"As I sought God’s Word, I realized I couldn’t trust my anxious thoughts. They were not mine. That’s why I needed someone outside myself to recite the truth to me. God told me through His word over and over: 'You are loved. You are mine. My hand is on you.'” ~Christina Hubbard Anxiety is an often insideous and debilitating monster. I have always struggled with it, but having children ramped up my struggle. I became obsessed with fretting over something happening to my kids and grieved many tragedies that never happended. Taking a self-imposed journey through scripture has done so much to alleviate my worry and to remind me that God has me in the palm of His hand....and He holds my children as well. A new series about anxiety is beginning September 7th. Lisa from Community Moms, Angel from Vision61 Ministries, and I will be hosting several different writers to share with you about their own struggle with anxiety. Together we can bring into the Light what causes so much darkness and begin a journey of healing. To read the rest of Christian's story, click HERE. I hope you'll join us in this series! ~Mandy
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There comes a time when we each have to decide for ourselves...what's most important? This life isn't all there is. Let's just bust right outta the gate with it. This life that consumes us 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year...it seems like it's the MOST important thing when we're smack dab in the middle of it, but when we get a chance to step back and catch our breath, we see that it's just like Solomon said: I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind." Ecclesiastes 1:14 Everything we know now seems so important, and much of it is, for sure, but...BUT...so much of it isn't and that tends to be what we put at the forefront of our lives. What if I told you that all this...this life...is only a blip on the screen and will all be gone one day in a blink? What if I told you that there is a battle that we can't see with our eyes, but is storming our planet? What if I told you that you are POWERFUL? What if I told you that you are IMPORTANT? What if I told you that you are WANTED? Because you are... God doesn't need us. No. He wants us and He calls us. We are not victims. We are overcomers and victors through Christ. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." Romans 8:37 Are you powerful? Yes. Are you important? Yes. Are you wanted? Yes. You are ALL of those things through Jesus. It's through HIS power that we are powerful. It's through HIS importance that we are important and it's because HE wants us that we are wanted. And He has a job for us. Our job, which He has uniquely qualified and equipped us for, is to tell the world about Him. That's it. What I didn't get for a long time is that my life isn't about coasting through my time on this planet, but it's to have a mission and see it through. The misson? To be bold and fearless in the face of an enemy who wants nothing more than to squash and derail me. Are you on the fence? Take a listen to this amazing song by Hillsong United. There is so much truth in that we don't truly find our life until we lay it down. And we don't touch the sky until our knees hit the ground. So join me. Let's be a generation of people who stand up in the face of those who want nothing more than to silence us and distract us. Let this be a generation who stands together, fearless, yet with knees shaking and voices quivering, and trust Him who told us not to fear. And of this chapter of history on earth, may the Lord title it in the Heavenly annals: And They All Stood Up. God speaks to me. And, no, it's not something I hear with my ears. Instead, He presses things on my heart or places a "theme" in front me so that I can't miss it. Right now, that theme is all about being quick to HEAR and OBEY. I feel like I am finally HEARING Him. I'm open to what He has to say and I am also (finally) ready to take a step forward in obedience. I don't want to be like the man who told Jesus he was ready to follow Him, but first he had to bury his father. Commentary tells us that the man's father was most likely still alive and well, and the man was really saying, "I'll follow you, Jesus.....in a while. After I've seen my father grow old and he passes, then I'll follow you." That man had no way of knowing that Jesus didn't have that long on the earth, and he would miss his opportunity to follow-through on his word to Jesus. When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Did you catch the details about both men mentioned here? One was a "disciple" and the other was a "teacher of the law." These were men who were educated in the Jewish culture.
The man who wanted to bury his father gave a very respectable answer as to why he was waiting to follow Jesus. It was expected that the son would care for his father through his old age and/or until he died. His reservations and reason for delaying, while accepted and commendable from the viewpoint of his family and within his culture, was unacceptable to Jesus. I think we need to ask ourselves what is holding us back from stepping forward and walking with Jesus. Is our reason for delaying one that feels good to us? Does it seem respectable and righteous? Can we list a hundred thousand reasons why we CAN'T follow "yet"? I don't profess to know everything about the Lord, but one thing I do know is that when He calls, we MUST answer, and we MUST obey. Can He do it without us. Oh yes! He created the world and all that's in it without my help, but by golly when He allows me the privilege of being a part of His methods and His plan for the world, I want to jump and grab ahold of the opportunity with both hands. Even when it's hard. Even when it's scary. Even when everything else in my life screams all the reasons why I shouldn't or couldn't. He will not call us without a plan ready to go (even if we can't see it). He will not call us without providing every single thing we need to do the job and do it well. So, why are you holding back? Do you HEAR Him calling? And if so, what's your answer? |
Mandy is:Wife to 1. Mom to 6. Lovin' Jesus. Living' Life. Laughin' at the craziness of it all. Archives
September 2017
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Mandy Pagano