Practice, practice, practice.....

     Do you ever struggle being content on the days when God asks you to wait? I certainly have had this as an issue in my lifetime. Yesterday, I had the distinct pleasure of being reminded by an awesome God that he knew exactly where I was and met me in my practice. Waiting gives us an opportunity to develop trust. Can that be built up in preparation for times of trouble was my question? If we practice trust in the Lord during the quiet days when nothing much seems to be happening, when the storms come that practice can keep us in His peace.
     Two years ago, I met a man at my front door selling the Tribune. I wasn't interested but something about this guy and the children he was working toward supporting by his selling of the Trib let me know I was to take his offer.
      We sat in our front porch area. I had been struggling with anxiety for some time especially when I was well aware of God using me in certain situations. I would rush ahead and crash or let fear stop me from moving forward. This gentleman shared with me a story about his Aunt. Well, first he said, "Do you meditate?" In that moment my anxiety kicked in  'oh no I am not participating in some eastern ooommmming. " But it was important to listen and not anticipate! (Thank you Emmaus-Don't anticipate!)
He shared that his Aunt, the Catholic nun, had taught him years ago to recite, "Be still and know that I am God" in his peaceful times as a practice until he could call on that verse and it held him in the positions God called him to hold that would have caused him anxiety issues otherwise. 
     There are so many places I can go from here but as I shared with Barb the other day and she put it so clearly when she said, "You want the best field to work in " Yes, Lord the one that will be fruitful and for your glory!" And as Tim said, "Leadership is not a destination but a portion of the journey."
     I can share of all my failings in positions of leadership, I've been blessed to hold throughout my life from my earliest memories in first grade." When the Lord himself spoke through a wonderful woman and said, "I did not give you this power to do what you want with it, I gave it that you would use it for my purposes." It is good to recall my failings not to put myself down but to remember my position in relation to HIS. He will listen to the list of failings but the call is still a call and his response is "I make all things New!" This I know to be true...life is fragile and power misused can destroy life. So take my hand Lord and lead this Dance!