In this Chapter the author explains the arm of the Lord is based on the covenant of grace, which depends upon faith. She believes that in order to be filled with His Spirit and be pleasing to Him, we must be willing, yielded and empty. Willing for God to use us as he sees fit. Willing to follow his plan rather than our own. We must be empty of ourselves.
Here are our Highlights and take away’s:
“If you and I are going to enjoy the fullness of God in our lives, we must go through periods in which we have to stand alone. Sometimes that is good for us because we get too caught up with people. Sometimes we must be left with nobody so we will learn to depend solely upon the Lord.”
*It’s good to know that through loneliness, you can grow in your relationship with Him.
“God does not want us to be a clone of somebody else. He wants us to be unique and creative. He wants us to operate by His Spirit.”
*We shouldn’t become like anyone else. This is a good reminder for me to be careful who I surround myself with. Your closest friends should hold the same beliefs and values as you.
I love how she uses the example of birds. That most birds fly in flocks, but eagles fly alone. “If we want to be an eagle, we must learn to fly alone.”
Romans 8:31 If God is for us, who can be against us?
“Whatever may have happened to us in the past, it does not have to dictate our future.”
*People live, learn, and grow from their past. God can use anyone no matter how bad their past was.
Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
“We need to learn to live one day at a time, being content where we are and with what we have until the Lord leads us to something better.”
Philippians 1:6 He who began a good work in you will continue until the day of Jesus Christ, developing and perfecting and bringing it to full completion in you.
“It remains to be seen what God can do through man or woman who will give Him all the glory.”
*In all we do and accomplish, give God the glory!
“Rather than looking at our past failures, our present fallacies, or our future fears, we should be looking to the Lord and trusting in His wisdom, strength, and power.”
“People will disappoint us, and we will end up devastated, but God will never fail us or forsake us.”
“We should love people, but trust God.”
I have been through this a lot and I know others have. We have groups of friends or a friend and feelings get hurt, people change, or with time you’ll grow apart. As hard as it is to go through, you’ll find yourself in the better for going through it. Not everyone that comes into your life will be good for you and you won’t always be good for them. Its healthy to have periods in your life where you are alone so you can examine yourself and see what areas you need to work on in your life.
For me personally I need someone who likes me for me, that knows who they are as an individual and isn’t trying to compete with me. It’s not healthy for you or the other person when you’re constantly trying to one up each other and make everything a competition. I don’t have time that for that mess. lol
I have made a lot of mistakes in my past. I haven’t always been the best wife, friend, mother, sister, or daughter. Because of my actions I have gained myself quite the reputation. But I can’t let what others think of me bother me because I know that my past doesn’t define me.
Elena and I didn’t like each other at all at first. If we hadn’t given each other a second chance we would have missed out on this beautiful friendship that has formed. Have I disappointed her? YES. Has she disappointed me? YES. Are we worried about starting this new adventure together? YES. But does it paralyze us? NO. This chapter helped us to see that no matter what happens that God is in control and he will work every detail out. Our hope and trust is in Him.
It is what it is, right Elena?!
-Erin
Elena And Erin.....It Is What It Is 