Beautiful Fall

 Daniel 2:21
²¹ He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.

Jeremiah 5:24
²⁴ They do not say to themselves, ‘Let us fear the Lord our God,
who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’

Psalm 104:19
¹⁹ He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.

September 22nd was the first day of Fall this year.  Fall is absolutely my favorite season of the year. Although it hasn’t arrived just yet, I love the crisp Fall air and all that comes with Fall.

However, this year most of the things that come with Fall may have some restrictions due to COVID, and the need for social distancing.   Football games, Fall Festivals and even some family gatherings will look
different this year.

How wonderful that even though we may still have to stay inside for a bit longer,  we can enjoy some of the great foods that come with Fall, such as a slice of warm pumpkin bread straight from the oven,  or a slice of pumpkin pie. Let’s not forget that hot apple cider and hot chocolate are also considered real treats this time of year as well.  I am sure we all have special memories as far back as our childhood of these wonderful treats that make this season special to us.

The other thing that is very special to me about this time of year, is looking at all of the beautiful Fall decorations that people adorn their porches with.  The door wreaths are colorful and there are pumpkins, colorful mums, and bales of hay and the resemblance of Fall and Harvest season is everywhere.

My favorite thing of all is taking a drive to look at the trees as the leaves start to change colors.  The vibrant hues of oranges, reds, and burgundy’s are just another testament to just how wonderful God is to give us so much beauty to admire as the seasons change.  His power, His versatility, and His artistry are reflected in all that we see as the seasons change.

I hope that as this beautiful time of year lingers for a few more weeks, that you will take a minute and fully take in its beauty, and just stand in awe of God.  He has given us so much to richly enjoy through nature, that it would be a shame to allow the busyness of life to cause us to miss the beauty of this season.  Just look around at all that He has created for our enjoyment.  Don’t you feel blessed?  I know that I do, and I plan to enjoy every minute of it, and I hope that you will too.

 Happy Fall!

Ecclesiastes 3:1
3 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

Your Time of Waiting Is A Preparation

Psalm 27:13-14
¹³ I remain confident of this:   I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.
¹⁴ Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Isaiah 40:31
³¹ but those who hope in the Lord  will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Micah 7:7
⁷ But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,
    I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.

In April of next year, if God says the same, I will be with the company that I currently work for, for twenty-five years.  I remember thinking when I first went to work for this company, that I did not just want to sell the products, but that I wanted to go into management and become a Sales Director.  In order to become a Sales Director, I had to go through a qualification process.   The qualification process had to be completed within a four-month time period.  I tried several times and did not make it.  I was determined that I would not give up, no matter what.  This was my goal and I was going to make it happen.  In my mind, giving up was not an option.  I even wrote on my bathroom mirror in bright red lipstick, Quitting Is Not an Option!  I was serious about this, but what I didn’t take into consideration, was that God had a purpose in delaying my victory.

I know now that God was preparing me through this process for leadership.  He was building my character in the areas that I needed to grow in.  I wanted the position, but I didn’t realize that I hadn’t been fully willing to pay the price.  It was in the trying, failing, praying, and waiting, that God revealed more and more to me about myself and my character.  During the waiting period, and after much prayer, God revealed my weaknesses to me. He also revealed the areas that I needed to grow in if I wanted to become a leader.

Many times we want what we want, and we want it now!  If we will patiently wait and spend time with God, in time He will reveal the things that we need to know or the things that we need to change so that our blessing won’t be a short-lived one.  How many times do we see things happen quickly for someone, but it’s not sustainable, because of how it was achieved?

There are times when it seems like God is not listening, because we don’t see His hand moving, but I can assure you from my past experience that He hears every prayer.   Some things that we ask for simply require a period of preparation, and we will not receive them until we are prepared to receive them.  Also, not everything that we ask for is good for us at the time that we ask.  We must trust God’s timing, His will, and His divine purposes.   We must trust that no matter how bad we want something, He still sees further down the road than we can see.  He sees the big picture and he will only allow what is best for us.

I am happy to say that after praying and asking God to bless me with the position of Sales Director for six years, He finally said yes.  By God’s grace, eighteen years later I am still holding the position of Sales Director and I get to lead an incredible team.  I can honestly say, that I don’t know if that would be the case if He had given it to me when I initially asked.  God knew that even though I thought I was ready for leadership, I was not.  He protected me from myself and I am grateful for that.  He prepared me for the position and then He said yes.

What have you been praying or pleading with God for, that maybe you are not ready for just yet?  Are you willing to trust God’s timing and His reasons for asking you to wait a little longer?   Remember, your waiting period is a time of preparation.

Proverbs 3:5-6
⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.^[a]

Psalm 37:7
⁷ Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Psalm 130:5
⁵ I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.

Matthew 6:33
³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Proverbs 8:17
¹⁷ I love those who love me,  and those who seek me find me.

Psalm 9:10
¹⁰ Those who know your name trust in you,   for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 34:10
¹⁰ The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Lamentations 3:25
²⁵ The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

Psalm 14:2
² The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

Life gets so busy and demanding at times that we forget to seek the kingdom of God first.  We set out to accomplish things under our own power and in our own way,  and in our own self-designated time frame.
Many times completely forget to seek God’s will or His counsel in the matter.  It’s not surprising that when things go awry we are confused and sometimes even upset.

