The Commitment
AS I think about God’s calling on a person’s life I think of one movie in particular. For those of you who have small children you know what I am talking about. That one movie that your son or daughter gets hooked on and will only watch that one movie for a year straight! For my daughter that movie has been Moana. She loves Moana. I have become a fan of that movie mostly because of the music. I love the music and scenery and it has always drawn me in while she is watching it. After seeing it for what felt like the 100th time, I actually picked up on something more meaningful.
In the movie, Moana is pre determined by her family to run her small island village. From the moment that she is a little girl it seems that this is hard for her to accept. Not because she doesn’t like her people or her village but because something more powerful is brewing. She is fascinated with the ocean and is drawn to it every moment she has by herself to think about her life. She tries to ignore it because her father says its dangerous but she can’t escape it. Finally, she gives in and sails off on a voyage to save her people. She starts off with challenges and even gives up at one point insisting that the ocean choose someone else for this mission. Ultimately, she ends up finding the strength to carry on and believe in herself and achieves the goal of saving her people.
As I watched the movie it caused me to relate this to the calling that God has placed on each of our lives. I can easily relate to moments of doubting and wanting to give up, but I can also relate to that feeling that no matter how hard you try to get away from the calling (something quick and easier comes along) you cannot escape the divine plan that God has for your life. Watching Moana makes me realize that I don’t want to escape it. I would rather press on and continue following His directions so that I can have an opportunity at true God given happiness.
Moana causes me to reflect on what I should be doing while waiting for the calling of things to come. She doesn’t really know how to sail but she begins preparing for it. She practices and doesn’t give up and finally she is able to sail. Are we preparing while we are waiting for the calling to come together? This is something personally I really need to work on. Am I treating people right? Am I setting a good example as a wife, mother, adult, or even friend? God is a reminder that if we draw near to him he draws near to us. As I continue to go through the phases of life, I have realized that there is more then one calling that God has planned for me. What I am doing in one time period I may not be doing in another time period, yet both were part of the calling.
Watching that movie for what seemed like hundreds of times made me realize that I should always prepare for the plans that God has for me. Maybe being ready determines when God will reveal the next steps in my life. Are you ready? Have you ever thought that you knew what your calling was but maybe you weren’t sure if you could do it? Maybe there are things that you would have to sacrifice in order to live out your calling. Just like Moana, I believe we cannot escape our calling. The closer we are to God the more he trusts us and gives us more responsibility related to our individual plan. That is one of the many things I love about The Commitment. The steps in the Commitment are exactly what you need to get closer to all that God has for you. Even though it’s just a movie, Moana made me realize that we can conquer our calling with practice, faithfulness, and perseverance. I’m going to continue to prepare.
www.johannaandrews4tc.com
There are many storms of life but a new fear arose in the Andrews household when the weather report called for a catastrophic hurricane. I have been through two other hurricanes on the East Coast of Florida but my husband has never had the experience of the before and after affects of a hurricane. Her name was Irma. She gave her notice to the world at least a week and a half before confirming that she was heading directly for our state of Florida.
Usually in our marriage I am the one who worries about most things. Chris is always the level headed one who continues to remind me that things are always going to be okay. Not this time. There was fear, worry, and skepticism that our household would remain unscathed from such a terrible event. I found myself drawing on my tiny faith yet again to help stabilize the emotions going on in our home. Fortunately with small children they will have little to no memory of the events that occurred.
I remember talking with Chris and reassuring him that everything would be okay. We discussed our plans, our house, when we would leave and how we would prepare. Emotions were high and even I was scared. So I went to my bible and found one of my favorite verses that is becoming a theme for our family.
“Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20
I began praying and asking for God’s protection. Chris was scared, concerned, and not sure what to expect. Our conversation went from the factual details about the storm to making sure that we have the faith to know that God will protect us and pull us through this if we rely on him. It taught me that we can’t just assume we have God’s protection but that we must seek him and ask for his protection. Of course he loves us all but his power and protection are activated the more we seek him and follow his plan.
