Missing: One Earthly Daddy

I've been a single mother for a majority of my son's life. I've certainly seen my fair share of struggles but, my son has seen more than his. We've all seen and heard the statistics. We've read the articles, heard what the world has had to say. Our children, especially our boys, are getting lost in the shuffle because our men didn't step up to the plate. I thank God for my husband who has. He's stepped up twice...to his plate and to the plate of my son.

I'm going to simply tell you what's in my heart. I'm not concerned, at this point, with what people think about my feelings or with what I have to say. I am, quite frankly, a mother who has struggled, with life and unforgiveness, for quite some time.

My son's father hasn't really been consistent or active. He's had verbal contact with my son but hasn't seen him in years. He gets him gifts on birthdays and Christmas. When my son talks to him on the phone, it's always superficial...usually about sports or a video game.

As a mother, I'd give my life for my child and, figuratively, I have many times. It has been rough holding a position that I was never built to handle. I was never qualified to be my son's father but, the anointing I had to be his mother superseded the physical condition.

There were times when I hated my son's father. I hated him for being selfish, for being free. I hated him because he didn't have to face the same challenges or walk in the same shoes that I did. I hated him because it wasn't fair. I gave up what he refused to. I gave up enough for me and him. I would forgive him and then, he'd do something else and I'd feel like Peter asking Jesus, "How many times? How many time must I forgive him?"

There were many prayers that I would whisper, speak, even scream. I can remember times when I'd cry out to God asking him, "What else could you want from me? I've given up everything I have." I'd see my son suffering, missing out on what he rightfully deserved. I was fighting for child support when I should've been fighting for emotional and spiritual support. I would pray over my child, binding up whatever generational curse was set against him. See, his father's father wasn't there either.

Oh, but GOD! God has always been there for my child. My baby is such a good boy. He's respectful and smart and he's one of the joys of my life. I thank God for never leaving or forsaking us. I praise him for his almighty hand being all over our lives.

I wanted to speak directly to the missing earthly daddy's. Your child needs you. Your child needs to know that you are there to support them and that you love them. They need you to need them. If your child is a boy, he needs you to approve of him and be proud of him. If your child is a girl, she needs you to say she is pretty and to be the first man in her life. God will always be there for them, it's time that you do the same. Will you do the same?

Are you pregnant?

So, you know you gotta go to the gym when not one, not two, but three people ask you in a period of a week if you are pregnant. I am a newlywed so, usually people look for what the "next step" should be and to add to that, I have gained about fifteen pounds. I joined a gym anyway. But, that's not the point of this blog.

Some would describe me as a dedicated, loyal, and committed person. And to other people, I usually am. I can honestly say that I haven't always been that way and have left some pretty disappointed people in my wake. One of those people...is me. I crack me up being able to keep a promise to someone else and will consistently falter on the ones that I make to myself. Why? Because if I don't keep a promise to myself, no one will know it but me. Little did I know that I was actually holding me accountable.

On December 28th of last year, I made a promise to myself (and to the gym that deducts their membership fee from my bank account every month): I will go to the gym, when I can, and work out as hard as I can. My goal wasn't to lose any weight or to get rid of this eleven-going-on-twelve-year-old baby pooch. It wasn't to build muscle or to tone up, even though that's what I told my trainer. My goal was to merely do something different so that I can expect something different.

See, what I haven't told you is that diabetes, cancer, and hypertension run in my family. I have been what most would consider to be thin all my life. I, like most Americans, equated thin with healthy. I couldn't have been further from the truth. I was lethargic, anemic, and was a borderline diabetic. I kept promising myself that I would start running, biking, walking, dancing, skipping, rolling, hopping, jumping, something so that I can be healthy, or even healthier. I would quote scripture about health and rebuke the devil. I just knew that neither I or my children would be affected by any ailment that preceded me. I was going to break the curse...from my couch with my pint sized ice cream watching Netflix. Yeah, I know...bogus.

So, as of yesterday, I have kept a promise to myself for first time in as long as I can remember, for the past three weeks. I've gone to the gym at least twice a week. I haven't lost weight (well, 1.5 pounds but who's counting) but, I've toned up a bit. The more I keep my promise to myself, the easier it is.

Now, if I can just leave the ice cream alone and NO...I'm not pregnant.

What tha feezy???

Ok, Ok....so I stole my title from a close friend who used to say that all the time. But, that's not the point...

