Make the Effort

Last night during Church we started talking about self discipline. It was someone else that spoke up for prayer in this area but in my head I was screaming "me too! I need self discipline too!!!"

I don't feel like I have any self discipline, if I start something I quit the next day ~ it's too hard, or I'm too tired or I just don't feel like it or is this really gonna make a different in the big scheme of things.

I'm full of excuses. I think God is dealing with me about this because it's been brought to my attention and put on my heart time and time again latley. I pray for growth but what am I doing to grow in this area?

As I was praying this morning, I asked God why I don't have any self discipline. Why it's so hard for me to finish something I start. I thought He was there to help me, I thought He gives me strength when I'm weak...let me tell you it didn't take long for Him to answer back at all.

He showed me that of course He's going to help me and of course His strength is perfect in my weakness but what am I doing to make the effort? He's not a genie in a bottle, He won't just snap His fingers and make me a running, exercising machine. I have to choose, I have to make the choice and then start. Only after I've worked and worked for a while will I start to see growth. Growth takes time just as in everything else in this life. If I start something then stop the very next day because I don't feel like it then I'm not going to see much growth am I. Disciplining myself takes time.

Do you need self discipline in something? Perhaps reading your Bible? Do you have a habbit you need to break? Make the effort today, choose today to do the right thing. Take it a day at a time, moment by moment. Don't even worry about tomorrow until tomorrow comes. Ask God for the strength to do the right thing today and then choose to do it.

Anything worth doing, is going to take a little effort on your part.

The Tree

(This is not the tree, but this is beautiful)

There's a tree outside our backdoor. Like all the other trees it has started to change with the fall season. Today I opened the curtain to let some sunshine in and the sunrise was beautiful. Breathtaking. The sky was bright blue and the clouds were whispy. As my children sat eating breakfast I admired the sunrise and I heard God whisper "I love you more". More than the sunrise, more than those whispy clouds, more than the fall colors you admire so much. I love you more"

My eye caught the tree then, that I mentioned at the beginning of this. I really looked at it and noticed one side was red with all the beautiful fall colors and the other side was still green. It looked like the change was straight down the middle. One side changed, one side not. As I stood there thinking about that tree and letting my brain wander and daydream God interrupted and said "change takes time"

God and I have been wrestling so to speak. My heart is full of ugliness. Anger, bitterness, selfishness, every day no matter how hard I try, all of it comes to the surface. I let someone else's actions or mood affect me and off I go in an adult temper tantrum. It's awful. Every day I cry and cry out to God to change me. How can this stuff possibly be a blessing, I can't make myself believe I'm meant to carry this around forever to keep me close to You Lord...that's what I asked Him last night. He was quiet last night but today He gave me my answer. Every day I ask Him to change my heart and expect to be changed, just like that. It's not that easy, if we've been the same way for 18, 20, 25 years then it's going to take time and patience and trust on our part to let God do His work.

He uses our circumstances, however extreme they may be to change us.

I get so frustrated when I'm met with the same awful attitude day in and day out, no matter how hard I cling, how hard I try. Just like God told me this morning though...

"Change takes time. Be patient and trust in Me"

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, Ephesians 3:20

being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

You're Grace is sufficient for me, Lord.

I'm also posting at Woman to Woman Ministries today. Click over and check it out. There's also a give-away going on over there, it's pretty awesome - Casting Crown's new CD The Well