Ah it's Spring time again. Trees bursting with new leaves and filling the space that once lay barren with an expanse of greenery that will shade us during those long, hot days of summer to come. The flower beds that lay dormant, now are filled with new colors that seems more intense than it did last year coupled with fragrance that fills your senses with such joy, such color, such promise.
Sometimes our lives can feel at times like Spring, bursting with uncontainable joy, laughter and love. Other times it can feel like the long, never-ending days of a hot, unbearable summer, sweating out problem after problem. Then again, some of us feel like the fall has come to our lives, things we no longer need in our life, simply fall away , to be blown away by the unseen wind to another place. Still others of us feel completely dead inside like the winter. Cold, empty, and no sign of life. Lacking in hope and faith, our belief in something better is dried up and gone, brittle and broken.
My dearest friends, God can take us at any season in our lives and completely restore us to Spring. Whatever situation you find yourself in, it's literally not the end of the world all though it can certainly feel that way. Whether you find yourself at a crossroads in your life when it comes to your job, your marriage, a difficult relationship, or loss of direction, God can be your compass and roadmap to a new and better life.
Sometimes we look at our lives and wonder, how did I get here? Wasn't everything going along just fine? Why me? God would ask the question, what not you?
We need to remember we live in a world full of sin. Nothing can change that until the world as we know it is destroyed. It is the punishment man will pay for but God can restore, and He will. Yet from time to time, we will have struggles. We will have pain. We will have loss so great we think it's more than we can bear. But if we have God in our lives, we can weather anything because we are not alone. He is with us. He will never, ever leave us, once we invite Him into our lives.
Sure it can seem like God is quiet, like He has left us to attend some bigger crisis somewhere but He doesn't. That's our own worst enemy talking to us. No matter what you are going through right now, give it to God. Stop what you are doing right now and let Him take your burden from you. No matter what it is, God doesn't want to you carry it. He wants you to hand it over and never look at it again. It is a trial by fire if you will. Will you turn it completely over to Him and let Him handle it, no matter how He decides it should be? Are you willing to let Him despite the outcome?
Go to Him in a short prayer. Just tell Him what you need. Tell Him what's on your heart, the good, the bad and the ugly. He can take it all. Ask Him to restore peace to your heart, comfort your emotional needs, and restore your joy. Then most of all, believe it with all your heart, all your mind and all your soul. God wants to help you and the more times we remember to do this, the shorter our storms will be.
Oh and while your waiting, Rejoice! Smile! Be happy! Find the good in something today! It's always present, we simply need to open our eyes and see it. Ask God to show you and be prepared to be amazed at what He can do.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Sometimes I know the cares and worries of this world can wear me down like the sands of time, yet I know that you are greater than anything I find myself going through. Though I find myself lacking your joy today, I lift up my arms and cry out to you, Lord Jesus, restore your joy unto my heart and soul. I ask that you remove any burdens I haven't placed at your feet today. I trust you completely to work in my life and ask that you guide my feet in the steps you need me to take today. Lord, open my eyes to your wonders and help me to see the beauty you have laid out all around my life. Live in me today, Lord Jesus, and restore my heart, my soul, my mind and my strength.
In Jesus Mighty Name, I pray ~ AMEN
"So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!"
Psalm 31:24 (NLT)