I planned to blog once a month last year...I made 9 out of 12. Am I beating myself up over it? No, I’m thankful I started. I got farther than I would have if I hadn’t, but more importantly than writing about it, I’m thankful that I lived a Presence Led Life last year, and am farther along in my pursuit of it than I was a year ago.
I’ve lived a lot of my life driven...driven by my needs, driven by others needs...always wanting to be available to everyone all the time. Don’t get me wrong, the Christian life is a “die to self” life, that loses a life to find one. It’s so much more fulfilling to live for others than yourself, but thus enters the word called balance. I used to despise that word because I equated it with compromise, but I’m ever growing and learning (even at 65) that God has created all things to be “beautiful in His time”. To lead a spirit-directed life, we have to wait on God’s timing for some things, and not rush to just meet needs. Sometimes we circumvent God’s powerful provision by setting ourselves up as God. Sometimes we give so much out of time, that we don’t have the energy when He asks us to give Him some time.
I’ve learned most of my lessons in life the hard way. I’m realizing how much I’ve done in life with a really great heart, but sometimes born in my own strength. That’s where this PRESENCE-LED life is giving me such joy. It’s not to say that I never lived this way before, but I’m being more intentional now...having more conversations with the Guide Inside to assure me that I’m in the flow of the spirit. I’m taking time to be FILLED, so I’m ready to SPILL.
This year, as the door of 2017 opened, I was running behind...we celebrated Christmas late as a family. We had guests in throughout the holidays and I just plain wasn’t ready for the new year yet. I was still enjoying and celebrating the old. The time I normally take to reflect and celebrate my new birth which happened on December 31, 1971 came and went without thought and most of you know I’m a master at celebrating birthdays! Truly this was a BIG ONE--45 years of knowing Him, walking with God, living my NEW CREATION life! I still revel in the miracle of Him drawing me out of such darkness to Him and then His keeping power! WOW!
I generally seek God each year for a word for the new year, and though I was running “late”, He was not. Early in December I received this ONE word...fluid. That’s it, fluid, like water, liquid, moving freely, creating a path, rather than planning one.
For a planner like me, that word could be scary, but if you know me at all, you know I also love to FLOW, and so I was drawn into the word and the year with great anticipation. I didn’t know then just how FLUID He meant! I won’t begin to list the daily happenings of my life since that day, but it will suffice to say it’s been a ride already, sometimes plans changing hourly, turning on a dime, keeping my heart flexible, being ok with change.
After all, it’s He who is in the lead. Psalms 24 says “the earth is the Lord’s and all who are in it. He has founded it upon the currents and the rivers...” Truly Christ is our solid rock, but we can’t hang on to our own plans, because there are currents and rivers changing now. What we CAN hang onto is Him, and THAT, my friends, is the presence-led life.