So, I prayed for God to help me with my mouth. I can, at times, be quite sarcastic. I know, I know...That's really hard to believe but, it's true. I can be sarcastic and I can, at times, be a bit of a complainer. My prayer looked a little like this: Lord, these people can work my nerves and you know that I'm trying. PLEASE guard my mouth so I don't get smart or become sarcastic. Help me to be content with where I am and with who I am right now. Amen.

Yup. I thought I was set. I said my prayer and God's got me. And then, I get to work and what happens? A plethora of situations that carefully unfold and opportunities that present themselves for me to not only become sarcastic but, to get smart, rude...you name it. Before I realize what is happening, I'm in the aftermath of "running off at the mouth" and then I feel it...conviction. Hmmm...was that there before I snapped? Was I too busy getting upset to feel it?

It's funny (really, it's not), how you can pray for something and instead of God raining down buckets of faith/patience/self-control or any of the other six Fruit of the Spirit, He, instead, allows you to be put into situations to EXERCISE the Fruit He's already given you. And, like a muscle being ripped during a workout, we are strengthened through pain/trial.

So, maybe I can remember that next time because I surely missed the mark today...

Prayer for tomorrow: Lord, help me to remember today what I didn't remember yesterday. Amen.

Transparent Weaknesses

It's been a while since I've last made a post. I started this thing thinking that I would post a blog everyday. It didn't take long to realize that not only does that take a bit of time but also, a bit of inspiration. As much as I would like to think that my life is chock full of mindless inspirations, it's not. Well, maybe it is and maybe I need to slow down to see them.

I was just thinking. Instead of me waiting for some profound inspiration to hit me, why can't I just be myself? I deal with things just like the next person and, just like the next person, sometimes I feel alone in dealing with them.

I have had some personal issues that I've had to work through. Heck, let's be truthful. I'm still working through personal issues. I was thinking the other day about what God desires of us. Are lives changed with eloquent words and dynamic analogies or are people touched with real issues dealt with in real time? God wants transparency from us. We all fall short of His glory and this is not a competition about who has led the most perfect life. If it was, and we could win in our own right, Jesus would not have needed to come.

Does light shine better through a window with a rose colored filter on it or one that is completely transparent? I think we all know the answer to that. God can move so freely and shine so brightly through our transparent weaknesses. His word even says that He is made strong in our weaknesses. So why are we always trying to act like we're not weak? Why is being weak so...um, weak?

I think that we cover our weaknesses and faults because we are scared. We're scared of what other's will think or do. We're scared that exposing our self will make us vulnerable to the scrutiny of others. And quite honestly, it does. But, so what?

In the Bible (John 7:53-8:11), some religious men dragged a woman out of her adulterous bed and in before Jesus. At that time, women were stoned for committing such an act. The men were looking to Jesus for his take on the situation and were quick to quote the law of Moses. They prompted Jesus for an answer.

Jesus simply started drawing in the sand. He looked at them and simply said, "Let any of you who is without sin, throw the first stone." (I'm paraphrasing.) Then he started drawing in the sand again. One by one, everyone left.

Now, this story has always meant a lot to me. Maybe because Jesus was so unfazed by everyone's demands. He moved in his own time. Or it could be that Jesus, who actually was without sin, did nothing in retaliation toward the woman. He simply forgave her and sent her on her way. That's crazy to me.

When I became pregnant with my son, I wasn't married. I was looked down on by those who'll I'll describe as "religious men". I wonder what Jesus would have done. I'm thinking He would doodle in the sand, forgive me, and send me on my way.

I pray that my blog will be a platform for God to shine brightly through my transparency and for me to have the courage to be transparent.

Fear...the big invisible monster

Here it is...way past my bedtime. I have to get up early tomorrow morning and work all day. Why can't I go to sleep, you ask? Oh, that's simple. Fear.

I know what you're going to tell me: Pray and rebuke the devil. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. And yet, here it is again. Rearing it's ugly head and what am I doing? Writing about it.

It's amazing how I can just write a blog about casting cares on God and here I am, an hour or so later, casting my cares on him (for the 2nd time tonight). But, how many of you know that God is always there? How many of you know that he'll be there for the 3rd cast, the 4th? Turn to your neighbor...I'm just playing. Please don't turn to your neighbor and say anything (except that they soooo need to read this awesome blog :} ).

Normally, when you look at things from a distance, they seem smaller. The closer you get to the object, the bigger it gets. Fear works exactly opposite of that. From a distance, fear is huge. It's intimidating and the more you think about approaching whatever it is that has you fearful, the more fearful you get. You muster up the courage to take a step and amazingly, the fear you had begins to subside. The closer you get, the smaller the fear gets until there is nothing there.

