Over the weekend we were finally home after a super busy summer and we were working on home projects. I noticed in our laundry room our calendar that I absolutely love and tend to keep pretty updated – was still on May. At first glance, I could attribute this to a typical summer in youth ministry that we packed, came home did laundry, re-packed and left again. Rinse and Repeat.
The more I studied the calendar I realized it was an actual heart issue and I needed to process it. I asked my counseling husband for the word I was looking for and he said, “that’s called avoidance.” Hubs is kind as to never pull out his counseling lingo on me and this was definitely solicited advice. And he is 100% right. The May calendar is when everything in life was normal and that little right hand corner where we left for Costa RIca – is right where I want life to stay.
By definition, “Avoidance behaviors are any actions a person takes to escape from difficult thoughts and feelings. These behaviors can occur in many different ways and may include actions that a person does or does not do.”
Somehow for me – changing the calendar – actually means moving into this new space that I don’t want to be in, yet we are being called into. Changing the calendar actually means accepting that things are not how I planned or imagined or dreamed they would be.
Here we are – the first Monday in August and it’s time to change the calendar. It’s time to fully accept and walk into the next season the Lord has for us. To embrace the reality that change can be good. Hard. But good.
Lysa Terkeurst writes these words, “Though we can not predict or demand the outcome of our circumstances, we can know with great certainty we will be okay.
Better than okay.
Better than normal.
We will be victorious because Jesus is victorious (“But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” 1Cor. 15:57).
And victorious people were never meant to settle for normal!”
Cheers to Monday. Cheers to August. Cheers to a clean calendar and walking in the greatest expectation of Jesus to come and do a new thing.