Game Changer

Babies naturally practice self care and preservation better than most adults. They eat when they are hungry. They sleep when they are tired. They laugh at the little things. They cry when they need to cry (and sometimes when they don't). Even though they may not understand it, babies allow their young lives to progress in slow stages. While they go through these stages, they are gentle with themselves in understanding that it is a slow process to change and growth. They take baby steps. I am at the point in my recovery from hip surgery where I am literally learning how to walk again after being on crutches for over 6 weeks. My legs are weak and tired. My muscles are easily strained. I am taking baby steps because my body won't allow me to do much more right now. Despite the weakness and pain that I feel and recognize, I have a strong desire to throw my remaining crutch on the ground and start running! I have learned that is often how many things go as I move into

The biggest challenge I have faced in my recovery from hip surgery has not been the inability to walk, the difficulty doing any task, or even the pain.  The biggest challenge in this season has been the lack of intentional prayer time with our Lord.  When I am in the midst of a battle (whether it is spiritual, physical, mental, or emotional), I struggle to feel as though I am seeking God in the fullest way possible. I expect myself to enter the Lord's presence when I am struggling in the same way I do when I am in a place of joy and peace.  In some ways, this is not a realistic expectation:  God wants me to come to Him as I am. He wants to embrace every part of me and love every part of me. He knows that as there are shifts in my physical world, there are also shifts in my heart and mind. In the midst of those shifts, good and bad, I come to the Lord with different desires, needs, and levels of energy. The way that I prayed in my previous season does not have to be the