Do you ever have those moments where you KNOW that they are completely and utterly moments where God is working? Where events seem to just work together so perfectly? Some people might call them coincidences, I like to call them God-incidences.
I just had one of those.
I have gone through a semester of intense learning. I have grown leaps and bounds in my faith. I can't express how much of a change I see in myself and how I view events. I have gone from having absolutely no clue what I was going to be doing six months down the road to having a rough idea of what the next six months is going to hold. I've gone from being very unsure of what my passion was to being confident that I have discovered it. I know where my heart is, I have some idea of what purpose God has created me for.
At the beginning of the semester, it felt like I was in a holding pattern of sorts. I was waiting. At first, I struggled a lot with God telling me to be still and wait, to get to know Him, His character, and His plans. I didn't want to wait. I wanted to be doing something. I wanted to hurry up and get to the "good" stuff. Yet God knew that I wasn't ready for it. I needed the time of waiting to dig deep into what it meant to live for God, to get to know God on a even more personal level.
Now, about three months later, I am starting to see all the pieces come together. I may not be able to see the whole picture yet but I know that every single encounter that I have is important. Whether it be talking with a woman at Starbucks or trying out a new church or seeing a student counselor, they all have an eternal impact.
It makes me a lot more conscious of how I interact with people. Because you never know when that person or that encounter could become a life-changing moment.
Abba, I thank you and praise you for the work that I see you doing in my life! Thank you for my times of waiting and preparation. Thank you for opening my eyes to the seemingly small moments. Help me to keep my eyes trained on you in this next period of my life. Thank you! Thank you Abba!
Showing posts with label following. Show all posts
Showing posts with label following. Show all posts
18 November 2011
02 May 2010
swing dancing and relationships
I started swing dancing this year. I've always wanted to learn how, I just hadn't had the guts to go...well that is until now. The more I dance, the more I see similarities between swing dancing and our relationship with Jesus. Here are some of those similarities.
The first way is probably somewhat obvious, at least if you're familiar with dance. In dancing, there are two people - a leader and a follower. Just as I have to learn how to follow in dancing, I am learning how to follow in the dance of life. There are times that I try to take over and lead but my partner always gently reminds me that he is the leader. That reminds me so much of how Jesus will gently take the lead even when we have memory lapses and forget who is the leader. As a follower, I don't know exactly what step we are going to do next; I admit it, I can't read my partner's mind to figure out what step he's thinking of next. However, as I dance more with my partner, I start to recognize the little queues that he does to indicate which step we're doing next - the slight pressure on my back or the change in hand grip or even how his body is angled. Isn't that so much like our relationship with Jesus? When Jesus and I first started dancing in the dance of life, I didn't know know him; I knew about him, I had seen him dancing with others and knew that he was a good dancer but I didn't know him myself. As I continue to dance with him, I get to know his little queues at what is coming in the future. If you aren't already, I encourage you to dance with Him; it is a whirlwind dance full of unexpected turns and spins but it is so worth it! Just as dancing is exponentially better when I am dancing with a partner that knows how to lead, life can be so much better with Jesus leading. He is the ultimate dance partner.
Jesus, thank you for being the excellent dance partner that you are. Teach me how to follow better and become more in tune with your queues. I want us to be the dance couple that people look to as an example.
Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity.
~ 1 Timothy 4:12, The Message
The first way is probably somewhat obvious, at least if you're familiar with dance. In dancing, there are two people - a leader and a follower. Just as I have to learn how to follow in dancing, I am learning how to follow in the dance of life. There are times that I try to take over and lead but my partner always gently reminds me that he is the leader. That reminds me so much of how Jesus will gently take the lead even when we have memory lapses and forget who is the leader. As a follower, I don't know exactly what step we are going to do next; I admit it, I can't read my partner's mind to figure out what step he's thinking of next. However, as I dance more with my partner, I start to recognize the little queues that he does to indicate which step we're doing next - the slight pressure on my back or the change in hand grip or even how his body is angled. Isn't that so much like our relationship with Jesus? When Jesus and I first started dancing in the dance of life, I didn't know know him; I knew about him, I had seen him dancing with others and knew that he was a good dancer but I didn't know him myself. As I continue to dance with him, I get to know his little queues at what is coming in the future. If you aren't already, I encourage you to dance with Him; it is a whirlwind dance full of unexpected turns and spins but it is so worth it! Just as dancing is exponentially better when I am dancing with a partner that knows how to lead, life can be so much better with Jesus leading. He is the ultimate dance partner.
Jesus, thank you for being the excellent dance partner that you are. Teach me how to follow better and become more in tune with your queues. I want us to be the dance couple that people look to as an example.
Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity.
~ 1 Timothy 4:12, The Message
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