Learning to Trust

You may not have noticed my monthly themes I began a couple of months ago. Afterall, November is always "thankful month" and the wonder-amazement-awe theme of December was rather Christmas-y.

Nevertheless, I plan to have month themes for the next year or so, Lord willing.
January hasn't been so easy to decide on a theme for but I think I know what God has in mind...which I think is partly why I haven't posted yet this week.
(The other "partly" is because a week of no commitments and deadlines has been nice, and I've taken advantage of the beatiful weather to do more reading than computer work.)

God has been showing me my lack of trust and lack of faith. And God doesn't show us things just to entertain us. He expects me to change--by His grace.

I felt lost in the shuffle last year; my journal entries attest to that. I had to keep reminding myself that God has reasons for saying no to what seemed like "everything." He has reasons for delaying desires and plans. He has reasons for the "desert" times of life.

My first entry of 2011 mentioned 5 things that could/probably would happen and answers to prayer we were anticipating.

Of those 5, one (moving to Greenville) decidedly did not happen, and there are many reasons to be glad. Another (beginning grad school) decidedly did happen, and there are many reasons I'm not completely excited about that. :)

The other 3...they're all things I--and my family--have been praying about for years. I went into last year with the hope that those issues would be resolved and that those prayers would be answered.

I'm still praying about them, hoping for even a glimmer of the light at the end of the tunnel.

Trusting God means having hope even when there is no light at the end of the tunnel.

Trusting God means having joy even our circumstances don't change.

Trusting God means having faith that He can do "impossible" things, that He can--and will--do "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think."

Trusting God means having the strengh (relying on His grace and strength) to look at 2012 with hope and joy and faith...even though nothing has "changed."

Will this time next year see me rejoicing in the full answers of these 3 things? I pray so... but I'm praying more that I will rejoice in God and love Him more fully and be conformed to His image. Whatever it takes.

P.S. Even when we know we're on the right track, it's still nice to know others have thought the same thing. I was encouraged this afternoon by this post.