{"id":1498,"date":"2017-03-03T20:12:45","date_gmt":"2017-03-04T02:12:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/belovedlove.org\/reflections\/?p=1498"},"modified":"2019-05-17T14:43:09","modified_gmt":"2019-05-17T19:43:09","slug":"lifeline-lydia-floren","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/belovedlove.org\/reflections\/2017\/03\/03\/lifeline-lydia-floren\/","title":{"rendered":"Lifeline, by Lydia Floren"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Lifeline\"<\/a><\/p>\n

by Lydia Floren<\/p>\n

I have spent a lot of time, over the years, learning how to experience and live in God\u2019s love. I have read books, scoured the scriptures.\u00a0\u00a0I have prayed. And I have written articles and launched a website, and\u00a0spoken to groups on this topic. And prayed some more.\u00a0 You would think by now I would be living a life where I experience God\u2019s love all the time, that it would come naturally to me. But,\u00a0often it doesn\u2019t.\u00a0 Yes, there are times when I\u00a0\u201clive in the presence of accepted tenderness\u201d, as Brennan Manning calls it.\u00a0 In those moments\u00a0or days, I feel like I am in a speedboat skipping over the waves, grinning from ear to ear.\u00a0 My heart overflows.<\/p>\n

But how quickly my world can shift!\u00a0 I get caught up in the little things, which somehow morph into big things. Or I get blindsided, suddenly lashed by a severe storm. One minute I am atop the water, the next I am up to my chin in choppy waves, struggling for every breath. My natural reaction, of course, is to flail, to fight with all my strength to keep my head above the current.\u00a0 In my panic I have lost sight of Jesus\u2019 steady gaze.\u00a0 I no longer see his strong hand just inches from my own.<\/p>\n

My lifeline<\/h2>\n

In the middle of the tempest God often whispers (and his whisper can be very loud, believe me!)<\/p>\n

\u201cGive thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat? can\u2019t you see I\u2019m drowning here, Father? There is no time for this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI see exactly what is going on, Child.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGive thanks. Now.\u201d<\/p>\n

I have learned through\u00a0hard experience that I had best pay attention to that oh-so-kind voice. To take a gulp of air and give thanks right where I am.\u00a0 When I do, the whole tempest around me shapeshifts into calm. The storm isn\u2019t gone, of course.\u00a0 I have just found the calm in its center. So I begin\u2026<\/p>\n

Thank you\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

Thank you that you are going to make something wonderful out of all of this, and work it all to good. thank you for your goodness. Your care. Your constant presence in my life. thank you that I can trust you to give me strength to do what you are calling me to do. thank you for teaching me not to avoid\u00a0the fire, but to walk through\u00a0it under your protection. Thank you that you are not, and never will be, ashamed of me. That you know and have covered, not only my past mistakes, but also the ones I will make in the future. Thank you that you love me more than I can imagine. And thank you that I can trust you to guide me, and protect me.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Thanksgiving changes everything. It is like opening the valve to a fire hydrant on a hot day.\u00a0 Or turning on the light in a dark room. Or\u2026or meeting God\u2019s gaze in the middle of the storm, and then clutching on to his\u00a0hand with all my might.\u00a0 Terrified one minute, and content the next.<\/p>\n

Are you in the middle of a storm? Overwhelmed with mounting bills, a deep hurt, or a scary diagnosis? Or an oppressive sense of failure? Are you fighting for your life?<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s time to stop reacting to the problem, and start looking toward Your Lifeline.\u00a0 To quit flailing.<\/p>\n

Take a deep breath.\u00a0 And then whisper these simple words: \u201cThank you\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once you start, He\u2019ll help you fill in the rest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Lydia Floren I have spent a lot of time, over the years, learning how to experience and live in God\u2019s love. I have read books, scoured the scriptures.\u00a0\u00a0I have prayed. And I have written articles and launched a website, and\u00a0spoken to groups on this topic. And prayed some more.\u00a0 You would think by now […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[466],"tags":[6,24],"class_list":["post-1498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-finding-gods-love","tag-gods-love","tag-thankfulness"],"yoast_head":"\nLifeline, by Lydia Floren - Belovedlove<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You would think that as much time and energy as I have spent on learning to live in God\u2019s love, it would come easily for me, but it doesn\u2019t. 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