So we prepared and watched for the storm as the week approached. As we continued to watch the news it became clear it was heading right for us. I felt God confirming that yes we should evacuate and leave, but I also felt a peace that he would keep his promise of protection for our family and our home. I don’t think Chris was feeling the same. For the first time in a while I realized that I have to be the strong one who continues to remind both of us that God is going to protect us. I remember riding out the storm overnight in central Florida with our kids asleep in the bedroom. I stared at the ceiling the whole night and a few times shot up in bed wondering if I should wake the kids and take shelter. During that time I prayed and talked to God. It’s funny how there are key moments in my life where I knew without a doubt that everything would be ok. This was one of those moments. Even after the storm was over and it was morning, I found my husband still quite emotional and concerned.
I continued to draw on the scripture from Matthew and remind him that we must have faith. It doesn’t take a lot of faith it just takes a person who is not going to give up on that tiny faith, in order for the miracles of God’s protection to be clear. After the storm was over we headed home the next day. As we entered our neighborhood it didn’t look bad at first glance until we continued down the flooded streets. We made it to our home and sure enough it was unharmed. This was a miracle considering the main sliding glass doors in the back of the house did not have their shutters on. We were unable to get those shutters on and even I was having doubts that they would withstand the winds. As we entered and noticed everything was in it’s place, I reminded myself that tiny faith goes a long way.
Even though the recovery efforts took a while and we had to leave the home again with our children, we made it through the storm. The storms in our life are not always something we watch on the weather report but rather events that might cause catastrophic destruction if we are outside the will and plan of God. I am continuing to learn that keeping God at the center of each storm is truly the way to live with a full heart and divine order of protection over whatever this life of ours will bring. When you face your storms you have a chance to rely on tiny faith from a big God who knows the beginning and end of all our encounters. For the Andrews house we are going to work on praising him not just when the storms hit but when things are quiet and calm as well. God is always wanting us to conform to his plan and it is so much easier to accept the changes and valleys when we rely on that tiny faith.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish it’s work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
1 James: 2-4
I can remember in the early stages of my commitment thinking to myself and questioning God as to why the test felt impossible. There were many reasons for this. At times it was because I truly had a hard time believing his promises. Other times it was because I went in and out of the full commitment holding on to “strings of the flesh” that I thought I needed. It was also the enemy (Satan) continuing to pump my mind full of lies that would keep me at bay and allow me to not completely surrender. Perseverance at times felt like the enemy because it was hard. Come to find out that perseverance was the only thing that keep me linked to the commitment.
As I matured in my own relationship with God I realized that anything that came easy was typically the work of my own flesh or the enemy. The enemy always wants us to take the easy way out. He requires very little work and very short term satisfaction. It wasn’t until I grew in my faith that I realized that God had a permanency to his plan. He was not interested in the feelings that I would acquire in a day, but rather the feelings that I would adopt over a lifetime. God is only interested in the choices that we make which have an eternal impact.
I bring this up because it is so important for me to remind myself that when I persevere, I have conquered my flesh and all that goes with it. This builds strength and strength builds a deeper relationship with God. I love this scripture and the great reminder that when we conquer life with God, we lack very little. I am so grateful for the times when it seemed impossible to move forward and keep believing. Without those hard times, my commitment would be shallow and filled with fleshly desires that didn’t build character or provide happiness.
When I think of perseverance with God, I think of joy. I love moving into a deeper level of commitment with God; to the point that I can rest in the trial and know that God is going to help me through it as long as I stay faithful. I love the commitment and everything that it stands for. I love our God who presents this opportunity to us that can be life changing. I can hardly remember the empty feelings of the flesh that I had before the commitment. The commitment has built in me a heart that has depth and is free from pain.
Take some time to pray and discover your commitment. Our journeys won’t be the same but our God is identical…..
I had lunch with a special friend today and had the most amazing talk. We started with the usual catching up, family, marriage, friends, jobs, and then moved into things that we were working on or struggling with. I can’t speak for her, but I felt very comfortable to be very real about my feelings. I forget that it is ok to allow yourself to speak the truth even if it projects you in a light that indicates there is a struggle. God never said we couldn’t talk about our struggles. In fact, God shows up when we get together in the spirit of Him and discuss what He has done to help with whatever we are going through at the moment.