Pray, rebuke, sing, shout...do everything you need to do to prepare but, do know. You will absolutely need to confront whatever the issue is that has you fearful. What am I doing to confront what I'm feeling right now? Well, I first acknowledge that I'm feeling this way. Then, I prayed/rebuked the spirit of fear. Then, I'm talking/writing about it. Lastly, I'm finding scriptures that speak against the fear I'm feeling. Keep in mind that it's just that, a feeling. A fickly, finicky, flighty feeling. A here today, gone tomorrow feeling.

So with that, I leave you with an oldie but goodie.

God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind.
                                                     ~2 Timothy 1:7

Forgiveness vs. Restoration

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you.

~Unknown

I’m sure there are millions upon millions of people who need to work on forgiveness. I being one of them. I have a particular problem when the SAME person keeps doing things that would warrant my forgiveness. Any of you know what I mean? 

I had a conversation with my son recently. He had forgiveness and restoration confused. He thought that if he forgave someone then, his relationship with that person was supposed to go back to what it was. He said, “Mama, you gotta forgive and forget. That’s what the Bible says.” Does the Bible really say that? I mean, we act like it does.

I believe that acting like someone hasn’t wronged you is unwise. For instance, if I’m friends with someone who steals, (in my neck of the woods, we call that a thief) and they end up stealing from me, would it be wise to continue being their friend? In doing so, would it be wise to expect them to not do it again? I don’t think so. Personally, I would handle that person with an extendable ten foot pole.

I believe forgiveness is relieving that person’s charge. In the previously mentioned analogy, I would not hold it against my so-called friend but, I also would not restore our friendship. This does not mean I’d never be friends with that person again. Whatever relationship we were to have would take time, prayer, and a new installation of trust. I don’t think, however, that our friendship would be the same. And if they were a habitual offender? Sorry, Charlie!

In some cases, restoration is necessary. In a marriage or a family situation, you may need to restore your relationship. The first step still swings on true forgiveness.

I want to point out, too, that you’re not doing your offender any favors by holding this “grudge” against them. Pay attention to their life. Are they waiting at home for you to call them and let them off the hook? Are they sending you flowers every week, begging for your forgiveness? Are they texting or calling you periodically to make sure all is right in your world? Odds are, they are not.

The person that you are favoring by forgiving them is...*drumroll*...YOU! Take the following words to heart and know that I mean them with love:

GET ON WITH YOUR LIFE!

Disclaimer: The aforementioned text was also addressed to the writer of said text. Didn’t you read the first paragraph? So let’s, together, move on with our lives. Next!

Lord, may I borrow your smile today? (1/2/12)

I will forget my complaint, I will change my expression, and smile. 

~Job 9:26-28

I was recently watching “The Case for Faith” which is a documentary that exhibits the investigation of Lee Strobel into why people struggle with believing in God. While watching this documentary, there was one person in particular that pricked my heart. That person was Joni Eareckson Tada. 

Joni has been paralyzed from the shoulders down since she was 17 years old. She has had to endure multiple surgeries and a life bound to a wheelchair. In 1979, she started “Joni and Friends”, an international ministry to spread the gospel to the disabled around the world. 

Some of us would look at Joni’s situation and think, “Aw, man. That’s terrible.” Joni looks at her own situation and understands that God has made His presence known in her life through her suffering. Her paralysis has opened doors for her to bring His gospel around the world.

Just as a baby, who is getting vaccinations, has no idea that the pain he is enduring is for his benefit, we may not always understand. We can, however, trust and believe that God always is sovereign and that He loves us. We can reside in the fact that all things will come together for our good. (Rom. 8:28) 

Things may look bleak but, thankfully, faith is not what we see with our eyes. It is being sure of what we hope for and being certain of what we do not see. (Heb. 11:1)

“There are a lot of people who think I’m a strong person and I’m not. I am such a weak person...But when I start to feel overwhelmed, I’ll say, ‘Oh God. I have no strength for this day but, you do. I have no resources but, you do. May I please have your resources? May I please have your strength?...Please, let me borrow your smile for the day.”

                                                             ~Joni Eareckson Tada

Motion Sickness (1/1/12)

Just pack everything you could possibly imagine wearing and even some extra things, just in case.

We all have to go through it. Sometimes it is welcomed; sometimes it is feared. Some people can deal with it; some people stumble over it every time. It is the only consistent thing in our lives. It is change.

