Inspired by the blog post (linked at the bottom of this post) I wanted to share my prayers today for those that may be struggling with receiving all that God has for them in this specific season of life, in this specific place and time with its myriad of challenges and trials (myself included).
I pray we can give each other the freedom and grace to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’ to whatever we sense is right for our families in any given season, without having to wade through the disparaging looks and disapproving shakes-of-the-head from others who are just as desperately & imperfectly trying to make the right choices as well.
I pray we can throw off comparison and instead embrace the uniqueness of the specific equation the Lord has set before us, and live that out well and boldly and in enjoyment.
I pray that you will see the beauty in your specific story today, the one that God is authoring and orchestrating. I pray that you can sense His Presence and His absurdly extravagant love for you, and that He is desiring to draw you to Himself through whatever circumstances surround you. I pray for His peace for you.
I also pray that the Lord would cultivate His discipline and sense of authority in us, that we can choose the good and throw away the bad in every given opportunity and medium, that we can glean the benefits from media and recognize the ways that it can so easily pull us down as well.
I guess I relate to this post below for several reasons – the obvious being her self-identifying label as a ‘recovering perfectionist’. I also appreciate her bringing attention to the fact that there is an attraction and a real danger to the ‘pinterests’ of the world that put images in our heads (and hearts) that are unrealistic and quite possibly the biggest distractions from what we actually need to be putting our hands to (not to mention time, finances, and mental ascents). I’m not meaning to demonize pinterest – it has become a great keeper of recipes for me – but I also see how it can be a personal stumbling block, and perhaps I am not alone in that.
Pinterest may help me become a better cook (I’m sure my husband would be appreciative), but Pinterest will never make me into someone that has a natural eye for fashion, can make a crafty squirrel from cotton balls and pipe cleaners, and will probably only ever show me what my house will NEVER look like. ever.
If I look at Pinterest or anything else for that matter, and I walk away thinking about all that I cannot do or have, and I’m not okay with that, then I need to stop looking. I need to be able to walk away from it (whatever the source may be) instead of allowing it to tell me something about myself that isn’t true. That I am somehow deficient. Missing out. Lacking (those lies of perfectionism creeping back in).
Let’s call that what it is really is – a direct assault on my Maker, as if He has somehow missed something when He was creating me and designing me for the role I was meant to fill.
What I can and cannot do was specifically designed for what God intends to do in and through my life. I pray that I will learn to embrace that fully, appreciating His design, trusting and reveling, even revel in His wisdom.
I pray that we can start to spot the lies that are thrown our way and bring them out into the light. God’s truth can always stand up under examination, and anything else has to flee and backdown against His Truth and in His Presence.
I also pray that we can stand firmly in the role and calling that God has placed us in, finding our security in Him, so that we can be excited and share the joy in others’ special giftings. What a blessing to be able to esteem all that God is doing in someone else’s life without fear of feeling it is somehow detracting from the special thing God is doing in me.
I could go on and on, but I’ll end this here with the link I referenced above:
My prayers today
JennyInspired by the blog post (linked at the bottom of this post) I wanted to share my prayers today for those that may be struggling with receiving all that God has for them in this specific season of life, in this specific place and time with its myriad of challenges and trials (myself included).
I pray we can give each other the freedom and grace to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’ to whatever we sense is right for our families in any given season, without having to wade through the disparaging looks and disapproving shakes-of-the-head from others who are just as desperately & imperfectly trying to make the right choices as well.
I pray we can throw off comparison and instead embrace the uniqueness of the specific equation the Lord has set before us, and live that out well and boldly and in enjoyment.
I pray that you will see the beauty in your specific story today, the one that God is authoring and orchestrating. I pray that you can sense His Presence and His absurdly extravagant love for you, and that He is desiring to draw you to Himself through whatever circumstances surround you. I pray for His peace for you.
I also pray that the Lord would cultivate His discipline and sense of authority in us, that we can choose the good and throw away the bad in every given opportunity and medium, that we can glean the benefits from media and recognize the ways that it can so easily pull us down as well.
I guess I relate to this post below for several reasons – the obvious being her self-identifying label as a ‘recovering perfectionist’. I also appreciate her bringing attention to the fact that there is an attraction and a real danger to the ‘pinterests’ of the world that put images in our heads (and hearts) that are unrealistic and quite possibly the biggest distractions from what we actually need to be putting our hands to (not to mention time, finances, and mental ascents). I’m not meaning to demonize pinterest – it has become a great keeper of recipes for me – but I also see how it can be a personal stumbling block, and perhaps I am not alone in that.
Pinterest may help me become a better cook (I’m sure my husband would be appreciative), but Pinterest will never make me into someone that has a natural eye for fashion, can make a crafty squirrel from cotton balls and pipe cleaners, and will probably only ever show me what my house will NEVER look like. ever.
If I look at Pinterest or anything else for that matter, and I walk away thinking about all that I cannot do or have, and I’m not okay with that, then I need to stop looking. I need to be able to walk away from it (whatever the source may be) instead of allowing it to tell me something about myself that isn’t true. That I am somehow deficient. Missing out. Lacking (those lies of perfectionism creeping back in).
Let’s call that what it is really is – a direct assault on my Maker, as if He has somehow missed something when He was creating me and designing me for the role I was meant to fill.
What I can and cannot do was specifically designed for what God intends to do in and through my life. I pray that I will learn to embrace that fully, appreciating His design, trusting and reveling, even revel in His wisdom.
I pray that we can start to spot the lies that are thrown our way and bring them out into the light. God’s truth can always stand up under examination, and anything else has to flee and backdown against His Truth and in His Presence.
I also pray that we can stand firmly in the role and calling that God has placed us in, finding our security in Him, so that we can be excited and share the joy in others’ special giftings. What a blessing to be able to esteem all that God is doing in someone else’s life without fear of feeling it is somehow detracting from the special thing God is doing in me.
I could go on and on, but I’ll end this here with the link I referenced above:
http://asimplehaven.com/keeping-it-real-in-a-pinterest-world-on-justifying-my-choices
I would love to hear any thoughts or ways you may relate to either post if you’d like to share!