Author: leah@vinesweet.org

Saturday.  If you have a Monday through Friday 8:00 to 5:00 type job, today is probably your day off of the regularly scheduled program.

Saturdays and Sundays, oh how we LOVE our days off work!

Obviously, many of us have varying schedules.  So, whatever days of the week your days-off-work happen, it is a great time to take time.  What do I mean?

Reflect.

Our days off work offer the time where our minds can reflect on the happenings of the previous week.  We can assess where we are on our goals for the month and for the year.  Are we moving toward our ultimate goals?  Where are we in regard to goals for our marriage, our families, other relationships, our work, and our spirit?  Take an allotted time to think on this.  Don’t overthink it.  Just reflect, because you have to allow yourself time to…

Recharge.

You and I NEED TIME to ENJOY!  Remember the adage, “All work and no play makes for a dull boy.”?  It is TRUE!  We all need time to relax and play and enjoy the PRESENT.  Sometimes we are physically in a place but our minds are not present because we have not recharged.

LET GO of things and issues that keep you from being present in the present.

The following statement’s analogy of our lives in comparison to what happens every autumn paints a beautiful landscape of releasing things that bind us to the wrong things.

The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let things go.

When we hold on to thoughts and behavioral patterns that prevent us from moving forward or living in the now, we pay for it, as well as the people around us.  We miss out on them and they miss out on us.  So wherever you are, be present in body and mind.

Recharging goes beyond pleasure-seeking leisure time.  Recharging spiritually is VITAL to SURVIVAL!

Our belief system drives our world view.  As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, our world view is driven by living according to God’s plan given to us through His Word.

Recharging spiritually means we regularly seek the Lord’s presence individually.  We find a place of solitude, quiet our minds, focus, wait, and listen for the Lord.  The apostle James teaches us that when we draw near to God, He draws near to us. (James 4:8)  The other piece of recharging spiritually is to place ourselves, on a regular basis, with a group of likeminded people.

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.  Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.  And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. (Hebrews 10:23-25 NLT)  

Worshiping together in a corporate setting energizes us because we are able to encourage each other in our walk, uplift one another in our struggles, and celebrate each others’ victories!

Resolve. 

After we have taken the time to reflect and recharge, we are ready to be more resolute about moving forward.  We know where we are and we know where we want to go, so Monday morning, let’s get going.

Reflect. Recharge. Resolve.

What are YOU ENVISIONING for YOUR LIFE?  This weekend? Next week? This month? The remainder of the year?

SEEK the LORD!  DREAM BIG!  PURSUE IT!

VISION.

GOALS.

ACTION.

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Autumn!  Oh, how I LOVE this time of year!  The memories that flood and overwhelm my mind on this first day of fall!

I absolutely loved school the entirety of my growing up years and on this first day of autumn, I reminisce on how much I enjoyed the beginning of classes, gathering with friends, comparing class schedules, the anticipation of football games, and cruising the main drag.

Autumn brings thoughts of hot coffee and cool mornings, lawns mown less often, budding of brightly colored chrysanthemums, and the smoky smell of fire pits and fireplaces.  The sky appears cleaner and a more brilliant hue.  The air is crisp and clear.  Tree leaves of many varieties take on the most amazing colors in shades of golds, reds, purples, and browns.  The breeze captures them off the branches and they lilt and swirl like a ballerina, dancing to the ground from their heights.

Oh how I LOVE autumn!

This morning, this first day of my favorite season, my thoughts are centered on how extremely blessed my life is.  All is certainly not perfect in my world.  In fact, the reality is we have been experiencing an extended season of unrest and difficulty in our little piece of the world.  I have said good-bye to precious ones whom I loved so dearly in this life who now reside in eternity with the Lord.  I have treasured loved ones dealing with horrendous physical ailments.  A cherished friend moved many miles away from me this year.  I long to visit with dear ones I do not get to see often enough.  Yet, because I am in the abundant grace of God, He empowers me to live for Him, to follow Him, even in the midst of the most difficult of  trials and imperfections of this life.

God keeps me in His hand and watches over my life.  He shelters me in the shadow of His wings.  Why?  Because I choose to dwell in His secret place.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High, shall abide under the shadow of The Almighty.  And I will say of the Lord, “He is my Refuge and my Fortress, My God, in Him I will trust.  (Psalm 91:1-2)

To dwell is to live, abide, reside.  When we choose to place ourselves in the care of The Almighty, we have nothing to fear. He is our Refuge.  He is our Fortress, our Barrier when life seems to overwhelm us.  We abide under His wings.  We reside in His nest.  We live in His shelter.