I loved being able to discuss some pain and past experiences that continue to creep up every now and then. Even more, I love talking about how God has helped me get through it. I also loved asking her advice about what she would do. Sometimes it helps for someone else to give an outside opinion that causes us to see something differently. I felt so encouraged from our talk that I knew the Holy Spirit was with us. In our friendly discussion, we were honest about opinions and what suggestions we had for each other, keeping in mind that prayer is essential. In the midst of it all, we continued to bring it back to God and what He already has done or shed light on what he could do with each situation. It is always hard to break from a good friend and a good discussion of God when it is time to move on with our day. That is one of the things I love the most about God. No matter what our schedule is or what time of day it is, He is present and ready to help us tackle our day as well as lay out the continued plan that He has for us.
As I got in my car feeling so upbeat and encouraged, I heard the most beautiful song. It was playing at the exact moment that I needed to hear the words it offered. A true gift from God and continued confirmation for me to stay in the commitment. It is by Matthew West and is called “Broken things.” It was beautiful. I am reminded today that we serve a God who loves each of us no matter what we have faced. I am also reminded that as we continue to grow, heal, and forgive from the past, God is pleased.
Sometimes it is the tiny blessings that come through a small voice of a big God that really push our faith to a new level of surrender and understanding.
I often wonder why at times I still question whether or not God will answer a prayer that I so desperately want answered. As I reflect on my precious daughter and her health challenges that she has faced at the early age of a month old, I am reminded that God has a plan for her too. I have spent many nights praying for a total healing for her and not knowing if that healing will come. I finally found myself asking God to just give me a glimpse of an answer.
As I made my request He led me to my Bible:
I opened to Matthew 17:20 and there in front of me was my tiny answer.
“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, “Move from here to there, and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20
So that is it. All it takes is a tiny bit of faith to believe that God will release the burden, provide the healing, answer the prayer, and move the individual plan forward for all of us. As He confirmed my need for tiny faith I am reminded that it just might be the tiny belief of the miracle amidst the “unbelief” and the question of the situation, that activates the big power of our God who knows it all.
To increase faith one must also consider the gift of other Christians who create a power to help grow that tiny faith. When we gather together for the purpose of the will of God our faith increases and so do the miracles.
“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
Matthew 18:20
I love to serve and believe in a God who answers prayers because He cares and wants the best for all of us.
After the surrender, I knew that things would change. When I finally decided to give God a chance at directing my life, and overwhelming sense of peace and relief came over me. It was exciting to know that God would be at work in my life and begin blessing me with things that at the time, I had only dreamed of. My new excitement for this new life turned into many efforts to plug in to God. I began going to church regularly, volunteering, and changing my focus from things of the world to things that I hoped God would give me. I wanted love and stability eventually with a husband and family of my own. As a broken person without God, those things seemed so far away. Sometimes they seemed truly impossible. As I began sorting through my feelings I had to make the transition from all these negative feelings that I had to beginning to realize that I too was worthy of a great life.
This was not easy. I began to put all my hope and trust in him. I will admit that I was scared wondering if God would really remember me and begin to give me the blessings and life that I really wanted. Slowly as I continued to grow deeper in my faith, small blessings and answered prayers began to come. I began to make new friends that would be life long and have success with work and financial stability. Most importantly living life with God meant tremendous growth in my prayer life. As I began to pray and read the bible I began to find answers to many of the questions that I had about life. It was comforting; and the deeper I grew in my commitment the more that God continued to show up in my life.
I often remember encountering people that would express how nice it was the I had found God since they had never had success finding him for themselves. It helped me to understand that life in the commitment meant that I had to stay faithful. As I began to love God and reflect on the past, there were moments when I realized that He was always there for me. I remember feeling his presence as a little girl just not knowing what it was at the time. In the commitment there are little moments in time when He confirms that he is there and listening. Blessings came and challenges were easier since I knew what direction I needed to channel those challenges in. I needed to stop looking to cure my pain with the things of the world, and start letting God work on my heart. Months and years went by in the commitment where there were big changes, and then there were things that seemed to remain unchanged. As I experienced both short changes and prayers still needing to be answered, I began to understand God’s timing in the commitment. I never knew when the right time would be for answered prayers, but I sure began to understand that God had a specific plan with the perfect orchestration of events that would be available when He was ready. It wasn’t always easy. The distractions and the false impressions that others were giving about how great their life was sometimes got in the way of my waiting. But one thing remained permanent. The voice of the Holy Spirit continued to confirm to me that as long as I stayed in the commitment, God’s promises would come to pass in my life.
