it’s time for a self analysis. what has God been teaching me over the past few months? or last week? or… maybe even today?

a few things pop out to me automatically. Psalm 46:10, Proverbs 37, and Proverbs 31. each of these passages is different, and each have impacted me in a really awesome way this past semester. more about that later; i’m feeling list-y… so i’m going to make one (about what i have been learning about my Creator):

  • he is the ultimate romancer. and we need to guard our hearts (prov. 4:23). something i’ve been thinking a lot about recently though is… this verse is often tossed out when referring to dating. and dating alone really. a lot of times when i’m told this though, i would be guarding my heart for selfish reasons. for reasons of not wanting to be hurt in the long run or to be caught up in something i shouldn’t be a part of. but when i think about the heart of this issue, i have this mental image of these heavy-duty, combat-fighting soldiers protecting some sparkly diadem. the reason for guarding something is because that something (whatever is being guarded) is valuable. because our hearts belong to Jesus… (and i hope that yours does)… we should always be on guard of our hearts. not for a selfish reason. not for a “beware-of-dating-the-wrong-guy” reason. but for a value reason. for a treasure reason.
  • be still and know that i am God. this sentence gets me every time. and i’ll be honest.. it’s been a while since i laid my eyes on it. yet it still has the same impact. be still and know that i am God. the God of Gods. the Lord of Lords. the creator of art and science and math. the thinker who placed every circumstance in your life exactly where it is supposed to be is our God. isn’t that incredible?! thinking about that almost forces you to be still. it does for me anyways. as i sit and write, i can see some pine trees and a weeping willow, gray-hazy clouds (which i love) and a rainwater pool in my backyard. take a second and try to think up a way to make those things i just listed off. bet you can’t. but our God did just that. be still and know that i am God.
  • God has our best interests… even when we feel like he doesn’t. it’s such a comfort for me to know that Christ has already made a way for me. i find myself getting caught up in the “why’s” and “what does it matter’s” all too often. just in the past few weeks i’ve been faced with really tough things thrown my way which make me ask the Lord, “why on earth do you want this to happen?” because sometimes…. it simply does not make sense. but who am i to say that i should choose this path or the other? i’m pretty sure i would rather trust God’s direction than my own. his plans are the best plans because he wants us to grow and prosper (jeremiah 29:11). sometimes, even when i’m overwhelmed with good things i ask, “why is God doing this?!” that probably doesn’t make sense… in my mind it does though.. and because i know exactly situation i’m referring to whereas most people do not. all that being said, God brings situations in and out of our lives intentionally. we might not know what those purposes are in the here and the now. but then again, we can’t see the whole picture. we need to listen and trust and God’s voice on our futures.
  • he is the ultimate provider. when i’ve needed friends; i’ve received friends. when i’ve needed alone time; i’ve received time alone. i do not doubt God’s provision for me whatsoever. in any situation, God’s hand is playing a role. that absence or presence of something that you “need” is God’s provision. absence of something? how is the absence of something God providing..? even when things do not seem to go our way or we don’t get what we think we need, God is providing in different, and usually better, ways.

those would be the things most heavily on my heart these days. along with delighting yourself in the Lord- thank you Psalm 37. and i don’t want to forget Proverbs 31- which is pretty much a character analysis of a wife of noble character. i am currently on day 59 of a study i am independently doing about this woman who pursued Christ with dignity and strength. she was a hard worker, a woman that brought her husband good all the days of her life (not just while she was married), and a profit-maker. and she looked good all the while (v. 22). this role seems as if it would be unattainable. but i don’t think that it is. it just takes hard work and diligence and a great, great love for the Savior.