I remember going on a cruise a couple years ago. It was in the Caribbean for eleven days and I was too excited. I packed everything I could possible imagine wearing and even some extra things, just in case. One thing that I didn’t take into consideration was motion sickness. I had never had a bout with it and so, I wasn’t anticipating starting now.

Motion sickness has to do with the inner ear being able to handle repeated movement (like the swell of the ocean or turbulence on a plane). Symptoms can range anywhere from nausea to vomiting to vertigo. I’m assuming that it is tough to endure, especially when your on vacation. 

After our ship left the harbor, some people started to feel and be ill. I, thankfully, was not one of them. We encountered two hurricanes during our trip but, I never got sick. What is my point?

I was not prepared to have motion sickness. I didn’t even think about it until other people started getting sick. There I was, on a trip of a lifetime, and I was NOT going to deal with being sick. I just wasn’t. I didn’t even know that motion sickness was an issue until someone else told me about it. That doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t have been affected by it but, it does mean that I would not stress about something that hasn’t happened.

Sometimes in our lives, God allows us to go on “trips”. Some of them are fun and some are not. They are all, however, for our good. Most of us, I included, stress about things that have not happened. We stress about them as if it were guaranteed to happen. If you had a dollar for every time that you did that, how much do you think you would have right now? You would probably stress out about that. 

Our faith is God should be completely centered in Jesus’ love. Why would He give his LIFE for us if we weren’t that important? And since we ARE that important, why wouldn’t God make sure that we were prepared to weather whatever storm or “trip” we take? 

I’m talking to myself right now. All I can do is what I can do and nothing more. Let’s start off this new year making a decision (not a resolution). Say it with me: I can do only what God strengthens me to do. I will not stress out about what I cannot do. I will place all my cares into God’s hands and leave them there. 

Bottom Line...Just pack everything you could possibly imagine wearing and even some extra things, just in case and then, get on the ship!

Hello. My name is Stacie and I am...(12/29/11)

To whom much is given, much is required.

~Luke 12:48

...highly sensitive. Yeah, I know. You thought I was going to disclose some craziness. Well, because of this, um, situation, things can, at times, get crazy. Small things that don’t bother other people, bother me. Smells, the way certain things feel, the tone of someone’s voice, a clicking sound in a piece of music, silence, body language, the temperature of a room...I can go on and on. They all bother me. I know it seems crazy, right? And sometimes, that’s exactly how I feel. Some days I’m more hypersensitive than others and yesterday was one of those days.

My prayer, on those hypersensitive days, is for God to remove this “thing” from me. I mean really, what is the purpose of being so sensitive? Who is this helping? If there was a part of myself that I can say at times that I hate, it would be this sensitivity. To me, it’s a weakness. I become reclusive, start crying, become withdrawn all in 3.5 seconds flat. And most of the time, I can’t tell you why.

As I sat in the floor of my shower, praying this same prayer to God, I saw flashes of the same sensitivity in a positive light. The fact that I’m highly sensitive makes me highly perceptive to the needs of others. I usually can easily put myself into the shoes of another and do what I can to help them. A lot of the times, I can anticipate both the positive and negative repercussions of an action and take them both into consideration.

Why am I telling you all of this? Well, let me put it like this: Say God blesses you with a new car. It’s the car of your dreams. It’s fully loaded, the color you wanted, and the warranty is unheard of. Your credit is shot and you are still trying to figure out how you even got this car. 

As you drive the car, you think about how grateful you are that God cared enough about you to bless you with this great gift. You are grateful...until the first car note comes. You see, everything that is worth having is worth working hard for and to whom much is given, much is required.

Silver Lining: If you have a lot of responsibility, you have a lot of blessings. Be grateful and GET TO WORK!

What is perfection? (12/23/11)

Failure is not an option.

~Gene Krantz, flight director for Apollo 13 

At some point, all of us what to be perfect. We want the perfect job, the perfect car, the perfect house, even the perfect family. As children, we were corrected when we did something wrong. So, obviously the goal was to do what was right and to do it right, all of the time. Most of us try, fail, try again, fail again but, some of us...well, some of us get stuck on the “fail” part. 

The crazy thing is this: We, perfectionists know that we aren’t perfect. We also know that we aren’t even close. Unfortunately, that doesn’t keep us from trying. That also doesn’t keep us from failing. In our minds, failure is not an option and we do what we can to keep from arriving to that conclusion. We attribute failing to being a failure and that simply is unacceptable. It is easy for us to hit rock bottom on one failed attempt to do something and we usually land pretty hard. This sometimes leads to us not even attempting what we know we should do, because we are fearful that we will fail at doing it. 

