My challenge has been accepted and lived out for one week now!

I shared with you last week that God had spoken to my heart a challenge to not just say He is Lord of my everyday life, but to put that statement into action. To live out His Lordship over me in every aspect of my life!

God has spoken a challenge to my heart to make what I do between my life here on earth and my forever life in heaven matter! So, I have accepted God’s three step challenge to me to 1) Increase my trust and dependance on Him, 2) To lead like Jesus and 3) To be as healthy as I physically and naturally can be.

I wrote last week when I was on Challenge Day Number 2! Today I am writing when I am on Challenge Day Number 9!

I am happy to report that Day 9 is easier than Day 2 was, but each day is still a struggle. When we determine to “make a change”, it always requires the “doing away with something familiar”, and the “adding of something new.”
This is what doctors tell us produces stress and anxiety. That is why I am deciding to go to The Great Physician and put Him first in working toward change in my life.

Let me back up a little here…in order to accept my new Challenge from God to Increase my Trust and Dependance on Him, Lead like Jesus, and be as Physically and Naturally Healthy as I can be, I MUST DAILY STRENGTHEN MY SPIRIT WITH HIS SPIRIT!

“I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being.”
Ephesians 3:16

I can do nothing on my own! In my own strength “change” becomes disabling! It causes stress and anxiety and produces all kinds of hardships in my life! However, when my focus is on God’s Spirit in me and His strength to produce change, the giving up of the “old” and the embracing of the “new”, becomes possible!

My focus this week has been The Cross… actually, the worship song ‘Lead me to The Cross’ by Hillsong.
“Everything I once held dear, I count it all as loss…;”

“Lead me to the cross where your love poured out…;”

“Bring me to my knees, Lord I lay me down…;”

“Rid me of myself, I belong to you…;”

Lord, Lead me, Lead me to your cross.”

“To Your Heart!”

“Everything I once held dear, I count it all as loss…,”

The first thing I had to do was let go of what I was holding on dearly to, and give it up as loss, so that God would be first in my life and my daily routine. For me it was more sleep and devotion and Bible Study before ANYTHING else! Getting up to an alarm clock even if it wasn’t going off to tell me to “go to work.” Setting that alarm clock and getting up to go the gym, and not pushing the snooze one or two or three times!! It really helps to have an accountability partner. Mine happens to be my husband, and his dedication and devotion to waking up and working out, has truly helped me in my challenge! He was always willing to help me in this by the way! I was the one dragging my heels! So blessed that he never gave up on me!
Second, doing my devotion and Bible reading and tuning every other noise out! For me this has worked at the gym while I am doing my workout. I love the elliptical, and the more I read God’s Word, the more I push to step higher and faster. I have chosen an app on my phone, but any form of reading will do!
Lastly, my Bible Study. This can be a big challenge by the time I wake up early, make it to the gym, work out and read my devotion. I walk back into my house and the “To Do List” looms! Now those of you at a younger age and stage in your life may not even find this luxury “To Do List” facing you. Instead, it may be the babies you put into gym daycare, or the children you are getting off to school by 8:00am. All of us find ourselves with different ages, stages and difficulties to overcome.
For young moms it may mean you flip-flop your time alone with God to the evening or late morning when your kids are asleep or at school. For those of you in the middle of life it may mean working through the tiredness you feel after giving so much of yourselves for so many years. For me, it continues to be the ‘What I could do,’ verses the, ‘What I should do’ syndrome.’
The key still remains for all of us to “give everything to God that we hold on dearly to.”
I must continue to count my time in the morning to sleep more, or my time to workout to music at the gym, or my “to do list” as I walk through my front door, as “loss”, in order to complete my challenge!

“Lead me to the cross where your love poured out…”
I must focus my thoughts on Christ and His sacrifice on the cross for me. Truly, that thought alone puts me in awe, and an attitude of gratitude and thanks to Him for my life in Him!

“Bring me to my knees, Lord I lay me down…”
My posture during prayer time needs to be that of worship. My head low, my body relaxed and my mind clear of any thoughts but Christ!

“Rid me of myself, I belong to you,…
I must come to Him with humility and expectation. Realizing that I am not able, but He is more than able!

“Lord Lead me, Lead me to Your Cross…”
I must humbly lay at the foot of His cross and listen. I need to be still and hear what God is pouring into my life.

“Lead me to your HEART…”
As I sit and listen and hear from God, I can then know and understand His Heart and purpose for my day, and my life.

TRUTH BOMB

The key to any challenge is allowing God to lead us.

The most important step we take in accepting any challenge in life is to allow God to lead us.

Without God’s leading we will more than likely take “wrong turns”, “rabbit trails”, run into “roadblocks”, or worst of all, allow our challenge to come to a screeching halt before we cross the finish line!

God leads us down the path of success, where we will make each day count for Him. We are in a race, the way we finish depends on how we run and who leads us!

I am on day 9! I have not perfected the way I run, “The struggle is Real,” as my granddaughter would say. But I do know who is leading me, and He will never fail me.

As you face this day, and this next week, I pray that weather or not you are facing a big challenge or a small one, you would begin each day at the cross, allowing God to lead you every step of the way.

He is the Victor my friends. He alone can give us the VICTORY!
I am trusting in Him to complete my challenge. I hope you are too.

See you next week!

Speak Truth Love