not see, in ways I can not imagine. Now I’m understanding my role was never to know and understand, my role has always been to trust and hold tight to his promises.

Jesus is a healer. But how he will heal may be different than you imagine. Will you have enough faith to take your Jesus out of the box and let him work in your life?

Of course we know Jesus healed by touch. When he laid his hands on someone, his healing power would be transferred.

We also see that Jesus healed by speaking. With one word, sickness would be gone. He told the crippled man to get up and walk, and with his word, he did. He still has that power in your life. He can speak one word over you, and your entire world can change.

But maybe you’re frustrated because you’ve never felt the touch of Jesus or heard him speak over you. Me either – but I know this – I know without a doubt he has healed me more than once and worked in miraculous ways on my family’s behalf. How did he do it? In ways we may often miss. In ways that don’t look miraculous at all.

In your bible are examples of different ways Jesus healed and they’re all unique and bizarre in their own way. He spit in the mud and used that mud to give sight to a blind man. He put his fingers in a deaf man’s ears to make him hear again. He told 10 lepers to walk down the path to go see the priests and as they went they were healed on their way. He told another man to take a bath in the dirtiest of waters to receive his healing. (And this isn’t even ALL of Jesus’ ways to heal, it’s just the beginning. John wrote in John 21:25, “Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the world could not contain the books that would be written.”

Jesus is unlimited on the ways he can work. He can do ANYTHING. And here’s the thing about the method of healings we read in our Bible, none of these had any magic healing power. It wasn’t the mud that healed the man. It wasn’t the path. It wasn’t the water in the pool. So, what was it? Don’t miss this because it’s important:

It was a step of obedience in accordance to faith. Your movement of FAITH unleashes the power of Jesus.

For some, getting up today when there seemed to be absolutely no good reason to get up, was an act of faith. Jesus’ power is meeting you here.

For others, continuing to pray over a situation that only seems to be getting worse is an act of faith. Jesus’ power is working here.

Take the limits off of how he can work. It may be in really bizarre and unexpected ways.

I can’t determine how Jesus is going to heal, but I know he is a healer. He let Lazarus die first, then he healed him. He took Enoch and Elijah straight to heaven without dying. I can’t predict how and when he’s going to work, but I trust HE IS.

Right now, he is working. He is doing what we cannot do. He is moving mountains we don’t even know exist. He is making ways where we believed there could never be a way. HE IS DOING IT.

Decide right now you will take the limitations off his power in your life. You will trust he will work in his own miraculous way, while you get out of the way. Although you may not understand it now, one day you will and you will be amazed by all he did for you.

There is no truer act of obedience than praise while there is still a problem. Will you take that movement today with faith? The movement of faith called praise when the problem is still really darn REAL and really darn BIG?

Will you praise God for what he is doing while you still don’t know WHAT he is actually doing?

Will you praise him for all he is doing in the unseen that you simply can’t understand?

This is your movement of faith, and Jesus responds here.

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Are there thoughts you repeatedly think, and you want to change those thoughts because you know they’re not good? Are there things you often do, and quite honestly you don’t want to keep doing them? You really do want to change. You want to get better. But you don’t know how to change those thoughts. You don’t know how to change the patterns of your old habits. You don’t know how to change you.

Do you have a behavior within you that you don’t like, but you find yourself acting that way by default? You don’t like being overly competitive and jealous, but you still struggle with certain people being better than you, or their life being better than yours. You don’t like that judgmental and critical side of you, but that side just takes over sometimes. You don’t want to be the nag, the complainer, or the yeller, but there she goes again. It’s you – you’re doing it, and you just can’t seem to stop.

At the root of this is your heart. My friend, this is a heart issue. Proverbs 4:23, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”

What is your heart? The Bible isn’t talking about the organ that pumps blood throughout your body. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word ‘lev’ was translated into heart. In the New Testament, the Greek word ‘kardia’ was translated into heart. Both lev and kardia have a much deeper meaning than our word ‘heart’ today. They mean the center of your soul. It’s your core deep within you. Your lev, your kardia, encompasses your emotions, your will, your mind and your spirit. It’s who you are within.

So, Proverbs is telling us instead of focusing on the external of our flat belly, our smooth skin, our dyed hair and our plumply injected lips, we are to focus on the core within us, because that is what determines the course of your life. Who you are, what you do, and where you are going is flowing from deep inside of you. Fixing up the outside isn’t going to change you – this is a heart issue.

But honestly, thinking your problems are because of a heart issue is a little scary, isn’t it? You act like that because your heart is off. You think like that because your heart is out of alignment. You do those things because there is a problem in your heart. And nothing is going to change permanently in your life until your heart changes.

