The Giver of God-sized Dreams

A beautiful Nebraska morning!

I’m at Jumping Tandem – The Retreat this weekend. :)

What started as a God-sized dream for Deidra Riggs is here—a community of God-sized dreamers together in one place, at one time…making new friends, learning from, and encouraging each other, and, of course, dreaming of the plans God might have for us.

The plans He has for us. Not the plans we make for ourselves.

God is the giver of these dreams.

And He is Who we’re focusing on this weekend…

Because God is the best part of any dream.

In Christ,

Laura 

Linking up with Holley Gerth, Jumping Tandem - The Sunday Community, and The Weekend Brew.

Energizing Fear

I’ve been thinking about fear again.

How is it that we can go from being excited and confident in our God-sized dreams to doing nothing…putting no action into pursuing what God placed in our hearts?

I think it’s fear.

Fear…disguised as being too busy, worn out, and overwhelmed.

Fear…acting as a deterrent, whispering Just forget it.

Fear…saying not now, maybe later…but later keeps getting pushed out even further.

Fear is sneaky because before you know it, it’s right there, getting in the way of what God has planned.

Fear hangs out right next to whatever it is you’re most called to do. That means the closer you get to your calling, the louder fear sounds.

 – Holley Gerth, You’re Made for a God-sized Dream

Fear. It comes from the enemy. And the enemy is up to no good.

He will try to set us back, and even work overtime to stop us.

But you know what?

Fear loses its power when we realize who’s behind it.

What if we looked at fear differently?

Instead of letting it paralyze us, what if we use fear to energize us?

Knowing the devil works harder when we grow closer to God is confirmation that we’re doing the right thing. So, instead of backing off when we feel fear creeping in, we need to lean into God even closer and keep moving forward…in His strength.

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

In Christ,

Laura 

Linking up with Holley Gerth, The Weekend Brew, Spiritual Sundays, and Sharing His Beauty.

Wearing My 40’s Proudly

This week is my birthday. :)

I’ve always loved my birthday. (Even if there were a couple of years when moving into the next decade was a little hard to swallow.)

I wonder if on our birthdays God reminisces about the day He first thought of each of us…the way He wanted to create us, the gifts and skills He would bless us with, and the plans He made for us.

I’m over at 5 Minutes for Faith today talking about birthdays and growing older. I hope you’ll join me there to read my post. And if you would, leave a comment. I’d love to know you stopped by.

In Christ,

Laura 

Linking up with Sharing His Beauty, The Weekend Brew, Soli Deo Gloria, #TellHisStory, WholeHearted Home, Winsome Wednesday, and Faith Filled Friday.

I Know Whose I Am

Every week, Holley Gerth’s God-sized Dream Team gets together to encourage each other. I invite you to join us. After all, even if you’re not in the process of pursuing a God-sized dream, we all need some encouragement in life, don’t we?

Holley’s question for us this week…

Why is your dream worth pursuing, fighting for and seeing through no matter what happens?

I recently had to get my driver’s license renewed. In the state of Iowa, you receive a temporary license and wait for the new one to be mailed to you in approximately 21 days. This was my first time renewing my license since this became the procedure, and I didn’t know what to expect.

As I tried to decide what day I had hours to spend at the DMV, I started to feel a little panicked at the thought of turning in my license and leaving with only a temporary. I can’t even remember the last time I didn’t have a picture ID. I needed my picture ID!

Thoughts raced through my mind…

What if I get pulled over when I drive to Nebraska later this month?

How do I renew my library card without my picture ID?!

What if I need to buy pseudoephedrine from the pharmacy in the next 21 days!?!

Somehow, I was getting my identity mixed up with having, or not having, a picture ID. But that’s silly, I told myself, it’s just an ID. I know who I am and where my identity is—in Christ.

And then I wondered, is this how it feels for someone who doesn’t know her identity in Christ?

I may worry and start to panic when life isn’t going well and everything is about to change, but I know Whose I am—and He doesn’t change.

So, to answer Holley’s question…

Why is my dream of encouraging women in their walk with Christ worth pursuing and fighting for?

Because I know what He’s done in my life—the comfort He gives, the stability He provides, the love and grace He washes over me—and I don’t want to keep it a secret.

I want to be a witness for Jesus.

I want other women to see and feel God’s work in their lives—to know without a doubt that her identity is in the One who never changes.

As it turns out, (don’t laugh) the temporary ID has a black and white picture on it. So, it’s all good. Well, except maybe for the picture itself. But no worries! I get to do it all over again in 5 years. {smile}

In Christ,

Laura 

Linking up with Holley Gerth, #TellHisStory, Soli Deo Gloria, WholeHearted Home, Thought Provoking Thursday, Faith Filled Friday, and Life in Bloom.