Our Higher Calling

Whether you are in an abusive/dysfunctional situation, or not.  We all have a higher calling, and we are fully equipped with unique talents and gifts from God.  Now, what we do with these talents and gifts is up to us.  Some may choose to squander them away, and others will take risks to multiply their talents for God's glory.

Today in church, we read an amazing parable that reminded me that my life really isn't mine at all.  I remember reading this parable when I was living through some of my horrific lows with my family situation, and it took the focus off of what I was going through.  This parable gave me perspective and a life long mission, to touch and encourage as many people in Christ as possible.  I have made it my life long mission to see those around me commit to being in a relationship with Jesus Christ, the son of God, and my Lord and Savior.

I completely understand the fork in the road.  The moment in which you can either choose to be mad at God for the rest of your life, because of the situation you are in, or you can either place complete trust in God that He ultimately has your back.  I get it!  You might feel that life isn't fair and what's the point?

But I'm going to tell you something you might not want to hear.  You don't have to allow your situation to dictate who or what you feel you are destined to become.  You determine whether or not you rebel or seek a higher calling.  Period.  Not your situation.

Matthew 25:14-30

New International Version (NIV)

The Parable of the Bags of Gold

    ¹⁴ “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. ¹⁵ To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag,^[a] each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. ¹⁶ The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. ¹⁷ So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. ¹⁸ But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.   ¹⁹ “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.²⁰ The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’
   ²¹ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
   ²² “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’
   ²³ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
   ²⁴ “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
   ²⁶ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? ²⁷ Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
   ²⁸ “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. ²⁹ For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. ³⁰ And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

There is an absolute truth that we should have within the foremost part of our mind every second of the day.  HE WILL RETURN.  We will stand before God one day, and we will be held accountable for the way we have chosen to live or not live for Christ.  Despite your situation, how are you going to spend your talents?  Will you do something GREAT with them?  What is God calling you to do that you have been ignoring?

Right now, I want to urge you to not allow you situation dictate how you use your talents.  God has GREAT plans for you, and He wants you to use what He has given you to glorify Him.  Do not allow what you are going through or what you have done to keep you from what you are called to do!

Ask God to cast you a vision for your talents and listen to His promptings.

Seeking Rest?

Matthew 11:28 NASB

"Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."

I came across this verse today, and I was reminded of how powerful God really is. When I am at my breaking point, full of stress, and no longer able to manage on my own. God reminds me to simply come and spend time with Him.

God wants you to give Him your burdens so he can lighten your load. After all, we were never meant to take them on alone in the first place! That is usually what happens when we lose focus of who is ultimately in control of our lives. What would our lives look like if we were to trust God whole heartedly with our burdens, trials, and short comings?

Would you have the ability to recognize and follow God's leadings and promptings with ease? The answer is YES! When you come to God to seek refuge and rest in Him. He will give you the comfort and the ability to trust in Him when He prompts you to move in a certain direction.

God might call you into what might seem an odd direction, but when we place our trust in Him he will later reveal the remaining portion of the path. There have been more times than I can remember in which God has called me to do something that feels uncomfortable or maybe even socially awkward. But by following His prompting and leading I later see how He lightened my load.

If you have found yourself to be stressed out or over whelmed by a current situation. Go find a quiet place and just sit with our Lord and creator. Tell Him your burdens, find peace with Him, and then listen and follow through with what He instructs you to do. God loves you so much and He wants to help you out in your daily trials. So let Him!

Lord, we are raised to believe that we need to be independent in life, but in reality we need to be dependent. Dependent on you Lord. Father, I pray for those that are facing over whelming stressful trials that need encouragement and love. Allow them to find rest in you and through the Holy Spirit. Reveal their next step and guide them through their journey. We are strongest when we walk along side you, Lord. Please remove distractions from our lives that prevent us from hearing your voice. Thank you for demonstrating such patience with us over and over again. We are so grateful for your willingness to be a part of our lives. In your name, Amen.

