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Taking Action
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Taking Action
When people hear where I'm from, they often are very impressed. Many people I've met think they want to live in Florida. My state is often a door opener to discuss the lives of the people I'm meeting. I'm saddened by how many people can tell me what they dream about but they seem unable to make those dreams come true.
I met a college student who hates where she grew up. She says it has too many cornfields and she wants to live in a large city. I asked her what her major was and she said communications. She didn't believe she would ever really work in communications and wanted to go on to law school. She sees law school as her way to move to a larger city. She admitted that her grade point average wasn't really high enough to get into law school. She knows what she wants. She sees a way to get. She seems capable of getting it. For some reason, she is missing the mark. I challenged her. I hope she rises to the challenge.
I pray for this young lady. Join me in praying that she will soar on wings of eagles, will run and not grow weary, and walk and not faint.
"They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 NIV
I met an older man who hates where he lives. He said the weather is awful and he has never liked it. It is harder on him now that he is older. He has lived in the same area for 30 years. I asked what stopped him from moving. His answer was that "you spend all of your money getting somewhere and then you are too broke to leave."
I couldn't believe he had no options so I pushed a little harder. He sheepishly said his grandkids in Florida were trying to get him to move near them.
I pray for this man. He knows what he wants. He has a way to do it. Now he has to choose between having something to complain about and having something to be happy about.
I looked at him and encouraged him to take them up on the offer. He took a deep breath and said that maybe he would.
I met a third person that told me how much she loved the small town she grew up in. She said it is a wonderful place to raise children. She has a 15 and 16 year old who seem to mean the world to her. I was happy to hear someone content. I told her about the other 2 people I had met.
Then she told me the rest of the story. She said she wasn't always content. She thought the small town was boring and that too many people minded her business. She and her husband had to move away to find out what she really had. She ended up coming back to her hometown for the very reasons that she left. What she thought was boring is now peaceful. What she thought was "minding her business" is people being there for her. How wise and humble she is. I'm remembering the famous words, "there's no place like home."
You might think she made a mistake by leaving. I disagree. If she hadn't pursued her dream, she might have spent her life unhappy in a place where she is currently very content.
If pride had stopped her from returning home, she would have missed the contentment she now has. She works on top of a bluff on Lake Michigan. She says she has been here 8 years and she never takes it for granted.
"A man's pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor." Proverbs 29:23 NIV
God is in our restlessness. God is in our longings. He speaks to us through our circumstances. He wants us to listen to those feelings. He wants us to take action.
"There the LORD will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart." Deut 28:65-66 NIV
How sad to spend our life stuck in our longings, never to step out on faith. God's way requires courage. It requires action. If often inconveniences people close to us and is usually hard work. Satan will cloud our vision and make us doubt our ability to hear God. God's way always brings great joy.
If you have been praying for God's will in your life, God will answer that prayer. He will fill your heart with longings. If you have asked for God's will and the longings are consistent with scripture, take the next step. If you are having trouble taking that step, ask God for the power to carry out his will. Part of loving the Lord God with all of our might is taking the actions that he asks of us. Faith does no good without the willingness to take action. Faith combined with action allows us to soar "on the wings of eagles."
"Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." James 2:17 NIV
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