Surrender to Jesus to do a New Thing

Last year began with betrayal and ended with death. I’ve learned what it means to cry out in prayer when the only words I could manage were whispers of “Help me, Jesus”, usually followed by “Jesus, help me behave”.

Healing began only as I learned to surrender my own emotionally-charged agenda to Jesus’ instructions. I’m learning that following Jesus means more than reading my Bible- it means applying the words in red no matter what. And I’m learning that seeking Jesus goes beyond prayer. It requires my mind to be quiet long enough to hear Him reply, and again, rejecting my own ideas to follow His prompting.

I Am Doing A New Thing

I will spend the rest of my life practicing what I’ve learned with varying degrees of success, but it’s time to move forward. Jesus’ healing in my heart, soul, body, and relationships is the foundation for something new.

Valerie is doing a new thing. Find out more at Surrender to Jesus to do a New Thing Click To Tweet

See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.
Isaiah 43:19

I’m leaving the dryness of the wasteland to share living water with others. Instead of stumbling in the wilderness, I will learn to walk in the path God prepared for me.

Surrender to Jesus to do a New Thing #GiveMeJesus

I have a few ideas of what this will look like. By focusing my thoughts on God’s blessings, I will be more grateful. I will be more loving by living as the person Jesus says I am as His daughter. By remembering Jesus’ sacrifice every morning, I will release my grip on the burdens He died to take from me so I can laugh more. This will happen through prayer and surrender as I focus on scriptures about gratitude, identity, and love.

My Stream and My Path

You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart (2 Corintihans 3:2-3).

As I become more grateful, loving, and lighthearted, then my relationships, faith, peace, and health will grow. People will know who Jesus is even without me saying a word, because I will be a living epistle. I know that my purpose is to write for God, and walking in gratitude, love, and joy will nourish me for His work.

Walking It Out

I’ve done a few things to walk this out in practical every-day life, but I know this is just the beginning. To grow as a better example for Jesus, I threw away my old prayer journal filled with tears and petitions and started a new one to fill with thanksgiving and a search for wisdom. I begin most mornings with a prayer as I get ready for the day. I’m choosing relevant reading materials, and I created a prayer box as a tangible way to give my cares to Him.

To better walk out God’s purpose for me, I’ve spent a lot of time giving my little blog a make over and investing in supportive blogger’s resources. But I have another goal. A letter file sitting on my desk currently hold 3 books I’ve contributed to either as an editor or as an author. One slot of the letter file is empty as a reminder of my goal to fill the space with my own little book intended to help others grow in their faith.

Jesus promises that we will accomplish more than we could ever imagine if we surrender to Him. I hope you will join me and cooperate with Him to do a new thing in your life!