So you’ll go out in joy… you’ll be led into a whole and complete life ~Isaiah 55:12 (MSG)

A WHOLE and COMPLETE life filled with JOY?

THAT’S what the Lord offers us when we trust Him, follow Him, obey Him.

It doesn’t mean a “perfect” life or a “problem free” existence but we CAN BE whole, complete, and joyful in the midst of all our circumstances when we choose to look through God’s lense instead of our own contaminated scope of vision.

I used to think that being obedient meant something bad. To my rebellious spirit it meant that I would not be able to have any fun anymore because I could not do things my way.

What I’ve realized is that my fun came with significant consequences: hangovers, guilt, regret, sick days at work, fights with my husband, jealousy, discontent, increased anxiety.

Sure sounds like a good time, doesn’t it?

But in the moment of my so-called-freedom I felt like I was the Queen of the World where no one could tell me what to do. It made the aftermath seem worth it somehow…

John 8:34 tells us that instead of being free I was, in fact, a slave to my sin…I was trapped in it, held prisoner by it, tormented because of it…

When I turned my life over to God, after I hit rock bottom and could see nothing but UP, I found more freedom in His will for my life than I ever saw for myself.

God’s plan is not to ruin our fun, but to show us HIS way does not have the consequences our worldly choices do.

When I follow His calling, I feel peaceful…excited…challenged…………..purposeful…

Ephesians 5:8-10 says that once I lived in darkness but now I am in the Light of the Lord. I am to walk as a child of the Light -live as if I am born native to it. For the effect (the fruit or the result) of the Light consists in all goodness and truth.

I can wake up to feel rested and secure.

Even in the uncertainty of what His plan for my life is or in my questioning of how on earth is He going to bring good out of this or in my doubts that I am good enough for the place He has put me…

I can trust that HE knows what He is doing because He is faithful to finish what He started.

Obedience and trust take work, time, and effort…I have to choose to spend time with God to know what to obey and who it is I am trusting…

But, let me tell you this, it is time well spent.

“We MUST trust that He will accomplish His purpose in and through us. Sometimes we might not understand His method, but we can trust His motive” (Bible Passages for Mother’s)

#trustthelordwithallyourheart #obeyme #followme #joyofthelord #joyfulliving #lifecomplete #iamwhole