But how do you change your heart? The heart wants what the heart wants, right? And if your heart has gotten twisted or hurt somewhere along the way, how do you untwist that? How do you heal that? How does that old hardened heart of stone become a soft, tender heart of flesh again?

Answer: GOD DOES THAT!

What do you do? You seek God, surrender your heart, and ask him to do a work in your heart! Girl, you gotta let him in!

The Lord himself says in Ezekiel 36:26, “I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.”

Here’s the truly amazing thing – God isn’t just offering to fix up your old heart. He’s not offering a bandaid or even a bypass. He’s offering a NEW HEART! A transplant!

God wants to take out that old hardened heart of yours that’s made you jealous and competitive – that old stony heart of yours that’s made you judgmental and critical – that old stubborn heart that makes you want to yell and argue – and he wants to give you a new heart. This new heart from God is tender and responsive. This new heart is soft.

And remember, your heart is what determines the course of your life. So if God is willing to give you a new heart, then he’s offering you a new course for your life. A new direction. A new way. A radically different experience.

This really is a heart issue.

A few years ago, I began praying a very bold prayer almost daily. Here’s the prayer, Psalm 139: 23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”

God, check my heart. What have I allowed to get inside of me that is offensive to you?

Suddenly, I became hyper aware of some really ugly tendencies I had. Tendencies to embellish the story to make it more fun or interesting. Tendencies to exaggerate to be more impressive. Habits of gossip. Habits of twisting the facts to fit my narrative. Patterns of selfishness. Thoughts of superiority. Whew, the truth is, my heart had gotten really ugly while my life looked so magical on the outside. And the crazy thing is, it happened while I was busy trying to walk in my purpose and be a person you would really love.

When I surrender my heart to God for examination on a daily basis, he can show me the little unseen threats that are growing within me. They’re almost like an infection that no one else can see, but they will cause great harm and create damage. And once I see these threats in my heart, I can ask God to give me a new heart where it has grown hard.

I can try and try and try to change myself, but I will continually fall short. I’m not created to change myself – and neither are you. You’re created to need a God who specializes in making old things new again. You’re designed to depend on a God who can do impossible things, and he can do them for you. Not only for you, but IN YOU.

I’m telling you, my sister, whatever you’re struggling within inside, GOD CAN CHANGE THAT! And he will, if you will surrender it to him. He will go to work on that heart of yours and make you new.

Jesus says in Mark 7: 21-23, “From within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. (There it is – isn’t your problem listed in some form there? It’s a heart issue!) Jesus says all these things come from within you – it’s a heart issue.

God, I need a new heart! My heart has gotten twisted. My heart has become hardened. It’s dark in there – it’s cold in there – It’s causing me to be someone I really don’t want to be, and honestly it’s leading me in directions I don’t want my life to go. The trajectory of my heart is not good.

Knowing that God himself says he can give us a new heart, here’s our prayer. Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” I want a spirit that won’t give in and give up when tempted. A spirit that holds strong and steady through the storm. And God, I want a pure heart. A heart that isn’t tainted with the nonsense I’ve been struggling with. I can’t fix this on my own, I need you to do a work within me.

And won’t he do it? I’m telling you he can take out that old heart of stone and give you the most pure, soft, responsive heart. You’ll start seeing people differently. You’ll begin noticing things you’ve never noticed before. You’ll be intune with the heart of God. You’ll speak differently. Every choice you make will be impacted by this new heart of flesh offered by God. Why? Because the entire course of your life flows from your heart, and when God gives you a new heart, he gives you a new course! That’s when things change for you.

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Romans 12:1, “I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”

What does it look like to offer yourself as a living sacrifice to God. LIVING – it’s how you live. LIVING – it’s continual. God is not interested in this one big thing you do one time, or this great thing you do on special occasions – he’s asking for you to recognize all he has done for you and respond with your entire life.

What has God done for you? Really – think about that. Only when you know what God has really done for you, can you then respond correctly.

First, God has given you life. He is literally the only reason you’re here today. He created you in your mother’s womb, knit you together according to his design and breathed life into you. But it wasn’t a one time event – he continually breathes life into you. The very air you’re breathing right now, that’s the breath of God giving you life. If he stops, you stop. He gives you life, moment by moment, breath by breath.

God has given you blessings you don’t deserve. Goodness you never even asked for. Favor you weren’t qualified for. And promises your human mind still can’t comprehend. Everything you have is because of him. Every good and perfect gift is directly from him. Every flower you’ve ever been given – that was him. Every beautiful sunny day – him. Every summer rain shower – him. Every sweet night of rest – him. Every moment of peace – yip, him again. Everything that ever worked for you, everything that ever came together, everything that ever fell into place – it was all him.

What has God done for you? Oh my sister, he has done everything.

