LSOF

I decided to title this post in the way it was spoken to my heart of on Monday morning, as it was written in my prayer journal:)

God has just been speaking to my heart a lot lately, well, He does everyday, but I guess its clearer to my heart now, more than ever:)

You see, the thing to realize as I have realized. There are two timelines to our lives.
We have an earthly timeline, but we often forget about the other: Spiritual timeline.

This time last year, I was stuck in the middle of a cult. I was lost, hurt, and so alone. I had plenty of people around me
every sunday, tues morning, thursday morning, and thursday night. Those were the times I studied and went to kingdom hall meetings.

There is something desperately wrong when you see people everyday, and you still feel alone.
My heart knew something wasn’t right, but I ignored it.

I don’t want to get into the whole story again here, but I’ll just tell you some of the vital things I have learned from that experience.

While I was have all those feelings, and while I felt like I wasn’t sure if my faith was the faith I believed in, or the people in my life if they were to be trusted..
While I was in such a financial crunch, barely being able to afford the rent on my own, and going to sleep instead of eating to save the little bit I had…
While I was standing at the beach looking into the ocean, wondering if there was really a Savior…my heart became weak to believe it…

Oh I could go on, but the point I am making is that was my earthly timeline…that is what I could see going on in front of me at the time.

There was all along as much more impressive timeline that I was going through too. The spiritual one.

I don’t regret anything that happened in that timeframe, because I can see the timeline, I can see the results.

I am going to visit my friend Nicole in Savannah in a few days.
I have known her since 2001.

Its a crazy story though. It is regarding the timeline that I’m talking about. I was unaware at the time, but can look back and see all of it.

I was around my friends Scott and Lisa from Z88.3, Who are now on KLOVE; I was with my friend Ashley the first night, but the second I was by myself. So I decided to go knowing at least they would be there.
I hung out with them, and other radio staff for a good while, and then it was time to go backstage with Michael W. Smith,
and I wasn’t allowed to go backstage of course.

So that was it, I was alone, in a crowd of people.

I decided to go to another concert that was playing, it was Rebecca St. James. I got talking to some girls up front as we all danced to RSJ singing. It was Lori, Shannon, and a girl named Nicole.

Little did I know at the time, it was another part of the timeline starting. Lisa would soon move away, and come back again,
but that friendship would soon clearly end and a new friendship would begin.

Nicole and I didn’t talk for a good 5 yrs, and she is the only one I kept in touch with, interesting enough wasn’t even a Christian. She’s a dear friend. She’s seen me through a lot since then.

I would soon later see where my purpose in her life was about. My mom has Chron’s disease, and her mom got it a few years ago, and died of it last year. I was able to see that God brought me to her life, because I would be the one that would understand every part that she had to deal with.

I get to see her in 3 days, I am so excited…it is a friendship that is a lasting one, and I am moving up to Savannah sometime in 2010; God’s leading the way completely.

That is what true evidence of the timeline can look like.

Whatever your life has been like, whether its been the last few days, weeks, years…know this, He is in charge of all of it,
and there is a bigger picture that you cannot see just yet.

2 Corinthians 4:6-7
” For God who said, ” Let light shine out of the darkness, ” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Christ.”

And here is a promise that makes this timeline so real for us from the Word.

2 Corinthians 4:8-10
” We are hard-pressed on every side, but not crushed, perplexed but not in despair, persecuted, but not abandoned, struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.”

Earthly timeline versus Spiritual timeline…

2 Corinthians 4:13
” It is written: I believe; therefore I have spoken.” With the same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak.”

Regardless of what we go through, He still is in charge, we don’t even speak about Him without His help.

Daniel 2:20-22
” He changes times and seasons,
he sets us kings and deposes them.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning,
He reveals deep and hidden things,
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.”

He changes the times and seasons: this means that He also is aware of the timeline we are going through, and He is waiting to see the point to step in and cross over into the earthly timeline.
I was removed from a place I was living, and job I had, plus a very bad group of people…physically moved by God.

I also had a few very cool things happen over the last two months that have blown my mind, and didn’t know God would ever intervene in that way.

He sets up kings and deposes of them; this means that in doesn’t matter who is in charge, whether its the President of the United States, a parent, a boss, or a teacher etc.
God is above all of this, He can MAKE them have a change of heart.
Again, I have seen this happen to me personally, and again, BLOWN away by Him:)

He gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to the discerning; Its important to remember that every message at church, every wise person you know, or watch on tv, or whatever the case may be…
God spoke to them first.

He knows what is hidden in darkness and light dwells in him; okay, again, evidence of the spiritual timeline.

2 Corinthians 5:1
” Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed we have a building from God, and eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”

2 Corinthians 5:16
” So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view, Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.”

We must realize that within our earthly timeline that even though the stuff is going on with us, with other people;
we must see them not as how they appear in front of us, but we must remember to look at them like Jesus would,
regarding the spiritual timeline, what can be learned..

2 Corinthians 7:1
” Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates the body, and the spirit perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”

Also, we need to focus on the spiritual timeline with the decisions we make. We have to realize how they may affect us down the road.

2 Corinthians 7:4(second part)

” I am greatly encouraged in all my troubles, my joy knows no bounds.”
We know deep down that there surely is a deeper bigger meaning in everything, we just have to focus on it.

2 Corinthians 4:18
” For we fix our eyes on not what is seen, but what is unseen, for what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal.”

So I will leave you with this thought today. Remember as soon as you walk away from your computer, or as soon as you speak to someone for the first time today…whatever it may be…focus on the best of this day. God is totally here with you,
and He is leading you through both sets of time.

God bless.

Angie