HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ARE ON TRACK AND GOD IS REALLY WORKING? (WE MUST PERSEVERE.)

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ARE ON TRACK AND GOD IS REALLY WORKING? (WE MUST PERSEVERE.)

Written March 24, 2014, Monday

How do you know when you’re on track with the Lord and God’s really working in, around, and through your life? I mean it. Really. How do you know?

The answer is simple: Distraction. Challenges. Busyness.

All of the sudden, out of nowhere, everything, and I mean everything, comes up and gets you off of your task at hand—being with the Lord. You’re hit with a little bit of everything—and all at once. Distraction, tragedy, challenge, busyness, fear, doubt, anger, frustration, stress, etc.

Well, it’s been that way for me. And my blog posting sure reflects these new developments in my life. All sorts of challenged have happened to those in my life. Terrible, life-challenging, and life-taking challenges. The storms haven’t been rainstorms or thunderstorms. They’ve been more than a torrential downpour. They’ve been hurricanes with tornados—along with an earthquake.

Do you know what I mean?

None of these have been in my life directly. Thank God. But, they’ve been in the lives of those I care about and support. It’s been some heart-breaking, heart-rendering, terrible stud—where I have no idea how I would handle one thing these individuals have gone through. I cannot even imagine. So, my husband, B, and I have been living at the hospital since Thursday. And, the hospital that is best for all the individuals involved is thirty-one miles away in each direction. We’ve traveled this numerous times over the past few days. The dog needs to be let out and fed. So, we do that and quickly grab a quick bite to eat, then, back out the door we go.

Is it just me—or has the enemy tried to stop you and your progress with the Lord and with this “6+ Year Four Gospel Project” (SYFGP)? (Answer this in your prayer journal—and if you’ve experienced this, or when, please contact me so I can pray for you as you go through this—and I ask for yours as well. Contact me at my email or attach a comment at the end of any blog post.)

Have you been tempted to stop altogether? (Same thing as above. Please prayer journal your answer and contact me if you’ve been here, or when you go through this.)

The way I figure, is we need to be praying for each other through this “6+ Year Four Gospel Project.” It’s the only way we’ll make it through.

With how many challenges I’ve faced already, it’s sure letting me know that God is working, and wants to work, MIGHTILY through this SYFGP. In an awesome, powerful, glorifying way. He will show how He is God. But, far more importantly, we will get to know Jesus in a personal, intimate way. More so than we can even fathom or imagine. Furthermore, we will learn how to live a life of Jesus in a way we never knew was possible.

This is inevitable. I know it is. God is working. He’s stirring us. We must persevere—even if this turns into a 20+ year project. God is working.

Matthew 11:28-30 and Times of Trial and Challenge: The Tough Stuff of Life

Matthew 11:28-30 and Times of Trial and Challenge: The Tough Stuff of Life

Matthew 11:28-30 / Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

28 “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.(A) 29 All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me,(B) because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves.(C) 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Cross references:

1. 11:28 : Jr 31:25; Jn 7:37
2. 11:29 : Jn 13:15; Eph 4:20; Php 2:5; 1Pt 2:21; 1Jn 2:6
3. 11:29 : Jr 6:16; Zch 9:9; 2Co 10:1; Php 2:7-8

-- HCSB: Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Matthew 11:28-30 / The Message (MSG)

28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

--  MSG: Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.  

Matthew 11:28-30 / GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

28 “Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. 29 Place my yoke[a] over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble. Then you will find rest for yourselves30 because my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Footnotes:

1. Matthew 11:29 A yoke is a wooden bar placed over the necks of work animals so that they can pull plows or carts.

-- GW: Scripture is taken from GOD’S WORD®, © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations. Used by permission of Baker Publishing Group.

Matthew 11:28-30 / Expanded Bible (EXB)

28 “Come to me, all of you who are ·tired [weary] and ·have heavy loads [overburdened; T heavy-laden] and I will give you rest. 29 ·Accept my teachings [L Take my yoke upon you] and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in ·spirit [heart], and you will find rest for your ·lives [souls; Jer. 6:16]. 30 ·The burden that I ask you to accept [L …because my yoke] is easy; ·the load I give you to carry [L and my burden] is light.”  

-- EXB: Scripture taken from The Expanded Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Matthew 11:28-30 / New Living Translation (NLT)

28 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”  

-- NLT: Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

REFERENCES:

1 http://biblehub.com/matthew/11-28.htm

2 http://biblehub.com/commentaries/matthew/11-28.htm

3 Etc.

(Image credit: Microsoft images online 2008-2014.)