And then he made the impossible happen for you – he gave Jesus for you. There was such a gap between you and the laws of God that you would forever fall short of his glory, so God gave Jesus as the sacrifice for your forgiveness. His blood covers you. Throughout the old testament we read of the requirement of sacrifices to cover sin. Animals had to be slaughtered, blood had to be offered, atonement had to be bought. But Jesus’ blood covers us once and for all, making us forever good enough.

God did that for you.

A monumental day in my life was the day someone stood on my porch and asked my first name. I said, “Pamela.” They then said, “John 3:16 – For God so loved Pamela, that he gave his one and only son so that she wouldn’t perish, but she would have eternal life.” He did that for me. And if I would have been the only person in the world, he would have given Jesus just for me.

And that’s your truth too. Jesus was for you. God did that all for you.

When you know God has given you literal life, he’s given you every good thing you will ever experience in your life, and he’s saved your life and promised you an eternity in a perfect paradise with him … well, my sister, that should change the way you live this life. This awareness makes you want to offer your whole life as a living sacrifice.

Living – the way you live.

What would your life as a living sacrifice look like? To put this into very practical terms we can understand and begin using immediately, let’s look at Romans 12:1 in the MSG translation:

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping – eating, going to work, and walking around life – and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.”

This is simply living your ordinary life with the intention of honoring God. This is thinking about God in everything you do. This is a continual awareness of his provisions and his providence in the details of every day of your life.

How many of you know the intention behind the action makes a world of difference?!!!! It’s why we love our dogs so much – their intention is always pure. They love you, they’re excited to see you, they want to be with you. Our kids may be acting sweet to try and cover up what they’re feeling guilty over. Our husband – well, who knows what he may be wanting. But our dog – it’s always the same intention.

I can literally go to the grocery store for 15 minutes and when I come back home, my dog Tank acts like he hasn’t seen me for days. The sound of my footsteps walking up the stairs sends his body into full, uncontrollable shaking from excitement. He puts his ears back and smiles. He just can’t get enough of me. It’s how he lives. Not just on Saturdays. Not just when he’s hungry. Not just when he feels like it. Always.

And this is what God desires of us. A LIVING sacrifice because of what he has done for us. Every day, all the time, a genuine excitement to be in his presence, a thorough delight in his ways and works. No matter what we’re doing, no matter where we are, when we’re a living sacrifice for God, our intentions are focused on the genuine delight of him.

God, I hear you – I’ll come barreling down the hallway to you in reckless abandon. Again, envision your dog. Tank is a 130 pound yellow lab who clearly has a body image of a chihuahua. In his reckless abandon to get to me after my 15 minute departure, he will take out any obstacle in his way. I’ve seen him skid down an entire flight of stairs in an attempt to get to me faster. I’ve seen him forget he was tied to a table and drag it across the room just to welcome me back after I went to the bathroom. When I say, “Tank, you want to come outside with Mommy”, he will peel out and lose all traction he’s trying to get to me so fast.

God, I want to be with you. I want to stay close to you. I want to sit at your feet. I want to crawl up in your lap. I want to walk right beside you everywhere you go. God, whatever you’re doing, I want to do it too. I will peel out to get to you!

Again, just like our loyal dogs. They truly show us what a living sacrifice would look like in relationship. This is how we best worship God.

Romans 12:1 in TPT describes living as a holy sacrifice as “Experiencing all that delights God’s heart, and this becomes your genuine expression of worship.” Have you ever thought about what delights God’s heart?

God delights in his creation – when we experience his creation with awareness and appreciation, that is genuine worship.

Today, may you think of all God has done for you and be completely overwhelmed – and may it change the way you live the moments of this ordinary day. Ahhhhhhh, God is here – reckless abandon, ears back, go running to him to be near!!!!!!!!!!

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Romans 11:33, “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!”

I will never understand God, but I can forever be in awe and wonder of him. His thoughts are above my thoughts and his ways are higher than my ways. His plan is always better than my plan and his path to get there is always best. I’ve decided to live my life in surrender to it, even when I don’t understand it. I choose to set my mind to anticipate absolute greatness to unfold. Why? Because my God is GREAT!

In Hebrew the original text was the bathos, meaning the DEPTH of God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge. Not just great, but deep. When it’s deep, it means there’s more than you can see and more than you can touch. When the ocean is bathos, it is deep, you can’t reach the bottom and the treasures beneath are unknown. And the things of God are so deep we will never get to the bottom of them.

God is literally at the bottom of everything. Dig a little and you’ll find God. Keep digging and you’ll find more and more of God. He is the foundation and the source. All that is is only because of Him. The little he has revealed to us is only a hint of all there really is. Romans 11:36, “For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory.” Think about that for a moment. Everything comes from God, it exists by his power, and it is intended for his glory.

