What's in a Name

That's right!  Two posts in the same week.  I'll allow you time to pick up your jaw up off the floor.  I tend to forget things if I don't do/write them down immediately.  So I am here writing on a Friday night.  Boys asleep.  Husband busy tooling around on his computer.

Like all good thoughts and theories, it came to me in the shower.  Isn't that the best place for inspiration?  It struck me that everybody struggles  I realize that sounds so obvious and inane, but I was just thinking and praying over my recent struggles.  It just struck me from out of nowhere really.

My big struggle, especially as of late, is with doubts and worries.  I do my utmost to make things happen on my own sometimes without consulting a trusted friend, my husband, or even God.  Sometimes, I just want to do it and not be told "No" or "Not yet."   I want control.  It's nearly inconceivable that someone can do it better and faster than I can, right?  I know how it should be done and what the results should look like. {Entirely rhetorical.}

When I seek without counsel or prayer...

I limit my friend's advice.

I limit my husband's wisdom.

I limit my God. 

Obviously, I am not stressing out over not seeking advice on what to make for dinner or what color of underwear I should wear, but for some bigger decisions, it strikes me that sometimes I just leap before I look.   (Yep, given the right circumstances, I might be one to jump off a bridge just because my friends did.  Okay, maybe not that much, but just jumping headfirst into a situation still can be a weakness of mine.)

All of this, lead to thinking about the faith of Ruth from the Bible, the predecessor of my own name.  She had enough faith in God to leave her family, her country, and everything she ever knew.  She went with Naomi to a new foreign land.  They were so poor that she had to glean the leftovers from the fields, but she had a strong devotion about following Naomi.  "For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God"  (Ruth 1:6).

Sometimes, I am much more like the Doubting Thomas instead of the Faithful Ruth.  I realize it all takes time to learn and develop, but like much of the things today, I would like somethings to just instantaneously happen.    I need time to grow and learn, like the song says, "He's still working on me to make me all I ought to be."  (Really it goes along with the name of our blog, Of the Potter's Hands.  It's about always being molded and changed by God.  We are constantly learning as we live.)

I realize that my train of thought might be hard to follow, and I digress at times, so I'll sign-off.  Before I do, I want to leave with one last quote of something that I love from Pinterest (which if you're not on, you need to be)....  "Don't tell God you have a big problem.  Tell your problem you have a BIG God." 

Rolling with the Punches

Wow!  To say it has been awhile would be a true understatement!  Life has certainly crept in with all of it's craziness and chaos.  Back with just a quick note, more for my own benefit and possibly to help my whole 1-2 followers!  :)

Yesterday was just a day for the grumps.  For me.  For the boys.  Daddy had a long, hard day working until 1/2 hour before the boys' bedtime.  Even the weather felt grumpy and overcast for most of the day.  I admit, I let it get the best of me.  I was sad over dumb things and grouchy for even dumber reasons.

Today, God brought this verse into my devotional time.  "God will fight for you.  Just stay calm." (Exodus 14:14)  

Really if you think about it, it's pretty incredible.  The Creator of the entire universe is not only caring for you, he's FIGHTING for you.  He wants to give you the desires of your heart and make you happy, like any parent wants for their child.  It kind of goes hand-in-hand with the verse from Psalms. "Be still and know that I am God."  Be still, my child.  Let me work.
 
Life sometimes gets you down and out.  And it's easy to let it, at least for me.  I am keeping this verse close to my heart so on days like yesterday I can remember that He's in my corner with gloves on; ready to fight.  Circumstances will still have me on the ropes sometimes, but it will not be a TKO!