Sunday, May 27, 2007

Just in time

Do you ever have one of those days where God shows you the same thing more than one way? Yup, I'm having one of those "Pay attention!" days!

Yesterday I started the "I Am--so you don't have to be" Bible study (there is also a button on my side bar to it). The first lesson focused on God putting people in specific places at specific times--such as the birth of Moses, Ester, and Stephen--for a specific occasion. Then today, the old testament reading in my Bible in a Year e-mail was 1 Samuel 9 and 10, which talks about how God brought Saul to Samuel to be annointed king...through some lost donkeys. This post is partially in response to the questions in the Bible study, but I'm not strictly following the format.

Over the last couple of weeks, I can see how God is grooming me for something...but I don't know what. I've been involved in several all-day meetings at work that show me how he could potentially use me in a more administrative position...and then I have conversations like the "Role Model" one below, where what I really desire is a more balanced (i.e., less work) life. Just in the last month I can see how God has already used me has his "go-to girl" in several work situations. And personally, I'm in a good place of recovering from a miscarriage this spring, and I know that me being open about it has allowed several conversations that might not have otherwise happened. But I know I'm very human--there have been days I didn't want to talk about it, and shut down the conversation before it began, but I know God will somehow use this experience to minister to others.

Thanks, Lord, that you bring all things together for your good, and that you do have a plan and a purpose for us.

2 comments:

Jen said...

Okay, I don't know if this will help but I just happened to find this Bible study I did...well, made up on my own...when I felt the Lord leading me to stay home. I argued with Him for a good long time about that decision because I never imagined Him taking me in that direction. It was not what I felt groomed to do my entire teen and young adult life. No one in my family was doing that and I was sure I had heard wrong. But, the Lord led me to get deep into the Word. Here's a suggestion--you could tweak it to fit your own situation:
1. List as many general instructions Jesus/God gives us for living the Christian life. Include references.
2. Write a short (maybe only 2-3 words) application to my own personal life. i.e. how do I see God working that in my life? Do I see God working that in my life? Am I willing to let Him work that in my life?
3. Circle in red any instructions that I feel hesitant to directly obey or that I feel convicted about disobeying.
4. Circle in blue any directions that I feel I am not having any issues with.
5. Circle in green any directions that I know He wants me to work on TODAY.
6. Make a list of anything in my life that doesn't seem to be falling in line with the Word--relationships, family life, work stuff, activities, health, etc.
7. Give the list from #6 to the Lord in prayer.
8. Ask God to renew my mind to better align with His will.

Those were the exact instructions I wrote out for myself. My study sort of evolved and morphed into something different but the end result was that I felt much more confident about what He wanted me to do specifically after studying what He wants us all to do generally. Hope that helps...I'll still be praying for you!

Mindy said...

I'm having one of those pay attention days too. I am so glad that God is getting you ready for something, I can't wait to see what it is!