I've personally spent waay too much of my journey being mystified. Mystified that I was supposed to have peace - but I didn't feel peaceful. Mystified that I was supposed to have joy - but didn't feel joyful. I was getting tossed and turned by whatever my day held - on good days I was happy, on bad days I was sad. Up, down, up, down. Big waves of darkness, hopelessness, anxiety, powerlessness, and fear kept washing over me, eroding my faith in life and God a little more each time. I was failing. I was falling, and I was quickly falling out of love with Life.
I finally got fed up enough with surrendering myself to the waves of life to cry for help. And I got it. God gave me some new keys:
Peace is MINE. I don't have to ask for it - I HAVE it. When I don't feel peaceful, I tell my feelings to shut up: I have all the peace that Jesus had on earth because He lives inside me.
Courage is MINE. When I feel afraid, I tell my feelings, "guess what? I haven't been given the spirit of fear, but the spirit of power and a sound mind. Bu-bye now."
Freedom from guilt/shame/people pleasing is MINE. When I feel bummed or disappointed in myself or think I may have let someone down, I tell my feelings, "I've been set free from guilt, shame and law through the cross. Thank you for trying, but don't mind coming back again."
Victory is MINE (Cor. 2:14-16); Hope is MINE (1 Peter 1:3-7); Love is MINE (Romans 8:38-39); Joy is MINE (John 15:11).
The power we have to calm those life-waves is beyond words, so I'm gonna sing about it instead. "Your Year" is the celebration tune you listen to when you're ready to GET OVER IT and MOVE ON WITH HOPE - No. Matter. What. It. Takes. It's filled with resolve and a happy reminder that peace is yours! Joy is yours! A powerful life is YOURS! There's a beautiful life that's yours to have any day you want it! The past is past - THIS is the year you've been waiting for! So get after it - and shake some tailfeathers!
I love it... Come on and let me see you shake your tail feathers!
ReplyDelete