I want to change. I want to:
Slow down.
Be a better listener.
Be less concerned about others’ opinions and more concerned about God’s.
Have more fun.
Be a blessing.
I know I could do so many things better. So many things. I could be such a better person. When I pay attention to my thoughts… I can hear it. I can hear the person that I don’t want to be. The one that worries constantly, that judges others, that blames herself most of all. But, most of the time, I’m not paying attention to my thoughts. I’m just letting them run. Im just being “me.” Im just being my “normal” self. The self that I’ve become in twenty-seven years of living and sacrificing and striving and wanting.
As much as self-reflection hurts, as much as it stings… It’s necessary in this journey if we want to be better. It would be SO much easier for me to say, “Well, this is just who I am. I can be selfish, I can be jealous, I can be petty, and I can be stiff. I guess you all just have to deal with it.” But, I CAN also change.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s too late. I’m in my late-twenties (too funny! I totally just typed “mid-twenties” and realized that almost-twenty-eight is pretty far past that. Nice try, darlin!) and my life has shaped me. The culture I’ve grown up in, the parents I had, the situations I’ve faced, the deaths that I’ve seen, the books that I’ve read, the propaganda that flashes before my eyes, the truths I’ve experienced, the lies that I’ve trusted, the way my thoughts have twisted realities… the list goes on and on.
It’s true to a degree that no one can deny… that we are shaped by our circumstances. Not entirely, no. But, at least markedly. Growing up in the Seattle is different than growing up in Taiwan. Growing up in a nice house in a good neighborhood is different than growing up in a mobile home park governed by drug lords. Growing up with parents who cared and tried their best is different than growing up with parents who remained painfully disinterested.
We all have things that mark us. We all have things that scare us. Things that scar us.
Our choice is how much we heal. Our choice is what we do about it. Our choice is looking past what we “know.”
step it up
We can decide to unlearn the things our heart has grasped onto.
You CAN be loved again.
You CAN be happy.
You CAN succeed.
You CAN trust in the goodness of God, even when you are standing in the broken mess of your life.
So, you haven’t made it as far as you would like by now? Yeah. Me neither. You feel older than you’d like? You feel like you haven’t made a difference? You feel like time is passing too quickly and your soul isn’t catching up? I feel those things too.
But, no matter what you see, what you feel. If you try and believe it will work, you WILL make progress. I believe it.
Big changes can be so entirely overwhelming. How can I alter my fast-pace to a life lived in slow, trusting, seeing peace? How can I go from loud to quiet so others can have a voice? How can I stop caring what the world may think and start caring more about God? How can I have fun when I know the accidents that can occur when we let down our guard? How can I change from living every hour for myself to living every hour as a blessing to others?
You might have different things that you know you could improve on. Maybe you want to be a better person and to do that you know that changes must be made: to your health or your relationships or your thoughts.
Feel overwhelmed? Like the drastic end result that you are trying to achieve is just too far away, too far off from the person you are today? Just remember that God will help you if you ask. We can’t sit back and not make changes and expect God to do all the work, but we CAN do the work with God by our side. All it takes is a prayer and a single step. Every. Step. Counts.
Even if you take only one step forward and end up falling two steps back… at least you are moving.
I know what I want. And if it takes me a lifetime of trying… only to eventually fail, at least I’ll know that I tried. One baby step at a time. Focused on the God who tells me I can walk on water. I can trod on my mistakes. I can step on the lessons I’ve learned and use them to propel me ever-forward.
I believe in a God who is constant in His ability to love us…. His love molds me, teaches me, shows me.
I don’t HAVE to be better for Him. He loves me already. I don’t HAVE to do anything, but I want to.
I want to be more like the person I was made to be. I want to be changed by Him from the inside out. So, I pray for Him. I pray for more of His presense. More of His peace. And, then… I walk.
One step.
Two steps.
Three shaky steps.
I am on my way! I’m in motion. Let’s hope our momentum propels us forward. Wish me luck!
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I share these thoughts not for me, but for you. I shared this post in my personal journal and decided then that it might be something to help another. Did it help you? Any thoughts? Please share this post as much as you’d like. Let’s move together. There’s no use in going it alone.
❤️
I have a chat room as an off shoot from my blog. A woman just asked me about having a passion for the Lord since I told the group I am teary-eyed every single morning that I spend in the Word reminding me of how awesome God is and how blessed I am to know Him. We were talking about our husbands meeting our needs and I told her I no longer expect that from my husband. When I realized who I am in Christ, the riches I have in Him, being a new creature in Christ, freed from sin and the wrath to come, complete in Him, etc., I have found that He has met all of my deepest needs like no human being ever could. Simply amazing! This is not only Good News but the Best News!
Hi Lori! What amazing words and so entirely true. We should have no expectations for any of the relationships in our lives. We can live in love with others without worrying about them doing things for us because we are complete in our relationship with Him. This allows us to actually enjoy our relationships, the way we were supposed to. Pretty incredible news for sure!
“You CAN trust in the goodness of God, even when you are standing in the broken mess of your life.” I love this so much :-).
” Tomorrow does not have to be the same as today.” I got this from the Diversity Summit I just attended, I thought they said Martin Luther King Jr. but now I can’t find it. Anyway, whoever said it was right :-). We CAN change…..
That IS a great quote too! Tomorrow DOES NOT have to be the same as today, or yesterday… for that matter. So cool! :] Thank you for sharing!