Ok, this doesn’t apply to you, right? I mean, you’re not a perfectionist...right? You may not consider yourself a perfectionist but check this out: The definition of a perfectionist (according to wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn) is simply a person who is displeased by anything that does not meet very high standards. Displeased, that’s not such a strong work. The definition didn’t say “hates” or “digusted with”...just “displeased”. Can you honestly say that-that has never been you? As Christians, we are taught to work within, live within, and to expect a “spirit of excellence”. We often take that to assume that excellence = perfection. But, is that really the case?

I performed a keyword search on the word “perfect” on biblegateway.com. I, of course, had quite a few results (forty-two in the New International translation, to be exact) and as I read, I found that most of the references were pertaining to God’s perfection. I really didn’t find where were are perfect. Nor did I find where we can become perfect in our own right. I DID, however, find scripture to support our becoming perfect through Jesus. So, what exactly does that mean?

Well, quite frankly, you can stop...well, we can stop our plight to be perfect. We are about as productive as a truck stuck in mud: the wheels are spinning but it is not moving anywhere. The more the accelerator is pressed, the more the wheels spin, the deeper the truck digs into the mud, making it harder to get out. Now, we can continue to dig OR we can call for help.

I’ve always noticed that when I’m stuck (and I’ve been stuck on the side of road many times...usually because I hate getting gas but, that’s for another blog), I experience a sense of relief once I know that help is coming. A heavy weight is lifted and all I have do is wait for the help to arrive. 

So, this is my call to the perfectionists out there: LET IT GO! Call for help, sit down and wait. All you can do is what you can do. God created us to depend on Him and on each other. That just proves that there will be things that you CANNOT do alone. So, give yourself and those around you a break (I’m talking to myself, too). There’s so much more to life...like for instance...living. Be blessed.

You have a house!!! (12/19/11)

I remember a couple of years ago, I heard someone preach a sermon about a hallway. She was comparing the times that we come across in our lives when it seems that all the doors are closed, to a hallway. She went on to say that the bigger our hallway is, the bigger our blessing will be.

Fast forward four or so years. I was talking to my husband about this sermon. I was in a “hallway” of sorts at the time and was trying to encourage myself while talking to him.  “The bigger my hallway, the bigger my blessing!” I told him. I thought I was saying something. I said it with so much passion, you would’ve thought that I came up with it by myself. My husband very calmly replied with this: Stacie, if you’re in your hallway, you have a house.

Don’t you hate when they say something so profound with so little effort. He could’ve made me sick that day but, he was right. We pay so much attention to the situation that we are in that we fail to see the bigger picture: The situation itself is a blessing. God has trusted you to be exactly where you are for exactly the amount of time that you are there. He has also bestowed the exact amount of grace that you need to withstand. 

So, look around. Forget the hallway. You have a house, love!!!

God is NOT that dude! (12/18/11)

Disclaimer: This message seems to only be addressed to the females. It, however, is not. It is also for the men...Just don’t be THAT dude.  

The ex-boyfriend who cheated on you with your best friend. The Daddy who never told you that he loved you. The guy down the street, who used to ride your bus, that joked on you everyday in math. The guy at the bar that you went home with and was gone before you awakened the next morning. The husband who stopped fighting for your marriage and just opted for a divorce. Who ever he is, what ever he did...God is NOT that dude.

So often, we compare God to someone, some man, in our lives that has completely done us wrong. So, mandatory things like trust, faith, you know...those things that you really can’t learn...yeah, those things are pretty impossible for us to do. Why? Well, because no one has taught us how to or better yet, when we stepped out on a limb, some man cut it down. 

We have to get over what that dude did, how he treated us. We have to face up to the fact that he walked out or even that he didn’t walk in. We have to accept that he’s not coming back and that his violence was not okay. Yeah, we have some healing, some work to do but, baby girl, God is NOT that dude. 

The devil is cunning. Don’t get him twisted, he’s got this thing all planned out. All he’s got to do is have your daddy be too busy to show you some attention or, as seen in a lot of cases, not even be there at all. Maybe after a couple of years, some boy comes along who does. Only this boy is not really looking out for your best interests, he’s looking out for his. The result is a lower self worth and a yearning for the attention that only a father can give but, your earthly dad is still unavailable so, you look for this attention in a line-up of men. As each one steps forward to assume his position in your life, you allow him into the space that is impossible for him to fill. And when he doesn’t, you move on to the next thinking maybe, just maybe, this one will be THE one. You end up giving up so much of yourself that you don’t even know who you are anymore. The childhood dreams that you held so dear, are all a blur and sheer existence is a press. Yeah, love, the devil is cunning. And all this time, you thought is was all because of you. 

