When You are Overwhelmed Do You Call Jesus for Help?

My daytime shenanigans are spent in social media. I simply can’t get enough of working in this space. It’s my passion and I do think it’s my call.  I recently attended a speaker’s conference on digital media where the speaker, Trust Agent author Chris Brogan reminded us of the fact that everyone’s business is pretty much hurting. He wanted us to remember that businesses are dying and that if we can align with others, so be it the better if the partnership does makes sense.

I loved that reality check for its absolutely true. We’re all in the same boat and the waves are crashing in around us and some of us are trying to empty the boat as fast as we can.  But, I wanted to remind you (us), that although we may feel like we’re drowning or doomed that all we need to do is look around and see that Jesus is right there with us.

Late that night, the disciples were in their boat in the middle of the lake, and Jesus was alone on land. ⁴⁸ He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves. About three o’clock in the morning^[a] Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, ⁴⁹ but when they saw him walking on the water, they cried out in terror, thinking he was a ghost. ⁵⁰ They were all terrified when they saw him.

But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage! I am here!^[b]” ⁵¹ Then he climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped. Mark 6:45-51

Are you seeing Jesus or is he walking by and you are not recognizing him? He’s there and he wants to be in your boat. When He’s there, the waves will calm and you can have His peace. We just need to recognize Him and lean into his care. Ahhhhhh.

Case in point...many of you know that I am embarking on my favorite conference this week, well in fact tomorrow.  With that, it was very important that my computer be up to snuff. I have never had any problems with it until today of course.  Five hours were spent on trying to get it to load programs and my blogs.  I had to shut it down and leave it to attend Brogan’s engagement.  As I drove to the venue, I spent that time in prayer with a friend and I believed that God would fix my problem.  Five hours later…I’m back on my computer and blogging.  God is good and He is in the boat. We just need to ask Him to join us and trust that He’ll take care of the storm.

I’ll be writing again soon.

All My Best,

Cindy

Jan Provoost’s “Abraham, Sarah and the Angel" - Man, look how old Sarah looked! Can't blame her for her disbelief.

Just when I thought God wasn’t in my daily plan, He goes and explodes upon me a heaping plate full of love.  At the beginning of summer, several things that I had taken for granted as being “sure things,” were disrupted, halted or ended. The life that was certain, suddenly became uncertain.  And it left me feeling out of sorts and well, discouraged and at times a bit hopeless. Hence, my lack of blogging of late.

So when I was staring at the walls of the pit instead of up at the stars, I really felt like I was becoming Sarah.  You remember Sarah. She was the wife of Abraham and she scoffed at what God told her husband.  I can’t say that I wouldn’t have either.  I mean if I was up in my years and beyond the natural age for childbirth, I’d chuckle too if God told my husband that I’d get my youth restored and give birth to son! That’s just too crazy for a miracle, don’t you think?

But, never under-estimate God. For He did just that. Abraham and Sarah gave birth to a beautiful son, Isaac, who is honored to be in Jesus’ lineage. This miracle of super-sized proportion actually happened. So why do I feel like and act like Sarah then?

In one of the five bible studies I am in the moment, one is Francis Chan’s “Crazy Love.” And this is what I just read today – “If life were stable, I’d never need God’s help. Since it’s not, I reach out for Him regularly. I am thankful for the unknowns and that I don’t have control, because it makes me run to God.“

So, as fall is now upon us, so is a new adventure with the season. It’s up to me to be either a scoffing Cindy or joyous Sarah.  So I’m honestly asking myself if I have enough belief in God to expect a new thing?

I mean I’m hearing and seeing His direction in my daily life– but at the end of the day do I really believe that it will come true? Do I honestly think He is cooking up something extremely wonderful, earth-shattering and unbelievable in my life? It just seems so outlandish and impossible. And isn’t that just like God to do the impossible?

A New Season is Upon Us and Its Joyous!

So, I’m going to believe and expect his favor and thank Him for it in advance. I am definitely understanding that He is guiding my path into places that are unfathomable to me and not understandable. But, I know that they are purposeful and in line with my call.

As I type this I am so excited for what He is birthing in me that I can’t stand it.  So as Pastor Chan recommends – I am thankful for the unknowns because they make me close to God. And with that, I understand, that  It’s in the uncertainty, that He becomes certain in our lives.