Zephaniah tells us God is mighty to save! He exalts over me with joy! He renews me in His love! He rejoices over me with singing! (Zeph 3:17)

No matter the season of my life, who or what can be more worthy of my thoughts, my time, and my affection?

I choose to worship Almighty God because He is that, ALMIGHTY.  He is everything wrapped into His own statement of Himself being, “I AM!”

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Each morning on the back patio, sipping from steaming cups, my husband, Mike, and I watch the sun emerge over the eastern horizon, lighting the day as its golden glow rises above the rooftops.

One recent morning, along with the beauty of the sunrise, thoughts of failures began to emerge in my mind.  Failures I had already left in the Lord’s hands.  Failures the enemy was trying to use to bury my mind and heart into a pit of condemnation.  Why oh why is it so easy to allow things listed on our calendars and schedules, things we must accomplish, to get in the way of people?  Particularly, how do we do this to the people closest to us, those we love and care for most dearly?  How can I allow my work to postpone a sweet, simple conversation with my precious love of thirty-five plus years?  I only needed to write one more paragraph the other day. Minutes I will never recover … UGH!

Emerge.  To come forth.  Emerge is a directional word.  The imagery in my mind is of something moving upward or forward–much like the floatation of negative condemning thoughts opposing the joyful beauty of illuminating sunrise. Still, …

… the emerging sunshine of dawn erupting through night’s darkness SCREAMS, “THERE IS HOPE!”

On my rock patio, I have a hibiscus and every morning I take note of the many buds readying to emerge into gorgeous shades of peachy pink and yellow flowers in full bloom.

Just as a flower morphs from bud to full bloom or a caterpillar wrapped in its cocoon breaks through and emerges a glorious butterfly, emerging prescribes transformation.

With a flower or a caterpillar, transformation is a natural and innate progression in the growth of that particular life process.  With people, transformation is a choice.

Emerging is the picture of promise.  It speaks to stepping up, taking one’s place, and moving toward one’s intended destiny.

Our destiny is in front of us.  To reach it, we must choose to move toward it.

When we seek to change from our current status to the status we desire, it requires us to do things differently.  We shape our skills, develop our talents, and seek ways to grow in grace and kindness so we may take others with us on our journey.  Transforming describes that process of moving from where we are to where we are going.

Thankfully, when we suffer from condemning thoughts as I did that morning, or thoughts of any kind that do not bring honor to God, we need only to capture them, ask our loving, merciful, gracious Lord, Jesus Christ, to change them to thoughts bringing glory and honor to Him, and He will do it, instantly! (2 Cor 10:5)

Transformation begins with our minds.  We must think differently in order to act differently and emerge differently.

When our thoughts are transformed, as Paul taught the Romans and those at Philippi (Rom 12:1-2; Phil 4:8), we will emerge with a renewed mind, causing us to take new action, leading us toward our God-ordained destiny.

Paul also taught the people of Corinth, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”  (2 Corinthians 3:18)  

This fills us with the hopeful reality we do not have to remain where we are!  We can be different.  We can grow into the person and place we desire to be.

I dearly enjoy studying and learning and my closest friends have rightly assessed, I  have a thirst for knowledge and growth.

This rapacious yen for enlightenment is not for the express purpose of gathering intelligence.  No, there is a greater purpose for my seeking beyond simply attaining knowledge.

Visualize pure, fresh, clear water flowing down a mountainside into a pool.  Hear the gurgling as it splashes over the rocks making its descent from the top.  This brisk flow plunges into the basin at full speed.  Yet, this estuary falls into a reservoir with no outlet.  It is trapped.  It ripples a bit after impact only to be pushed to the other side, then stops.

The lack of movement creates a different environment.  Over a period of time, the water becomes stagnate.  Harmful bacteria and other troublesome organisms grow, transforming what was once crystalline into a murky bog.

Our lives are much the same.

When we grow into a place and get comfortable, we can become complacent and choose to stop.  Stop growing.  Stop learning.  Stop stretching ourselves.  Stop moving forward.

Trapped.

Like sweet water becoming bitter, we are trapped in the mire of stagnation.

Stagnate. STAGnate. StagNATE. STAGNATE.  The word even sounds distasteful.

