Stay By The Stuff
My computer was freaking out today, so I did what many do. Actually, the only thing I know to do since I am certainly no tech wiz. I restarted it. After the screen went black for a moment, I heard the start-up music and within a few minutes my computer came back to life and began working as good as new! Phew!!
Have you ever needed a restart? Ever needed to hit the reset button on yourself? I’ve just experienced this in my own life over the past 2 months. 2013 was a stellar year in so many ways, but as the year was coming to a close I found myself overwhelmed. To put it mildly, I was dazed and confused. I had somehow lost my focus and my world and life seemed very blurry. There were circumstances that were approaching that I didn’t know how to handle. Problems were arising with no answers. I kept repeating this phrase in my mind, “I don’t see any way for this to work out.” For me, that particular phrase always leads to the same place….panic and worry. Many of you know my story and the stones I carried for so long, my old buddies, Fear and Anxiety. Well, my old unwanted “companions” were back. It took me a while to realize it, but it was true, so I decided it was time to hit the reset button.
That’s how I began 2014. I decided to reset. I heard a pastor preach a sermon a few years ago about what to do when you’re exhausted, overwhelmed and fearful. He said, “What do you do? You stay by the stuff!” What did he mean by that? Pressing in to the One who should always have my gaze and digging into the Word. So that is exactly what I did. I did a version of a Daniel fast, prayed and spent more time in the Word. I stepped up my intensity level with these things. Now please hear me. I’m not saying any of this to make myself sound like a spiritual superwoman. I’m most definitely not! Desperate times call for desperate measures and “desperate” was my middle name.
I mention this because I wonder if there is anyone else out there that needs a restart? Have you lost focus? Are you feeling overwhelmed with life and all the demands that come with it? Maybe even full of worry about how it’s all going to work out? Let me encourage you to press in to your Heavenly Father and to dig into His Scripture. If you’re already doing that, let me encourage you to step up your intensity level by even including some form of a fast.
I went into that desert time with a lot of questions. Do I have all of the answers now? No. But peace has returned and I’m learning how to trust at a deeper level. And my Father has indeed been wooing and teaching me along the way. I’ll be sharing some of the things I’ve been learning and some of the things I’ve been questioning in future blogs, so stay tuned. But for now, stay by the stuff. It’s the only way to come back to life.
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