Untitled

Have you ever been in a place in your life where everything felt hard and nothing made sense..where everyday feels like a terrifying walk through a minefield?  You get to a patch of safety and then BOOM! The next step threatens to take off your left foot, right ankle, and maybe a hand too.  By the time you get to the end of the warzone of each day, you're lookin so ragged and pitiful that the vultures are circling in hopes of their next feast.  Well, I'd love to tell you that your life has been marked for exemption from hard times and treacherous terrain, but the reality is, none of us have that X on our forehead.  Jesus promised us quite the opposite in John 16:33 when He said "in this world you will have trouble.." Great. That's just great. Thanks Jesus.  😩 Not gonna lie, I've been pretty annoyed with the whole trials and tribulations season of life lately and more than once, I have yelled at my Maker. Fortunately, my fist shaking and tantrum throwing don't last too long before I cry it out in repentance and petitions for help, but man oh man, I can definitely throw a grown woman size fit!  If I had to use one word to sum up my life at present, it would be "UNTITLED." I understand precious little about the Lord's purpose and plan in this moment (I guess about it a lot though), but here's what I know - sometimes, the "untitled" seasons of life turn out to contain the most growth and the deepest blessings.  So, if you're in that space and navigating the minefields with me, trust that this is the place of your victory.  This is the place of your testimony of overcoming.  This is the place where your identity in Christ Jesus gets revealed.  This is the place of your process of becoming.  Your process of winning.  Keep going, your title is coming.  

So what if you look like a bloody and black-eyed Rocky Balboa when your title comes, right? I get it.  I do.  I've felt like Rocky a few times in the last few weeks, and the beating life can throw hurts.  Badly.  But to get the title he holds in his hands in this picture, he had to go through the fight, the beating, the pain.  The title didn't precede the obstacles, it followed them.  My husband and I have taken turns being the voice of faith for each other in recent weeks, but it's still hard.  The storms God has asked us to walk through have felt unfair and hurtful, but here's the deal friends - take a look at your roots (Colossians 2:6-7).  You can't believe in the goodness of God only when He gives you every blessing you want.  If He's good during those times, then why is He all of a sudden a bully who's  mad at you when the lightening strikes and the ground shakes? Romans 8:28 says that "all things work together for good for those who love the Lord, who are called according to His purposes..." so it's time we stop (I'm the first to raise my hand here!) doubting God's love and goodness when it rains and the umbrella breaks.  God didn't cause the umbrella to break, but if He allowed it, maybe it's because you needed to wash your hair and this was the only way.  Or, if the bank account drops to a 0 balance (been there), maybe there's a lesson in it to stop trusting so much in your money (1 Timothy 6:10) and start relying on the God who gives it to you every paycheck.  If your car breaks down on the side of the road, God isn't mad at you.  Maybe He's keeping you from some harm down the road.  Or, maybe you're a terrible driver and He's protecting all the other people on the road.  Who knows, but if you try to understand God only through the lens of circumstances that change with the wind, then you'll never know Him. He will be good when you're getting what you want and bad when you're not.  Your faith is rooted in the circumstance, not the God who oversaw it.  Get to know God for God (Hint: Read your bible) aside from the circumstances. Your kids probably don't think you're always good, but even when you're reprimanding them or punishing them for wrong behavior, I bet they still know you love them, right?  Why? It's because they know your nature toward them.  They may not like the circumstances, but they trust your heart.  It's time we trust God's heart, even in our difficult situations.  His nature doesn't change, my friend (Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 13:8, Numbers 23:19).  He is always good.  Jeremiah 33:3 says "Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." So, don't wait.  Let this untitled, minefield season of your life lead you to the Cross.  Your title is coming.