In the Thicket...

And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold,

behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns.

Genesis 22:13

Have you ever had something that you thought was so great, something that only the Lord would bring into your life, and then all the sudden He asks for you to sacrifice that very thing? Yeah, well I'm there! And this is what I have to say about it. God is GOOD! He is faithful. HE IS ENOUGH FOR ME!

That said, I know it has been a while since I posted. I had every intention about 2 months ago to post and report on the lessons that I learned from the Word this summer, but things are just hectic...get over it! So, now you get a double whammy. What I learned this summer combined with how the Lord is teaching me to apply that knowledge presently.

For starters, I am good! School is going well, just trying to keep my head above water and still on track to graduate next May (2009). I am determined to get that diploma if it kills me! haha! Secondly, this summer. The overwhelming lesson that I learned this summer is that regardless of the things that will, or will not, happen in my life, whether all of my "dreams" come true or not, whether any of the things that I think I want or need for my life happen, the LORD is enough for me. I have reached such a stage of contentment with WHO He is. Alot of times, I felt I was looking past WHO He is and trying to find WHAT He is doing, but I have learned that I don't need a what, HE is enough. I find rest in Him alone. Period.

That said, it has been an eventful semester thus far. The Lord has really been challenging me, today more than ever, to live that lesson out. More than anything else, I want my actions to reflect my heart and words. I want to live a life that is refletive of His hand on me. Today, really last night, is the test of all these things. What will my next action be. Its time for the next thing. No dwelling, no sobbing, no looking back, only looking at Him, waiting for Him. And trust me, He is well worth the wait!

I am currently in a study of the Bible that allows me to read it chronologically as it was written. I am LOVING this study. This past week, I was able to study one of my favorite Bible stories, and for it to be one of my favs, I learned so many new concepts from it. I understand it on such a different level now. Even more so today, seeing that I feel the Lord calling me to practice what I have learned. Reading from Genesis 22, Abraham is asked to sacrfice his only son, Isaac, the promised child. The child that he and Sarah have waited YEARS for, now God wants him to kill him!? WHAT THE CRAP?! So, this is what I learned. First, it's important to see that Abraham obeyed the Lord immediately. He didn't waste time trying to rationalize, He just trusted God enough to obey. Secondly, I thought about what could have possibly been going on in Abraham's mind as he was binding his son to the wood and as he raised his hand to kill Isaac, the whole time Isaac is just asking, "Hey dad, where is the sacrifice?" Whoa!! I can't even imagine! But Abraham was focused on one thing, obedience. Thirdly, God provided in the thicket! And that got me thinking, what is it in my life that the Lord is calling for me to sacrifice for Him, only to prove Himself faithful to provide in the thicket?! **It was not a surprise to God that Abraham obeyed, it was more of a test for Abraham, God already knew what his response would be!**

Sacrifice is not easy, nor does the Lord promise that you will ever get that particular thing back, but He does promise to never leave or forsake us. He promises that He will be faithful when we are faithless. He promises us that if we delight in Him, in Him alone, He will give the desires of our heart. So, what is my sacrifice? Well, at this point in my life, it is a relationship with a very special person. As much as it sucks to be so invested and so sure that what you are doing is right, and that things are going great, it is so much cooler to trust God. We are choosing to obey His leading and trust Him to be enough for us, separately. We were content with and excited about where He was leading us, but we are even more content to be obedient and sensitive to His leadership now. Someone said to me, "things were going so great!" Well, just because things aren't going how you want, doesn't mean things aren't going great! We are ok. He is enough! Before, during, and after, He is enough. We serve a big God, a God who single-handedly placed every star in the sky. If He is that big, He can most definitely handle this. He is leading, we are following. That is all. Please be in prayer for widom and discernment. God is so good....... :)