Stay tuned,

A Joyous Cindy

There always is a sticky side to transparency

I sat in an amazing session last week led by Alex Hamilton (The Redeemer Church) at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit. He told us he would be talking about one of the most important issues facing the church – when leaders fall and how you handle it. Well, being a crisis communication executive, my ears certainly perked up.   Kudos to Pastor Hamilton – he did lead one of the most important seminars of the conference and what he had to say about how to handle it was spot on – he took a risk and was transparent with his congregation when his church was faced with such a problem.

Pastor Hamilton had to deal with two of his pastors who were in an affair together.  He wanted to tell his church about it and trust them to not gossip nor stone the victims. So he sent a letter to congregation stating the fact that two pastors have professed to the affair and that they were now going through a process and may or may not return.  He told the congregation that he would talk about it further on Sunday. That next Sunday, the church was packed to hear about how Pastor Hamilton was going to address the sin.

How did he handle it?  He hit it head on and asked his congregation to drop it and let the guilty parties go through the steps of healing. He said that he received numerous letters from people who thought he handled this brilliantly while others said he should have hid it from its members. Transparency is always the best way to deal with crisis.  It nips any further speculation, gossip, lies or rumors from spreading. It’s also the fastest way for a situation to blow over.  This was handled beautifully. Very impressive.

The old ways of cover-ups never really work. Eventually, as more and more lies are told to cover up the initial sin, the truth will come out. Leaks do happen.  Just read the papers every day.  Also, in this day in age of social media, it’s harder than ever to keep things under the wraps. Every one with a smart phone now has a recording device with them.

Transparency is key in every situation as a Christian, not just for church leaders.  God calls us to be transparent with Him. No matter how much we try and hide our sins and try and cover them up – He’s all knowing.  The best way out is the honest way out.  Tell God everything that hurts you and where you need forgiveness and grace.  The burdens will immediately fall off your shoulders and the baggage will be left behind.   Transparency is the key to the other “t” transformation.  Always remember the importance of crossing your “t’s” in prayer.

Thank you Pastor Hamilton for being so transparent with us.

Also, as a sidebar to this discussion, Pastor Hamilton left us with some practical steps on how to avoid temptation.

5 R’s of Resisting Temptation

• Remember who you are – a follower of Jesus Christ – A child of the king!
• Recognize the consequences of your actions – will I feel better or worse after I’ve done this. Will I be proud or ashamed? Who will be hurt by it?
• Rededicate yourself to God – stop, drop and pray
• Reveal your struggle to a trusted friend.
• Remove yourself from the situation.

Looks are deceiving. Piranha fish may look harmless, but they have sharp teeth and leave a mean bite.

I really do not want to write this post….but I feel, it is part of my responsibility as a single Christian. I need to preface this post with the fact that I am not asking anyone to judge another person per God’s instructions to us – “How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you are well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.” –Luke 6:42

With that being said, just because someone is involved in a Christian singles group, it does not attest to the fact that he/she is a born-again sold-out Christian. I’ve seen this played out so many times and have seen its destruction that many times. It can be devastating to the person who falls prey (not pray) to this evil behavior. Usually what happens is these people who have motives of landing another (for personal pleasure) is looking for someone who is a bit new in their faith and vulnerable. And like a piranha, these impostors devour their subjects all under the guise of being a Christian. And it makes me so sad.

The main point of this post is Please Realize that Christian Single Groups are Not Automatically Safe Places and better yet,  just because someone says they are a Christian…doesn’t necessary mean that they are.

So be very cautious about building relationships with others until you’ve seen the true character of that person.  When you’re not totally infatuated with them, its much easier to make a realistic assessment.  When you are head over heels in love, then its difficult to see the truth before your eyes.  But, keep a look out for those red flags.  There are several character traits that will tell you the type of person that individual is and I will list some in a few graphs. However, first I want to chat a bit about the two different approaches that I’ve witnessed.

Again, these are not tried and true facts and I am totally speaking about generalities here.  But, women in this category are seeking security (financial, emotion) at all costs and look to land a man who will take care of them.  Men, on the other hand, or looking for someone who will give them pleasure…that’s about all I’m going to say about that.

So how can you guard your hearts.  Here’s a few simple tips.

1) Take things slowly.

2) Become friends.

3) Go out in group settings and watch how that person behaves.

