Tag Archives: God Sized Dreams

Between the White Lines and Beyond…Trust Without Borders

“Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders….” Oceans by Hillsong United

I have a hard time trusting in things that I can’t see.

I was driving home from a trip to my old hometown recently and it was dark. We joke that this particular area of Southwest Minnesota is called the “kill zone” because of the large number of dead deer you will see along the road.

The road was winding. I realized that I could see very clearly between the two white lines that border the 2-lane highway…but beyond that, into the ditch and farther into the empty corn fields next to me, was dark. At times, if there were no other cars around, I could shine my brights and see just a bit more into the ditch. But most of the drive was done not knowing if there were deer out in the shadows.

During drives like this I find myself in constant prayer for protection. I know that there is a good chance that danger is out beyond my sight line. I can see the evidence of it scattered along either side of the highway . I am afraid of the “what-ifs”, the deer unexpectedly coming across the road, the concern that I might hit something. This can make for a long and miserable drive.

I find the same to be true in my faith walk at times.

Comfortable with God in-between the two white lines, I put Him inside of my little box and trust Him in the spaces where I can see clearly and feel I have control.

But in the shadow, in the unknown….that can be harder for me.

What-ifs can weigh heavy and fear can be debilitating.

Fear has dominated many areas of my life – is it a struggle for you as well?

I trust God well when things are calm, when I know what to expect, even in hindsight when I can reflect on His faithfulness.

I struggle most with trust during those times when the future is unknown, when the danger feels real and present. I start to question God’s timing, His provision, even His love for me.

Why is it that this is my natural response? Haven’t I seen the many ways He has been a shelter for me, a refuge in times of a storm?

Then why does my trust only extend to the places that I can see and control?!

I’d love to have you join me over at God-sized Dreams to read the rest of this story!

Laughter is Good for the Soul

Laughter. Well laughter, talking and chocolate, would be a good way to sum up the most amazing weekend that I just spent in Houston. 😉

From the moment we arrived there was a hum of voices over the house. Sisters gathering for learning, planning and soul feeding. All of that and more happened in the matter of a few short days.

When Dominic asked what we did on Friday, I said we laughed and talked. Because really that is what we did. Gathered around Gindi’s table we share stories, and tears…we got “real” almost immediately. We shared past hurts and current struggles. We found that while each of us are different, there is something so very common binding us together.

We are a community. A sisterhood of women. (<====Click to Tweet)

When I woke up on Saturday morning I had a calendar reminder that it was Karlena’s birthday. While I will always feel sadness that she isn’t here with me…it was such a gift that I woke to these amazing women surrounding me.

We spent the majority of the day on Saturday getting down to the business of the God-sized Dream site. I learned so much that day. From editing tips (which I obviously am still learning…ahem) 😉 to planning for the future direction and leadership of the site. Every woman brought so much to the table, it is quite amazing that God has brought such a diverse group of women together!

Then we had some fun when Gindi let us all raid her necklace stash and purse collection as we got ourselves all dolled up for a fancy dinner at the Galleria in Houston.

This weekend was such a gift to me. And to add to that God gave me a couple of blog posts to write when I was flying home. (yay for getting my words back!!) Look for those in the next few months over at GSD.com. 🙂

I walked away from this weekend away grateful.

Grateful that God brought us all together. Grateful that so many of us were able to gather together on that specific weekend. Grateful for Gindi’s hospitality and how wonderfully that her home worked for all of us! Grateful for all of the families that supported us as they were left behind so we could gather together.

The future is exciting. I am blessed to be a part of this team and can’t wait to see what God is going to do next! Thank you friends for loving me and blessing me in so many ways this weekend!

The first small step…..

We all have dreams, plans, ideas that we would like to see grow right?? But it can be intimidating having a dream and then not knowing what to “do” next.

That’s why I am loving Holley’s new e-book right now. “The Do what You Can Plan”. In a very simple, yet guided way Holley is walking us Dreamers through the process. So the idea right now is simple, define the dream and then take a small step towards that dream.

In the past I have become overwhelmed with the “big picture”. I want to get healthy, or workout more, I want to write more….but then the idea of committing to something is often too much and so I stop and don’t do anything.

Sad right?

But how many of us do this?? Or maybe if you are like me you make excuses…..I will follow my dream when……insert perfect scenario. But how often does our perfect scenario come? And maybe we have wasted an opportunity?

When Dominic first moved to MN for a new job, we started talking about the possibility of “someday” (in 5+ years, when our debt was paid down significantly etc, etc) opening his own business. It was a long away, lofty dream…

And then once we have moved our family here – both of our job situations changed and Dominic really felt like THIS was the time….that we had to just jump out, in faith, and trust that this was in the plan for us. It was so scary, and I was terrified of all of the “what-ifs”.

But he took the first step….he started small – giving his dream business a name. And then he filed the documents to make it a legal company, he wrote a business plan and made contacts….the list goes on and on.

Was it intimidating? YOU BET!!

Was there unknown? OF COURSE!

But have we seen the fruits of his trust and faith in God’s plan for him? YES, a thousand times YES!

But none of it would have been possible if he hadn’t been willing to take those first few steps and see what God would do with it.

He is such a wonderful example for me….especially when I am considering what my dream here is…what God might have planned for me.

So I too must start small. I want this to be a place of encouragement. A place that allows me to develop my writing….where it will go from here – I don’t know.

But you know what – it doesn’t matter at this point. I don’t have to know. I just have to faithfully walk the road God has set out for me. I don’t have to decide today what I am going to write about in a month.

I just have to pray for the words, His words….and be willing to write. Willing to carve out time to develop that dream of mine.

So one of the small steps I am taking is participating in Five Minute Friday. Each Friday Lisa Jo gives us a word….and for five minutes we are to write whatever comes to mind…no editing….

I can commit to that can’t I??

Well we will see…it is my first small step. From there – who knows, but for now I am excited about this first small step.

And how about you….what is going to be your first step? Join us over at Holley’s blog where others are sharing the action they are taking towards their God-Sized Dreams!

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