As "A" matter of fact, He's got that under control too

Miraculous Ways.

That's how God works. He speaks to our very weakness and knows JUST when to answer. Today has been a keen example of this for me. Last night I was preparing for a final I had today and finishing up a research paper for another class. I will admit that I'm not the best with managing stress on some day (even though this was the first day in over 6 months it had gotten to me so badly). So anyway, I was way overstressing in my overachiever state of "I've got to get an A" mindset.

This morning I woke up and listened to Southeast Christian's Living Word sermon on the radio while I was getting ready--nothing out of my normal routine. This morning's sermon was based off the scripture Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." What Pastor Kyle Idleman spoke to was the fact so often we often mistranslate this scripture into thinking we alone can do anything, and the fact that we measure our self-worth and success in the wrong light.

Specifically he was naming off lists of examples of things that we limit our worth to, or that makes us feel sucessful or valuable (depending on what extreme you go to). His list of examples referenced things like job promotions, the right car, exercising for looks and not health, and...getting all A's. Crazy. Sure I could write this off as nothing--merely a coincidence, but I don't really believe in chance, and I've seen enough evidence of God-incidences in my life to believe He ordains thing that enter my path. Now mind you, there was more that fell in line with the message and what I needed to hear than just that one phrase, but the fact that this message spoke to me so clearly about the exact struggle I was going through, and with Kyle mentioning it so plainly amazed me. :)

What's even more unique is the fact that my mother listened to the same sermon on the same station at the same time on her way to work and got something completely different out of it. When I began to tell her about what I'd heard on the radio this morning, she was like---no, that's not what it was about. The same message spoke to her about a completely different topic. This is testimony that God knows exactly what we need, how we need it, when we need it, and that He will speak to us if we are seeking to hear from Him. Also, this shows us that just because a sermon title or speaker at church may not seem to be something that we think fits our situation, we need not write it off or zone them out because there is always so much potential for God to speak to us--even in the little things of life, small gestures of people, etc.

With this in mind, it also gives us Christians an increased responsibility to be constantly aware that we could be positively or negatively impacting lives. So when you're having a gray cloud kind of day, be cautious that you don't spread your doubt/fear/anger/what have you, but that you seek to be a positive light. (Philippians 4:4) I'm not saying that you have to be chipper every day because that is certainly a challenge, but rather that you should constantly keep in mind the kind of reactions and impact your actions will cause. You have a bigger impact on lives (even those you may not see) than you realize.

Lastly, to reinforce what I said about God moving at just the right time. I was waiting on something today and was getting a little down that it had not yet came. I got to the point where I blew something miniscule into an issue even worth talking about--all because I didn't have patience and wait on God's timing and wisdom. As soon as I brought it up and vented to someone about it--leaving them with a negative taste in their mouth--what I was waiting on came. Imagine that. It's almost like another wake up call from God reminding me He's in charge, He's got a great plan, and if I wait on His perfect timing for all things in my life, He will bless me. Thank you God for that promise and for keeping me in check.

I completely believe God has a sense of humor. But like I said earlier, He speaks to each of us in the way we need and recieve it best--so maybe that's just God's 'I told you so' language for me :) I'm so glad I serve such a phenomenal, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and dynamic God. :)