Which will we choose? Murmuring or gratefulness? Can we actually learn to overcome grumbling? There are certainly lots of challenges to capture our attention and direct it toward the negative aspects of life.

Job (of the Old Testament book named after him) had friends that were miserable comforters. He lost all but his wife and yet he did not curse God and die as his wife suggested. Job had lots of questions. He didn’t know that he had been chosen to be an object lesson to satan to prove how authentic Job’s faith in God was.

It is possible to recognize a true follower of God by observing their lives. Did Job grieve over loss? It hurt him as deeply as it hurts one who has not yet experienced the transforming light of God. The difference is, those with a relationship with God have hope…even if they don’t understand. They trust that God is The Lord God Almighty. Maker of Heaven and earth. Creator of all that exists. And much, much wiser than our own limited earth-bound understanding.

Those with a relationship with Father God know that whatever trials…whatever painful ordeal…whatever suffering…whether it is character-building or whether it is to show the world how a Christian reacts to crisis, they continue to follow…maybe with sadness, and a sense of loss, but also with hope. Maybe with confusion, but also with trust in the God of the Bigger Picture. We earthlings see through earth-bound eyes. God knows how it all fits together for the Bigger Picture. He sees through the lens of Eternity.

Murmuring or Gratefulness?

Which will you choose? I keep a daily Ebenezer journal. Ebenezer is an old word that means, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.” No requests. No murmurings. Only gratefulness. Through this daily evening written record, I see major interventions of God in my life. I begin to see a trend of God being involved in my life. My dreams are sweeter and I wake more refreshed and at peace. I begin to actually look forward to each new day as I look expectantly for God to show up. I am actually recording His involvement in my day-to-day life.

Try it…and then let me know how it changes your outlook on life.

Maranatha!
Come Lord Jesus!

God bless you bunches!

Awaiting His shout,


Christian Life Coach
Leading from Your Strengths Mentor
www.loavesandfishescoaching.com

WHAT defines you? WHO defines you?

This shut down of much of our country and the world can be challenging to say the least. Who IS the master of your fate? Is it the United States Government? Is it a foreign power? Is it just “chance”? Is it God? Is it satan? These scary times can bring loss, fear, and a sense of betrayal. Some of you come to the table with challenging questions, trials, and decisions that must be made quickly. It is more than “Should I wear a face mask or not?” It is big and it is serious!

Quotes from my past

I grew up in the 50s and 60s. It was definitely the years of great confusion, fear, and rebellion against government who was leading us into fearful situations. We called it the LOVE generation. The songs were about war and love. And we claimed we knew the answer. Our expressions of love would fix the world. But it was really rebellion against all authority. I can still personally remember my generations struggles to understand, which caused us to rebel against what we did not understand. We see a lot of that with the youth of today, too. Has it always been that way with each generation? I can only speak from my own experience.

We would say with firm sarcasm: “Who died and left you in charge?” And then there was the: “You’re not the boss of me!” (FYI neither of those worked well with my father.) My Dad was most definitely IN CHARGE. He was also the most loving person I can remember in my whole life. He was not huggy feeley, but I absolutely knew I was loved unconditionally by him.

Does rebellion make you into a master of your own fate?

My Mom was ill much of my life and she died when I was 12 going on 13. That is a bad time for a girl to lose her mother. I must have had a dozen crushes on guys. I know because I wrote their names on my notebook. Thankfully, there was little time to pursue my crushes. I missed much of the rebellion of that season because I had to go home, do my homework, and start dinner every day after school. And do the ironing. Those were the days when we ironed EVERYTHING…even the bed sheets. We used cloth handkerchiefs, so even they had to be ironed, too. (No such things a disposable tissues…at least WE didnt have them in my family home.)

The Master of My Fate poem

I remember learning a poem in high school about being the master of my fate. The poem has stuck with me throughout my life. For many years, it confused me because I subconsciously thought, “If I truly am the master of my fate, why cant I make my life work right?” And even though I didn’t rebel much on the outside, the poem affected my attitude on the inside. For many years. It was very bad theology!

A Bible teacher shared a story

Many years later, I began to question what I had carried with me in that poem. I knew something was “off”. I began a search for God. (I wrote about that in an article “Maybe I’ll Try Church.” I had tried everything and nothing worked. So, at a Bible study taught by a former rebellious youth, now matured in the faith, he shared a story that thankfully now overrides the poems instruction that encouraged rebellion.

The illustration

Its all about where your focus is placed. Maybe you have heard the story he shared that night so many years ago: It is as though there are two “dogs” inside of each of us. A black dog and a white dog. And whichever one we feed the most, will be the strongest.

Of course, the black dog illustrates our sin nature and the white dog illustrates life after surrender to Jesus Christ the Lord. And the feeding is our focus and all the conscious choices we make that can cause us to either be better or bitter.

Haven Ministries devotional

A few years ago, a devotion published by Haven Ministries started me thinking about “fate” and “masters” again.

Heres what it said:

“Society teaches us constantly that we are the masters of our destiny, that we are what we make of ourselves, that we write the script. Knowing Jesus Christ as our Savior, however, shows us otherwise. Christianity is not about me and what I make of myself; its about Christ and what He has done for me. He is the author of my faith;…all my days were ordained in His Book before a single one of them came to be.”

It goes on to say: “Those lessons come to us over time when our best-laid plans fail and we are forced down other paths. Instead of feeling that we write the story of our lives, we see that every day is a journal page – a record of all the Lord has done for us. He is the author of our lives! With our eyes fixed on Him (not ourselves), He carries us through and writes us into the wondrous plan of His Kingdom.”

Jeremiah 10:23 states:

“I know, O LORD, that a mans life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.”

Coming to terms with the truth

So, have you come to terms with who truly is the master of your fate and the author of your life story? Maybe its time to do what I finally did: surrender all of the questions and doubts and rebellion to Creator God and trust that “Father knows best.” Because He truly does! 🙂

Your whole life will take a turn for the better as peace and joy show up in your life on a routine basis because you realize that Gods “got your back”. Amen? Amen! So be it! Come Lord Jesus!

Questions? Id love to talk to you about this!

God bless you bunches!

Awaiting His shout,


Christian Life Coach
Leading from Your Strengths Mentor
www.loavesandfishescoaching.com