Where Are You Now?

Where are you now? In your life....are you where you want to be? Personally...spiritually....emotionally.....relationally....in your career?

Sometimes, often, I doubt and feel insecure about where I am in my life. It's the comparison trap. Most all of my close friends are married, with children, something that I long and desire for. We all have dreams and expectations for our lives, on this sort of timeline. We, and the world for that matter, expects us to be in college by a certain age, married by a certain age, children, at a certain place in your career, etc. It may be unspoken, but it is always implied. Those expectations are put on us not just be the world we live in or our society, but we even put that pressure on ourselves. Why? Why do we do that to ourselves?

Life doesn't always turn out how we expect it to. Actually, more times than not, it doesn't. But I don't mean that in a depressing, hopeless way. It's all a matter of perspective. I'm 28 years old, living on my own as a single woman. I have a wonderful job, but I'm single. No husband. No children. Yes, that's something I think about all the time, or I wouldn't be writing about it in my blog. But how do I flip the switch on my perspective on that?

When I find myself getting caught up in the expectations of my timeline, I stop. Pause, pray, breathe. I know deep down that my timeline is not God's timeline. I know that His ways are greater than mine (Isaiah 55:8-9). I trust that He knows what He is doing. I trust that God has my best in mind. He will provide and take care of me. He is working things behind the scenes that I cannot see.

Yes, I believe God can work all things for good (Romans 8:28). So, being single without a family to care for has given me the time and capacity to be there for my friends and family in more ways than I would otherwise be able to. Being present for people when they lose loved ones, providing support when friends have babies, helping people move, mentoring and discipling people, etc. This year alone, God has opened two new doors for me that I have the time to be able to commit to. First, I started a Christian budgeting group that allows me to share my budgeting tips and counsel to fellow Christians seeking to honor God with their money. I've met with a ton of individuals one-on-one to go over budgeting principles and share with them a passion and skill that I believe God has given me. Secondly, I started one-on-one Bible studies with friends from church, and it has just recently grown to a small group women's Bible study that I will be hosting and leading starting next week. These are opportunities that I will not take for granted, and I will give thanks to God that I am single and have this extra time to devote to these things. In addition to extra investment I have been able to give to friends and family, it has also opened new doors and opportunities for leadership within my own church. This one is still in the works, but I see God's presence and potential in it all, and I can't wait to see where He will lead me next.

So, it's our choice. We are where we are, in our lives. But we have the power to choose how we see it. The power of perspective is all ours. Will you see the closed doors, the obstacles, the setbacks...or will you choose to see the opportunities, the dreams, the potential? Where you are now may be purposeful - maybe there is something God is calling you to where you are right now, maybe He can use your current situation in a way that you haven't tapped into yet. Ask Him. Pray to God and ask Him how He wants to use you and where you are right now. Be willing to open your mind and open your heart to a new perspective.

Shattering Lies

I just got back from a weekend spiritual retreat in Outerbanks, NC with 35 other ladies in my Christian Leadership Training International class I have been taking over the last year. It was an incredibly powerful weekend where we felt the presence of the Holy Spirit seeping through every moment, song, teaching, and prayer. The Lord instilled in my heart that He understood why things happened the way they did in my last relationship. He reassured me that He loved me unconditionally. He gently whispered words of forgiveness to me over and over again, because He knows how much I need to hear it multiple times. He told me I will be redeemed, without a doubt. There are times when I doubt I will make it through this period in my life. I doubt I will be strong enough to move on; I doubt the wound will ever heal, and that the sadness will ever dissipate. But He told me, there is no doubt. "You will make it through, Lauren, trust Me...", He says. He even told me He will use my brokenness from this relationship to reach others. That made me think of this quote that keeps crossing my path of life numerous times; it's a quote from Pastor Rick Warren from his book The Purpose Driven Life: "Your greatest life messages and your most effective ministry will come out of your deepest hurts." That quote practically terrified me throughout all of 2014 every time I read it. I don't know if my deepest hurts will be used in public ministry or some other avenue, but I do know and accept the Lord will use it. He can and does bring goodness out of ALL things. (Romans 8:28).

One of the most powerful moments from the retreat was during a time of prayer when the retreat leaders asked us to stand up if we wanted to ask for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. They went around the room, laid hands on individuals and prayed for them. I didn't feel called to stand up at this point in the retreat, but if the Lord has a message to tell you, He will find a way to speak it to you. The Pastor made her rounds and when she got to me, instead of passing by, she stopped, bent down, and told me the Lord spoke to her about me. Really? I had no clue what she was about say. She said that the Lord told her I will use the power and gift of discernment to call out the lies in people's lives and help them find the Truth to overcome those lies. She said I will use the strength and power I've had to overcome the lies in my own life to help others. God gave her a vision of me walking down a street with lies shattering like glass on my left and my right. She said that I would use this gift to reach many and to help them find healing.

