What does your “now” look like?
Let’s focus on the now.
Last week I purchased a book titled God is Able by Priscilla Shirer. A book that focuses on how God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us.
Not far into the first chapter, Mrs. Shirer proposes a question that stops me in my tracks.. literally.
I’m sitting in my vehicle about to head into work but my feet would not get out of the car! My eyes remained glued on that one simple question..
What does your NOW look like?
You know. What does your life look like right now? What is currently going on in your life at this very moment? What does your daily routine consist of? What thoughts are you harboring inside? Be honest. How are you feeling right now? This very moment. This very second.
The reason we need to concentrate so hard on the first bite — the first word — is because our thoughts are usually all over the place. Backwards. Forwards. What if. What next. How come. Where to. Why not. But if you and I can just quiet down for a second, give our runaway minds a short break in the action, we may just feel God blowing away the clutter of our confused mental state, leaving us with one simple idea to focus on. Now. Get everything out of your head except now.
Priscilla Shirer — God Is Able
She emphasizes the importance of now. Right now. No more dwelling over the past. No more worrying about what’s to come. Let’s focus on the now.
Talk about a slap in the face by conviction.
Here I am, constantly dwelling over my childhood, yearning for life to be simple and easy again. Or thinking so far ahead that I tire myself out, believing that I am a failure and will never amount to anything.
I realize for the first time that I am never focusing on the now. Maybe because my now isn’t exactly how I imagined it would be.
My now is filled with disappointments. Stressful nights. Confusion. Frustration. Insecurity. A heavy heart. A broken heart. Bitterness. I think it’s safe to say that my now, is in fact, a hot mess!
So what exactly does my now look like? I’ll give you a visual.
You’re a twenty-two year old woman who works a part-time job making minimum wage. You’re the eldest of siblings who still lives at home. Your free time consists of reading and looking after your two younger siblings. You’re still grieving your grandmother whom you lost in 2016. You were raised by her so it affects you deeply. You made a vow to God to be single this year, and although you have connected with an amazing man of God, you are keeping your word and leaving it in the Lord’s hands. (Obedience is key!) You compare your mother to your grandmother and it leaves you feeling hopeless. You haven’t found a church home yet. Maybe you’re nervous because it’s been years since you last stepped foot in a church building. You hold a great deal inside that tiny head of yours, and every now and then you cry silently at night. You’re tired. And angry that life turned out this way. But you’re trying. Every single day. You read your Bible. Study it. Write your devotionals. Pray throughout the day. And at the end of each night, you lay everything at the Lord’s feet and try again the next day.
That is my now.
Somehow we overlook the nearness of God when we are caught up in the rhythm of life, dancing to the drumbeat of our own personal issues. We stay too tired or angry or frazzled to remember that God can work on our behalf now.
Priscilla Shirer — God Is Able
Although my now isn’t exactly how I’d like it to be, God is still able. He is still able to show up. Heal my conflicted heart. Restore what I’ve lost. Renew my mind. Open new doors. Close old ones. Reveal my purpose. Work things out. And bring me through.
I serve a God who is able.
However your now may look. Whether bad or ugly. Meaningless or purposeless. Tired or burned out. Impatient or lost. Depressed or distressed. Or even if it looks a hot mess like mine. Don’t let the circumstances of your life discourage you.
He is still able.
