through goals i find renewed peace of mind

i think i would be safe in speaking for all my broadway bloggers that yesterday's message by pastor thorpe was quite life changing. that is if you let it be....(oh and if you were there of course :O) pastor thorpe has a special place in my family's heart. he's a been a family friend for years and a special person to my father in ministry. he is solid, dedicated, consistent, and absolutely loves the Lord. a man after my own heart. and i love that his favorite bible character is paul. he's mine too. oh wait, isn't he everyones'?
well, i don't want to give a second sermon or anything, but just wanted to share how perfectly timed this sermon was in my life. having direction can be life giving. setting goals gives peace because they set you up for purpose. this is something that i had lost site of. the reason? well, rich and i have endured a "season" that has lasted almost two years now. one that i don't mind saying, has almost made me loose my religion over (thankfully i don't rely on my religion.) but it's also sifted me and drawn me so much closer to my savior. i was thinking, even before his message, during the music part of the service, how much god loves me. even if we lived in a car and ate bread to survive, i really trust and feel that god loves me so much and that he'd never allow such things if it wasn't to sharpen my character & draw me closer to Him. and really, i should be thanking Him for trusting me with such trials. for wanting more from me so badly, that he'd allow circumstances to get me there. through all of this, it's been easy to get my eyes on me and the situation we're in and off my dreams and goals. when you're going through something difficult and you feel you're in a desert, it's easy to feel tired, weary, dry, and just void of all energy. but pastor thorpe reminded me that our dreams are what keep us alive. our why controls our what, when, how, and who. so even in a season that doesn't make sense, where there is no end in site, i can still have a reason to keep going. i had let my dreams go and it's time i got them back in focus.
he really challenged me to re-think what i want out of every area of life. hard times have pushed me into a dangerous habit of doing the same old, same old. i've felt out of control of my life and it's spinning so fast i don't know how to stop it. that's exactly what satan wants. he puts something out there, watches our reaction and if he gets what he wants, he does it again. so then i find myself making the same mistakes day in, day out, punishing myself for weakness, and never finding the strengh to stop the vicious cycle. well, the lord and i have been doing lots of talking and i can tell you, this message was straight from His heart to mine.
i really hope you felt as empowered as it was supposed to make you feel. if we know our value in christ and really believe we have a destiny of greatness, then we have healthy perspective and can move forward in His plans for us. if you feel weak and helpless, it's only because you are not "leaning your ladder against the right building" (taken from message). you'll find hope in His word. i encourage you to pray over psalm 84. God gave this portion of scripture to me thursday morning and it has blessed me so much. dissect it and pour over it till you find meaning and peace. it has been nourishment to my hungry soul and i know it can do the same for you.