Yes, it is true...I have given into the man. I am currently the newest barista at my local Starbucks Coffee. Sad, but oh so true. I have worked three shifts and like it okay. I know that it will take a while for me to fully get into the swing of things there, but its a great dispensible job (that gives me benefits like medical insurance as well as a free pound of coffee every single week!) that I can have for a while and even transfer within the company if I need to. I work with very interesting people, but they are very very fun. I know that God can use me in big ways--if only I would be fully willing to let Him.
I am learning how to be all here in Lewisville while still being diligent about praying for what God has next for me. It is something that sounds easy in theory, but in reality, it is very hard.
I am so trying to enjoy the place that God has me today, while still being able to grow and learn from the places that He has taken me, and being prayerful about the places that He will take me.
I have been reading a book called "to Be Told" by Dan Allender and it has helped me to put things into perspective about how God has used my past and is using my present to prepare me for my unknown future.
He makes a good point that it is hard to know where you are going if you do not know where you come from. Those moments in your past that have defined who you are and those moments that you wish never happened are all part of how you live your life today--whether you like it or not.
This is not to say that there is not power in the cross and redemption through the blood, but what has happened has happened--it is what it is--and we have to be willing to read our past to know how God has wired us for our today and our tomorrow.
"But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart." Luke 2:19
All of those little moments that Mary had with Jesus are moments that she pondered and later in Luke it even says that she "treasured" them in her heart.
We are to remember all of the places that the Lord has brought us to and through. We are to thank Him for bringing us through them and revealing Himself to us because of them.
Thank Him for the mountain-tops.
Praise Him for the valleys.
Be grateful for His voice.
And love Him despite the silence.
In this past week I have pleaded with the Lord to help me to remember my story--or rather His story in my life. A lot of junk has come up, but a lot of healing has resulted. Before I can move forward I think that it is important to look back and see all that God has done--while still living for what I have today.
At times I feel so empty and drained, but I know that with Jesus there is always room for more.
I am excited about where He is going to take me, but I am even more excited about what He is doing TODAY. I have faith that what He is doing TODAY is molding me for what He will grow me to become TOMORROW.
Ultimately, though, I pray that He will teach me how to live for where He has me today, in Lewisville, TX and that as I live for the here and now, He will show me tomorrow.
