God has been teaching me a very important lesson lately. I have been having a really hard time with a couple of relationships in my life. I have really been trying to hand them over the Lord so that the negativity does not impact my everyday life and so that I can actually get things done instead of focusing/stressing about them all the time. In one of my Bible studies we are studying Ecclesiastes. Last week we discussed chapter 6. Solomon (author of Ecclesiastes) wrote about riches without enjoyment in verses 1-6. His point was the no one can truly enjoy the gifts of God without God and to enjoy without God is idolatry. This led to a discussion about idols in our lives. Most of the usual idols were discussed, then one girls talked about how some relationships in her life can be idols. This got me to thinking about a few of my relationships, namely the ones mentioned earlier. An idol is something that has negative energy and does not bring glory to God. These relationships had become idols in my life. I was putting all this energy into them, but it was negative energy, apart from God, and I was exhausted. I had really given up all hope on these relationships. Then another friend said that if we truly believe God to be all powerful and all loving then we have to believe that he can restore broken relationships as well (she was talking about friends who recently separated, but it applies here too). Our God is a God of hope, I have to believe that there is hope in these relationships being restored. I need to put my trust in him and not others. Through him all things are possible. Mark9:23- "...Everything is possible for him who believes." The other thing He has been teaching me lately about this relationship is that we are to return blessings for insults. No matter how often they hurt me or insult me I still have to love them and bless them. 1Peter3:9- "Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." Please pray with me that I can be a blessing to those who hurt me and that the Lord will help me to love them and forgive them through his strength, not my own!!
In other news...we start our homestudy tomorrow!!!!!! I have been long awaiting this day and am so excited!!
Also, I leave for Uganda in 10 days!!! It is getting so so close! Thank you to everyone who has supported us!! If you have anything you would like to donate (books, cloth diapers, baby tylenol) let me know! Also, if you have any long skirts/ dresses that you would like to donate that would be much appreciated as well!!
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