As You Reach Your Destination
My family and I set out recently on a trip to look at a horse that was for sale. It was in another town that we hadn’t been to before, and so we quickly punched the address into our GPS so we could get on our way. The only problem is that my husband hates that thing with a passion. He will fuss and cuss at “her” (the voice of the GPS) the entire way to our destination. It is a constant struggle any time we go on a trip. It would easily zap the fun completely out of the trip if I allowed it to do so. However, I try to encourage my husband and ask him kindly not to say bad things! To me, it is an adventure! I like going where I’ve never gone before. I like looking at all the new things along the way. Why he can’t just enjoy the ride is beyond me, but I am reminded that we are two completely different individuals. He definitely likes to be in control, but the funny thing to me is that if he doesn’t know where he’s going, he is anything but “in control.”
As I have pondered this since our last trip, I couldn’t help but think of how God points us in the direction that He wants us to go. How many times do we ask for His help and His guidance? And how many times do we fight it the entire way when He lays the path before us that He wants us to take?
Are you like my husband? Do you fight every twist and turn? Do you mumble, grumble, fuss, and complain about every thing that God wants you to do? Remember now, you did seek Him first before you set out on your journey. You asked Him for direction, and He has given it to you.
It is definitely something to think about, now isn’t it?
For me, I enter the address into the GPS and trust that it will take me to my destination. No matter how many times it takes me places that I don’t understand, it does eventually get me there safe and sound. Until I reach my destination, though, I try to relax and enjoy the scenery along the way. Likewise, I trust God and cling to the following verse:
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,“ says the Lord, “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
I want to encourage you on your path. Your journey will look different than that of my own. God has plans for each of us. They may look like we’re setting out side by side initially, but God may send your life in a different direction than He sends mine. That is fine, as long as it is HIS plan.
I encourage you to pray and ask God what direction He wants you to take in your life. Where does He want you to go? What does He want you to do?
After you’ve prayed and have heard God speak, trust Him to get you safely to your destination. Surrender to Him and allow Him to guide you along your journey, your path, your walk of life. He will not lead you astray.
There may be times you’re walking in the deepest valley, and there may be other times that you’re on the highest mountain. Trust that He knows best. Have faith in His abilities to deliver you to your destination in life exactly when you’re supposed to arrive.
Trust Him as you reach your destination!
Join Holley Gerth and other writers like myself every Wednesday as we link up to spread encouragement all over the internet!
God’s Plan For Spiritual Battle Series – Conclusion
Today, we continue on in our series Gods Plan for Spiritual Battle: Victory over Sin, the World, and the Devil
Author Russell M. Stendal reminds us:
The war horse in the last chapter was trained for battle, snorting, stamping, and straining to hear the sound of the trumpet and the shout of the commanders. This horse is described by the Greek word, praus, or meek, because the horse is perfectly trained, perfectly submitted to its master, and can be relied upon to obey orders even in the heat and confusion of battle.
Then Mr. Stendal goes on to give another example of meekness in none other than Moses. He reminds us that Moses started out by taking the law into his own hands, killing an Egyptian, but God dealt with him in the desert. God prepared and trained Moses to do battle God’s way. Then Moses submitted to God. He became meek, and God used Moses far beyond what he ever thought possible. God sent Moses to confront Pharaoh after that, and although Moses was probably nervous, God empowered him!
Let’s stop right there and think of the possibilities … of all the things God could do with and through us if we would only submit to Him! God has equipped us with unique gifts which are to be used for His glory. Are you allowing God to use you to His fullest potential?
In this chapter, Mr. Stendal talks about a time in his life when he wasn’t very disciplined with his school work. He would goof off and just not get his work done. It wasn’t until he had a hunting accident where he accidentally shot his foot that landed him in the hospital that he was forced to slow down and actually throw himself into his studies. Prior to his accident, he has been asking God to help him to focus more on his school work. While this probably wasn’t the intervention he was hoping for, God allowed something to happen in his life that forced him to focus more on his studies. While he was recovering, he studied and ended up finishing his course on time and also scoring very high on his college entrance exam! Some people may say they will not commit their lives completely to God then if something like this happened, as one girl did say to Mr. Stendal after one of his talks, but Mr. Stendal asks the question of what if God hadn’t intervened in his life then? Had he not been disciplined every time he needed it, he would be a mediocre Christian, doing mediocre things completely incapable of facing the enemy, of winning a victory. Instead, he was now disciplined and able to be used for God’s glory in God’s army.