That includes YOU. Here’s your life’s absolute truth. You come from God, you exist by his power, and you are intended for his glory. If you feel like you’ve lost who you are and what your purpose is in this life, well whoop there it is! You, my dear friend, you come from God. He personally dreamed of you, designed you and formed you because he wanted you. You are alive today, breathing today, existing only by his power. His power literally lives in you and flows through you. And the intentions for your life are to bring him glory. That’s right, you’re supposed to make it about him, not make it about you. He’s the one you point to. He’s the beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega. If there’s anything good in you, it’s God in you! GLORY TO GOD!

So, Paul reminds us of 3 things of God’s that are so deep that they’re immeasurable: God’s riches, God’s wisdom and God’s knowledge.

God is rich. No, for real, he is, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. God’s not ashamed of his riches. Deuteronomy 11:14, “Look, the highest heavens and the earth and everything in it all belong to the Lord your God.” It’s ALL God’s. Every bit of it belongs to him. We squabble and fight and get protective over what we believe to be ours, but honey just because your name is on the title doesn’t make it all yours – that was God’s first!

A few years ago I was riding my little turquoise bicycle along Highway 1 in the Florida Keys, and I came upon a beautiful private beach resort set behind a large security gate and trees. Lining the drive were statues of Buddha. Buddha is not God. Buddha is an idol some use to replace our God who owns everything. That’s not Buddha’s beach, that’s God’s beach. As I rode by, God so clearly stirred my spirit and said, “That is my land, would you better glorify me with it?”

Now I know that sounds crazy because first, that resort isn’t for sale, and even if it were, the truth is I can’t afford to buy a trailer house on those 6 acres of beachfront property, let alone a resort with a grand lodge and 6 bungalows. But each time I pass it, I hear God say, “That’s mine, I want to be glorified better there.” Largo Resort – God wants it back. It’s his. Jesus, not Buddha. Who will glorify him there?

Everything belongs to God. It’s his and he wants to be glorified in it. If he’s not, he can make impossible things happen to rearrange anything he wishes for his glory. I believe that, don’t you? That means if there’s anything he has given you that you’re not giving him glory in, he can move that out of your hands. It’s all his. I’m not suggesting you ‘name it and claim it’, but I am suggesting your God has ‘made it and claiming it back’.

And here’s the wild thing about God’s immeasurable, deep riches – he formed them all out of absolutely nothing. Nothing. Genesis 1:2, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” There was complete void – emptiness and total darkness with nothing when God started. And from nothing he created everything. Imagine the Spirit of God hovering over dark waters of nothing. And God said, I want to create here now. And how did he do it? HE SPOKE.

God’s resources are unlimited, but even more resources are not required for him to create more of anything he wishes. He can use nothing to create anything he desires, so literally NOTHING is impossible for God. How rich is he? BEYOND RICH. Beyond our wildest dreams or craziest imagination. He can speak anything into existence from absolutely nothing.

My God is rich.

My God also has immeasurable wisdom and knowledge. Deep, deep, deep, beyond understanding and never able to find the bottom of what God knows and controls. There’s no end to his knowing. There’s no bottom to his understanding. It’s infinite.

But notice Paul mentions both God’s wisdom and knowledge. Why? Because they are two separate things.

Knowledge: God knows everything about everything. He knows how it works, he knows where it’s going, he knows what will happen next. There’s nothing God doesn’t know. Nothing is hidden from him. Nothing will surprise or shock him. He has always known the very end from the very beginning and been in complete control of the details in between.

God knows, but we do not. God understands, but we don’t always have that capacity. It’s simply deeper than us. It’s beyond our reach, but not out of God’s reach. Faith in God calls us to trust him with what we don’t know, what we can’t see, and what we can’t understand. Faith calls us out into the deep with a God who walks on water and promises to steady our feet if we only keep our eyes on him. Faith never demands your understanding, in fact it demands your trust in place of understanding.

God knows, and if I know God, then I know everything I need to know because He knows everything. There’s nothing God doesn’t understand. There’s nothing he’s stuck over wondering how he’s going to work it all out. There’s nothing he can’t fix. Nothing he can’t heal. Nothing he can’t restore. Nothing he can’t create brand new. Absolutely nothing. God KNOWS.

God knows everything concerning you. The hairs on your head are literally numbered by him, and girl, if he’s big enough and personal enough to know you lost 17 hairs this morning while doing your messy bun, then he’s big enough and personal enough to know how you’re going to get through the very thing you’re going through right now.

There’s a song I have on repeat right now called “Won’t Start Now” by Seph Schlueter. It starts out like this:

I’ve never seen a morning

That’s our God. With the deepest riches, deepest knowledge and deepest wisdom.

