Season of Change - My God My Everything

“Come with me….I have a new chapter to write in your life. Let’s Go! – God

That’s a beautiful invitation and one that I want to send an R.S.V. P. of yes to. Not only is He inviting me, but He is preparing me. My recent bible studies have all been about the season of change and counting the cost of accepting that invitation. An example of one is from the daily devotional, “Come with me” by Suzanne Eller called Harder paths.

“Jesus is approached by those who desire to join His team. Jesus reminds the first that following Him isn’t a road of comfort. Loving Jesus is an amazing adventure, but it’s not without cost. Faith is joy and sacrifice. We climb spiritual hills that take our breath away. We lift our hands in adoration. We experience moments of glory. We do hard things. We climb out of our comfort zone. We forgive. We believe His Word is true, even as we wait for an answer. Faith is sweet dependence on Jesus. It’s familiarity. In the harder paths, He shows us where to go and what to do. We count the cost and know it’s worth it. The price Jesus paid is far more than we’ll ever invest.”

I have had a new zest in my heart ever since the biopsy. I’m so blessed to be healed and whole. The outcome could have been so different and I don’t want to waste what I’ve been given. I want to love life! To dance, to laugh, to take chances to try something new. He told me to “Live well ……Live blessed.” With the invitation accepted I’ve made the decision to move forward and that was like sounding a trumpet for the enemy. Suddenly challenges began to bombard me and my commitment was instantly tested again and again.

At work a coworker whom I’ve worked with for over 15 years was going to retire. She is like a mother to me and we have shared life experiences, job changes, joys, health issue, family and so much more. It’s like a part of me will be missing. She has been a security on the job. We both have felt that we’ve always had each other’s back and now, she’ll be gone and it will all be up to me.

The office is making marketing changes as well as overall staffing changes and as the manager, it’s up to me to make sure the transition goes well, that new strategies are implemented and hopefully will bring the desired results. There will be conferences to attend in Las Vegas, meeting with corporate executives, staff to hire and in the meantime continue with the daily office functions and most of all servicing our clients. Change is coming, ready or not.

Everything at work felt overwhelming. Deep down I knew it was the right time for the changes, all of which had been discussed for months, but now it was really happening. I kept praying that God would help me hire the right people and that He would give me wisdom for learning the new technology and implementing all the changes. In response to my prayers I kept hearing, “with God all things are possible.”

As I was reviewing my prayer journal about the pending office changes, I was so touched to see just how God had followed through and made it all possible.

The conference in Las Vegas was extremely helpful and provided opportunities for growth that I didn’t even know were available to the company. I met some wonderful people and had a week with God. That time away provided an opportunity for me to depend on Him even more. He gave me an opportunity to talk with my departing co-worker and share my heart with her, to thank her for all the years of mothering, friendship and advice. To tell her that I love her and wish her all the best in her own season of change.

He helped me to refine my prayer for a new employee to be, “Father, please send a believer to work with,” which He did. He helped me learn new computer programs that will make the marketing and referrals of our agents so much better and gave the agents a heart to dive in and embrace the changes. God is so good!

I have several other areas that are experiencing the season of change and each one of them is an adventure of it’s own. I know God is faithful and with Him all things are possible.

My prayer

Father, help me to move forward and follow you. Not looking back, but embracing change and trusting You. Help me to see new and exciting things in and through the changes. Thank you for Seasons of Change that shake things up….keeping me from getting stagnate and to comfortable to be effective or adventurous. Amen

Where does my help come from?

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all this through Christ who gives me strength.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

    a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
    a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
    a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
    a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
    a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
    a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
    a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.