We are fresh and clear upon arrival but ceasing to learn, grow, and stretch our skills, flow of creativity stops.  Bogged down in the mud of complacency.  Undesirable things sprout.  Unsavory attitudes begin to taint our words and blemish our character with apathy, bitterness and negativity.  Frustration arises and takes aim at those who are flourishing  and overshadowing those who are stagnating.

No stretching means no movement.  Stagnation is the result.  Allowing ourselves to pool and simply hold on to what we already have and choose not to move forward, we withhold from and negatively effect those whom we might otherwise positively influence.  May we never become stagnate!

The apostle Peter compared our desire for growth to babies who crave milk (1 Peter 2:1-2).  We should crave to grow.  As we grow, we consume the meat of the Word so our walk with the Lord will flourish (1 Corinthians 3:2; Hebrews 5:12).  The same applies to growing in every aspect of life.  We envision our desire and take in the heartier nutrients of learning new things, honing our skills, enhancing our abilities.  With this we build strength to tackle tasks and pursue our dreams.

My desire is to grow from where I am today into someone better tomorrow.

We can all seek to know and grow.

Knowing more, we can apply more, to effectively influence the world around us.

Stretching ourselves, we choose to move forward, increase our own value and enable ourselves to add value to others.

Every day is an opportunity for us to Wake Up, Stretch Out, Move Forward, and Flow in Creativity!

CONNECT.

DREAM.

GROW.

FLOW.

MAKE SOMETHING HAPPEN!

–Leah

To be courageous is an admonition given to many throughout the Bible including Moses, Joshua, Elijah, Isaiah, and Jesus’ disciples. Strength and courage seem to wane as we face challenges to our faith in unprecedented numbers in our interactions with the world and within our own families.

The words, “be strong and courageous” came to Joshua after Moses died and Joshua became the leader of the Israelites. It was Joshua’s task to take the Israelites into the Promised Land and God said to Joshua, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9 AMP)

Be strong and courageous, easier said than accomplished. Let’s break it into smaller pieces to get a better grasp.

The Lord, my God, is with me, everywhere, because His presence is carried within.

Joshua knew God was with him because throughout the Israelites’ wilderness wanderings he had seen Moses’ interactions with God and witnessed God’s manifest presence as a cloud by day and fire by night as He led them to the Promised Land.

How can we, thousands of years later, know this constant presence of God?

Jesus came as Immanuel which means “God with us.” While He walked the earth Jesus was fully human and fully divine and He dwelt among the people. Jesus was physically with the people. He ate with them, celebrated with them, cried with them, comforted them, touched them, healed them. Jesus was the manifest presence of God on earth.

Jesus was neither extraordinarily handsome nor majestic (Is. 53:2) but something set Him apart from others, His Spirit (Phil 2:7-9). Those who followed Him began to understand the difference, who He really was; the promised Messiah. This Messiah came and lived among the people.

However, there is more to the story.

Jesus’ death and resurrection brought the time in which we now live when God dwells within us. Jesus promised His disciples, those who believed in Him and wanted to be like Him, they would not be left alone as the Holy Spirit would come and fill them with His presence (John 14:15-31). Not only would the Holy Spirit fill them but also endue them with power (Luke 24:49). This power was proven through the works of the apostles throughout the book of Acts. These ordinary people were performing extraordinarily because of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Acts 4:13).

These same men showed others the Holy Spirit would fill and indwell anyone who chose to be a disciple of Jesus; follow Him, obey Him, and seek His presence. That means us!

Through His Holy Spirit we have God’s constant presence and power because He dwells within us. We are strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit to be strong and courageous and move forward.

Be not dismayed (intimidated).

Being courageous does not mean we will not have challenging times. In fact, it means the opposite.  Jesus Himself said, “In this world you will have trouble…” (John 16:33) He completed this statement by saying, “Take heart! I have overcome the world!”

I like the wording of Joshua 1:9 from the amplified Bible because it says not to be intimidated.  Challenges, people, situations will arise against us, yet we can live unintimidated, undaunted, and filled with confidence and joy by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Finally, God began His part of the dialogue with Joshua with a question,

“Have I not commanded you?”

God commanded Joshua to move forward and take the Israelites into the Promised Land. God emphasized to Joshua to be strong and courageous because He was already with Joshua and would continue to be with him. God says the same to us today.

