Experience

Experience can be such a hard thing sometimes. We like the "good" experiences where we don't have to go through any pain- but the first time something hard comes our way in that experience, we automatically assume that it's the devil. In this day in time, our faith is being tested, our people are being persecuted (as the Bible declares). 

"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body." 

2 Corinthians 4:8-10

With all of the things that we go through, there is a lesson to be learned. What lessons are we learning, if any, from our experiences? Life is what we make it and what we choose to take away from our experience is solely up to us. My Pastor said it best one day. She said that we are all dealt a hand like the deck of cards that we must live with. With the hand that she was dealt, she chooses to learn from it, to embrace it. That touched me because we are dealt our own hand of cards or experiences that we must go through. Those cards are the pieces that we must have in order to walk into our greater destiny- the one that GOD Himself prepared for us. When we are playing a game, there is a set number of cards that each player has to have in order to even have a chance to win. If that player is not strategic with the hand that he is dealt, he will either grow bitter, cheat, or get so distracted that he will lose the game. When we go through the different experiences in our lives, we have to be careful not to envy the lives of others, or focus on what others are doing or may not be doing. 

Who are our experiences shaping us to be? They should be shaping us to be women of integrity, women with a foundation, women with standards, women with staying power, women with tenacity, women of purpose, women of virtue, women of praise, women of worship, submissive women, and most importantly women of God! Sadly, a majority of the time- they make us pitiful women, hardhearted women, hard headed women, revengeful women, independent women that don't even want to depend on God because we think that He is being unfair to us. But, always remember that everything negative that  happens to us is not God's fault, and sometimes it isn't even the devil. When we are out of God's will-we give the enemy free will to come into our lives as well as the lives of those that we love. And, when we are in the will of God, He will allow us to go through some things as well. But He is able and willing to bring us out. I mean, it was His idea for Satan to attack Job. He asked, "have you considered My servant Job?" (Job 1:8) He also told Satan not to touch the man himself. He was not speaking physically when He said this because we know that Job was hit with a terrible disease where his skin was breaking out and it struck him from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet. God was speaking about his spirit man. That is the man himself that God was speaking of. God will give us a test based on how much He can trust us. If He allowed everything to be taken away from us, would we still be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth? (John 4:23-24)

So, today sis be encouraged, be sober, and be wise. In every experience- there is a lesson to be learned and another class to be taught to other young women one day. That lesson may not be taught in an actual classroom or a fancy seminar- it may be a class that you teach your daughter, your sister, maybe even your mother or a coworker. Sometimes the greatest lesson we can teach is without words. It is spoken with action. I am confident that you have had and will continue to have great experiences throughout your lifetime.  Trust and acknowledge Him in ALL that you do and He will show you the way a.k.a His way a.k.a the RIGHT way to do a thing- even if it's taking longer than you like, wait on Him while you wait. That does not mean sit, and do nothing. It's in the verb form, wait on Him- do His will, seek His face, serve Him and His people, and through all of that He will renew your strength and show you the way. Don't beat yourself up if you feel like you didn't do it the right time last time. You're still on this earth so you still have a chance to get it right. :)

I LOVE YOU SIS and I am praying for you! Be encouraged, experiences don't come to stop us, they come to help us grow so that we can get through this thing called life the King's way so that we can help bring others to Him. That is the overall goal for our existence! Stay strong and don't allow your experiences to decide who you are; let God do that. He says that we are the head and not the tail, the first and not the last, we are a royal priesthood and we are His children!  He loves His daughters! Because He is we are and there is nothing that our God cannot do!