Today I want to encourage you in the ways that you can seek God first, and trust Him to add the things that you are striving and stressing for your life.  Remember,  they will only be added if He determines that they are what is
best for you.  If they are not added it may be for your protection, or because it’s not best for you at the time.

The following questions will help you determine where you may need to improve as you strive to seek the Kingdom of God first.

1.   To seek God first means, what matters to Him is important to you and you live your life accordingly.  You value first and foremost the principles and guidelines that He has left in His word for us to abide by.

2.   You go to Him first for council before anyone else.

3.   Your prayer life is consistent and frequent.

4.   He is the first person you spend time with each morning.  I suggest that you make a plan to start and end each day with Him.  You will be so blessed by doing so.

5.   He is the authority and the standard that you make your decisions by.

6.   Pleasing Him is a priority in your life, and as a result, you are blessed with joy.

7.  You share your testimony with others of how God has worked in your life so that they are encouraged to give their lives to Christ. This aide in kingdom building.

8.   You take time to study and meditate on His word daily.

9.  You honor Him by doing for those who are less fortunate.  You find time to make yourself available to be there for those who are in need.  You desire to be God’s servant.

10.  Your monetary gifts reveal your commitment to God’s kingdom as well.  To see if you are on the right track, take a look at your bank account. Where are your dollars going?  Are you tithing?   Our giving is a true sign of our trust in God’s ability to provide for us.

Trust that God’s words are true.  Seek Him first and you will be taken care of. You will have all that you need.   The question is, will you trust Him?

Psalm 119:2
² Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—

1 Chronicle 16:11
¹¹ Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.

2 Chronicles 7:14
¹⁴ if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

^{Philippians 4:8
8} Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Proverbs 23:7
⁷ for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost.^[a]
“Eat and drink,” he says to you,  but his heart is not with you.

Romans 12:2
² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

We live in a world that is bombarded with negativity.  It requires a conscious effort, and sometimes a mental fight just to remain positive.  If you are not careful you can easily get pulled into the deep dark hole of fear, doubt, and despair and this is exactly where the enemy would love for us to reside.  This is why what we are thinking is so important.  We must choose our thoughts wisely.

When my daughter was away attending her second year of college, my husband and I decided to surprise her with a new car.  We made the long eight-hour drive to her campus.  When she saw her new car, she was over the moon excited and we were excited for her. This was her first time having her very own car, so you can imagine just how excited she was.

It wasn’t until she had to make her first trip home through 5 PM Dallas traffic,  that I started to think maybe her having a car was not such a good idea. The very thought of her driving through Dallas traffic at the height of rush hour made my heart race.  She had only had experience driving in our small town.  I was paralyzed with fear!  I was as close as I could possibly be,  to having an anxiety attack without actually having one.  My mind was going crazy with the What If’s.  I prayed every two minutes.  I am telling you, I was a nervous wreck!   She is a great driver, but all I could see was my baby out there with all of those fast driving maniacs.

Finally, the Holy Spirit whispered to me, I knew her before you ever knew her.  I love her more than you are capable of, and I will take care of her.   At just the perfect time, God responded to my prayers with those comforting words.
Everything shifted for me at that very moment.  I was reminded that I was not the only one that loved her so very much.  God loved her too, and He would protect her.  My soul was flooded with peace in that very moment, and it was all because I went to our Father in prayer.  He knew that I was a mother in anguish over my baby girl, and He showed compassion towards me.

Just as my thoughts were running away with me, I am sure you have experienced this also from time to time.  We start to think, what if this or what if that.  It is amazing how in those times,  our minds always go to the worst-case scenario, instead of thinking of all of the great things that could possibly happen from the situation.

I am learning that before I go crazy trying to mentally resolve things on my own, that maybe I should just whisper a prayer.

The battlefield truly is the mind.  We have to constantly protect our thoughts, and replace the negative thoughts with positive thoughts immediately when they pop up.  Lots of self-talk is key.  It helps to refute those ugly negative thoughts out loud,  so you can hear yourself shut them down.  It is the only way to have a life of freedom.  Your thoughts control your life.  Negative lies from the enemy hold us in bondage.   There is only liberty and freedom in the truths and promises that God has given us.

Don’t fall victim to Satan’s traps of doubt and fear or false accusations against you and your character.  You are a child of the Most High God, and He has given you the power to walk with faith and courage, and He says to us all through His word: Do Not Be Afraid or discouraged.  He says this because as long as we have Him on our side, we don’t have to live in fear or be discouraged.  He is our protector and our provider.

So stay positive and remain hopeful, because it truly is the only way to live a peaceful, stress-free life.  Ask yourself from time to time, What Am I Thinking?  It will help you to understand why you are feeling, what you are feeling during that time.  Remember your thoughts and feelings are definitely connected.

Remember to choose your thoughts wisely, you have the power to change the way you think.  Choose to think and believe all that is good, true, and pure. Be Blessed and remain hopeful with the promises of God’s word.

2 Timothy 1:7
⁷ For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

Ephesians 4:22-24
²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.