4) Listen to how they answer bible study questions or if they answer questions.

5) Observe their actions – who they hang with; how they spend their days off.

6) Watch their church attendance.  If they  seldom attend or church hop or singles group hop…that’s a red flag.

7) If they are constantly turning their heads around to see who’s walking through the door – move on. They are just interested in meeting the new kid in town.

And most importantly, pray. Seek God in the relationship and be patient to hear what he says.

Heck at the end of the day…it’s best to be friends, then to go through a relationship that God never intended for you.  Friendship is a win-win for all…and if it moves into finding your soul mate…is there anything better?

So be careful.  Satan is very crafty and knows that Adult Christian Singles Groups are fertile ground. I have to confess that I learned this the hard way and feel prey to a piranha fish…and I don’t want you to have to experience the same heartache.  It’s affects were profound.

Simplistic Beauty

Read this today and thought you might find this inspirational as well.

Zephaniah 3:17 (New International Version)

¹⁷ The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing.”

Sometimes its so simple. If we can keep our mind on those thoughts all pain, confusion and struggles will do away.  You are Loved and He’s there singing about you right now!

What song do you think he’s singing about you? I hope mine is Happy Day.

Amen,

Cindy

God Always Provides Warm Embraces

Why does it take one cruddy day to ruin what I have been working on for a lifetime?  It seems because I’m struggling a bit more than usual that I forget that God loves me through and through.  I forgot that today.   And He had to do something remarkable to remind me He still cares.  What an awesome God we have.

Today I was feeling pretty alone in the world – like everything rests on my shoulders and it’s overwhelming.  I thought that this pain would over take me and that God was no where near.  And then I got one of those cheesy chain letters in my email.  And its sentiment hit me at the right spot.  Here’s what it said.

I never put any belief or energy into these things, but today I sent it to some friends for it touched me.  And you know what….a miracle happened.  When I went to my mailbox this evening I got a letter that I wrote to myself at a church retreat last September.  The Pastor of the conference told us to write a note to ourselves from God – I had totally forgotten that I had ever written that letter. But, it arrived on the perfect day. And here’s how it started out.

From the moment you arrived at the Retreat I gave you love and sent you messages to show you how much I loved you and love you.  I want you to start to feel my love  deep, deep, deep into your soul.  Never forget how much I love you every day and that I am always near.

Lord, I pray, that you help me never forget how much you do love me.  I repent of my doubt and open my arms to receive your mercy and grace – me this woman of little faith.

Things Just Seem to Pile Up

Life can get messy at times. The mess can come all at once like a ransacked house or in drips and drabs as things pile one on top of the other. Either way, they are no fun. They are hard to navigate around, they make you clumsy and are emotionally overwhelming.  A mess makes you feel uncomfortable and you just want them to go away. And more importantly, they always catch up with you if not dealt with and they won’t ever go away until something is done about them. Ugh.

I must admit I’ve caused a few messes myself in life…and not one was fun.  They did cause me to grow in character, but ouch.  Stuff was thrown all around and other people caught got up in my mess too. It wasn’t pretty.  But, thankfully, messes don’t have to last. They can become part of our past, if we bring God into the situation.

Thank goodness God is there for us when we call on Him to be our mess picker upper.  To me, He’s like that Brawny Paper Towel guy.  When I pray and ask Him to handle my mess, He swoops right in with His big hands and heart and wipes away the clutter – sometimes it just take one full swoop.  Other times, He has to come back and scrub and bit more and then a bit more until the mess is completely gone.  When the mess is cleaned up by God you can’t help but notice.  You are at peace.  You are no longer clumsy. You are not overwhelmed by the mess, but full of mercy.  It’s freedom and how God intended life with Him to be.

God's Paper Towels are Always There to Clean Any Mess

Yup, that’s my God.  Smiling down on me with the beauty of the evergreens at this back.  He’s ready at a moment’s notice to clean up any one of my spills, no matter the stench, severity, dirt, grime and size.  He’s never afraid to get His hands dirty or become involved.  He’s never too busy and he’s never in a hurry.  He is thorough and the only person who is perfect.  He is amazing.

Do you know that God?  Has He helped clean up one of your messes?  If not, He’s there for you.  All you have to do is knock.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.  (Matt: 7:7-8)

If You're Lonely Now, You'll Be Lonely In Your Marriage

I’m thinking about writing a Christian book about what I’ve been growing through lately — God has been bringing me to my knees about my deep worldly desire for a mate.  It’s been painful beyond measure, but an eye-opening process.