God doesn’t just KNOW everything, but he knows precisely what to DO with everything. That’s wisdom.

Wisdom: God knows how to put together what’s happened in the past, what’s happening right now, and what will happen next, and make it work together for his good plans for your life. He not only knows how, but my sister, that’s precisely what he’s doing. Right now – his deep wisdom is at work in your life. God knows what to do with this!

There’s never been a time God didn’t know what to do, and he won’t start now.

There’s never been a problem God couldn’t fix, and he won’t start now.

There’s never been a mountain God couldn’t move, and he won’t start now.

There’s never been a moment of your life God wasn’t right by your side, and he won’t start now.

He’s not leaving you alone here. He’s not walking away. He’s not turning his back on you. Here he is with his deep and never ending riches, wisdom and knowledge and he says, “I AM YOUR GOD!”

That’s my God! My God owns everything, knows everything and controls everything … perfectly.

Philippians 4:19, “And MY GOD will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

That’s who he is and what he does. Is he your God? Will you let him be God over every detail of your life?

Follow Pamela on Instagram – https://instagram.com/headmamapamela

Today, the sun came up. It met the horizon and it rose above it. That has happened every single day of our lives, so somewhere along the way we stopped being impressed by it. But the fact still remains, every morning the sun races at us from the east at over 1,000 miles per hour as we spin. Here we are walking around as if the world is sitting still, and we’re totally not!

May we always look at the sun rise and remember who did that for us.

God once had a conversation with Job, reminding him that he alone is God, he knows what he’s doing and his power is unmatched. God said to Job:

Job 38: 12-14 “Have YOU ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east? Have YOU made daylight spread to the ends of the earth, to bring an end to the night’s wickedness? As the light approaches, the earth takes shape like clay pressed beneath a seal; it is robed in brilliant colors.”

Have you … have YOU ever done that? Ahhhh, no … you haven’t ever been in charge of the sunrise? You can’t do that my sister?

No, that’s what God does! God causes the sun to rise. He causes the Earth to spin. He brings the sunshine and the rain. And you can trust he knows exactly what he is doing.

Job chapters 38 and 39 include a detailed list of some things God knows and controls. He determines the boundaries of the seas, the storehouses of snow, the path of lightening, and the sending of the rain. He directs the movement of the stars, provides food for the birds, watches as the wild animals give birth, and gives intuition to the heart and instinct to the mind.

And my friend, he sees YOU. He knows everything concerning you. He made the sun to rise and shine on you today. Shouldn’t that provide a sense of comfort and peace knowing the One who is charge of all this knows you and cares for you?

This evening, the sun will finish it’s dance across the sky and it will gracefully set to the west. Some will gather to watch the show, but most won’t. Most will be totally unaware of the magic happening in the sky and be busy with their evening routine. But, it will happen. God will faithfully bring the day to an end once again and the sun will be no more.

Today, the sun will rise and set regardless of what you do, because God is in charge of that. However, what you choose to do with the light while it’s here is up to you.

What will you do with the light of today? How will you use this time God has given you? And really, isn’t that the greatest gift we have here in this life? We have time. Limited time. Precious time. How foolish of us to take our time for grated or waste it.

The rising sun on this day gives you more time. Time to live.

God has gone to great measure to give you light today. He commanded this morning on your behalf. He caused the dawn to rise in the east with you in mind. He made the daylight spread to your exact positioning and brought your night to an end so you could see. Brilliant colors were painted for your eyes.

What is your response?

Where I am in Florida, we will have exactly 11 hours and 38 minutes of daylight today. That is time given to us as a gift today with an expectation to use it.

USE THE GIFT. The gift of his light.

For some of us, the night has been long and hard. We’ve been going through a season of darkness where life has been challenging and the struggle has been real. The odds seem stacked against us as life kinda falls apart. Well I may not know how long this darkness has been for you or what your struggle has been, but I know this for sure, God is here offering his light for YOU today.

John 12:46 Jesus said “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.”

DO NOT REMAIN IN THE DARK. That’s a choice. Remaining in darkness is your choice until you choose to step into the light of Jesus and trust what he will show you. Once again, the question becomes, what will you do with this offering of light? Will you trust God today?

Choosing to trust God brings his light to your life. You simply begin to see things differently. However, choosing to worry, stress, control and not trust God makes your world so much darker. It’s a choice. Light or darkness. Trust God or don’t.

I believe it’s by divine design our S-U-N, which is the source of light in our world, is pronounced exactly like S-O-N, the son of God who is the light of the world.

Jesus has come to remove the darkness from your life and show you the way. His offering is to banish this darkness that has threatened your joy. Will you accept?

His light is here to shine truth on those areas of your life that have been hidden away in guilt and shame, and with his truth you see he chose you anyway. Your shortcomings do not cause disqualification. He chose you because you need him. He is light because of the darkness. He is responding to your need.

