“Acknowledge Him in all you do, and He will make your paths straight.” -Proverbs 3:6
This is the verse I’ve heard over and over again this month.
God has been so incredibly faithful to me, even when I refuse to be faithful to Him. In times when I act in rebellion, He still loves me. Sometimes, I am disciplined by Jesus in a loving way, and sometimes He graciously saves me from the consequences of my sin.
With that being said, my heart has made shifts this year in regards to personal problem areas that I had no idea were problem areas to begin with. I don’t want to be in rebellion to Jesus anymore with these things; I want to honor the Lord in ALL I do – less so because I’m afraid of the consequences of my actions, but more so because I want to receive full blessings from the Lord and lead people to Him.
JESUS LOVES US – more than a father could ever love his child and more than we could ever imagine. His love is whole and completely perfect. He sees the big picture when we see “tunnel vision with blinders on” (my small group leader has been saying this as we read through Job last month). This Proverbs verse (mentioned above) has helped me seek the Lord, even when my faith in His plan for me is weak. It has helped me redirect my thinking with many things – I see more people who need love, I see quiet time with Jesus as such a blessing and a privilege in my life, and I see the simplicity in seeking God’s will so He can make the road clear and straight before me.
How can we continue to seek our own will and our own control when God tells us so clearly He’s got our lives in His hands if we just hand it over to him?
Easier said than done. It is HARD for me to give Jesus control of my life and hand him my fears and burdens. Over the last three years, I’ve asked the Lord countless times about many things, “Lord, what do I do?” His answer is always this: “Spend time with me.”
When I am obedient to this, he makes the path straight; my problems are taken care of in weird ways that I could never plan or imagine myself. This gives me peace and reliance on the Lord. This gives glory to Jesus because I have no room to brag – it’s ALL Him.
“What is left for us to brag about? Not a thing! And what is the reason for this? Is it that we obey the Law? No! It is because of faith.” -Romans 3:27
When my weakness (even in faith) is evident, this is when Jesus shows me how real and how full of love He is for me.
Over the last month, I’ve felt a change coming on in regards to my January Route. I felt no peace about it and began praying about a possible change. Within the last week and a half, I’ve felt such unrest about the route, that I couldn’t sleep. I know God is a God of Clarity and Peace, not a God of confusion. I continued praying and began looking into other routes. I felt called to ONE other route. I thought, “this is the route I feel called to, but as of right now it launches in October… it might get pushed back to January.. but it might not…” My heart was open to whatever route God was calling me on, even if it wasn’t this one. But more so, I knew quite quickly He was shutting the door on my original route. As I prayed about which new route to take, I felt a peace about this ONE new route – it was similar to my initial route in that it was largely focused in South America and Southeast Asia, HOWEVER this new route is a significantly larger squad, and within each country we have ministry host partners whom we partner with in our missionary work. All of this gave me peace, even though I would possibly be leaving sooner.
This is the verse I’ve heard over and over again this month.
God has been so incredibly faithful to me, even when I refuse to be faithful to Him. In times when I act in rebellion, He still loves me. Sometimes, I am disciplined by Jesus in a loving way, and sometimes He graciously saves me from the consequences of my sin.
With that being said, my heart has made shifts this year in regards to personal problem areas that I had no idea were problem areas to begin with. I don’t want to be in rebellion to Jesus anymore with these things; I want to honor the Lord in ALL I do – less so because I’m afraid of the consequences of my actions, but more so because I want to receive full blessings from the Lord and lead people to Him.
JESUS LOVES US – more than a father could ever love his child and more than we could ever imagine. His love is whole and completely perfect. He sees the big picture when we see “tunnel vision with blinders on” (my small group leader has been saying this as we read through Job last month). This Proverbs verse (mentioned above) has helped me seek the Lord, even when my faith in His plan for me is weak. It has helped me redirect my thinking with many things – I see more people who need love, I see quiet time with Jesus as such a blessing and a privilege in my life, and I see the simplicity in seeking God’s will so He can make the road clear and straight before me.
How can we continue to seek our own will and our own control when God tells us so clearly He’s got our lives in His hands if we just hand it over to him?
Easier said than done. It is HARD for me to give Jesus control of my life and hand him my fears and burdens. Over the last three years, I’ve asked the Lord countless times about many things, “Lord, what do I do?” His answer is always this: “Spend time with me.”
When I am obedient to this, he makes the path straight; my problems are taken care of in weird ways that I could never plan or imagine myself. This gives me peace and reliance on the Lord. This gives glory to Jesus because I have no room to brag – it’s ALL Him.
“What is left for us to brag about? Not a thing! And what is the reason for this? Is it that we obey the Law? No! It is because of faith.” -Romans 3:27
When my weakness (even in faith) is evident, this is when Jesus shows me how real and how full of love He is for me.
Over the last month, I’ve felt a change coming on in regards to my January Route. I felt no peace about it and began praying about a possible change. Within the last week and a half, I’ve felt such unrest about the route, that I couldn’t sleep. I know God is a God of Clarity and Peace, not a God of confusion. I continued praying and began looking into other routes. I felt called to ONE other route. I thought, “this is the route I feel called to, but as of right now it launches in October… it might get pushed back to January.. but it might not…” My heart was open to whatever route God was calling me on, even if it wasn’t this one. But more so, I knew quite quickly He was shutting the door on my original route. As I prayed about which new route to take, I felt a peace about this ONE new route – it was similar to my initial route in that it was largely focused in South America and Southeast Asia, HOWEVER this new route is a significantly larger squad, and within each country we have ministry host partners whom we partner with in our missionary work. All of this gave me peace, even though I would possibly be leaving sooner.
I was told to seek counsel on this, and in doing so, received an abundance of confirmation about making the change, I quickly set up a call with my advisor, all within 24 hours.
Half an hour before my appointment with my advisor, I received an email from the World Race info team stating that they were NOT going to delay the October route to January, but instead were going to launch domestically in October, then internationally in January: Central America (starting in Guatemala), South America (starting in Ecuador) and Southeast Asia (starting in Thailand).
While reading this, I was initially flooded with many anxious thoughts – how could I prepare to leave so quickly and close the door on my home here in Austin? Could I leave my family and friends earlier than expected and on such short notice if I chose this route?
Shortly after, it was time for my appointment with my advisor about the possible route change. He told me I could switch to the October route, but I’d have to make my decision before the deadline – which was exactly one week away. I got off the phone, prayed, and called my wise counsel of my family and friends who had been praying for me about the change. I was frazzled and speaking at a million miles an hour, knowing I had to make this important decision – one that would affect the rest of my life in so many ways – in one week’s time.
But despite this excitement and anxiousness, I still felt weirdly at peace.
I just kept hearing what I had heard all month: “Acknowledge me in all you do, and I will make your paths straight.”
I kept praying God’s will over my decision, and bit by bit in a matter of 3 days, I received confirmation after confirmation. Yesterday, I officially committed to the new route for October!
Even though this route launch is sooner and not what I had expected at all, I know the Lord’s plan and power is greater than my fears and anxieties
My plan: I am placing the preparation and funding in the Lord’s hands, and trying to listen and be obedient to what he is asking of me each day. He will make the way straight before me if I continue to seek His will.
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Victoria!!! You are a rockstar!! Wow, I’m so encouraged to hear your heart for God and your faith!! You are courageous and powerful! I’m so grateful God switched you to MY ROUTE & overjoyed to get to do this wild adventure with you!!!!! Your squadmate, Lucy!
Victoria ! I absolutely love you ! The big sister I never had.
Cannot wait to see over the course of this next year how God uses your beautiful soul to be such a presence for Him in the lives of many!