RUNNING AWAY

Do you see no real way out of your situation, and you can't possibly take one more day of the insanity and abuse? You want out, and running away seems like your only option. Besides, no one will really miss you, right? I know these thoughts all too well, because I once thought them for myself.

The pain and heart ache has become too much, and you are desperate for an escape. Suicide has crossed your mind, but you still have the hope that there might just be a life for you somewhere else. So, running away seems like your only option.

When I was living with my biological alcoholic parents, suffering from an unstable home life, facing regular abuse and manipulation. I struggled with these very thoughts. I just wanted a chance at life! Was that too much to ask? Why couldn't I just have a normal childhood?

At the age of fourteen I began to plot my escape. I was going to leave my home state of Indiana, and run off to a friend in California. I wanted to get as far away from my abusive family as possible. The glorious idea of hitch hiking across the country seemed like the perfect plan. I envisioned myself bouncing from one truck stop to the next. I was prepared to take extreme measures, because I had had enough!

I was sick of the police showing up at my home every weekend for domestic abuse, and doing nothing to help me and my brother. You would think that two grown people flinging one another down stairs and chasing one another with butcher knives might be a red flag to police that these children were not in capable hands?

While I was plotting my escape God brought yet another Sunday morning sermon into my life that gave me some perspective. The Bible story was about a man named Joseph. Joseph was the favorite son of his father, Jacob, and he was greatly resented by his brothers for it. Jacob loved Joseph so much that he had a special robe made for him. Which made his brothers extremely jealous. Joseph then began to have strange dreams and communicating them to his family.

One day Joseph had a dream, and he went to go tell his brothers. He said, "Guess what? Last night I had a strange dream. We were tying up bunches of grain out in the field when suddenly my bunch stood up, while all of yours gathered around and bowed to me." The brothers looked at each other in disgust, but Joseph continued. "Then I had another dream that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to me."

Long story short, Joseph really ticked off his brothers by telling them this. Following that day Jacob asked Joseph to go out and check on his brothers. As a result of following his father's instructions, he was stripped of his robe and thrown in a well by his brothers, then sold into slavery to some Egyptians. The brothers later told the father that Joseph had died.

While in Egypt, Joseph was a slave for Potiphar in his palace. He was favored by Potiphar, until one day when Potiphar's wife falsely accused him of trying to rape her. He was then placed in prison. Talk about going from one bad situation to the next!

After Joseph had been in jail for some time a cupbearer and baker to Pharaoh had been sent there. One night each of them had a dream. They told their dreams to Joseph and he told the cupbearer that he would soon be let out of jail. "Please tell Pharaoh about me, and ask him to get me out of here." Joseph said.

Pharaoh believed all that Joseph told him, and put him in charge of all the land of Egypt.

When the cupbearer was freed he forgot about what Joseph did. So Joseph stayed in jail for two more years. Until one day the Pharaoh had a dream, and nobody could explain it to him. The cupbearer then remembered what Joseph had done for him, and Joseph was brought to Pharaoh.

"Can you understand dreams?" Pharaoh asked. "I can't, but God helps me." Joseph replied. After Pharaoh had told him his dream Joseph explained, "God is warning you. There will be seven years when nothing will grow and there won't be any food for anyone."

"What can I do?" Pharaoh asked. "God has shown you what to do. There will be seven years before the bad years that will be very good. So good that there will be extra food for everyone. So you should save a little bit of each years harvest, that way you will have enough to get you through the bad years." Joseph said.

People came from all countries to buy grain from Joseph, because the whole world was in need of food. Some of those people were Joseph's brothers. When his brothers came, Joseph recognized them, but they did not know who he was. (It had been over 10 years since they had seen him).

The brothers all bowed to him because he was an important person. Just as he dreamed they would at the beginning.

After a few meetings with his brothers he could not keep it in any longer and Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Is my father alive?" But his brothers couldn't answer him because they were afraid. Then Joseph said, "Come here. I am your brother, the one you sold! Do not worry, and do not be angry at yourselves for selling me, because God has put me here to save people from starving."

So his father, his brothers, and their families came to live in Egypt with Joseph, and they had all the food they needed.

