He Knows...

I've been thinking about this post all night and most of this morning. 


I've been thinking about this life we live...


It's exhausting...it's not easy...it's brutal. 


In the last few months my family and my friends have been dealing with heartaches and struggles of so many. 


The loss of parents, sickness, depression, marital affairs, cults, cancer, babies in the nicu, strokes, fear, divorce, loss of children, car accidents, loss of jobs....I could go on. 


All of these things have occurred to someone I love whether in my family or church family in the recent months.


Brutal. 


And the one thing that comforts me is something that Beth Moore said on James and Betty Robison....He Knows.


He Knows how brutal this life is. He knows how scary this world is. He knows how fearful we are of things we can't control. He knows how painful it is. 


He knows....He knows. 


M heart aches for my loved one who feels so hopeless. It aches. I can't do anything about it but pray that God's love and mercy just be poured onto his young, precious heart right now. I pray for protection for him.


My heart aches for family and friends who are dealing with cancer. Despicable, disease of the enemy. I hurt for my friends who have lost loved ones, for my sweet grandmother who still wakes every night and looks for her husband who is not there, for a loved one who is so fearful of the disease he doesn't even know what to do about it. 


I hurt for my sister who was cast out by her husband for a younger woman. I hurt for her children who are so young, they don't even understand what's going on. I hurt for her and the loneliness she struggles with and the blow to her self-esteem. 


My heart aches for the daily sickness, struggles, fears we deal with. I deal with. 


But God knows. He knows our fears. He knows how much we can take. He knows.


He knows what loneliness is like when your closest loved ones are nowhere to be found. 
He knows what fear is like, when huge soldiers are slapping and beating you.
he knows what the loss of a friend is like. He knows what the loss of a father is like. 


His compassion is like no other. 
His mercies are new every morning. 


No matter what sorrows your are facing, no matter the hurts that this life brings, remember that He knows. He loves you and hurts with you and for you. He holds you in the palm of His hand and because of Him there is Hope. 


Prayer


Dear Father, my heart is heavy...it's been heavy. So many whom I love are struggling. They are dealing with scary things. I have them too Lord. Protect us Father. Hold us in your hand. Remind us that we are not of this world and that you are preparing a better place for us. So much better than this world. Thank you for that Lord. I pray for all my friends and family that are hurting or sick or sad. Heal them Lord, touch their hearts and restore their minds. In your precious name, Amen. 


Challenges


Pray for yourself, your family and your loved ones. Pray for peace, protection and endurance to run this race no matter where the course takes us. 


Spark Truths. 


I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.                                                 John 10:14-16



Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
       my hope comes from him.
  He alone is my rock and my salvation;
       he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
                                                Psalms 62:5-6


 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
 And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.                   
                                                         Revelations 22:1-5

Sweat the Small Stuff

"And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground."    Luke 22:44

A few years ago, or maybe more, this little book called Don't Sweat the Small Stuff came out and was a big hit...best seller, new catch phrase, etc.

I've never read it. Never even picked it up.

But here's my question...what makes "stuff" small?

Don't sweat the small stuff...Ok! Newsflash...if it were small, I wouldn't be sweating it!

Life isn't small. There is little in this life that is small.

There is a lot of big stuff to deal with. A lot of big stuff to sweat out. A lot of big stuff that if I only had to concentrate on not sweating about the small stuff I would be golden!

But life isn't small. It's big. There are things in this life that are too big for me to handle. There are things in the life that are too big for me to escape. There are things in this life that are too big for me to not sweat about or cry about or even scream about!

I'm sitting here and I am thinking about what constitutes as small. In reality, very little is small or insignificant.

Every word out of our mouth, every action we take is big.

This afternoon I lost it. LOST IT!

I was so busy cooking a healthy dinner, occupying the children and getting everyone ready for wherever they needed to be after dinner that I couldn't do it. Somehow, chaos insued and things got messy and I couldn't get it all together.

Time was running out. Things were not completed. I was yelling at my kids. Yelling at my husband. Frustration and anger won over everything.

My husband came to kiss me goodby and I barely looked at him...Truth: I scoffed at him and rejected him. And as soon as I did it, my heart broke. Guilt overcame me, but my anger, my pride took over.

He and my son went on their way. And I sat on the couch trying to head out myself and I felt pitiful.

So...did I sweat the small stuff? I got upset and frustrated over something small, like not having it all together. Not having the time to all sit and enjoy dinner. Not having the kids do or act the way I needed them to act.

But it wasn't small. It's something Big that I have to give to God. And that "small" frustration...turned into big stuff.  

Yelling at my kids was not small. Rejecting my husband was not small. Letting my anger get the best of me was not small. All big.

Everything we do and say has a consequence. Big Stuff.

I quickly fixed things with my husband and apologized. I changed my plans and went with my family and put them first because I hadn't done so earlier.

This afternoon was, on a scale of small and big stuff, probably more on the small, but it was worth sweating over.

I need to sweat over the fact that I need to know how to handle things when they don't go my way, big or small.
I need to sweat over the words I speak to my kids. I need to sweat over the fact that they see me lose it. I need to sweat over the fact that they see me react and act frustrated toward them. I need to sweat over the fact that I lose my patience with them.I need to sweat over the fact that I dishonored my husband. I need to sweat over the fact that I speak harshly to him in the presence of my kids. I need to sweat over the fact that I rejected him and hurt him.

None of that is small. It's all worth sweating over.

Life isn't small. Our actions aren't small. Everything we do is big. What we say is not small. Everything we say is big. 

These carry big effects. Big consequences or Big rewards.

So I'm gonna sweat my stuff, big or small, doesn't matter. I'm gonna sweat it because God gave me a mouth that is imperfect and sometimes brutal and a mind that makes decisions that aren't always good or kind and I am going to have to drink from that cup of imperfection for the time being. I'm gonna sweat it out, face it, face my imperfections and learn from my mistakes.

And I am going to sweat over small stuff, especially if they are worth sweating over.  

Prayer

Father, forgive me for lsoing it today. Forgive me for the words that I spoke and the harshness of my actions and my heart. Forgive me for losing control. Some days I seem to have it all together but others don't go my way. Help me to look to you when they aren't going my way. Help me to perfect my imperfections, especially the actions I take and the words I speak.

Reflections

Are there small things in your life that you need to sweat over? Things that are worth sweating over? Ask the Lord to reveal things to you that you need to sweat over and perfect. Remember that what we do and what we say hold Big consequences.

Actions to Take

Write down 3 things you did or said today that are worth sweating over.
Ask the Lord what you need to do to learn from these 3 things.

Spark Challenges

I will sweat over the things I say because they can carry big effects.
I will sweat over the things I do becase they can have big consequences.
I will give those small things over to God so He can help me learn from them

Spark Truths

"Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place."          Jeremiah 7:3b

"Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word. Fulfill your promise to your servant, so that you may be feared."
                                                                                                                       Psalms 119: 36-38

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect."              2 Samuel 22:33

"Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God."                  2 Corinthians 7:1