You have permission to breathe now. Maybe you’ve been holding your breath a lot lately. Most of us have. Uncertain times causes shallow breathing.
You know what it can also cause?
Shallow living.
If we’re not careful, these uncertain times and hardships can cause us to get in a rut of shallow breathing and shallow living. We kick into survival mode and forget we are here to do more than just survive, we must thrive. We start wishing for how it used to be, so quick to jump back to the old life when honey maybe the old way wasn’t really working either. Now isn’t the time for us to just coast, or even just hold on tight.
If we come out of this with a whole laundry list of new bad habits, oh girl, we just went backwards. You know what would be better … come out of this with a list of new dreams, new goals, and new creative ideas.
My current read is “The Obstacle Is the Way” by Ryan Holiday. It’s a little book about turning trials into triumph. Timely, huh?
Did you know some of the largest, most successful companies today were actually created during the hardest of times. We’re talking about hard times of The Great Depression, world wars and financial crisis and crashes. It was during those times Apple, Chevron, Disney, General Electric, and Southwest Airlines were developed.
Out of trials come triumph.
So here we are in the middle of potentially the largest global trial of our lifetime … some will triumph.
Why not us?
Why wouldn’t it be us? Within you is exactly what it takes!
Are you hoping for BIG things in your future? Have you been praying for big breakthroughs and big changes?
Well sister, you have a great BIG God capable of mind-blowing things and as his prized and precious child, you can boldly approach the throne of grace with your dreams and desires. After all remember, the desires of your heart are given to you by your creator in the first place. The seed was planted within you by Him.
God doesn’t give you a dream without a path to get there. It IS possible, but likely not in the way you imagined. Here’s where we mess up … we believe if God gave us a desire within our heart for something in our future, one day we’ll just wake up and it will be there.
Oh, you believe in magic. That’s magic.
Believing in God looks a little different. Here’s how God works: He gives you the seeds and says plant it, water it, care for it, protect it, then you reap the harvest. The path to your dreams is a whole lot more about hoeing and sowing than wishing and waiting.
Boldly approach the throne of grace with your request and you will receive … seeds. A little start. A beginning. A hand full of possibility and potential, and what you do with it is completely up to you. Could you already have the answer to your prayers today? Could the seeds all be right here, right now?
You say now isn’t the time for dreaming and growing and getting better. You’re wrong sister. God is still handing out seeds. Those seeds have the potential of growing into something so much bigger than what you have today. Why not get you some of those seeds and do something with them?
Look at the humble beginnings of Apple and Disney. Both on our previous list of beginning in the hardest of times, but they also began in garages. Not big grand buildings with thousands of employees. Not even a home office. We’re talking about homes so small they didn’t have room for an office in the house, they were in the garage.
There’s likely something big you’ve been dreaming about for your life. Something currently out of your reach. You imagine that once you arrive to this destination you will be successful, disciplined, focused. When you’re the perfect size 6 you will of course eat salad for lunch. When your marriage is once again happy of course you will start going on dates again. When you have a big fat healthy bank account you’ll gladly give.
And I’m here to tell you, if you won’t do it now where you are today, you won’t do it then either. And it’s not even me saying it, Jesus said it.
Luke 16:10 “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.”
Here’s what God knows about you: If you aren’t faithful in little things you simply won’t be faithful with more. You must first be faithful with the little you have before you can ever expect to be trusted with more.
And if you won’t be faithful in this time of trial, you can’t be trusted with future triumph.
What are you needing more of today? Your answer is always found in being faithful with what little you have right now.
Do you need more energy? Imagine all you could accomplish if you just had the energy, the pep, the zest, the get up and go to do more. Well I know the secret of getting more energy. The secret is to use every ounce of energy you have today, then tomorrow you will have more. Yes, this is being faithful with little, then more will be given. Energy grows and builds, but only when used. Use it or lose it. Get up and do something today or tomorrow you’ll feel even LESS like doing anything.
Do you need more money? Be faithful with what you have today.
You may not have much money today, but are you wasting what little you do have by not being smart with your money? Can you be TRUSTED with money? Will you do what’s right with your money? Remember Jesus’ teaching on the talents? Perhaps you know the story. A boss gives his 3 employees each a measure of money to care for while he is out of town. He returns and asks “what did you do with what I gave you?” Two of the employees doubled the money by investing it and the boss was happy. The third however was afraid he would lose the money he was given and he hid it away, not using it or investing it. The boss was furious and took away from him what little he had and gave it to the others.
Jesus tells us this because we have each been given things. Blessings and favor we don’t deserve. We have been trusted with talents and resources and God wants to know how we have been using them. Because if you have been faithful with little, you will be trusted with more. But if you can’t even be faithful with little – faithful with keeping the little house clean, faithful with showing up on time at your hourly job, faithful with a commitment to just eat a salad, THEN HONEY YOU CAN’T BE TRUSTED WITH MORE. You can’t be trusted with the bigger house when you’re not taking care of your current house. You can’t be trusted with a promotion if you’re not willing to give your best effort now from your new home office. You can’t be trusted with a breakthrough if you won’t follow through on your commitments today.
Stop screwing yourself over. Everything you’ve ever dreamed of is likely just outside of your reach because you’ve forgotten you must first be faithful with exactly what you have today.
What do you have today? BE FAITHFUL WITH IT. Take care of it. Give your best effort to it. It’s not the goal that’s magical in your life. It’s who you must become to reach that goal. It’s the journey, the becoming. Today you’re on the journey. Today you are becoming. And today you must be faithful.
