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Gailfriends - Isolate or Meditate?
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GailFriends - Isolate or Meditate?
By Gail Golden
Publicist and Ministry Partner - Pocket Full of Change Ministries
A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire. He rages against all wise counsel.Proverbs 18:1
Well, Gail-Friends – it has been a very tough week. One of my friends once told me “we don’t have problems, we have opportunities.” I’ve had many opportunities this week.
Just yesterday, I told the Lord my thoughts and feelings about how I just want to be alone and curl up in a little ball. I wanted to worry. Yes, I do mean worry. In the past, I liked to call it “thinking” but I have to honestly admit it is worrying. I have not felt this way in a long, long time.
For the past few years, my life had been peaceful. I’d learned to turn problems over to God and trust Him with them. But this week threw me for a loop. I visited my mother and saw how frail she has become. I learned that another loved one was very ill. If that wasn’t enough, my husband was laid off from his job.
I felt overwhelmed and wanted to revert to my old habit – isolating myself, curling up in a ball, and worrying. Because I didn’t have time, I prayed my favorite prayer: “God help me!” and stayed focused on my plans for the day. I must admit my mind did wander back to my problems several times, and when I went to bed, I started worrying. I prayed my favorite three-word prayer again and drifted off to sleep.
In my morning reading of Proverbs, the words of Proverbs 18:1 leaped out at me. Bam! It was like a knock in the head on the V-8 commercial, “Wow, you could have had a V-8,” only it was the Holy Spirit saying, “Wow, you could have had The Word!”
Isn’t it amazing that God’s Word is so alive? There it was in black and white - when I isolate myself, it is the same as screaming at God “I don’t want to listen to you!” The answer was not to isolate and worry, but to run to my Father and seek His counsel.
When I sat still this morning and talked to the Lord, He brought to mind His promises that all things work together for good for me because I am called according to His purpose, and that I can cast all of my cares on Him because He cares for me. God then reminded that if I lacked wisdom, I could ask it of Him. My Father’s wise counsel brought me a deep comfort and a peace that stayed with me through the rest of the day. I am confident that He will take care of me and mine, just as He always has in the past. I don’t have to worry. He will show me what to do.
P.S. Just three days later, my husband was in a car accident that totaled his car. Thank God he was not injured. The peace I felt stayed with me through racing to the accident scene, and through the hours of insurance company phone calls. I felt calm and knew, to the depths of my soul, that all is well. It is the peace that passes understanding, and it comes from my loving Father.
Gail is a ministry partner with and Publicist for Pocket Full of Change Ministries. For more information, to schedule a speaker for an event, or to request a newsletter, go to www.pocketfullofchange.org or call Gail Golden, Publicist at 904 316-5462. This ministry is supported by donations. If this ministry helps you or others, and God calls you to help support this work, you can make a donation to Pocket Full of Change Ministry at POB 51205, Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32240.
© Pocket Full of Change Ministries
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