I have been feeling the call to "move".  Not physically, but spiritually.  The call to press forward into something deeper.  I think that we all have this call: the call to be in a continual forward motion towards where God wants us.  The problem that I have is that I am lazy.  I don't want to put in the effort that it takes to do this.  I am comfortable.  I want to live my comfortable lifestyle and stay in my ignorance and not change.

 I don't like change.  I want things to stay the same.  I realized a couple of months ago that I wasn't going anywhere.  I hadn't changed in my thinking or my actions ... I was a stagnant pool and I didn't like it.  I started asking God where He wanted me and what He wanted me to be doing.

 This summer has been great.  I have had some really good conversations with friends.  Getting ready for my trip to Costa Rica has really helped also.  It has forced me to prepare myself spiritually for what I'm going to do.  I also read a Max Lucado book that really brought some conviction on how I spend my time and how I approach God.  I won't go into details right now and I can't say that it has completely changed my actions, but I am now trying to be more focused on what God wants for me rather than what I want for me.

 I'm not saying that I am there...I am no where near where I need to be.  I have a long, long way to go.  I hear my friends talk about the struggles that they have and wonder if I should have that same kind of conviction.   But I hear God gently reminding me that my struggles are different because we are all in different places.  My place is good for me and their place is good for them.  I don't need to try to add conviction or guilt in an area where God has not brought that conviction. 

 Lord, Help me to remember to make You the focus of each day.  Help me to remember to ask what Your will is in each situation, not just in the big things but in each and every little thing.  Amen.

I have been thinking a lot about one word: Legacy.

 What kind of legacy do I want to leave?  How do I want people to remember me?  Do I want them to say that I was a great scrapbooker or an excellent teacher?  Sure I love those things and feel I'm pretty good at what I do, but that is not primarily what I want people to remember.  I want them to say that I loved God with all my heart and was willing to go anywhere and do anything if that was where He called me.

 I have been thinking  alot about that lately too: missions  and what it means for me to be a missionary.  I know that it is something I do at my job or really anywhere I am with the people I meet and the friends I see.  BUT, I also know there is something more.  Something else I am to do.

 My upcoming trip to Costa Rica is just one step in that direction...maybe the first step, maybe a sidestep...but a step none the less.  I know that this trip is part of the reason that I am thinking about all this.  We have also been talking a lot about it in the bible study classes that I have been attending...what it means to be a Christian and live a "missional" lifestyle.  And I wonder is that really what I am doing or am I too content with where I am to be moving toward a more intimate life with God...a more sacrificial life with God.

 Lord, Help me to see where you are leading me.  Help me to know what the next step is to be.  Help me to see how you are moving me into a more complete walk with you.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Let music swell the breeze,
and ring from all the trees sweet freedom's song;
let mortal tongues awake;
let all that breathe partake;
let rocks their silence break, the sound prolong.