His will is NOT for you to remain in the dark. His will is for you to use the light he has offered you here. Come out of the shadows. Crawl out of the pit. Get on up from that ditch where you fell off the wagon. Step into his light now.

It’s time. His light is here. His offering is for you. Will you respond?

The sun is rising and setting today regardless. With or without your awe, it will happen. God has been faithful to offer another chance to his children. What you choose to do with the light while it’s here is up to you.

Jesus, shine your light on me. I no longer want to dwell in this darkness. I’m ready to wake up and truly live. I want the life you have offered me. Guide me as I boldly take the next step toward the destiny you have designed for me. Show me the way and I will use your light while it’s here. I will respond to your faithfulness with my faithfulness.

What will you do with the light?

There’s a song my husband often listens to in the morning. It’s “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles. I encourage you to listen to listen to it today. And when it says “Here comes the sun little darling, here comes the sun. Here comes the sun, and it’s alright”, remember the S-O-N is coming for you too little darling, and he is the one who makes it alright.

If God can make the sun to rise today, can’t he handle everything else concerning you too?

Follow Pamela on Instagram – https://instagram.com/headmamapamela

Yesterday was a nostalgic kind of day for me. 15 years ago yesterday we hosted our very first gathering and called it a retreat. It was the most unimpressive, duct taped together event you’ve ever seen, in the basement of Joplin, MO city hall. Looking back it’s almost embarrassing … But it was the beginning.

I spent yesterday going through photos of every retreat since then. For the first time, I made a list and numbered them. Would you believe we’ve hosted exactly 100 retreats? Some of those retreats have been the best days of my life … and some of those early retreats you couldn’t pay me to go back and do again.

What a ride it has been and what a story we now have to tell. It’s not always a story I would have chosen, but it’s a story God has orchestrated to build what we get to do today. Just this year at our retreats, we’ve baptized 39 precious souls in total commitments to Jesus … all while having an absurd amount of fun in the most beautiful places in the world.

When God’s word says in Ephesians 3:20, “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” – well it’s absolutely true. God can do so much more than we could ever dream up on our own. It’s bigger than you imagined and greater than you think, but you have to partner with him in the story and decide to trust him enough to join him on the ride.

All glory goes to God, only he can do it – but how totally awesome that he invites us to be part of the story!

God gives us a story to tell. A story of how he saved our life, turned it all around, and made the impossible happen on the daily. He’s writing a story with your life and it’s all unfolding day by day.

Think about the things that make for a great story. It’s never the comfortable, easy, guaranteed stuff. It’s the ups and downs, the twists and turns, the suspense and climax that make for a great story. And our God is the greatest writer of all. I wonder what he’s writing for you?

A few years ago on my husband’s birthday, I surprised him with a ride in a WW2 bi-plane. I requested the “loop-d-loop tricks ride” over the coast for the full experience. He went on the first ride and returned so dizzy he could barely walk. Then it was my turn.

I’ve never experienced anything so thrilling. It made sky diving seem like a total bore. It’s an open cockpit with 2 tiny seats and you truly feel like you’re flying. At one point we’re high up in the sky and suddenly it gets very quiet. The engine goes dead. Like motor OFF. Y’all we’re flying in an 80 year old airplane controlled by 2 foot pedals and one hand lever and the engine cuts. Boom, we go into a spinning nose dive. It’s like the wildest roller coaster ride you’ve ever been on … without a track. Then the engine starts trying to crank. It puts a time or two, then fires up and suddenly we make a 180 and start climbing straight up.

My son was in town so it was the ultimate experience to share with him and his wife. After we’re all on the ground safely, my husband strikes up a conversation with the pilot. He says “wow, so how long have you had this airplane.” The pilot smiles and says, “One week! How in the world did you all find me?” I said, “Well I saw you flying over the beach a few days ago and I wondered if maybe you offered rides so I googled you.” He said, “Well, you saw me on my first flight.”

I swallow … hard.

Y’all if I would have known this was a new experience for the pilot, I wouldn’t have strapped myself into that plane and squealed with delight as he let it fall in a nose dive from the sky. Nor would I have encourage 3 other members of my family to do the same.

Funny – looking back I remember the pilot saying, “Hey, no videoing up there because we’re supposed to have parachutes on and those haven’t arrived yet.” I thought he was joking. No, he wasn’t joking. The parachutes had not arrived yet and we were doing it anyway.

Here’s the point: SOMETIMES ALL THE INFORMATION WILL ONLY KEEP US FROM EXPERIENCING THE GREATEST THINGS IN LIFE.