This book has really made me stop to think several times while reading through it. This time was no different. Having just had an accident on a horse, it makes me wonder what area I need to stop and focus on. What does God want me to do now while I wait in recovery mode? I can’t ride a horse at this stage of the game. While my hand and hip recover, I need to seek God more to see where he wants my focus to be. And … I will.
I don’t want to give too much of this book away in this series. I would like to leave you with a desire to invest in the book and, more importantly, into your relationship with Jesus through the tools offered in this book. Therefore, I will conclude the series with a teaser for the last half of the book which consists of:
Integrity vs. Hypocrisy
The Peacemakers: Those Whom God Identifies As His Sons
Putting Satan To Flight
Virtue: The Key To Activating God’s Promises
Rebuilding The Ancient Ruins
The Seven Woes
And finally …
Overcoming The Curse
Invest in this book to further grow your relationship with Jesus Christ and seek Him fully for what plans He has for your life. Equip yourself with Gods Plan for Spiritual Battle: Victory over Sin, the World, and the Devil
You won’t regret a closer walk with Him!
A Magical Visit to London, England & Paris, France
Today we are in for a real treat as we have Jackie Toews posting as a contributing writer on the blog! We are so excited to share what impacted her the most on her Senior Trip to Europe!
But first, here is a little about Miss Toews!
Hey! My name is Jackie, I’m 17 and I’m a proud Canadian living in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I’m an aspiring singer songwriter, but until that takes off, I’ll be going to college to work as a Health Unit Clerk. Before I left to Europe, Shirley had her daughter, and also my best friend, Nicole, ask me if I’d write a post for her website, and here I am!
From the moment I woke up on March 27, 2014, I knew I was in for the time of my life. And, was I ever right! London, England and Paris, France are two places that are for the dreamers. In each city, I felt surrounded by creativity and inspiration.
The journey to London was full of little interruptions, like an hour delay on top of the seven hour wait to board the plane from Calgary to London.
By the time we got to London, we met up with our tour guide, Vanessa, who arrived all the way from Belgium. She has had a huge impact on my life. Hearing her story, about moving away from home at 17 and everything she’s been through to finally get herself to where she is now, really made me realize that just because things aren’t working out the way you want them to doesn’t mean that they’ll never work out. On the train from London to our hotel, which was a half hour out of the city, I overheard her talking to some other students in my group about how important it is to not rush into real life. She was saying how you should take all the time you need to find that career that you feel you 100% belong to.
There was a girl in my group, let’s call her Taylor, that wants to be an author, and she said how she keeps hearing things like:
Oh, you’ll never make a living off of that
And Van said:
Don’t even worry about that.
Despite only knowing her for eight days, I feel a connection with her. I love Van for being such an encouragement when it comes to finding your place in this insanely big world full of possibilities. Even now that the trip is over, I keep hearing Van’s voice in the back of my mind telling me that everything I want to achieve is possible, regardless of those who doubt me.
While my friend and I were walking through the streets of Paris during our free time on the last day of the trip, I couldn’t help but notice the outstandingly large amount of people living on the streets. See, where I live, we don’t have people sitting on every street corner. When I decided to give some money to this woman, her face just lit up, and it really surprised me of the fact that just a little bit of change, something that we take for granted, can give someone so much joy. We don’t always think about how a small act of kindness like that can make someone’s day just a little bit better.
Going to London and Paris has always been a dream of mine, and now I’m beyond ecstatic that I can say that is has been a reality for me!
When I left, I kept saying how I’d never want to go home, but when I got home on April 6, 2014, it was a wonderful feeling to see my family again. The moment that made me the happiest to be home was seeing my one and a half year old niece come running to me. Seeing her do that was what reassured me that she didn’t forget about me.
The saying really is true. No matter where you visit …
There’s no place like home!
*Thank you so much, Jackie, for your wonderfully inspirational post about your travels! We appreciate you being a part of our team at Light, Love, Hope!
