Odds & Ends

Hello Everyone,
Thank you for stopping back by once more to catch up on the latest developments in my journey to freedom and wholeness. It means a great deal to me to know that you are out there. Whether I know you're reading this or not, just the fact that there are those who care means more to mean than you'll ever know.

Over the past few days, a number of people have shared that they've been encouraged or inspired by reading this blog. I'm grateful for your comments, but I want to make sure that I mention from time to time that I'm sharing my thoughts and my struggles, not to mention my victories, simply as a chronicle of my journey. I'm a broken vessel, being mended by a Potter whose hands are more delicate, more loving, and more wise than mine could ever be. He is doing a healing work in my life.

I continue to remind myself of His healing, especially in the days when I struggle most. When fears assail, doubts come along, and I'm tempted to doubt that I'll ever come out on the "other side", wherever that is, I have to cling to His promises that He is working all things together for my good. Where is the good in panic and anxiety? I suppose it's in drawing closer to HIM and depending on HIM to lead, guide and direct my path. Dropping long-held defense mechanisms is painful, and it feels at times like I'm being wrung out like a dishrag, but this is all part of His healing process in my life. For that, I must give Him praise.

Have you heard the Casting Crowns song, "Praise You in the Storm"? It talks about how the writer was sure by this point in time that God would have reached down, dried our tears, saved the day and let all the hurt end. But, He hasn't. During the storms of life, when we're struggling, THOSE are the times when it's hardest to raise our hands and praise the work that He's doing. He IS who He is, no matter where I am. Scripture and the song says He holds our tears in a bottle...I'm thinking by now mine might just be a five gallon barrel! But, ultimately, the writer ends with the line, "You've never let me down, and though my heart is torn, I'll praise You in this storm."

Well, friends, I have to tell you. There are times I just don't WANT to praise Him when life feels yucky, when I'm stressed out, when someone has said something mean or cut me down, or when the Tar Heels lose, or my oven catches on fire, or my floor is so water damaged you can scoop out the floorboards with a spoon, and especially when I'm driving home in the middle of the worst panic attack I've had in 15 years. BUT, those are the exact moments in time where I should praise Him. I believe that HE knows the plans He has for me, and that they are for GOOD, to give me HOPE and a FUTURE. So, Abba Father, Daddy, I'll praise you in this storm.

Celebrating Grace in the Journey,
Kara