progress – Amy Linnea

Published on October 27, 2018June 9, 2023 by amylinneaLeave a comment

Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from Him. Psalm 62:1

There will always be more.

More teacher books to read, lessons to try, activities to save.

More recipes to try, nutrition to evaluate, exercise methods to investigate.

More decorating shows to watch, websites to pursue, ideas to glean.

More clothing to see, outfits to make, stores to shop.

We will never reach the pinnacle of knowledge in any area of our life.

There will always be more we could know.

More knowledge to glean.

More, more, more.

I find this overwhelming.

Why?

Because I want to do my very best in all things.

I want to be the best teacher, so I read blogs, read books, tweak lessons, and constantly keep looking to make my classes even better.

I want to be the best self, so I keep pursuing blogs, saved links, and books to find that formula which will set me up for success.

I want to be the best Christian wife/mother/daughter/etc, so I read books, blogs, and save even more books on my future reading list, which I admit will could never all be read in my lifetime.

Folks, we don’t have to prove ourselves.

God loves us and accepts us.

Knowledge is wonderful, even ordained by God.

But it can become a religion of sorts.

An idol in the very least.

Yes, we should keep pursuing knowledge.

But not at the risk of feeling inadequate if we don’t.

The lie of having to know everything is false.

It will never happen.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but you will never know all in whatever area you focus.

Use your God-given talents to work, improve, and pursue knowledge.

But let God guide you.

If your saved links or saved emails, or list of books to read all of a sudden vanished, would that almost be a relief to you?

That is an indication of information overload.

If you don’t want to be so bold as to delete years of saved “bookmarks”, then place a time limit on your knowledge search.

Give yourself 20 minutes a day to read your book or saved link.

Devote an entire day to plunge beneath the waters and organize, deleting unnecessary items.

Whatever you decide to do, simply remember this.

God knows all, so we don’t have to.

He ordains your steps when you trust in Him.

Allow Him to guide your knowledge search, knowing you are already enough.

You have already secured His love.

Thank Him for your knowledge thirst.

Then sit back, take a drink from your book, and savor the satisfaction of being enough.

Because you are.

Photos by Joost Crop , Valentín Betancur , Miguel Orós , & Nong Vang on Unsplash

Wait for the Lord

Published on August 25, 2018June 9, 2023 by amylinnea3 Comments

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14

David wrote the phrase “wait for the Lord” twice.

Think it was because he was having trouble himself?

It’s easy to view Bible characters as unusually godly.

After all, their words are quoted in the Bible we still read today.

But they were human.

Flawed, just like you and me.

And apparently David needed to really remind himself to wait for the Lord.

Do you?

Do you need to be reminded to wait for God’s timing?

Wait for the Lord means just that.

To wait.

And wait.

Waiting for His timing.

And in the mean time, David encourages us to be strong and take heart.

Why?

Because he knew that it takes strength to wait for the Lord.

God’s strength.

It also takes heart, meaning your will and determination, yielding your love to God.

Yielding your trust in Him.

In His perfect way and timing, however slow you may think that is.

When God is working, which rest assured, He always is, it’s the waiting that is hard.

Hard for Bible characters then, and hard for us today.

So take comfort.

You’re in good company.

While waiting on the Lord, be strong and take heart.

He is working and will always finish what He has begun.

Photos by KaLisa , Usukhbayar , Darya , Daiga , Lauren , & Nick on Unsplash

Stop

Published on August 18, 2018June 9, 2023 by amylinnea3 Comments

But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” Luke 8:50

Stop agreeing with your thoughts which tell you you’re not good enough.

Stop listening to the lies inside your head, telling you you’re not loved.

Stop believing the future is hopeless.

Stop turning to the easy road that puts you behind your goals.

Stop settling for less when God wants more for you.

Stop sitting around, waiting for life to find you.

Stop thinking things will never get better.

Stop acting like a useless Christian.

Start acting like God’s child.

Start believing the truth that you are more than good enough.

Start listening to the truth that you are completely loved.

You are so loved that God sent His son Jesus to die for you.

And Jesus would have died only for you.

Start believing the future is bright, full of possibilities.

Start working on the goals God has magnificently placed into your path.

Start fulfilling the destiny God has for you.

Declare God to be in control of your thoughts, and for heaven’s sake, start walking towards Him.

Photos by John ,Chris , Luke, & Danielle on Unsplash

One Step at a Time

Published on July 28, 2018June 9, 2023 by amylinneaLeave a comment

The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. Proverbs 21:5

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Ever face a giant situation?

A large project, perhaps?

Or a looming life event?

How can we possibly remain calm at the prospect of a new baby?

Or starting a company?

Or a church?

The answer lies in one step at a time.

Concentrating on that one step.

Only one step at a time.

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How do you eat an elephant, the old saying goes?

One bite at a time.

Eww, I just went to the circus.

I love elephants.

They remember their own families.

Anyway, if you concentrate on the end result,

You’ll become discouraged over and over again.

Goals take time and are sometimes hard to reach.

Choose your goal, but concentrate on each step.

After one step, think about the next.

And the next.

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Before you know it, you’ll look back and see how very far you’ve come.

You’ll be that much closer to your goal.

You’ll stop and thank God for the progress you’ve made.

Even if you take a couple steps backward, look at the overwhelming path forward you’ve traveled.

Tremendous.

Stop fretting that you haven’t yet reached your lofty goal.

Smile at how far you’ve come.

And keep on going.

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Photos by Sweet Ice Cream Photography & Gautam Arora on Unsplash

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