Robbed

A few days ago I was cleaning the kitchen and Eli asked me, "How come no robbers ever come to our house?" The part of this question that got me was that he seemed genuinely disappointed that no robbers had been to our house. He had been watching Dennis the Menace's cool attack on some robbers and I guess he wanted the same opportunity. I had to laugh and assure him it was a good thing that we haven't had any robbers stop by. I also had to laugh at the idea that we own anything that people would be willing to risk their freedom and safety to break in and steal. Remember, we can't have nice things.

I thought about it some more and felt like God began showing me the things in my home that are of real value. And they are things that can't be stolen. At least not by robbers. Our health, our joy, our love. I felt very secure in those things and then the more I thought about them the more I realized there is an even greater enemy who wants to steal those precious things. And there is only one true Source of security. John 10:10 tells us, "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

There are so many things I have tried to place my security in. My family, my reputation, my friends, my material possessions. Regardless of how good any of those are, they all have failed. I've lost loved ones, just as we all will. I've moved and left behind the security of familiar places and faces. Friendships change. My material possessions-again, I have 3 kids. I've totally given up on having anything valuable for the next, oh 35 years. :) I've learned that my only true security is in Jesus Christ and the promise He gave me that I "may have life and have it more abundantly." I know that this promise is one that will be kept, as I have accepted His offer for eternal life. I also know that the abundant life He promised will have it's challenges here on this earth.

Sometimes it hits me that I am the preacher's wife and there are people who assume I have it all together. Just for the record, I don't. To be completely honest, I don't know that I have ever struggled as much spiritually as I have since becoming the preacher's wife. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that it is an extremely important role. At times I don't take it as seriously as I should and God does not let me get away with it for long. When you ask Him to show you who you really are and the changes that need to take place in your life, be ready!

I am uncovering those things that rob me. Not of crystal vases or our awesome DVD collection. :) Those things that rob me of love, joy, peace, purpose, and faithfulness. Here is what I am learning.

1. Doubt-The enemy loves nothing more than to sneak in and plant doubts. Tiny doubts. Nothing big that would make you think it's totally crazy. Little doubts. "Does God really care about this? About me?" "Is serving Him really worth it?"

2. Comparison-There is no way to feel secure when you constantly compare yourself to other people. I speak from great experience here. There is no way to feel joy or peace when you are constantly striving to be someone you are not created to be. You definitely cannot fulfill your purpose if you are striving to be someone else instead of striving to be who God wants you to be.

3. Discontentment-This is a tricky one. There are times we should be discontent. With ourselves, with certain situations and circumstances. If there are changes that can be made, maybe it means you are supposed to make them. But, there are always those things in our lives that do not offer an alternative route. There are places, physically and spiritually, that God doesn't want you to find your way out of. There is a time of growing that can only happen in that space you are trying to wiggle out of. (BTW, I am pretty sure that my heavenly nickname is Wiggle Worm.)

4. Fear- I know so many church leaders who use fear as a motivator and it makes me LIVID! Let's face it, it is easier to scare people than to give God time to work on their hearts and change them right? I am not a fan of fear, but I am a participator in it's practice. Some fear is natural. Much of it is taught. Children don't know to be afraid of strangers until we teach them to be. Like discontentment, we have to learn to put fear in it's place. I used to think the only thing I was afraid of was snakes. I went to a Beth Moore conference and she had us make a list of things we feared. I ended up spending days on that list. I realized there was so much fear inside of me. Fear of failure, fear of disappointing others, fear of not being good enough. I could go on and on. Has fear robbed you of any of the blessings God has put in your life?

5. Busyness-I have always been busy. As far back as I can remember I liked to be going. I was in dance, girl scouts, played ball. I don't know how my Mama kept her head on straight getting me to all of those places all of the time. I stayed busy until I got into college. Then, I stopped. Like for real, did nothing other than what was absolutely required of me. That was because I was depressed and a lot of that had to do with years of busyness. You see, I think it is good to be involved and to be active. It's definitely not good to drop out of life. But I had to learn balance. It was one thing to be busy as a little girl who wanted to do what her friends were doing. It became something else when being busy was a way to not deal with real life. It is hard in our world today to not be busy. I can always tell when I've gotten too busy because I start feeling robbed. My peace and joy turn into exhaustion and frustration. Instead of feeling self-controlled I feel out of control. I usually don't even realize I've been too busy until life settles down and I'm alone crying about something that happened two weeks or two years ago. Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know that I am God." This is God's way of saying "Don't panic! I'm still God, I'm still in control." When we can't be still because it is too hard or painful to think, we've been robbed of knowing God is still in control.

There is no security in this world. None. There is war, death, kidnappings, financial ruins, and political unrest all around us. I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but we can't hold hands and sing Kum Ba Ya and get out of this mess. Some people find it hard to believe in a God who would allow these things to exist. I am the opposite. If all of these things are happening, I can't make it without knowing there is a God! This is security:

"Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And your right hand shall hold me." Psalm 139:7-10