A Warning to Journalkeepers: Keep Journaling and Be Blessed

Note: Even if you are not going through a hard time in your life or in your journaling, read this blog post. You need to know what to do and expect when it happens. I guarantee. It will happen. 

There will be times when you go through challenges in your life. Things pop up and you can't journal or write--or do either like you would prefer. You're too busy trying to get through the challenge. 

Or, journaling might lose its appeal for a while.

Or, you might get too busy to journal. 

Tragedy also might happen.

Take all of these for what they are. Each of these things is meant to keep you from journaling or journaling as deeply as you should. 

What this usually means is you've struck a chord. You are on the precipice of something wonderful. you are on your way to a major breakthrough. Something amazing is about to happen. (I cannot stress this enough.) 

But, it will only happen, if you keep journaling. 

Granted, you might not want to journal. Or, you might be too busy putting out fires to be able to journal. Or, your journaling might be trash (in your opinion, but not in reality) and not what it could be. 

Whatever you, do not ever stop journaling. That's your biggest mistake if you do. You will lose your rhythm and your train of thought. The breakthrough will be hindered and halted. In fact, it might pass you by because you didn't seize the moment. 

So, whatever you do, KEEP JOURNALING. Do not stop. Ever. 

In fact, during these times, journal more. If you journal more trash than anything, it's okay. Even the trash will be useful to you later. Trust me. Persevere. 

Keep journaling.

And, add a comment to any blog post -or get on my Google+ community and say, "Help! I am struggling." Let the community rally behind you. We can encourage you and help you through whatever you are dealing with.

Give your journal a chance.

Give us a chance.

And, great things will happen. 

They really will. You will be greatly blessed. 

~ Stacy Duplease

Journalkeeper

Journaling when the unthinkable happens

You just got really bad news of some type--or something bad just happened--what-do-you-do?

What do you do when the unthinkable happens? What do you do when something so horrible that it's beyond your comprehension happens?

The answer is this: grieve and journal.

Then, when all else fails, journal. 

And, when you think you are doing better, journal.

And, when you have a relapse and it feels like it's happening all over again, journal.

Journal through the tough time. That's when journaling is the most important and the most useful to you.

And, whatever you do, NEVER delete  throw away, burn, or destroy these journals or journal entries. Keep them. They will be useful to you later to look at, evaluate, and see how you overcame. (Never mind how journaling helps you in the moment.)

Just journal.

You will get through this. You will. One breath at a time, one minute at a time, one hour at a time, one day at a time. You will get through. 

~ Stacy Duplease

Journalkeeper, Writer, & Blogger

Journaling through the tough stuff of life: A Journaling Exercise

I do not know about you, but I've been in a funk ever since I heard about the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shootings in Newtown, Connecticut. I've been in mourning and grieving for family I do not know. I count them as family because we live in the same country, the USA. (We are supposed to be united, after all.) 

You also might have noticed how I have received pinpointed point-of-view--where I have analyzed my life, along with that of our nation. (That will be talked more about on a later day.) But, I also haven't talked much about journaling. Sure. I took some time off to do nothing but pray and journal. But, I haven't talked much about how to journal or how to journal through, most importantly, hard and unfathomable times like this. 

What do you do when something so awful and nightmarish happened that you do not have the words, let alone the comprehension of the situation? How do you handle when the unspeakable happens? How do you handle when real-life is worse than the stuff in nightmares?

How do you handle the tough stuff of life? 

The answer is simple: You journal.

I am sure you noticed that was my first inclination after I received the news about Sandy Hook. I immediately went to my blog and said I was shutting down to pray and journal for the day.

That is precisely what I did. 

And that is what I did all day and night Friday. 

The weekend was full of stuff to do. But, the radio was on all the time, playing in the background. I was in a funk all weekend, needless to say. And it carried through yesterday as well. Yesterday was another day for me to journal and try to process what happened, my reaction to it, and what it meant in my life. 

Yesterday, I kept flashing back to Shar's shooting when she was murdered. I also kept thinking of Columbine--and the students I knew who were there that day. I also cannot help but think of the Memorial Service of Columbine--and that of Shar's. Then, that reminds me of the Aurora Movie Theater Shooting. My husband and I spend two weeks back home in Colorado and were by that theater three times or more. I even knew a couple fo people who were going to go see the movie that night, but didn't go. 

