I am a firm beleiver that The Lord speaks to us in all sorts of different ways. I am always listening to music, so it would happen often that God speaks to me through songs.
I am not a runner. If you know me at all, you would know that in no way, shape or form, am I a runner. However, I am trying. I want to get in better shape, I love the outdoors, its a free activity, and it gives me some alone time. There is a great park with walking trails just down the road, and so I will throw on my tennis shoes, grab my ipod and go whenever I can. Since I am TRYING to be more of a runner, I will walk briskly a lot and sometimes I will sprint for a short period of time before the cramping begins, then I will stop and walk again. The second that cramping starts, I am done. It hurts, it is uncomfortable, I hate it. Done. And usually I only run on the weekends because I don’t geet home til 5 or so during the week and its almost dark by then. But this past Tuesday, I got home a little earlier, and I just went. Didn’t even really think about the time or anything like that, I just went. I started walking briskly, then after I hit the bridge, I started to run.
Then the cramping started.
Ugh.
This time was different though, there was something inside of me that pushed me forward, through the awkward, uncomfortable cramps. Then I got to a place where I was no longer cramping! (Now, I kinda wasn’t really breathing so I had to stop for other reasons, heh) In that moment, I heard the voice of the Lord more clearly than I have for a while. He told me that I was kind of acting like a pansy. In this season of my life, I was going to be cramping a lot. But that should not stop me like it has been. Instead, that is when He will use me the most! When I am hurting and in pain, but push through anyway because no longer am I relying on MY OWN STRENGTH, but even better- HIS STRENGTH!
I then heard this song by Andy Grammer come on my ipod and it drove this point in even further:
I’ve been waiting on the sunset
Bills on my mindset
I can’t deny they’re getting high
Higher than my income
My income’s breadcrumbs
I’ve been trying to survive The glow that the sun gives
Right around sunset
Helps me realize
THIS IS JUST A JOURNEY
Drop your worries!
You are gonna turn out fine.
Oh, you’ll turn out fine.
Fine, oh, you’ll turn out fine.
But you gotta keep your head up, oh,
And you can let your hair down, eh.
You gotta keep your head up, oh,
And you can let your hair down, eh.
I know it’s hard, know it’s hard,
To remember sometimes,
But you gotta keep your head up, oh,
And you can let your hair down, eh.
What is the point in freaking out about every little thing in this life? Worrying and tensing up has not helped me at all. But releasing it, giving it all to the Lord, and walking in the trust in Him in a moment by moment basis, THAT is when the comfort and peace kicks in. One thing I knwo for sure though, is that comfort and peace are not passive, easy things. You must fight, and fight hard for these things to be actively present in our lives. Sometimes we have to push through these rough times, or “the cramps” for that matter, in order to receive the blessings God has for us.
I had to be reminded that just because I am hitting some resistance, and things are not falling into place like I think they should, doesn’t mean that they are not falling into place like my Abba thinks they should…
The Lord uses all sorts of things to speak to us. The question is: are we open to listening to what He has to say?