Wow, Holy Spirit, wow. Speechless, and in awe of You....

27 Things I've Learned in 27 Years

Here are 27 things I've learned over the course of my 27 years of life...

1. Never go grocery shopping hungry.
2. No one person can fill your every need. Only God can.
3. I am nobody's keeper. People must take responsibility for their own actions.
4. I am nobody's savior. There is one Savior, and His name is Jesus Christ.
5. Live within your means; budget your money. As a result, you can bless and give to others.
6. Not much comes close to the deliciousness of freshmade guacamole and Chipotle.
7. Love and serve others with all that you have. Put others before yourself.
8. Life is a journey. Always strive to better yourself, but don't expect yourself to be perfect.
9. Travel and see the world. Acknowledge and appreciate people of different cultures and ways.
10. Tell people you love them often; you never know when you won't have that chance.
11. Your body is your temple. Treat it well; it will pay off in the long run.
12. Acknowledge your weaknesses and flaws. Work on them. It will make you a better person.
13. Use your strengths, talents, and gifts to bring God glory in all that you do.
14. Our human understanding of right/wrong, just, and fairness might not be the same as God's view.
15. Surround yourself with people of like minds and interests who will encourage you to pursue your hopes, goals, and dreams, and encourage you in your faith.
16. What you believe affects what you think. What you think affects what you say and do. Know what you believe.
17. You can never DO anything to make God love you more. He loves you just as you are.
18. Change can be good. Learn to embrace it.
19. Hold onto the innocence of a child. I still have 10 stuffed animal penguins.
20. Never settle for less than God's best in relationships.
21. Plaza Azteca is the best. Enough said.
22. Be friends with people who will challenge you and keep you accountable.
23. You don't have to like or be friends with everyone. But honor and respect them, and see them as a child of God.
24. Don't be afraid to ask for help.
25. There is a purpose to all trials, obstacles, hurts, and sadness. God can bring goodness out of it all.
26. Acknowledge that we only see a portion of the timeline and picture. God sees and knows it all. His timing is often not our timing.
27. God will never leave you or forsake you. He will see you through it all.

Look Through Each Other's Eyes....At Least For An Instant

The message in this video is so compelling. I have watched it numerous times this week. You never know what people are going through...what struggles they are enduring, what burdens they are carrying, what flaws they have, what mistakes they have made, what sins they are still making. As the video says,

"If you could stand in someone else's shoes,
          hear what they hear,
                    see what they see,
                              feel what they feel,
                                        would you treat them differently?"

I think we all would.

Every Season

Right now, we are right in the middle of fall. Leaves are changing colors, and some have begun to fall to the ground. Soon, the trees will be bare, and temperatures will start to drop, and we may even see ice and snow. Winter will arrive soon. I love living in a Mid-Atlantic state where we get to experience all four seasons to their full capacity. With each season comes a new scenery and a new sense of beauty. But we can only experience each new season by going through a phase of change.

"To Love at All is to be Vulnerable"

I spend a lot of time thinking about friendships and relationships....what they should be like, what I can do to be a better person and better friend, how to love people unconditionally, etc. It's just something I enjoy to think deeply about. It's hard to be in relationships or friendships after getting burned by people, or rejected, or abandoned. It's really hard to reopen your heart to others, to trust them again, or to even love them like you once loved before. But it's gotta be worth it, right? One of my favorite quotes about relationships and love is by Christian author, C.S. Lewis. He says:

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.”

Who I Am

I am a woman, a child of God.

Before my parents even had me in the glimpse of their minds, my Heavenly Father had already formed me in His perfect image.

I am a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, who I declare is my Lord and Savior unashamedly.

Reason, Season, or a Lifetime

My CG and me were discussing a few weeks ago the different type of friends we can have. The phrase "Reason, Season, or Lifetime" came up a lot. Then, we discovered this short poem which really resonated with me. I am a lifetime friend, and I try and make every one of my friends lifetime friends. But, it's sometimes a good, yet harsh reality to realize some friends are just reason or season friends. Here's the poem....

"No other god but me"

Exodus 20:2-5 says:

'I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.'"

Who or what reigns in your life? Who is your allegiance to and what is your top priority? What does all your heart, mind, and soul invest in on a daily basis? Where your time and money are, there is your heart also.