“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden” (Matthew 11:28 ) Sometimes family life is hard. The housing market crash and economic nose dive in California severely affected my family leaving me weary and heavy laden! Working on my goals was not on my radar during this crisis.
Before setting my goal in Jan ’09 to be like Mrs. Duggar, I had been asking God in daily quiet time to gently show me what I was unwilling to turn over to Him. My inability to always have a meek and quiet spirit is one thing he showed me. I thought I was a pretty average homeschooling mom with a pretty mild temper. Obviously God thought I could have something so much better.
God invites US to come to HIM. I have to recognize my weaknesses so that God can change them. Whether known or unknown, God will not automatically change or remove my disposition, the way I think, feel, act or react, because that would be taking away my free will. God is a gentleman. He will not violate my free will by forcibly taking these things from me. It has to be an offering of myself that I’m willing to give freely.
What if I don’t know what my weakness is? I didn’t know of my weakness either, but in looking to God in my daily quiet time and asking Him in prayer to reveal what I needed to change, the answer came unexpectedly. One day I watched the Duggar’s show on TV, it jumped out at me and caught my attention in a very unforgettable way (read part 1 for details). If I had not been praying I may not have noticed a thing. I’ve since watched that episode over and over and that moment that changed my life, happened so quick. It would have been so easy to miss amongst my other, seemingly bigger life problems. That’s where God comes in.
When God speaks to me, it amplifies all the senses – I hear more, I see more, I feel more, I know more and I do more. Instead of the thought diminishing over time, it stays right there, at the front, constant and persistent. God promises thru His Word to show me my weaknesses so that I can give them to Him. “Ask, and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” (Matthew 7:7)
Our Heavenly Father is such a good and loving Father. As I lay myself before Him, He promises that His grace is sufficient and His strength is made perfect in my weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
It’s a choice. God is waiting at the door - we have to knock!
This is a 6 part series:
Part 5 Daily Spiritual Checkpoints
Part 6 Prayer
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