The Flame Within

All too often… I take my focus off of God… My humanness is often bent on focusing on what I don’t have, what I want, what I think I need, and what will make me happy.

The product of discontentment is a direct result of taking my focus off of God and placing it on the world around me. The world leaves me yearning for a continual thirst for more… The world forces me to focus on “me”… my feelings, my needs, and my desires. This “me” mentality leaves me empty, unsatisfied, and stressed.

God offers me the contentment in life I so desperately desire… The contentment I spend so much of my life looking for in the world… Leaves me lacking peace and contentment. Finally, at the end of myself, I find God… His plan… His peace… His love.

When I continually focus on God… I learn that He truly meets my every need… Even at times, when it feels like He has somehow forgotten, forsaken, or abandoned me, I realize at the end of myself… He was there all along. In hindsight I always see His plan was perfect… Making the waiting and doubting… An obvious waste of effort, pain, and frustration.

In my doubt I all too often take my focus off of God… I fail to see the beauty around me. I fail to see the smiles on my loved one’s faces. I ignore God’s most special blessings… My loved ones…. My husband… My children.

I can focus so much on “my” problems… I miss the rainbows… hugs… sunshine… smiles… and Heaven’s daily dose of gentle hugs.

I forget God’s promise… “You shall not worry about what you shall eat. Does God not feed the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field… How much more does He love me… His beloved child… I shall not worry about tomorrow… Each day has enough trouble of it’s own!”

Today… I relinquished control of my life… I realized once again the danger in doubting… worrying… and stressing. At the end of myself… I handed the steering wheel of this crazy… frantic… worrying self back to the Creator of the universe. I stopped the searching… worrying… stressing. I took a long look around my world. You know what I found? The greatest blessings in my life, were right in front of me… My wonderful husband and children!

I am blessed!

I am grateful!

I will trust the One who has my path set out before me!

Maybe next time I go down this turbulent… stressful… wearisome path of myself… I will recognize the destructive path of “myself” earlier?