God has been doing quite a work in my life lately. I can hardly articulate what it means right now, but I thought that getting it out here might connect with someone out there and maybe someone would have some thoughts.
The best way I know how to describe what has been happening is to say that God has been pruning me; Pruning my character, my marriage, my health, my knowledge and discernment, even my career path. I have so many emotions running around in my cluttered brain that I can hardly contain my excitement, frustrations, and fervor for the Lord. As many of you can probably relate, when God prunes, it is sort of painful. It is beautiful, but also a painful process of weeding out the negativity, the bad parts of my character, bad habits, anything that surfaces as a distraction from intimacy with God.
Right now I'm learning so much about being thankful. In the days of my pruning, I certainly don't feel like being thankful. I feel like complaining. I feel like giving up a little bit. But the Lord commands us to "let the message of Christ dwell among (us) richly as (we) teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in (our) hearts" (Col. 3:16). I find myself encountering the idea of peace and thankfulness in my time spent in the Word and can't help but think God is whispering to my spirit and washing me these beautiful fruits even in times when my sin seems so ugly.
Recently, I have been think a lot about social justice, community, apostleship, discipleship, The Great Commission, and how my gifting corresponds with all of it. These are just thoughts that I will probably go into more at some point on a more specific basis, but I might request that my brothers and sisters in Christ would pray for strength, peace, and discernment in these time of transition in my life.
"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe..." Ephesians 1:18-21
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