The Next Thing

It was also just good to have the feeling of needing God.  I felt like I prayed a lot more simply because I knew I was going through something hard and God was the best solution.  I think that discovered the parallels between food and other earthly temptations.  I can't just give up food on my own.  I know that the only way to keep my stomach from growling is to pray.  I ask the Lord for help, for strength, to occupy my mind so I don't think about the hunger.  It helps me reverse the perspective of being hungry and instead start to be thankful.  It got me thinking that if this works with food, why wouldn't it work with any other type of earthly desire.  Sex? Money? Power?  All of those things are something that very easy take hold of my heart and steer it.  Instead of giving in or feeling like it's too hard, all I have to do is exactly what I did today.  Just ask for help.  It's so stupidly simple, but it has to be genuine and it isn't easy to give those things up.  God will bring you through it, not you.  Not your will power, not your self-control, God will empower you.  Have faith and try for yourself!

These chapters are about John’s vision of Jesus coming to him and laying out exactly what will happen when justice comes to earth.  Each prophesy is full of serious emotion.  There’s definitely no gray area when Jesus talks about how it’s going to be.  Our God is consistent even with his punishments.  The time for grace will have passed when that reckoning day comes and those who are evil will be punished.  It’s definitely scary to see that side of God.  We often portray him as a gentle lamb, and so caring and loving.  Which he is, but I think it’s good to be reminded that God also stands by his word and has a zero-tolerance policy for sin.  There can be no room for it when you’re in a relationship with him. 

Mere Christianity - C.S. Lewis

It's such an easy process that literally any person could do it.  The problem comes in that so many of us are scared of what other people will think.  Our friends will think we're crazy and obsessed with whatever we're chasing.  Why is this considered to be such a negative thing?  How we do we deceive ourselves to believe that sacrificing a little bit of our image for a short time is not worth achieving our long term goals?  We allow ourselves to delay our habits of discipline thinking that we have "earned" a break, when really all we've done is simply given ourselves permission to be lazy.  It's something that I find recurring in my life from job to job or new hobby in life. I still haven't learned how to sacrifice the short term for the long term.  I'm curious to know how these people like Rich Froning, Mark Cuban, and bands like the Beatles really worked out the day to day grind of slow progress and pain to achieve such huge success.  How crazy wold it be if we were disciplined in this way with our walk with God?  How transformed could we be if we just let our small habits dictate our actions and our long term goals kept us on track to maintain the level of consistency that Jesus showed throughout his entire life?

Fortunately, my mom knows that there is no way it was luck and reminded me that God has definitely shown favor on me.  I had to stop and realize what I had just done.  I had taken away the credit from God and basically let myself believe that it wasn't supposed to happen, like an accident.  It's so difficult for to say those words that I am blessed.  Sometimes I feel so insecure about it because it sounds so cheesy.  It's definitely a pride thing and basically not wanting people to think I'm weird.  The truth is I've learned that doing things that are difficult or uncomfortable are often times the very things that help me grow and be successful.  Lesson learned for sure.  God is good, especially to me.  I need to recognize the source of my success and give my thanks back to him.  

That's earthly relationships.  Today in church I realized that the nice thing about having a relationship with God is that that risk is never there.  It's not possible for it to even exist.  We never have to fear that God will leave you or that his side of the relationship will stop.  It's eternal and constant.  You can pour out as much as you like and never have the fear that one day he might leave.   It's so comforting to know isn't it?  Even though nothing on earth will ever be consistent like this, we have the opportunity as followers of Christ to have access to this awesome relationship.  A place where we can always go to find riskless love.

Sure doesn't.  I'm not saying we should just always go with our first instinct, rush into a situation and then hope that God can sort it out once we've charged in.  What I am trying to explain is that making a decision also has a lot to do with trusting God.  If you really believe that God will not give you more than you can handle then whatever decision you make will be turn out ok.  This doesn't mean you'll always make the right decision, but the consequences won't be more than you can handle either.  So whether you're faced with a decision to go to college, start a new job, leave a job, buy a house, start a relationship, just remember that because of God's love we will be able to carry on with our final decision.  If the consequence is bad, then we can learn from it.  If it's good, then we can thank God for it and look for our next decision.  Don't over think it.  You may spend so much time looking for the right answer that you step right on top of the actual answer you should be seeking.  