In the life of every Christian—those who carry the Name with them everywhere they go, those who carry the Gospel and are ready to share it with everyone they meet—there will come a time when we are directed to carry out a task and even take a stand. Sometimes we will stand alone when everyone else says it cannot be done.  Yet, when God directs us to act we can stand firm that He will enable us to do it. We can step forward, following God’s command in our lives, confident in Him.

We are strong in the power of the Holy Spirit and courageous with the resolve to go with what we already know amid the challenges that come along the way.

Walk in the POWER of the Holy Spirit and Be Strong and Courageous today!

~Leah

I had a fun time sharing with the ladies at a brunch hosted by North Beacon Church of the Nazarene in Amarillo, Texas.  The theme for the brunch was Hats, Handbags & Heels in celebration of ladies in every walk of life; daughters, sisters, mothers, and the many types of work we represent.

Pictured L to R: Donna-Event Coordinator, Pastor Serina Nelson, me, and my daughter, Sydney

The room was filled with ladies of all ages and life-stations. They were there to celebrate friendships and family, and the worship helped prepare our hearts for a refreshing in the Spirit of the Living God.  We were poised for something positive to take home.

My presentation was entitled Elevator Shoes & Booster Seats: The Little Pick-Me-Ups of Life.  I discussed how the words we choose in our everyday language help frame our world.

Our words matter.

Words are the delivery system of the heart.

The apostles Matthew and Luke both recorded the words of Jesus stating, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” (Matt 12:34; Luke 6:38)

WORDS are CONTAINERS.  Whatever we put into our minds are the ingredients with which we fill those containers.  Our words are the delivery system of the heart.  Our choice of words and the way we determine to deliver them combine to convey our message.

Our mindset determines our words.  So when we change our mindset by improving the content, subsequently, we alter and enhance the quality of our words.

The apostle Paul taught about our thoughts driving our words.  In his letter to the Romans Paul said we can be transformed by Christ so our minds are renewed. Addressing the Philippians, Paul said to have the same mind or attitude of Jesus in all our relationships. He also taught about focusing on Christ and on the good, positive things in life.

Because we know we can have the same heart attitude as Jesus Christ, even in the midst of life’s imperfections, we can still have a joyful heart.

I love to laugh!  In fact, I have a print hanging next to my vanity mirror that reads, “Laugh till your stomach hurts.”  I love this because laughter just feels good and this statement is reflective of what King Solomon said in Proverbs 17:22, Laughter works like medicine!

The week of this brunch the weather ran the length of the thermostat.  We had days of sunny, breezy 80s and days of cold, blustery wind and snow; all within a 36-48 hour period.  These weather patterns make getting dressed every morning an adventure, so for the brunch I chose to wear all dark blue with a lighter weight fabric.  It was too warm for leggings and boots, so I opted for sheer navy tights and pumps.  The car was loaded with my props and I took one last look in the full length mirror and I was ready to roll.

About three minutes before everyone began taking their seats for the program to begin, I tore my tights and created a run.  What could I do?  I took the platform and made the announcement we should have prayed against this, modeled the “wardrobe malfunction” and we all laughed and had great time together!

 

About three minutes before everyone began taking their seats for the program to begin, I had a wardrobe malfunction. What could I do?  Laugh!

Laughter works like medicine!(Prv. 17:22)
Exercise your smile today😂

Finally, let us choose our words well and deliver them as a gift to others. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” (Eph4:29)

Words.
Make or Break.
Hurt or Heal.
Destroy or Build.
The choice is ours when we speak or type.
Choose to HEAL, ENCOURAGE & bring LIFE!~Leah

As I prepared for a meeting yesterday my thoughts moved to the way we pray.  I am talking about the attitude of our heart, as we approach God which drives the words we speak and how we say them to the Lord.

The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 4, verse 16,

Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time.

When we consider the words of this verse, let us consider the way we pray.  How do we speak to The Lord?  Are we full of self-pity, self-loathing, a poor sense of self-worth, complaints about our plight and the people around us?  If so, we are full of our selves and our focus is on how everything affects us rather than placing our focus on the Lord and the work of Christ.

Do we pray boldly?  This is not the kind of boldness attempting to manipulate God to do what we want (as if we could) but asking for God’s intervention in our circumstance, praying that His purpose be fulfilled and placing ourselves completely, without reservation, in His will to allow ourselves to be transformed into the people He desires.

