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OK, you’ve finally taken the plunge... You tore the picture of that cute new hairstyle out of the magazine and bravely took it to your stylist. After way too much hair lands on the floor, she spins you around and... Wow! She did an awesome job and you can’t believe how fabulous you look! The next morning you go to church (feeling pretty darn confident) and you're greeted by a sweet sister in the Lord who, with furrowed brow says, “Oh my, you cut your hair... pause... what made you do that?” Just that quickly, you’ve gone from feeling like a much improved, pretty woman, to an insecure ugly duckling. You’ve just handed over your confidence to that sweet sister.
You’re having an especially fun time coloring with your little one at the coffee table in the family room. You take just a minute to quickly go around the corner to check on dinner, come right back in, and find your little darlin’... has turned your long-saved-for new couch into a colorful mural. Just that quickly, you’ve gone from happy mama to furious, raving lunatic mama. You’ve just handed over your peace to your little one.
Handing
over power to others is so easy... it’s our natural
response. Choosing to take control of
our emotions and not allowing them to be controlled by others can make for an
extreme mental struggle. So what do we do? Here are a few suggestions:
1. It takes a lot of practice and reliance on our patient and powerful Lord.
2. Ask
God to help you become extremely aware
of your thoughts.
3. Ask Him to help you to stop allowing others to determine how you feel.
4. When you find yourself becoming angry or aggravated
at someone, ask God to help you choose
to think as He would.
a. If someone inferred that His new
hairstyle wasn’t such a great look, would He hand over His confidence and
feelings of worth?
b. If He found your little darlin’
coloring all over His new throne, would He hand over His peace and become a
raving lunatic? (No disrespect intended.)
It’s sounds nuts, but it’s exactly the kind of thing we might
find ourselves doing!
5. The next time you find yourself saying “She
makes me so mad!” stop and remind yourself that she can make you mad only if you choose to give her the power
to make you mad.
6. We must choose to surrender our thoughts to
Him moment by moment.
7. Commit Philippians 4:8-9 to memory.
8. Be proactive: make a written list of true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy things. Be specific.
9. When you find your emotions drifting out of control, pull out your list and meditate on it and "the God of peace will be with you."
"8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure,whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice.
And the God of peace will be with you."
And the God of peace will be with you."
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Living in His grace!
Mary
I sometimes link with these delightful ladies!
