[ A note from Rebecca: This has to be one of my favorite messages from Melanie! Perfectly timely. ]
Father, you have enlarged my territory and I feel like “fight or flight” has kicked in. Most people think flight or fight is only in traumatic situations. But... A pastor once told me not to sabotage my success. I did not understand what she meant by that. Who would sabotage success? Everyone, including you, celebrates good news: Graduating school, getting married, having a baby, getting a job or a promotion, remission from cancer, even your dream of God's vision manifesting. While it is all so sweet a blessing, each situation I just mentioned is something you long for, something you work extremely hard to achieve yet they shift you. They shift your life in new directions. Enlarging the boundaries of responsibilities and accountability. Luke 12:48 states: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Did you just sigh, take a deep breathe of acknowledgement? I know you know what I mean, when I say that the moment the work is done, the celebration is over and you are left alone with the next season: New school, new job, new life with your family, new ministry it can make you almost panic and numb in fear. See, we are so focused of taking one day at a time, doing the next task to get to the goal. We often don’t think of what it would be like to have the thing we so desperately seek after. Unfortunately, we are misguided to thinking if I just get married, If I get that degree, if I get that job and make that much money. If I can only serve God in ministry each day every day…… Then we get it! God blesses our socks off, so to say and the reality, the weight of what was just given to us sets in. Not fear of oh no, but the fear of Oh My… God do you know who I am? Do you know my limitations, my weaknesses, my lack of knowledge to handle all this new responsibility? I tell you…YES HE DOES! God knows your weaknesses, He knows you are already over expended and weary, He knows you know little about the next level He just granted you. And guess what! God also knows the level of details, prayers, work, perseverance, focus and commitment it took for you to be able to achieve this goal. He knows that the very character and faith that He gave you to do this will be what gets you to succeed in the new season. God is constantly building us up through our time with Him, Bible studies, Fellowship with other believers, education, daily work. He already knows the plan He has for us. Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." The same faith and trust in God that got you from your last beginning to this new beginning is sure to cause you to succeed. See it is not your responsibility to make it work, but to do the work. God has all the provision, all the contacts and the time already assigned to you and me. It is our job to continue to seek Him daily in all the details. It is our job to in faith say yes to every step He directs us to take. When we stay before Him in the time of YES! Just as much as we did in the time of striving to achieve, we will see that there is no need to take flight. Rather, we ask God to help us fight the fear of His Goodness! Oh Lord give me the fight!
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