For six years I prayed for a person to spend my life with. It seemed like an eternity. Everyday I would lift up that desire to God and pray that when the time was right, the perfect soul mate would show up in my life. I waited and prayed, and waited and prayed. The commitment taught me to be patient no matter what the cost. If I was connected to God and had a real intention to seek him daily, then he would keep his promises to me. Then one day, it happened. God’s promise came to pass and finally a prayer had been answered. Confirmation that the commitment was real and always in the works was an overwhelming sense of gratitude that I will never be able to put into words. During life in the commitment one of my favorite verses comes to mind:
Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her. Luke 1:45
To find out more listen to the radio interview about the commitment; follow the link below.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/oddomi9keizbt5p/AuthorTalk-341543_1.mp3?dl=0
There are so many days when life seems a bit hard. Then I reflect back to the days when I didn’t have the blessings that I have now, and I remind myself how great of a life I am living. I know how important God is to me and I know what it is like to feel completely hopeless even though as a person still knowing that he is there. I had major questions as to how he was going to fix me and my life.
Growing up I didn’t have the strongest family unit and eventually it split. It wasn’t the worst scenario that existed, but it caused me pain in my life and in the years to come. I often felt like orphan Annie as I tried to navigate life and gain some normalcy. It was always a struggle for me. I remember going to college and things seemed to improve. I finally felt like I had a place of belonging. I was happy, thriving, and still figuring out the rest of the pieces of my life as were many other young adults. As I entered my twenties, I took a back slide. I got into relationships that weren’t really healthy and found myself feeling more lost with an enormous void in my life. I often asked many questions of the universe. Why am I not happy? Why is nothing enough to help me feel complete? After searching in all the wrong places I had come to some conclusions. I was lost, lonely, confused, and sometimes desperate.
I couldn’t quite describe it because I didn’t really know what was wrong. I had friends, a good job, and several positive things going on in my life, yet I remember countless endless nights of loneliness and confusion where I would cry myself to sleep. It always seemed that everyone around me was prospering and I was stuck in this vicious circle of life that seemed to get me no where. Even though this sounds so depressing, there were many times when I cherished my alone time and was able to appreciate it. But what would happen when I didn’t want to be alone anymore? Who was going to be there for me? Again, not having a strong family unit, I did what I could to rely on those that were there for me in the distance. My sister and I held on to each other during difficult times in our lives, but I still needed more. I wanted more, and I wanted to feel whole again. Not sure if I ever had, but I remember thinking that it would be so nice getting up in the morning and being excited about what my day would bring. I began praying. I began asking. I began seeking. There were highs and lows. There were moments where I felt so loved by God and still moments of loneliness and confusion. Slowly over time as I began to understand the promises of God, some patience grew.
I started to feel real love and some security in my new faith. I began to realize that there were promises in my personal plan that God had for me. I began to let go of some of the past and move forward forgiving myself for anything that left me feeling empty and unloved. It was time to move on and learn that the faith I had on the inside was enough to experience a God who would make me feel whole again. I was ready for normal. Whatever that meant, I too was at a place of total surrender. I remember over and over again every night asking God to be with me. Asking that He help me seek him so that I may have a better life for myself and whoever was going to be in it. This was not easy. I had several people tell me I “can’t rely on the Gods to make things better.” Even though I was committed and didn’t need any motivation, this was surely something in my mind that encouraged me to grow closer to him. Even I started to doubt at times. I wondered what if the people of the world were right? How would I justify all my praying and believing that God had a better way for me. I didn’t know if the proof would ever come. More importantly I didn’t know if the blessings would ever come. What I did know was that I was willing to learn about God, grow closer, and give Him a chance. As time went on I left the rest up to Him……
https://www.dropbox.com/s/oddomi9keizbt5p/AuthorTalk-341543_1.mp3?dl=0
My husband and I were taking it back today with a little Guns ‘N’ Roses and their song “Patience”. First off, we are aware that music is completely different than what it used to be. We were able to appreciate the song and remember that we should listen to the music of our generation more often.
Second, we realized from hearing the lyrics that sometimes a little patience is just the right medicine to keep the stars aligned in the household and everything flowing smoothly. I’ll be honest, as a wife and mother, I never thought that the two greatest gifts would challenge my patience the most. My husband and I are pretty patient with each other but certainly have our moments. It is when I step into the role of motherhood that I really have to recognize and work on my level of patience. Sometimes I think that there is an expectation when God delivers a promise or answers a prayer that it comes with a layer of perfection. I have been reminded gently and in a loving way through my prayer, that his promises and gifts don’t always include perfection.