Okay, so a really crazy story, huh? This story revealed to me that Sunday that God is going to put us in what may seem some impossible situations. Situations that we did not bring on ourselves, and situations that we are going to want to escape from. But God has a great plan that He doesn't always let us in on. Sometimes we won't be able to fully understand or grasp it until it is all over with.

Ultimately, because of this story, I stuck it out in my situation and didn't run off to California. I trusted God and I faced my trials with Him. There was a whole bunch of trials and struggles that followed my decision, but I knew that I was in God's will. God has a plan for you, and He has not forgotten or abandoned you!

Here is my advice to you. Share your situation or struggles with a trusted guidance councilor, teacher or youth worker. Find someone that you can talk with about your situation. It will be scary at first, but trust that God will be there with you through it. Pray that God will give you encouragement and strength to face your trials. You matter to God and He wants you to include Him in your life.

Heavenly Father, I praise you for how great and powerful you are. I thank you for loving us enough to make such a sacrifice of sending your only son to die on a cross for our sins. I pray for those right now that face what seems like an impossible situation. For those that desire a different life and feel lost. Wrap your loving arms around them and help them to find a safe person to reach out to. Give them hope and the ability to trust that you have a great plans for their life. Just like you did for Joseph and for me. Please surround those reading this right now that are thinking about running away with a peace that you will be with them every step of the way. We love you, Lord. Amen.

To read the full Bible version of Joseph you can read it in Genesis 37-46.

God Bless

Death of A Parent

Saying Goodbye

As I started to walk back with the nurse to view my father’s body a knot began to form in my throat. How was I going to say goodbye? What was he going to look like? When we walked into the room he was covered with a white sheet, and the room that they had placed him in felt so cold. I crossed my arms and braced myself as the nurse pulled back the sheet. As she pulled back the blanket I could see his curly brownish red hair and then his face. It was my father lying there, lifeless.

The knot in my throat began to grow and tears swelled up in my eyes. His skin had a bluish tint to it that made his hair stand out as if it were glowing. The nurse began to leave the room and said as she left, “Sweetie, take as long as you need and you can just go back out to the waiting room when you’re done.” I nodded in agreement, and began to approach my father’s body.

Dad’s eyes were closed and he had a peaceful look about him. I placed my hand on his chest and I took a deep breath before I spoke, “Daddy, I am so sorry. I really do love you, and I really wish that I could have had one last talk with you. I’m so sorry for not loving you unconditionally. I’m so sorry. I’ll always be your little girl, and I promise to take care of mom and my brother. I really wish things didn’t end this way. I should of never of gone on that retreat, because I could of prevented this. I’m so sorry.”

The Holy Spirit within me kept telling me that it wasn’t my fault, but my feelings were telling me something else. I leaned over to give my daddy one last hug and a kiss on the cheek before I left. Then I took the white sheet in my hands and pulled it back over my father’s head. I just stood there for a minute with my arms crossed and crying.

How can I leave you, and how can I say goodbye? I thought to myself. It’s so permanent, and I wasn’t truly ready for this moment. I took one last look and opened the door. With a swipe of my hands I pulled back the tears and regained my composure.

That day will forever be engrained in my mind. A guilt followed me for years, because I wasn't around that weekend to prevent my father from drinking and driving. I took the blame for his death and for him hitting that tree that day. For a fourteen year old girl this was a rather large burden to carry through life, but fortunately I had God to lighten the load.

During that time I spent much time in prayer and meditation with God. Mostly, because I felt that He was the only one that truly understood the entire dynamic of my situation. My time with God gave me the strength to make it through that difficult time and to learn the truth (that it wasn't my fault). I was given peace and a reassurance from God that He had a plan for my life and that I needed to place my trust in Him.

Personally, I now believe that God's plan for my life is to share my story with others, to encourage, and to share to share Christ's love. I now know whole heartedly that God doesn't make junk and that He truly had a plan for my childhood all along. The loss of an alcoholic parent can be an extremely difficult time, but find your peace in God. He's always willing to listen!