If I would have known the details of building BIG Life and hosting 100 retreats over the past 15 years, I would have never planned the first one. I would have dismissed myself from my calling and purpose. I would have sat that out in overwhelm. How sweet of God to keep it a mystery from me.

We get so wrapped up in gathering the details, doing the research, making our lists and planning the next steps for 10 years, and we miss the experience God is offering us right now. You know why God doesn’t tell you everything in advance … because he knows you wouldn’t buy into the ride if you knew everything.

What experience has God had available for you, but you’ve been gathering information instead of diving into where he’s leading you?

If you really knew how painful childbirth was going to be, you probably wouldn’t have been so excited about being pregnant.

If you knew what life with a hormonal teenager would be like, you would have never taught that child to speak.

But you didn’t know, and you weren’t supposed to.

You don’t know how God is going to lead you where he plans to take you, and you’re not supposed to. If he gave you full disclosure, you wouldn’t show up.

Isaiah 55:9, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.”

This means you just have to trust God. He knows what he’s doing and he’s actually really good at his job. The story he’s writing for you is one you could never write on your own.

Sharing that bi-plane ride with my family was one of the coolest experiences of my life and we will all remember it forever, but if we would have known the details in advance, we would have missed that opportunity. Imagine his website offering the truth … “Come fly in an 80 year old airplane for 2 with a pilot who has owned the plane for 1 week and flown it a few times. Buckle up for this adventure as we barrel through the sky and see what tricks we can pull off … before the parachutes required by law arrive.”

I wouldn’t have bought the tickets … and I would have totally missed out on this experience.

If I would have known the full journey of the past 15 years with all 100 retreats, it wouldn’t have happened. There are a few of those experiences that would have overwhelmed me so much that I would have forfeited everything else and passed up those tickets.

And if you knew all the details about where God is taking you and the journey required to get there, you wouldn’t buy the tickets either. So guess what, he’s not going to give you the details, he’s going to ask you to trust him and go any way.

Will you trust where God is leading you? Will you trust what he is doing? Will you show up every single morning and partner with God in the adventure and follow his lead? Will you give up the continual need to gather all the information and plan the details before you’re willing to take the first step?

If you’re waiting for the details, you’re going to wait your entire life because God knows you wouldn’t move forward if you knew everything in advance.

Jesus walks up to 3 fishermen standing on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and he says to them “Come, follow me.” There was no detailed travel plan revealed. No itinerary or even explanation. Just an invitation to follow Jesus. Their whole world changed with that first step.

And so will yours. Jesus is asking you today to come, follow him. But you don’t get to know the details in advance.

He has a ticket for the ride of a lifetime for you … won’t you just go?

Now, here’s the really fun part. After our ride and my husband’s little revealing chat with the pilot, who I should mention had a real leather bomber jacket with his name on it, a real-life Tom Cruise look, plus over 30 years experiencing flying planes in the military, we walked to our car and relived our thrilling experience.

Our son says, “Guys, in the middle of the ride I look down and realize my seat-belt had come undone.” Well, it was an 80 year old all original plane. The seat-belts were a bit pre-historic. Then our daughter-in-law says, “Well we were up in the air for a few minutes and then the pilot says ‘I’ve made a horrible mistake. The worst mistake you can make. I forgot to get more fuel.” They had to make an emergency landing and fuel up.

And you know what all these things make …. A BETTER STORY.

That bi-plane ride was my gift to my husband for his birthday. My 50th birthday is next week – guess what he bought me … tickets for a sea-plane!

God is writing a better story for you. It may include a few hairy moments without a seat-belt, and running out of gas along the way. But these are the things of great stories.

Your story was created before the dawn of time. He began thinking of you and the story you could live before he ever spoke the first word that created light in the darkness.

Psalm 139:16 “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”

That means God knew about today since the beginning. He’s not surprised by this, he’s using it.

Oh what a story he is writing for you.

Don’t miss this experience because you’re trying to gather all the information before you move forward with Him. You’re not supposed to know how this is all going to work out. You’re just supposed to show up every day for the unfolding.

Follow Jesus.

Day after day, just follow him.

Jesus says in Matthew 4:19, “Come, follow me.” What is your response?

Buy the ticket he is offering you daily and buckle up as the story unfolds. This is the story of your life, and Jesus loves thrilling stories! Just follow him!

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There are many names of Jesus, but there is only one name we call him that saves our soul. Do you know that name? He’s not just our friend, he’s not just the lamb, he’s not just our teacher, he’s not just the Prince of Peace or the Bread of Life. He’s our LORD. When Jesus is our Lord, then everything changes.

Paul writes in Romans 10:9, “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” It’s that simple and that specific. Jesus must be your Lord.