Not that I want things to be perfect because I want to continue to have a justification for God in my life. I certainly know that I am not perfect. It helps me to put things into perspective and realize that we all struggle with patience at times. Even the most precious gift or answered prayer can be challenging. This is a great reminder for me that God plans the path but I take the steps. He can’t control me, but he can help me control myself if I allow him to be involved in my thoughts, moves, decisions, and everyday steps that challenge me to be a better person all around.
Sometimes I just have to take a step back and remind myself to breath! Life is life and God is God. A powerful force that gives us the tools to navigate life and find an outlet to discover what patience really means. I don’t think that patience is a timeframe but rather a process to learning how to manage life in a way that is pleasing to yourself, family, and to God. Something I am going to continue to work on.
In the process of fulfilling what God is calling me to do, I have many roles. I am a wife, mother, author, and also a behavior therapist for the school district. As a person who has an education in social work and somewhat of a haunted past, I have always been drawn to the less fortunate, underprivileged, emotionally disturbed, and persons who are struggling in general. I have come to some conclusions that have helped me along the way not only be a better advocate for persons with behaviors, but also heal from my own past.
There seem to be two types of internal problems. There are the surface problems and the core problems. Just like an apple the surface would be the skin. The core would be the inner workings of that apple which includes the seeds. As complex humans we all have a surface and a core. When dealing with my students that have emotional and behavior disabilities I remember that they too have a surface and a core. The surface would involve the; noncompliance, refusal to work in school, hitting, kicking, biting, yelling, temper tantrums, and anything that they show outwardly. Often times, I have observed that the surface shows the stuff that the core can’t deal with.
It is the core that I have great interest and concern with. This would be the inner trauma and “damage” that a person or child has experienced. The longer the core goes unresolved it seems that the worse the behaviors become. Clearly there are answers to dealing with the core. There are coping skills and other techniques that allow a person to exhibit self control and begin to be a part of the solution. But what happens when a person (or child) doesn’t feel like they can control their core and experience a different way of dealing with things? I have certainly encountered many in this situation and continue to encounter these types of individuals.
As much as I try to follow the rules and be diplomatic; I continue to pursue the advice of a counselor which includes learning about one’s emotions, coping skills, tracking progress, and discussing results. This has always helped and continues to be a vital key ingredient for a person’s progress. However, as a person who struggled with her core, I feel compelled to admit that ultimately, I needed God. I needed him to come along side of me and change the parts of my core that failed me in terms of coping, talking, tracking. What I realized was more powerful then the damage that had been done. It was that God can change a heart. What’s in your core? Have you considered the divine intervention of God to help you change that core and rebuild or repair?
I am coming to a continued realization tonight as I remind myself it is not about what I want but always about the plan that God has for me. It is hard for me to remember that I can’t control everything in my little earthly world. Even though I trust God and have been committed to him for quite sometime, I too am human. I also have trouble letting go whether it is work related, my kids, love, or life things that come up. Then I realized today when I was reflecting that I am not doing myself or God any favors. All this holding onto things out of my control only gives me sleepless nights and anxiety that I don’t need to have.
So what does this really mean? It means that whatever the struggle or outcome is, I accept. I will be okay. My family will be okay. Life will be okay, because as long as I am in the commitment whatever is going on is in the plan. That is all I really want. The plan. If the healing doesn’t come, so be it. God knows what he is doing and there is purpose and meaning in the struggle. Sometimes it’s not perfect and sometimes the plan hurts. But that heartache that we all feel is part of God’s as well. He is in charge of that heartache and he knows what we are dealing with. So I continue to remind myself to let him deal with it. I don’t want it. I don’t want the stress, the struggle, or the pain. I will deal with it, but ultimately I am lifting it up and asking him to take it all.
The freedom that comes with that mentality is profound and something I want to feel regularly. When was the last time you lifted up that struggle to God? I have prayed for years before knowing that he will do whatever he plans to do. Let it go, trust, and be patient. Keep praying and living life. It is up to God to figure it all out and let you know what you need to do. Freedom means allowing God to take over and you just need to relax and stay in the commitment.