Well, in a sense, it was. Even the devil knows the magnitude of the gift, the calling, the message that God has conceived in you. He has tried his best to destroy you and the seed you carry. The good news? You’re still here and there is hope. God is not a character that springs off the pages of your children’s Bible. He is not a figure far, far away who is uninvolved with your life. He’s not looking to punish you or dangle blessings in front of you and then take them back because you are undeserving. GOD IS REAL and GOD LOVES YOU. 

He loves you so much that He’s willing to prove to you that he is NOT that dude. Just give Him a chance...with Him, the impossible becomes possible.

Do you see me? (12/17/11)

  "You have to see it before you see it or you'll never see it."

So, I guess I could call myself a planner if planning means I need to know where I’m going and what I’ll be doing before I get there. However, if being a planner means that I have to actually “plan” then, Houston, we have a problem. 

I know, somewhere in the recesses of my mind, that I need to cross my t’s and dot my i’s and to make sure I have all my p’s and q’s (where did all these letter references really come from?). Part of me wants to just start this business and then cross the t’s when I actually have to cross them. 

Am I intimidated? More than ever. So what big dream is not?  Intimidating, I mean. If the dream was small and attainable, I could do it all by myself. I wouldn’t need to pray, fast, seek Godly advice. I wouldn’t need to rely on my fellow man. This dream is huge though. Bigger than anything I could have ever imagined. 

Am I excited? I can’t wait! I want to get started NOW! I want to let the cat out of the bag, scream it out from the top of my lungs, stand on the rooftops. 

Back to reality, Habakkuk 2:2 says to write the vision and make it plain. Let’s be honest. That sounds like a lot of work. I need to pray about even doing that. So, I guess that doesn’t make a planner. But, planning is all part of the process. It’s all part of laying a solid foundation, part of being proactive. It’s part of seeing it before I see it. I have to see it right now or I’ll never see it.

Propellors (6/30/11)

I woke up this morning from a dream, a nightmare of sorts.  I was on a beautiful helicopter ride and can remember seeing sights of the city that I had never seen before. I've never been real comfortable with heights. Not because of the height but because of what's opposite of the height...the ground.

The helicopter ride turned faulty and our helicopter started falling. I looked down I saw water and for a moment, I was slightly relieved...very slightly. My thoughts at the time were that I was a pretty good swimmer and if we crash in the water, I can swim to safety. 

My next cognizant thought was being in the water. It was dark and the crash had me disoriented. In my efforts to orient myself, I paid my attention to the helicopter and started swimming toward the propellers. No matter how hard I swam, I couldn't not find the surface. I was running out of breath and so I swam harder. Right when I couldn't hold my breath any longer, I woke up.

What does this all mean you ask? In the stress of my accident (remember: it was only a dream), I had forgotten my training. Years ago, I went through Aviation Challenge training as a camp counselor at the Space and Rocket Center. Aviation Challenge is a adventurous, children-oriented, military camp and one of the simulations was a helicopter crash. The experience was more fun that anything but one tidbit of information given to me was essential: The propellors of the helicopter are the heaviest.

Had I taken a second to focus instead of panic, I would've remember that. With the propellors being the heaviest part, they would sink first flipping the helicopter upside-down in the water. So, no matter how hard I swam towards the propellors, I was swimming away from the surface.

God is saying today that if we focus on what is heavy to us, we will be going in the wrong direction. You can work harder, run faster, study more, you can employ every gift that God has given you but, if you are going the wrong way, you are wasting your time.

The propellors are necessary for the helicopter. This note is not enlighten you on how to eliminate your heaviness. It is to merely 1) take account of where your propellers are. What is heavy or stressful to you right now? Is it overwhelming you? Drowning you? 2) Leave the helicopter. Although disoriented and panicky, I had enough sense to do that. Had I stayed in the helicopter, I would have surely died. There are two accounts in the Bible commanding us to cast our cares on God (Psalm 55:2, 1 Peter 5:7). Cast them, throw them!  You wouldn't leisurely leave a sinking helicopter, admiring all of the sights on the way out...or would you?  3) Focus on things that are good. Phil. 4:8, 9 says, "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."

Then, and only then, 4) swim! 

I hope this helps someone because it sure was an eye-opener for me. Love you guys!