While we like what this verse states, we cannot take it alone, because it is the completion of the two preceding verses, which say,

Having then a great high priest, who has passed through the   heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold tightly to our confession. For we don’t have a high priest who can’t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.

When we come boldly before God, honoring Him, recognizing He calls us to Himself through the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ which He provided; when we revere God for the ever-present, all-knowing and all-powerful God He is, we will then be filled with rejoicing no matter our situation!

When circumstances are difficult our emotions seem overwhelming, so our praise and worship become a sacrificial offering.

Let us always give a sacrifice of praise to God through Jesus. We do it by thanking him for all that he has done and also by talking about him. That is the sacrifice we make with our lips to his name. (Hebrews 13:15)

Speak boldly words of thanksgiving and praise, in prayer and in conversation.  When we face the most insurmountable circumstances and choose to worship God for who He is, we are offering to Him our most precious worship.

Our Lord desires to prove Himself in us and through us, in the mundane and in the miraculous, and everything in between!

Are we in a relationship with the Lord that is so close & intimate that we simply step into the recognition of His presence, knowing He knows us and we know Him?

I want to KNOW GOD as He knows me. I want to be wholly and completely His in a way that I am constantly aware of His presence. I want to LIVE HOLY, daily, and HIS GRACE EMPOWERS ME to walk uprightly & holy before Him.

When I wake each morning, I want to awaken with HIS songs in my heart. I want to step into the day knowing the GOD I serve, THE GOD of CREATION, THE GOD of MIRACLES calls me to HIS presence so HE can give to me, this day, EVERYTHING I need!!

I serve THE ONE, TRUE & LIVING, AWESOME GOD!!
May I be bold in my proclamation of HIM and may I pray bold prayers, KNOWING HE WILL ANSWER!

~Leah

“Mirror, Mirror, on the wall, please show me a face that is fair–at all!  Scale, Scale, on the floor, please show me a winning score!”

Who has NOT struggled, at some time, with their physical appearance?  Focus on physique permeates every aspect of our lives. Our culture places tremendous importance on physical image. It is difficult to avoid the trap of obsessing over personal appearance because enhanced photos of bodies and faces or surgically augmented shapes are strategically and consistently placed in our purview.

In this culture we attempt to equate personal value with a number; on a scale, on a clothing tag, a corporate ranking, or the number of digits to the left of the decimal in our bank account.  In doing this, we exchange our intrinsic value for something of much less worth.

Is our personal value really quantitative? An exchange assigning worth to both sides of the equation?

No. In fact, I maintain that the number on the scale is merely a “gravity monitor” (measuring the amount of gravity required to hold us on the ground).  A clothing tag is not indicative of one’s health, and the number of digits to the left of the decimal of one’s bank account cannot measure one’s intrinsic worth.  None of these is designed to, nor capable of, giving or assessing true value.

The skewed concept of worth cheapens the perception of our personal value and cannot satisfy our desire to be valuable.

With unrealistic ideas of personal worth conversations become driven by thoughts magnifying perceived inadequacies.  People bemoan these notions of personal physical atrocities hoping to alleviate their pain by hearing from their peers affirmations of their worth.

A person’s Legitimate Value is qualitative worth. Redemption.

Redemption. The exchange of something of equal or greater value for something else.

Redemption in everyday terms.  When you have a coupon for an item, you clip it and head out to redeem it.  If you stop at the bank and give a handful of coupons to the teller, he or she will tell you they cannot give you money for them.  However, if you go to the grocery store and fill your basket with the items, the cashier will ring them up.  The cashier will accept your coupons and take the discounted amounts off your total bill for the items for which you have coupons.

What makes the difference between the teller and the cashier?  Authority.  The teller did not have the authority to make the exchange, the grocery cashier did.

When we give our lives over to making a perfect appearance, no matter how perfected our looks become, we will never find life in that.

We must look to the LIVING to find our VALUE!

Jesus gave Himself as an offering of redemption for our souls.  When we give our lives over to Jesus Christ, we will find fulfillment and LIFE.

True value comes from one source, the CREATOR of LIFE, CREATOR of US, GOD ALMIGHTY.  Through JEHOVAH GOD, JESUS the CHRIST has the authority to make the exchange for ABUNDANT LIFE!

We are taught by the Psalmist in Psalm 139 that we are knitted together in our mother’s womb.  That means there is a Life Force who creates every individual.  That Life Force is God, the Creator, and John tells us Jesus was the Word of Creation and that God is the definition of love, for GOD IS  LOVE!

