Preparation

All right Y'all. It's Monday morning and time for my usual take on Sunday. I will make it brief because there are other things on my mind this morning. Yesterday was just awesome. I am once again amazed at the spirit of worship at C3 on Sundays. The message on the authority of scripture was great too. An all around stellar Sunday. Thank you God for blessing!

Now to shift gears. Sometimes don't you wonder why our brains don't quite take the commands we give them. Last night was such a night for me. I was tired and wanted to go to bed but the old mind did not want to go to sleep. I think I finally got to sleep at 3am. Does that ever happen to you? I can totally relate to my friend Barry's blog. I was just worrying last night. I usually pride myself as one who doesn't worry much but I suppose that through the last year and a half God as really pointed out my pride and my weakness because I have been worried and stressed pretty much constantly. I say that and some people might freak out but the worry and stress don't incapacitate me but just hinder me from being my best. In fact we all know that stress can manifest itself physically and I am no different. My stress manifests itself physically through my skin and complexion. My skin has been very bad lately so much so that I think I am going to a dermatologist. But this is beside the point. The point is that worry, stress and fear can do bad things to us including physical manifestations and yes, a loss of sleep.

I was thinking last night of many things that have me worried and stressed and I could be all spiritual and say that I gave them all up to God and now I am free. That would be a lie. Honesty and transparency are good for accountability. I know that God is in control of all our circumstances so I can trust in Him. But just like Pastor Byron said yesterday having knowledge of God's word and applying God's word to our lives are two totally different things. I know I need work on the application part and God will help me work things out. God has moved many times before in my life and I know He will move again. I don't speak out of desperation but I speak from preparation. (I know that sounded a little "old school" preachy) I am prepared for God to move in any number of areas in my life and I am prepared to see the results of God's work. I guess it's the preparation portion of anything that is the least exciting or fun part of a plan. It's always the results and not the preparation that we love. So I say Lord help me endure the preparation.

Isn't it funny how God can break down all of our impressions of even who we think we are and our own assessments of our spiritual condition. Pride can be a horrible thing even in little areas that we think we have under control. It just proves that we need to constantly ask God to help us be more like Him and forgive our unbelief. Lord help me find the joy in the preparation and help me get a good night's rest.