Well yesterday I got to see firsthand why his real estate company has done nothing but grow for the past five years.  I took one of Pat's clients out to take a second look at a house in preparation to make an offer.  This client liked the house pretty well the previous day so I didn't think there would be any surprises and we could get the offer in that day.  When we entered the house, he was very unsure and basically had an opposite opinion of the house.  Pat met up with us later and could tell he something was up so he just asked him what was going on.  Our client explained some family issues that were happening and all of those events were affecting his idea of the house.  So it turns out, it wasn't really the house that he was against, it was underlying consequences that may have happened if he decided to purchase that house.  I never would have caught that, because to me it just seemed like he suddenly didn't like the house for no reason.  Pat just continued to listen and explain that buying a house was definitely secondary to straightening out our client's other family issues.  At the end of the day, our client thanked both of us and then told Pat, "You're a good friend, Pat.  Thank you."  It was then that I realized how much Pat really did care about his clients.  Does he want to make money and get people to buy and sell houses?  Of course he does, but more importantly he's willing to take the time and build up relationships to the point that he can look beyond numbers and dollar signs and not pressure people.  It's a skill that's tough to master, but I'm glad I'm learning from Pat.  He's truly customer and relationship focused instead of only caring about what he can gain.  Thanks for being a great model, Pat!

What she explained to me tonight was that God looks at the way we do our jobs in a way that is completely foreign to our minds.  He doesn't compare our job to our neighbors, or what rung on the corporate ladder we are on.  He only cares about doing HIS work at this moment.  Maybe that doesn't look like much to the world, but it's exactly what we should be doing at this point in time.  My sister reminded me that we have to focus on continually seeking out a way to show God to other people at whatever speed that may be.  It was definitely a relief and a reminder that I don't have to measure up to anyone else's standard but God's.  There's no need to try to copy someone else's path to success, because everyone's will be different.  It really takes away all the anxiousness when you realize that you're already doing enough.  

I know he's looking out for me in so many areas of my life.  It's been a lot of fun looking for ways that He's blessed me.  Today, I had to get an IL driver's license.  I did it on my way into the city and stopped at a DMV in Cicero.  There was a preliminary line before getting to the actual waiting room where they would check to make sure you had all the documentation needed for the purpose of your visit.  I was there to take a written test and get a new license.  As soon as I got to the front, a lady yelled, "No more written tests!"  Fortunately, the guy who was checking my documents asked if she would take me because I was standing right here in line.  She agreed and actually let several other people go through the line as well.  It's little things like that where I see God's favor in my life.  It's so fun and encouraging to see how He's working and looking after me.  How has God shown favor to you?

The above picture is a map of places I've taken one client.  It's been so busy recently...and I love it!  This job is so interesting and really goes well with everything that I like.  You have to be ready at a moment's notice to set up an appointment and run out the door.  You go through times of feeling like you have a pretty free day and then 30 minutes later you are booked until 8:00.  It's so spontaneous which I really like.  Anyone who knew me in college knows that I was always the one ready to go out at 10:00 at night and go to Waffle House to get an All-Star Special, or go downtown to go hear some random band play.  I was always willing to go anywhere with anyone just, because it was spur-of-the-moment and new. I'm so thankful God gave me this opportunity to have a job that fits perfectly with what recharges me.  My job is to be around people, get to know them, and help them find something.  It's so rewarding to me to help someone get something and then feel really satisfied with what they have. It's not just rewarding, but it also gets me excited.  It makes the job so fun to think before every house that this could be the one.  It's like a treasure hunt and I get to experience the adventure with them.  I'm so glad that I'm doing something I love.  God knows me so well and it's easy to see how much he cares for me because of how much favor he's showing me.  So thankful!

All I can think about right now is riding this around Dalmaji Gil.

So I've been thinking a lot about when I sold books.  I'm trying to recreate those strict habits I had during those three summers.  It's crazy to remember how intentional I was about controlling my thoughts during those summers.  I got a fortune cookie today that said, "Use your abilities at this time to stay focused on your goal.  You will succeed."  It was a good reminder to review my goals often.  That's something we do when we sell books.  We reset our focus often so that we are always thinking about making choices that help us reach our goals.  It keeps our minds from worrying, it helps us take small steps in the right direction, and it helps you appreciate the success once you get there.  We used to have a saying that helped us take action when we were in a rut.  If ever we were nervous about knocking on a door because the dad looked mean (they all did), or maybe there was a crazy dog that was barking in the yard.  We would let action cure our fears and just say, "No time is a good time, so now is the best time."  Then we'd jump out of car and go for it. Controlling our thoughts are the easiest ways to stay on track and reach our goals.  You have to be intentional which takes a lot of effort, but isn't it worth it to reach our goals faster?  Why are you delaying your own success?  I would encourage everyone to think of that thing you're not doing and do it now.  Why wait?