With the start of a new year tomorrow, it got me thinking. What do I want for 2013? Exercise more? Save more? Read my bible more? Spend time with the kids more? Work projects more? Everything has had "more" at the end of it. But then I started thinking...I don't think I can do any "more"! I feel like my body, mind, and spirit are pushed to the limit.. So instead of doing more, I got to thinking maybe I need to do what is BEST.
BEST is a hard thing to determine. But to me, BEST is what the Lord would have for me. Could be more, could be less, could be the same amount, but in different places. I know that the Lord has "assigned me my portion and my cup (Ps.16:5)" and it isn't always what I would choose. Being a wife, mom (cook, nurse, maid, encourager, disciplinarian, etc.), teacher, daughter, sister, friend, etc. can be overwhelming and hard to navigate some days. But I also know that the Lord "works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom.8:28)". I know that each day no matter what He calls me to "I can do all things through Him who gives me strength (Phil.4:13)" because "He is before all things and in Him all things hold together (Col. 1:17)." He is with me every single second of every day. "He tends his flock like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart (Is.40:11). He is holding me in His big, strong arms...right by his heart. I know these things. But do I truly believe and live my daily life like I know them?
As you know from the title of my blog, being beautiful in my heart (1 Peter 3:4) is my overall goal for myself and my family. And remembering all of the things above are keys to doing that. If I truly believe those things then it should be easy to keep my mind on "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.(Phil.4:8)" I should be able to worry less and trust more. I should not fear because I know that God is right there with me. But, I still do. And I think most of us do. And doing those things, I know, is not best.
So, back to my plan for figuring out what is BEST. I plan to do the same things I know are needed-pray, read my bible, fellowship with other believers...and also cling to Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV):
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight."
This will be my verse for 2013 because I think these are the places where I fall short of having God's best.
Do I trust Him? Absolutely! With all my heart? I think so, but I don't know that my actions show that. Have I put myself out there for Christ enough? Have I taken risks for Him? I don't know...
Do I lean on my own understanding a lot of the time, instead of going straight to His word first? Unfortunately, yes. It is much easier to go on my own knowledge, experience, or that of a close friend, or blog column. Are these things wrong? Not necessarily, but while I do believe it is important to have other Christian women to go to for counsel, they are not any substitute for the Lord and His word!
The big one-do I submit to Him in ALL my ways??? Oh my goodness! I love this wording because a lot of times you hear "acknowledge" which makes me think of saying, "Ok, Lord-I'm acknowledging your presence, now here's what I'M going to do." But it is not meant that way-we are to SUBMIT our plans, our finances, our marriage, our children, our family, our work, our hopes and dreams, our failures, our questions, everything to Him! (submission: The action or fact of accepting or yielding to a superior force or to the will or authority of another person.)
Do I allow Him to make my paths straight or do I try to fix them once I have made them crooked? I think I absolutely try to "fix" things on my own! My pride wants me to do it on my own! When each time, the Lord reminds me that I can't do it on my own-ever.
As you can see, I need this verse as a guide for this coming year. I have known this verse for years. I love it, but have never meditated on it and purposely thought on it throughout the day. I plan to post it everywhere and memorize it with my family. Following these guidelines, I believe, will lead me to God's BEST for me. And hopefully, just hopefully, the Lord will work on this heart for Him. I don't want to only trust Him and seek His wisdom and submit to Him and have straight paths sometimes! I want that all the time! Will I succeed at making him my priority every day? Probably not, but "the Lord is greater than our hearts and He knows everything (1 John 3:20)." And I trust that He knows that my heart is set to love Him and know Him more. And that is one thing, I can always do "more" of! I look forward to sharing what the Lord's BEST for me turns out to be in the coming year!
Praying blessings for your families in the coming year and that God will show you his BEST for you!:)
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