I’ve always been an achiever and pretty much have reached all my goals with few surprises along the way. But, this finding a husband thing, is the one thing I haven’t been able to achieve. It keeps eluding me no matter how much I try.  And that drives me nuts. I just don’t get it.

But, I have peace for I know God gets it.  In addition to wanting the best for me – I also think he wants me learn through not getting everything that I want. I recently was involved in a relationship in which I came in second – he chose another girl. Boy, that one still smarts. I don’t like second place…but, this has been a very good lesson.

As a result, one time last week God woke me up in the middle of the night and he did some talking to me.   He was telling me that I’ve been going about things all wrong and He  showed me that if I let Him He will provide me with the life that He intended.  I just need to take my hand out of the cookie jar so to speak and start to let him direct my path.

It’s not been easy AT ALL.  But, I am starting to understand what He’s up to.  He wants me to stop my pursuit of non-Godly men and let Him bring someone to me in His time.  I am growing through this and hourly must call upon Him when pangs of sadness or lonliness creep in, but it’s worth it.  To be able to have the man of dreams, than the man of right now – I am not going to settle. It’s not worth it.

Truthfully, I hate this single living stuff…but I’d rather obey Him for I know, that I know, that I know that His way is best.

So with that, I’m noodling around in my head this idea for a book which will go more in-depth about my surrender to His will in finding a mate and stop my ways of forcing a desire.

Is there anything easy in life?  What do you think about a book on this subject?

Take care,

Cinderella without a Godly Fella

With God All Things are Possible

My last post was about weariness…but, this word came to me on Monday…and I like it…resilience. Look at how Dictionary.com defines it.

1. The ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune; buoyancy.
2. The property of a material that enables it to resume its original shape or position after being bent, stretched, or compressed; elasticity.

I attended a job search workshop and our guest speaker for the day is someone who calls himself a “change coach.”  He truly embraces that there’s one thing certain in our lives and that is “change.”  He went on further to tell us that the sooner we can embrace this reality, the better it will be for us.  And at the same time, we need to remain resilient. Even though we faced the loss of a job, we do have the ability to recover quickly from it.

And for those of you whom trust in God…we understand that. Our recovery is due to Jesus Christ and the fact that the Holy Spirit guides us into the hope of the future…the past is the past.

Look at God’s promise to us.  Here’s his recipe for resilience.

Isaiah 61:3 -

³ and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the LORD
for the display of his splendor.

Just look at that–in my case – for those grieving over a job loss – He is going to bestow on me a crown of beauty…in place of ashes, I’m going to have gladness and praise instead of mourning. Woo hoo.  If I remain resilient in Him, joy is going to come.

So friends, if you are weary…stay in the boat.  The storm will eventually stop and the waters will become calm.  There will be more celebrations in your future. God promises.

Cindy

]]> http://www.godgirl.net/resilience.html/feed 0 http://www.godgirl.net/weariness.html http://www.godgirl.net/weariness.html#comments Sat, 10 Apr 2010 06:30:39 +0000 Cindy http://www.godgirl.net/?p=194 Continue reading →]]> Lately, God has been telling me to tune into Joyce Meyer’s Enjoying Everyday Life broadcasts and I must say He’s right again.  This week Joyce has been hitting on a subject close to home, weariness.  She has been providing her audience with practical steps on how not to sink down into the heaviness of this weight by turning it all over to God to lighten the load.  She’s even gone as far to say that once you give it all to Him, your soul will feel like its on vacation.

I get this idea and am glad that it’s possible to live that way when you feel that all your waking hours are spent walking through thick mud.  That each step is so hard to take and that you feel like you’re going nowhere.  I’m living at that place now and I know that Satan loves putting me there.  You just get weary.

Here’s how Dictionary.com defines “weary” in adjective form:

1.physically or mentally exhausted by hard work, exertion, strain, etc.; fatigued; tired: weary eyes; a weary brain.

2.characterized by or causing fatigue: a weary journey.

3.impatient or dissatisfied with something (often fol. by of): weary of excuse

4.characterized by or causing impatience or dissatisfaction; tedious; irksome: a weary wait.