trust and contentment

hello dears. :)
merry christmas to you all!

i can finally say that now that halloween in over. :)
i hope you all have been doing well. I've been keeping busy, myself. but it's been good.

i just wanted to share with y'all some things that are on my heart:
i started a new Bible study with my friend Abigail, called Faith Untamed.

It asked this question last night:

"What is the greatest obstacle that stands between the woman I am today and the woman God designed me to be??"

My answer was my being distracted too easily and far too often, my anxiety, and my lack of contentment. The lack of contentment is probably the biggest obstacle.

The next question it asked, was this one:

"God, how do you feel about the obstacles in my life??"

sheesh. we're getting into some uncomfortable territory here.

but i meditated on the questions anyway, and finally heard the Lord say, in answer to the last question, this:

I wish you trusted me more.

And I want to be TOP priority.

It's true. If I look at my life, the way I live it and what I fill it with, I don't always put my ultimate trust in him. And I'm not always eternally and kingdom minded.

So, I began to search Scripture.

Let me just tell you, the Bible addresses any problem you will ever have. Yes, it does. It may not always be as obvious as Have no other gods before Me, and you may have to do some digging before you find it,

but the Word is our daily bread. It sustains us, fills us, benefits us.

In Scripture, I found help. an ever-present Help:

Ex. 14:10-12:

I need to learn to trust God the first time. By focusing on God's faithfulness in the past, I can face any crisis confidently.

Ex. 16:2-3:

Lack of trust leads to stress. (It's no wonder my life is FULL of stress! but I put it on myself!)

Num. 14:34:

Lack of trust brings problems.

Psalm 125:1:

Trust brings consistent character and security.

and for God being #1 priority:

Judges 4:3:

Who you turn to immediately when troubles come show who/what is your main priority.

2 Chron. 1:11-12:

Putting God first will cause all the extra "fluff" to work out how it's supposed to.

Matt. 6:33:

Making God #1 looks like this:

Seeking first His kingdom and living righteously.

Fill your thoughts with His desires.

Take His character for your pattern.

Serve and obey Him in everything.

The Word did not return void last night.

I drew close to God, He drew close to me.

I cried out, He answered.

I sought, and I found.

I don't know if you noticed, but all the Scripture above, except for the reference to Matthew, is from the old testament. This is a perfect example of how the words of the prophets and kings and plain people who chose to serve God in the old test. are still relevant to us today!

Especially the words and actions of the Israelites. They were a very distracted people. I seem to be a lot like them. So, because I have Scripture, I can learn from their mistakes and trust in God because of the faith He displayed in the past to the Israelites.

I say that to say, don't dismiss the old testament for boring and irrelevant. Scripture is useful for teaching and rebuking and correcting and training all the way through.

I'm praying that the Lord blesses you today.

happy tuesday!

i love you all!

:)

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