If you don’t let Jesus be your Lord, then God will let you be your lord. And let me tell you, you make a terrible lord over your own life. Do you know why? Because you don’t know best. You don’t see everything. You simply cannot guide and direct your life down the best path because you were never equipped to do that on your own. You were designed to need God. Without him, you simply cannot live a good, fulfilling and purposeful life.

What does it look like to make Jesus the Lord of your life?

In Biblical times, calling someone Lord signified a recognition of their power, of their authority, of their high status as master or ruler. ‘Lord’ meant, you are over me and I am under you. Think of the word ‘landlord’ which we use today. This is someone who owns the house that we’re temporarily renting from them. It’s theirs, not ours. We follow their rules, or we’re out. We agree to their terms, not the other way around. They are the land-lord and they have authority over their land.

Now, declaring Jesus is Lord is recognizing him as the supreme authority and highest position. He is above absolutely everything. He alone holds all power because everything belongs to him. If Jesus is your Lord, then you are under his authority and you’ve pledged your allegiance to him. He is the one you seek to honor. He is your master and you are his servant.

Easy enough – right?

But have you really given him that place? Is he really the one you seek above all else? Is he really your master? Does he really get the best of you, or does he get your leftovers? Does he take first place, or does he take back burner? Is he your first choice, or is he your last resort? If he is the Lord of your life, then everything you do comes from a place of serving him, honoring him, and seeking him.

Do I have any recovering people pleasers listening today? You’ve spent the majority of your life trying to make everyone happy. You so desperately want them to like you that you will sacrifice everything else along the way. It’s hard to let Jesus be Lord if you’re so busy trying to make everyone else happy. In fact, Paul, the same man who wrote the book of Romans, tells us in Galatians 1:10, “I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.”

You cannot always please people and God at the same time. Pleasing people cannot be your goal. Having everyone like you cannot be your objective. So who will be your priority? Really, who will get your time today? Who will get your attention today? Who will you serve first?

Do you have time set aside for God? Time to study his word and talk to him? Oh I hope so, because my sister, that is the only way you will truly grow.

Let’s say during your time with God, someone walks into the room and asks for your help. What do you do? Who do you please? Ahhhhh, man, that’s tough, isn’t it?

You know what I wish so badly I would have taught my children when they were little? I wish I would have taught them when Mama is on her knees that you can either join her or leave her alone, but you’re not going to pull her away. I wish I would have taught them that Mama’s time to read her Bible is more important than any other time of the day. That it’s sacred. That it’s set apart. That it’s vital. That it will be protected. I didn’t do that.

If you still have children at home, don’t miss this opportunity to show your children what it means to make Jesus the Lord of your life. To this day I struggle to understand what that looks like because I’ve never seen anyone actually live it. I didn’t have that example, nor did I set that example. I pray you younger Mamas do it better than I did.

But today, I still have the opportunity to prioritize my time with God. What happens when a text comes in during my time with Jesus? What happens when an appointment is scheduled in my appointed time with God? Who will I make happy? Who will get the best of me?

Openly declaring Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God raised him from the dead is what saves our soul. It’s more than just words, it’s a total devotion of life. If Jesus is Lord, then he gets everything. If Jesus is Lord, he is my master. If Jesus is Lord, he is first and everything else comes after him. If Jesus is Lord, I will obey him and trust him.

Jesus is Lord over my feelings. Honestly, what gets in my way more than anything else are my feelings. My feelings will talk me out of doing what the Holy Spirit has prompted me to do. My feelings will dismiss me, hold me back, and cause me to miss aligned opportunities. Honestly, sometimes I just don’t want to do what I know I should do. My feelings tell me I’m too tired, or I’m too busy, or I’m too ordinary. And then again, sometimes my feelings tell me I want what I want right now and I’m willing to sacrifice a little off the corners to get it. That’s what leaves me settling. That’s also what creates massive messes.

My feelings make a terrible lord.

But understand that’s precisely the position you put your feelings in when you start obeying them. When your feelings become the master of your daily choices, that means Jesus is no longer sitting on that throne. You can’t have two lords.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other.” Who or what gets top place in your life? Someone will be master. Something will be a priority. If it’s not Jesus, there’s a problem.

It just looks so sweet to make everyone else your priority. Those people pleasers are so wonderful to be around, aren’t they? Gosh, they’re nice and they’re always making sure you’re so well taken care of. Except for the fact that JESUS IS NOT PLEASED. Jesus has been denied his place. Ouch, that’s the truth.

Stop trying to please people. That’s not what you’re created for.

It’s also quite popular today to allow your feelings to become the most vital part of your being. Stop focusing on your feelings. Your feelings are crowding out the throne.

Give Jesus his place. He is Lord.

He is El Shadi, Lord Almighty.

He is Lord. Let your mouth declare it and your life affirm it.

He alone is the priority.

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