From Genesis to Revelation the Bible shows us the magnificence of The One, True and Living God, the Creator of all life.  We are the epitome of His creation.

Our VALUE is found in GOD alone.

Connected to GOD through JESUS CHRIST we find the reality of who we are.

Who we are is infinitely more valuable than how much we weigh, the size of our clothes, or the cash in our bank account.

Connect to CHRIST.

Find LIFE in HIM.

Know your VALUE.

#ValueSizedLIFE

Sitting on the patio early this morning, I was basking in the warmth of early spring weather.  Stars twinkling and seemingly only moments later deep darkness paled to royal and periwinkle hues as the sun peeked over the eastern horizon.

Calm air.  Birds chirping.  Sprinklers irrigating the landscape.

A warm mug cupped in my hands, my heart absorbed and celebrated the sweet promise of a new day.

I closed my eyes and smiled in thankfulness to The Creator of this glorious morning.

My ears captured the sound of our pup’s little paws pressing through the grass, as he sniffed out what may have ventured into the yard through the night.

I listened.  Carefully, I listened.

Drinking in the aroma of wet grass, I opened my eyes to sip the dark umber brew of well-roasted Brazilian beans.

The sky grew lighter and the hum of nearby motorists became more prevalent.  Without warning, I was apprehended by the realization I was keenly focusing my attention to extract the sounds of nature from the drone of commuter traffic.

My thoughts turned to a Bible scripture I recently read in Jeremiah.  Jeremiah is known as the “weeping prophet” because he wept over the sins of his people.  It saddened him to consistently deliver to the people of Israel the news of God’s impending judgement as the result of their sins.

In one of his seasons of discouragement Jeremiah grumbled to the Lord, declaring God was like a dry brook.  This was only a short time after he had proclaimed the Lord was a fountain of living water.  Jeremiah’s emotions were like ocean waves rising and falling, sailing his words.

God responded with a reprimand for Jeremiah, instructing him to “extract the priceless from the worthless.”  If Jeremiah would be obedient in this, God would restore him as His spokesperson.

Extract the priceless from the worthless …

God was counseling Jeremiah about his speech because Jeremiah’s ability to communicate God’s message to Israel was the purpose for which God had created, ordained and called him.

How often do we have to sift through distraction of emotions to find the golden moments of God’s purpose for our lives?  All manner of distractions are the “worthless” for us.

When we learn to extract the GOOD from the okay and more so, the BEST from the good, we are enabled hold the best and let go of what is of little value.

How difficult it is to let go.

We often want to clutch tightly to something because we know it.  It is familiar, comfortable.  However, when we solidly grasp something we need to release, we lose; even when it is a good thing, something we love.  And, others are negatively effected by our decision to tighten the grip.

Recently, the Lord led me to release a piece of my life; what was a God-given, God-ordained focus.  It was a truly difficult decision to say “yes” to Him.  This thing involved a slice of who I am, a piece of the essence of what makes me, me.

Still, I knew by the Lord’s prodding, I needed to redirect my steps.

Extraction!

Painful release! Agony.  A moment of guilt.  Relief of stress.  Sadness of good-bye.  Freedom to grow.  Hope of the dawn of newness.  Tears  often still adorn my cheeks as I say good-bye to a fragment of my life, at least in that particular capacity.  Feelings.

Feelings, just as in Jeremiah’s dismay, fleet through our hearts passing to and fro, tossing us around the vortex of their whirlwind, randomly dropping us to recover from the dizziness.

Feelings cannot dictate right and wrong. They merely respond to the circumstances around us and to the decisions we make.  We make the choice of how to respond, in word and deed, to those feelings.

Change is difficult even when it is RIGHT … 

… and change can bring growth, when we choose to grow.

When we listen to the voice of our Creator we can be assured He speaks for our good.  God’s words to Jeremiah were to convict, not to condemn.  He wanted Jeremiah to be aware of his fault and repent from it, to give up what he was doing wrong so he could fulfill what God called him to do.

Growth brings change.  Rather than run from it, choose to become more.

Remaining the same will not bring the desired results of successful living.  Jeremiah heeded the words from the Lord and chose to change, to extract the priceless from the worthless, to allow his heart to be renewed in God’s love and kindness.  We can do the same.

Become.  Become what God has purposed as your destiny by enduring the extraction of the worthless, leaving it behind, and treasuring the priceless.  Your destiny awaits.