Yesterday, my husband and I drove to
the top of Pillar Mountain – a trip we’ve made dozens of times. This time, however,
we decided to drive on a new section of dirt road that was built when they were
installing wind turbines a few years ago. We always go on the original road
because it has a great view of town and the surrounding islands, but we decided to be adventurous.
It was a beautiful day and it was cool to
see the view from a different vantage point. This morning as I was posting a
photo from that trip up the mountain, I realized that I need a different
vantage point in my life…a new perspective on things.
The past few months have been some of
the most stressful of my life and I haven’t coped very well. I have allowed
circumstances to dictate my emotional well-being and I don’t want to allow
outside influences to have such a profound effect on me. I want to be rooted
and grounded in God’s love and in His opinions of me. (“See how very
much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” I John 3:1)
To be grounded is “to place on a
foundation; fix firmly; settle or establish.” Grounded is a verb that needs an
object…in this case, God. I want to be fixed firmly and established in God’s
love. His Word says that we should let
our roots "grow down into God's love and keep you strong.” (Ephesians
3:17)
And so, my prayer is that I would be able to discern what I need to
learn in the midst of stressful situations and grow from my adversities. Always
mindful that God’s strength is made perfect in my weakness: "‘My grace is
sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will
boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest
on me.” (II Corinthians 12:9)
Imagine the
stability that comes from being grounded in His power and love.
Dear Candy,
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I have seen your blogspot. Tom just discovered it and shared it with me. I am touched by your honest and heart-felt sharing.
I am sorry you are going through such a stressful time, and I am praying that you will find complete rest and peace in your trust of God. You are His beloved child, and you know a lot about what that means, because you are a mother. You also trust in the promises of His
Word. You ARE grounded in His love.
BUT, a major MOVE at any stage of life is unsettling, to say the least. Waiting for a long time for your possessions to arrive from Alaska must have been hard, as well as leaving behind friends and ministry in which you and Gary had invested so much of your lives.
I don't have all the answers for dealing with stress and depression, but I do know that God is faithful and never leaves us during those times, even if we feel abandoned. Know that I am praying for you and love you, Candy, and am here for you, if I can help in any way.
Marty
Candy
ReplyDeleteSorry for any confusion, it was just after Marty responded that we noticed that you wrote your message in 2016. We have a hard time keeping up with all the modes of communication, And Googleis partly to blame; your message just appeared in my Gmail in-box.
Tom