Part 3: Sharpening

If you know me, you know that I...."have a lot of words".

I love to talk and I love to write.  If you have joined me on this blog journey for any length of time, you know that I have a desire to write more but I just don't have the inspiration all the time.  I have a dream of being published in print one day. Until that happens though, I've got this blog and a Young Authors award from St. Lucie County Schools that I racked up in 4th grade to show for it. 

This week, I have been unpacking what God did in my heart through the IF:Gathering. 

(You can check out Part 1 and Part 2 here)

It was Friday night and the fiesty Australian woman was on the stage. She will cut you but in a good way, with scripture. 

Speaking about amazing things that God's people did, she said, "If you want to accomplish a dream God gave you, you're going to need God to do it."  

You know those montages in movies, like when people are dying, and their whole life plays out before their eyes?  That is what that moment was like. 

God connected what He was teaching me about together putting(part 1) His words and staying(part 2) in the season He has me with a dream He placed on my heart. 

Could it be, that the reason my well of spiritual words flows infrequently is that I am not sinking in and sitting in uncomfortable places long enough to together put what God has for me? 

The world does not need one more opinion, it needs hope. Hope is born out of struggle and maybe just maybe God needs me to stay in seasons where I struggle to give testimony to the hope He gives.

But that's messy and sometimes it hurts. 

It was Saturday night and I was home coloring with Emily. We usually use crayons but this time we pulled out the color pencils. 

She handed me the pink one and I began to sharpen it. The shavings fell. 

Emily looked at the shavings and looked back at me. "Mama, why is that a mess?" 

Without thinking, I replied, "Because that's what happens when we sharpen things."

Whoop, there it is. 

SHOOK. DED. Insert all the trendy phrases.  The Lord hit me. 

Pencils are sharpened by cutting and shaving and it's messy and if the pencil could feel, I bet it would be painful.  Putting God's words into action in your life and staying in what He has for you is sometimes messy but you for sure come out sharper. And, to be honest, I need the Lord to remove the parts of me that are less like Him anyway. 

As I am frantically writing down the exchange that just unfolded,  I look over at Emily and she's trying to sharpen the pink pencil again. Notice the again, we are going to get worn down more than once and will need sharpened more than one. 

She looks up at me and says, "Mama, I don't know how to sharpen this, will you help me?"

My face felt heavy and my eyes felt watery.  

It was almost like God whispered, "Right there, that's what I want from you. Seek what I am doing, put it together in your heart, stay in it and ask me to help."  

Friend, would you do that with me? 

Whatever messy place God is calling you to stay in, would you pray, "God, I don't know how to sharpen this season. Will you help me?"