Is God in control?

Life happens…. Every single day. There are things that we do automatically without even thinking about it. Other things we sit and ponder and think about constantly. Events happen in our lives and we accept without question. Some events happen and we question God and wonder why this happened to us. Why didn’t I get the job, or the promotion, or the relationship didn’t work, or something happens in your health. When you get a headache do you question why? Do you question why you got stopped at a red light when you’re in a hurry? No… we except these things as being part of life and we keep going. But when it comes to something that we really want or desire….. If God doesn’t answer us the moment we ask for it we get discouraged and start questioning everything. Why do we do that?  In my own personal experience, I’m able to let God handle so many things in my life, but when it came to one Promise that he put in me, I had the hardest time accepting that I could not control it and I needed to let go and let God. Proverbs 3:5-6 says to Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight. I read this scripture all the time. It’s on my wall at work. I believe God and I trust in Him, but I had a serious issue with this one promise. One Sunday while I was waiting on my kids to serve at church I went to my truck and just cried. I even cried about other people’s issues, I cried for what I have and the fact that I couldn’t control my emotions at the time. I cried for this promise and why it seems to be taking forever to be brought to me. I felt totally alone and like I had no one. I know none of this is true. I prayed and cried for almost an hour. I felt so drained and tired after. I don’t even know what I prayed for. I just remember talking to God and still not feeling at peace. I don’t like that feeling. Later on while waiting on my daughter I went to the lake and wrote in my journal. As I wrote, I started getting this feeling that something serious was about to change. Something big was going to happen. It happened on Monday. I had a huge epiphany…. I was talking to a friend about my night and he brought something to my attention that made me think.  He said that I trust God and I believe Him in my head, but my heart didn’t believe that God could make it happen, I was completely taken aback by that statement. I was a bit upset by it as well. I thought that can’t be true…. I believe in Him and His promises, He’s already answered so many of my prayers. When I thought about it later, I realized he was absolutely right. If I trusted and believed God completely I wouldn’t be stressing like this over a situation that I have no control over. God put this promise in me and He did it for a reason. He will make it happen when the time is right. My pastor says that God is never late, but He’s always last minute…l get it!! So for me the woman who is used to being in control, I had to come to terms with the fact that if I want my life to be what God intends it to be, I had to completely let go and let God be in control. When I did I felt a peace that I can’t describe. Let God be God and be in control, it will be the best thing you’ve ever done.    

Charletta Adams is a life coach and public speaker. Her blog is regularly on www.thegodlife.net 

Prospering Where You’re Planted

How are you? Really…. Are you happy, sad, mad, discouraged, blessed and highly favored? Have you  been waiting on a promise to come to pass and are you keeping “busy” in the mean time? Waiting on the “magic” moment where everything in your life falls into place and your life is perfect is difficult to reach if you’re just sitting around waiting for it to come to you. Prospering where you’re planted means that no matter what season your life is in, you need to do your best right now. Doing your best where you are will show God that you’re ready to move to the next level He has for you. One thing I find myself doing is focusing on the next step before I complete the current step. Maximizing the potential of your current situation is huge.

Whatever area of your life you are struggling….. your career, health, relationships, finances. If you go through life saying “when I” instead of “I am” you won’t make it. If you want a different career, ask yourself- what do I want to do and what will it take for me to get there? Whatever it is- don’t wait! Do it right now.  God put amazing promises in me in regards to my career. I have to admit…. I’m so excited about it!! But I also know that I have to do my part or God will not allow me to prosper fully. Are you struggling financially? This one is important to me. For me it meant re-evaluating my budget and cutting out the unnecessary spending and being okay where I am. I also had to recognize that my goals and where I want to go are more important than the temporary gratification of eating out or buying new shoes…lol… yeah I said it. If your health is a struggle – unless it’s a medical issue- you really can make positive changes. For me I’m finally starting to see the prosperity in this area. My self-esteem took a serious hit and I desperately needed to see a change in the way I viewed myself. I set a goal of running a ½ marathon in December. Up to this point, I’ve only done 5k’s. This goal is so challenging for me because while I’m training, I’m also trying to lose some weight and tone up. So far it’s working. J As for the relationship area… this is where I struggle daily. Yes…. I said every single day. I’ve been single for a while now. I’ve had the opportunity to date, but I haven’t. God put a promise in me about my future husband and He told me to wait. Me? The most impatient woman on earth?! You want me to wait for my Mr. Right? What? I can assure you- Charletta was NOT happy to hear that. My patience has been tested more than I ever thought possible. But, I’m not settling for less than who God has for me.  I have cried to God and told him I didn’t want to wait for my Mr. Right. He’s not ready and it doesn’t seem like he ever will be. I felt like it was my time and I was ready- the issue here- I thought I was ready. God didn’t say I was ready. That was 6 months ago. So while I’m waiting on God – I’m focusing on other things in my life and guess what? Those areas are prospering. I even re-vamped my master plan! Now when Mr. Right shows up, I’m a better woman and that will help my relationship.

If I had not decided to be happy and grateful where I am right now, I would have been stuck for who knows how long. If you’re not grateful for what you have, you won’t appreciate what’s coming. Make sure your heart and mind are planted in the Word of God. Seek Him, trust Him, and obey Him, and everything you do will prosper.  I was thinking that I was all good and that I needed to wait on God- the reality was He was waiting on me.

Charletta Adams is a life coach and public speaker. Her blog is regularly on http://www.thegodlife.net/