Don't hold anything back

"(2) And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom though lovest, and get thee into the land of Mo-ri'-ah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon  one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. (3)"...and went unto the place of which God had told him." (12) "...for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me." Genesis 22:2,3,12


 Today at nursing home service, Bro. Bryant preached a little on Abraham's faith and the peace God gave him. I had to come back and read the entire chapter because God got my attention on a few things. Abraham has always been a favorite of mine but I never really stopped and made application to my own life. 

  In this chapter Abraham is told to offer his son as a sacrifice. This is his only son. Remember this is son God promised Abraham and Sarah. The son they waited for! They got impatient with waiting and tried to fulfill God's promise another way. But this son, Isaac, was the promised son. Now God wanted Abraham to sacrifice him. 

  What is it in our life that God wants us to sacrifice? It may not be anything bad like a sin but it could be. It might be our plan for our life or something else. What did God show me? The hardest things for me to surrender of course. I'm a control freak and I like to plan out my life step by step. But I don't need to. God already has and it's far better than I could ever plan. I can mess it up, yes, and God will honor my choices. But I know His way is best. 

  Do you see Abraham question God in this? No. Maybe he did but I don't really think he did. I think God would have told us. We question God so often. Why are you doing this to me? Why is this happening? But we don't see Abraham do that. He was willing to sacrifice his son because God asked him to. I don't know if this was the case but it made me wonder if Abraham had let Isaac have first place in his life. Was Isaac the most important part of his life? It was his promised son after all! Had he started to put God in second place? We are guilty of this many times as Christians. God wants us to be willing to sacrifice our wants and desires for what He wants. God wants and deserves to have first place in our life. Nothing and no one should come before God. 

  Abraham was willing to sacrifice all and God blessed him because of his faith. He didn't hold anything back from God, not even this son he had waited so long for. God rewards our faith and blesses us abundantly. God knows our deepest desires and our greatest dreams. He wants to give us good things and bless us. First we must be willing to surrender all and trust that His plan and way is BEST!! God will bless our faith. 

  Read this chapter! It was a blessing to me and I just had to share. 
    Linda

Inspire 2015

Each year I chose one word for my year. I don't make a list of resolutions that I probably won't keep. I just choose one word for the entire year. I keep it visible somewhere at home and work all year long. Each year I've gone on a journey with these words. They make me see things in a different way and grow as a person. This is only the third year I used this method but I've done more the last two years than I ever did with resolutions before.

  This year I had a difficult time coming up with my word. It didn't "find me" like last year's word did. I made lists but nothing ever really clicked until this word: Inspire.

"Inspire - to encourage somebody to greater effort, enthusiasm, or creativity. To awaken a particular feeling in somebody."

  I found the red Inspire plaque this last year and wanted it for my office at work. Each day I read the sign and I wanted to be an inspiration. My boss always reminds us that we can't motivate people. We want to but we can't. Motivation comes from within us. We can only inspire others. As I've considered this word and the directions it can take me this year I've realized that it doesn't just apply in my position at work but also at home and church. With that being said I wanted to share just a few thoughts on that.

1. Inspiration at work
  This is probably the easiest area to write about because as a leader I want to inspire my employees as I've been inspired by my leaders. My leaders never gave up on me, pushed me outside of my comfort zones, and shared their visions with me! They inspired me to work hard, to be persistent, to never give up, to take risks, to continue learning, and to be willing to change and grow even if it's hard. I want to invest in my employees and share my vision with them. I want to challenge them and help them be successful. I want to create an inspiring environment and be an inspiration to them. I know it won't be easy every day but with one word I know I can be more aware and focused on accomplishing this goal.

2. Inspiration at home
  There are many people in my life that have inspired me. One person in my family is my papaw, Dr. Beasley. He died when I was 7 years old but his legacy has lived on for many years. He was a doctor that his patients loved, he was wise with his finances, he was a risk taker/adventure lover, and fun loving guy. I enjoy hearing the stories of how he helped so and so with a medical problem, or how he crashed his plane and rebuilt it, and how he could make people laugh. He inspires me to never give up no matter how many times my "plane" crashes. He inspires me to love people and build strong relationships. He inspires me to take risks and go on adventures. He inspires me to make good decisions in every area. And he inspires me to take the time to laugh and have fun.
  I want to inspire my family and friends to live a life of no regrets, a life of adventure and fun, and a life full of love. When we share our passions with others it becomes infectious. I get excited to talk about trips to Italy and the amazing things there! I can share that excitement with others and encourage them to make time for adventure and travel. There are many ways to inspire our family and friends to be better people but it starts with us setting the example.

3. Inspiration at church
  This is really the most important area to be an inspiration. And I don't mean a fake person either. Real, authentic Christians are the ones that stand out to me and that inspire me to serve God with more fervency. When I was a teenager our pastor and his wife displayed this. I wasn't saved at the time but their example inspired me and led me to place I asked the Lord to save me. They just lived their faith each and every day. That's what I want to do. I want to live my faith in such a way that others know I am saved and even inspire them to come to the Lord. I also teach a Sunday School Class and I want to inspire those kids to serve God all their days.

2015 is a year full of changes and adventures for me. I want to inspire those around me to be all they can be at work, school, home, and for God. And that makes me strive to grow and become all I can be in those areas. I'm excited to see how this word will grow me as a person. Check back in for updates on how this word comes up in my life!

Linda