The beginning of man's rebellion against God was, and is, the lack of a thankful heart. Francis SchaefferI've been in Birmingham almost three months, although I haven't been here much. I've been traveling a good bit with my two accounts so that time has flown by. I'd be lying if I said it had been easy, lovely, a time of great joy. It hasn't. In fact, it's been hard. Many tears have been shed, lots of naps, and probably great worry from my family.
I longed to move away from Jackson for awhile, and know this is what I was supposed to do, but had no idea the challenges I would face. Challenges that have forced me to evaluate a lot: who am I, what drives me, and ultimately, how do I bring glory to God in my current circumstances.
I read the quote above about two weeks back and recognized quickly that all of my worry/angst/challenge was caused by me. By my attitude. By my decisions. By my ungrateful heart. The Lord moved mountains in my life and I've been flat out ungrateful. I have NO desire to turn that into rebellion. Been there, done that, got a very ugly t-shirt.
So I've shaped up a bit and am fighting for an attitude of joy, contentment, and gratitude.
It's made me realize a ton:
- The weather here is amazeballs. Seriously. It's not near as muggy, hotttt, etc as Mississippi and I LOVE IT.
- I'm pretty good at what I do. No matter how often I doubt myself, the Lord has made me a smart girl (I doubt myself more than I should.)
- I have a very lovely home, and I don't have to do any maintenance.
- I feel safe for the first time in a long time.
- I have a few very good friends here that have really taken care of me.
- The Lord has blessed me financially, and I've been given the opportunity to bless others because of that (better to give than receive).
- I'm doing a ton of digital work (which is what I really love).
- It's beautiful. Everywhere I look it is beautiful. And I live in the middle of it all -- 3 miles from everything. Had no idea how much I would love that.