Flashbacks. The sense of loss. Mourning. Praying. Trying to find my way.

Today, I am coming out of the funk. I am no longer just going through the motions. I am coming back to life. But, I still realize I have a lot of journaling to do. A lot, a lot, a lot. A lot. 

So, how do you journal through the tough stuff of life?

JOURNALING THROUGH THE TOUGH STUFF OF LIFE

When the unthinkable, unspeakable happens, first turn to God in prayer. Then, turn to God and pray in your journal, if you are a Christian. If you are not, turn to your journal anyway and do whatever spiritual thing that brings you comfort. 

How do you do this?

JOURNALING EXERCISE:

1 Grab your journal.

2 Write the time and date. 

3 Write what happened.

4 Throw-up on paper. Write everything, and I mean EVERY thing, that comes to mind. Put all the ugly stuff you have boiling up inside. Put it on the page so it doesn't have to spill forth on anything or anyone else. Get it out. Do this as long as it takes. Take minutes to hours to days to weeks or even months. Just make sure to get it all out and capture it on the page. 

How do you know when you get it all out? You don't feel like crying, smashing something, or yelling. You get to the point where you have a sense of peace--where you surely do not understand anything, but you can think clearly again. Keep throwing-up on paper until you get to this point. And, make sure to throw-up on paper again later if you feel like crying, smashing something, or yelling. 

5 When you come to the point that you feel a sense of peace and can think again, move to this step. Ask yourself what got to you so much? What caused the reaction in your? How did this impact you and why? Is there something you need to deal with? Did something from your past rise up and demand attention? Were you reminded of something? Spend a lot of time on this as wlel. Make sure to do lots of SOC (Stream of Consciousness) Journaling -where you write anything and everything that comes to mind. 

6 What emotions did you feel or are you feeling?

7 What keeps running through your mind?

8 What do you want to do in response? 

9 What should you do in response?

10 How has your life been changed because of this event?

11 What lessons have you learned?

12 What has God said to you through all of this?

13 What have you said to God? 

14 How can you help others through this--or a situation like this--now and/or later? 

15 What does this mean for your life in the future? How does this change things for you? 

16 Write a summary. 

17 Anything else you want to journal about regarding this situation. 

Do all of that and you will start to heal. 

~ Stacy Duplease

(Image Credit: Stacy Duplease.)

Prayer Warrior Beware: Obstacles, Prayer-Giveuppers, and Prayer-Nevergiveuppers

It never fails.

Why, of course, this happens! Sigh.

The moment you make the commitment to the Lord to drastically change your prayer life, you will be hit with obstacles. It never fails. Some are self-inflicted (by accident or intentional). Some of them are just life. Things happen. Some are caused by the enemy. And others are test from God to see if we are going to be faithful. But, the cause of the obstacles does not matter at all. (Re-read the previous sentence as many times as necessary until it sinks in and becomes truth in your heart and mind.) 

Instead, what matters is what you do with those obstacles.

Are you going to get upset with God--or just upset in general? 

Or are you going to dig in an pray even harder, far longer, and grow determined in prayer? That is the question. This is what sets apart the prayer-giveuppers and the prayer-nevergiveuppers.

Be a prayer warrior! Dig in. Never give-up. Never. There are souls at stake.

Stacy Duplease
Prayer Warrior and Faithful Writer
USAGC 2026

(Photo from Microsoft Clipart)

Prayer Warrior Beware: Obstacles, Prayer-Giveuppers, and Prayer-Nevergiveuppers

It never fails.

Why, of course, this happens! Sigh.

The moment you make the commitment to the Lord to drastically change your prayer life, you will be hit with obstacles. It never fails. Some are self-inflicted (by accident or intentional). Some of them are just life. Things happen. Some are caused by the enemy. And others are test from God to see if we are going to be faithful. But, the cause of the obstacles does not matter at all. (Re-read the previous sentence as many times as necessary until it sinks in and becomes truth in your heart and mind.) 

Instead, what matters is what you do with those obstacles.

Are you going to get upset with God--or just upset in general? 

Or are you going to dig in an pray even harder, far longer, and grow determined in prayer? That is the question. This is what sets apart the prayer-giveuppers and the prayer-nevergiveuppers.

Be a prayer warrior! Dig in. Never give-up. Never. There are souls at stake.