Picture this:  God is filling out His tax forms right now and He’s checking the box for DEPENDENTS and listing YOU as His beloved child.  His love for you is beyond measure and ever present.  We truly are God’s kids and He claims us as His prized creations.

Before this life brought me to the end of myself, I was “Self-Sufficient Susan.” More often than not, I acted and lived as though it all depended on me.  My efforts.  My control.  My agenda.  Then I hit ROCKbottom.  That’s when I was inspired to write the Declaration of Dependence – the link is below if you’d like to read it.

These days, as often as possible, I begin each day in my cozy chair and I declare my absolute dependence on my Heavenly Father.  My time with Him keeps me grounded.  My time with Him loosens my grip on life.  My time with Him reminds me that there is only one true God (and it’s not me) and He invites all of us to call Him “ABBA.” Translation?  “DADDY!”

When you start to take life too seriously and you begin to crumble under the pressure and deadlines, try hanging out with your Heavenly Daddy.  Crawl up into his lap and become as a little dependent child with childlike faith.  Place your hand in His and allow Him to lead you.  Stay until the peace comes.

God is inviting us to trust Him and Him alone.  For everything.  Can you carve out a pocket of peace today to declare your humble dependence on Him?  Give it a try.  No doubt you’ll get a great return!

This photo shows the storm that paralyzed Atlanta for five full days.  Yes – it’s true.  This is the land where credit cards double as ice scrapers and one snow shovel is shared around a cul-de-sac of neighbors. (Thank you, Mr. Prescott!)  On two different days throughout the week, I bundled up my Michigan self and set out to show these southern snow sissies how it was done.  On two different occasions, I had to abandon my car at different places in the neighborhood.  The ice under the snow quickly took me out of control.  The ice under the snow required total surrender.

And so it is with the storms of life too – especially the soul-crushing ones.  They often bring us to a place of total surrender and remind us that ultimate control is not ours.  But rather than abandon HOPE, I invite you to hang out with the ONE who holds ultimate control.  Sovereign is He.  God’s plans may never make sense this side of heaven yet He will give you the needed strength in the storms of this broken world.  He will renew and refresh your spirit.

Soak in the words of this moving song by Lifehouse titled “Storm” and be encouraged that “your darkness will turn to light”:

Life is hard.  Our ROCK Eternal is harder.  Everything will be alright.

“We will open the book.  Its pages are blank.  We are going to put words on them ourselves.  The book is called OPPORTUNITY and its first chapter is January.”
-Edith Lovejoy Pierce

As for the quote Edith wrote in 1904?  LOVE.  IT.  You get a brand new book to fill up this year.  Yet more than likely your life will continue to scream MORE.  FASTER.  NOW.  This year you can rewrite the way you respond and choose not to capture all the craziness.

What if you could intermittently change the channel this year and plan for more PEACE?

I invite you to carve out regular pockets of peace this day, this week, this year.  What if you could journal all that happens when you hang out with God and practice His presence?

Explore the weROCK website for ideas such as “What To Do In My Chair?” in the RESOURCES section.  Be ROCKsteady in 2011.

Now run and write this down in your blank book at the top of every new day:

Greetings on this Christmas countdown week.  My greatest wish for you is that you find success in trading out the pace for the peace of Christmas.

So far, I give myself a B- moving towards an A- as my long list shortens. I carved out a pocket of peace last week and ended up in a book of the Bible I’ve never been in before (I’ve only been reading God’s Word for seven years.  I did religion most of my life and was seriously Bible-blind). A cross reference sent me to Micah 5:5. Once I found it, I read this Old Testament prophecy: “And He will be their peace.” What a great truth in this season of celebrating the Prince of Peace.

I have a reliable pace-buster when I feel the frantic frenzy creeping in.  At day’s end, I go out to our front lawn and in the quiet of the night, under the star-filled sky, I simply soak in this scene and re-focus on the Prince of Peace.  I stay outside until the peace comes:

Choose PEACE this Christmas and throughout the New Year.

O Come Let Us Adore Him,
Susan

Today I slayed a dragon.

It was to be a big work day after a long week of leisure, lounging, love, laughing and loading up on turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie.  The kids were off school for the entire Thanksgiving week and we had a glorious time.  We relished in relationships and rest and jammies until noon. Our God has blessed us so abundantly so we thanked Him often throughout the week.

Truth be told, my high-octane self has a limit on leisure.  At some point, I get restless and want to get back to business.  Last night when my head hit the pillow, I was looking forward to switching gears to a day focused on results. My grand plan died around 1:30 this morning when our son showed up along my side of the bed reporting that he was sick.  Most moms know the instantaneous tension that arises.  My heart sank for my hurting child.  My heart also sank for the power-packed agenda that just went up in smoke.  An all out momflict erupted. Over the years I’ve learned the pattern.  When the hyperventilation sets in and the enormous sense of frustration torments because my priorities are temporarily blurred, I know the only way for me to begin such a day is with God.

Once I got my daughter off to school, I checked in on my son, then immediately went to my prayer chair.  I hung out with God for a long time.  Only He can soften me to surrender.  Only He can loosen the death grip I have on my agenda and gently keep my hands open to receive His.  Only He can renew and reframe my re-prioritization so that I can live out the “no regrets” working mom goal I set for myself.  Only He can help me conquer the drivenness so that I can be led by Him.

The Dragon of Drivenness was successfully slain today in my chair.

It’s a monster that I’ve wrestled with most of my life.  It’s what emerges when daily discipline and performance are taken to unhealthy extremes. It’s a monster that will re-emerge on any given day without warning so I must stand guard each moment of most days.  The good news is…I’ve learned to conquer it.  In my chair.  I stay until the peace comes.

By the time I was done hanging out with God this morning, I was willing to step back and be led.  I canceled some meetings and a lunch then anticipated a special day with my son.  The cold, dark, rainy day was the perfect back-drop to cozy up with him and be fully present with him.  The day was filled with treasured moments I would have missed entirely if not for my time with God.

Here’s what I firmly believe:  Satan drives and strives.  God gently leads. Success and results are important but be aware of how you go about accomplishing them.  Slow down long enough to assess.  Is the dragon driving you and devouring your joy, sanity, health, or peace of mind?  Are you being driven or led today?  Do you have a dragon to slay?