Your heart skips a beat. That’s unhealthy, you know? A risk the ticker has to take when you don’t see something coming. You know, something that completely smacks you right between the eyes, in the heart & a lil’ kick in the stomach for a little extra excitement.
“We need to talk to you”, are words I typically don’t enjoy hearing from my parents. This time was different. “Your dad got a job in Texas and we will be moving soon”. Cue the squealing and my Mom & I jumping up and down in the kitchen.
Yep, they big fat moved me my senior year in high school. Once the natural excitement subsided from a deep-rooted Texan, I realized this was huge, and may be hard.
God was on constant speed dial. I guess He always should be, huh?
Countless times I get the reaction from people. You know the one with the scrunchy nose and the deep-toned, “OHHHHH, I bet that was hard, how are you doing?” Kindly I say, “I am doing great”. Truth is, it was hard. It IS hard. However, the positive far outweighs the negative.
If I HAD to pick one thing, (which you know I won’t), I would say by far the best thing I have experienced is a closer relationship with my Lord & Savior.
He is TRULY amazing, isn’t He? I would love to sit here and paint you the perfect picture of how I went to Him for every.little.thing. But honey, that would not be the truth. The truth? I tried taking matters into my own hands. I planned. I was a woman on a mission. I was ready to hit the road and not look back. Only, to be back every other weekend to visit the place “I was never looking back at”.
Let me let you in on a little secret of mine. I missed home. THERE, you happy? I said it. I missed home. I missed everything about it, the people, my best friend, my literal house, the feeling of actually KNOWING what I was doing!!!!! I missed it.
I talked to God on a daily base. I talked. He listened. I talked some more. He listened some more. And then, it happened. I finally decided to let Him speak. And let me just say WOW!!!!!!
I navigated through the great state of Texas for a couple of weeks all by myself. I taught myself the highways and learned quickly that the speed in texas is only a suggestion. OH and for those of you who have never traveled to Texas, DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT go 70 in the fast lane. You will get run right over by the soccer mom who’s late for dance practice.
Anyways, I became frustrated that I just wasn’t having the absolute time of my life yet. I'm supposed to have a life built right here in front of me and everything was supposed to fall right into place. Goodness, why was that so hard? Ahhh my fellow friends, because I was being the impatient one. Turns out the man with the plan was THE MAN Himself. God.
“ Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6) That was a verse I grew to know very well. We have to learn to “make known” our requests to him. We always say He knows our hearts and He knows our every thought, but He wants us to TELL HIM. Pray to the one who is always listening. The Savior covers us with his tender love and care. He is longing for us to pray to Him.
Insert fear. Fear of voicing our concerns and worry can make it real. Yeah, I’m going to take a hard pass on that one. But the one who is most high comforts us in Psalms 23 “...You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Well, I couldn’t have said it better myself. He is going to “prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies”. Wow, he knows what’s coming. He’s using this time to teach me something and that is to trust Him. Believe that the knower of all will light my path and lead me beside those still waters. And just after that to restore my soul.
Finding friends wasn’t very hard if you know me at all, but to know that I have a forever friend in the one who sent His only son to die FOR ME. My frustration and anxiety were eased and my life I laid at my precious Savior’s feet.
Finding friends wasn’t very hard if you know me at all, but to know that I have a forever friend in the one who sent His only son to die FOR ME. My frustration and anxiety were eased and my life I laid at my precious Savior’s feet.
xoxo, A