Reliance

In the beginning stages of this hip injury that I have been dealing with, I chose a word to focus on in my life and prayer for the entire year. 

Reliance.

If you haven't heard of the Abiding Together podcast then you definitely need to check it out! One of the podcast episodes I listened to over the summer was about praying for a word to focus on for a year. In order to ask God to reveal this word, we need to think about the deepest struggles on our heart and open ourselves up to the Lord's grace. 

As I was driving a long distance, frustrated and in pain, I listened to this podcast. My intention was to take some intentional time to sit with the Lord in order to find out what He may be calling me to focus on in prayer. Since God clearly has a sense of humor, He revealed my word to me in that moment. 

Reliance.

Not only did He reveal this word to me but He also showed me what accepting this word and the actions that bring it to life into my heart.

I stopped at a rest stop to walk around and stretch. I was in a lot of pain and I felt defeated. Despite these feelings, I repeated the word "reliance" over and over in my head and heart. As I sat down on a bench at the rest stop, two small kids ran over to me. One sat next to me and started babbling on about something I couldn't understand. The other jumped into my arms for a hug. I looked around to find their parents and the father was running over to apologize that they disturbed me. 

Even in the midst of the pain and frustration I was feeling, I couldn't even imagine feeling disturbed by the joy of these small children. 

Reliance.

How beautiful it was that the Lord showed me what reliance looks like through those children! 

First, He showed me that He always desires for us to come to Him, to run into His warm and loving embrace. Our Heavenly Father could never tire of our need for Him. The innocence and joy in the depths of our hearts, regardless of how lost or tired or weak we feel, are things that the Lord can always see shining through. 

Second, the Lord showed me that He will provide small moments of joy for me when I ask that of Him. The joy of those children momentarily distracted me from my own suffering. Reliance means that I trust God to provide for me when I ask Him to do so, knowing that however He provides for me is what's best for me. 

Reliance is a game changer.

Comments

  1. Susan GnannOctober 17, 2019 at 1:34 PM

    beautiful, my dear. Think of and pray for you often.

    ReplyDelete
  2. GoodchildOctober 28, 2019 at 2:43 PM

    Now THAT, is God providing. What a great story. It’s amazing the way God works to help us. I’ve really been needing to reflect more on my days, and this is a reminder to do so. Because I think we can miss the moments where God was helping us if we don’t reflect on our day in prayer with Him. Thanks for sharing Tor-E.

    Joke: What type of ants can you always trust?

    A: Rely-ants

    ReplyDelete

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