“Nuggets… along the way.”

Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

The journey of my life has been non-descript in some regards, yet intentional and purposeful in other ways especially over the most recent years.

“You are a product of your environment”. This statement has been said over and over again, made popular and sounds true; but is it?

The journey I am on has cast a shadow on this trend of thought. My “growing-up” years were plagued with uncertainties and insecurities and easily I could have fallen victim to this “mindset” without knowing the real TRUTH of the matter. It is life changing to come to know the TRUTH and not to settle for craftily spun word put together to convince the natural mind.

Jesus said “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6)”. 

What God says about the matter is the only truth. There is a vast difference between the natural world and the spiritual world. Thank God for that because in accepting His Purpose for my Life, I have been transformed from a “nobody”, to a woman of purpose. He has shown me that I have great significance. I now walk in purpose and every circumstance and every person along the way becomes an opportunity that God is using on my journey. That’s what my Lord has done for me.

As I reflect on my life over the years, I am able to speak from a grateful heart.  “Thank you Lord”, because I am seeing more and more how He has used even my darkest hour as a stepping stone to a higher place in Him.

At times I have felt like Hezekiah described “For the children are come to birth and there is no strength to bring forth” (11Kings 19:3). After a while, the Lord started talking into my spirit about purpose and intentionality of my life. As I processed this, I became more and more accepting of who I am and where I am in my life with Him. I started journaling and as I gleaned “TRUTHS” about myself, who He is in my life, and my journey with Him, I labeled these experiences as “Nuggets….along the Way”. Here are some of them.

Nugget~ Torch

I remember being very dissatisfied with my life growing up. I used to wish that I was someone else and from a different home because I thought my family was too poor. My father was a hardworking farmer and my mother a faithful home maker with ten children. I always yearned for “better” and felt like I was deposited in the wrong family. My Mom was the spiritual leader of the home, and “Yes” it was a home, only that I did not see the truth at that time. The enemy had deceived me and continued to do so for most of my teenage years. Little did I know that my “all wise, all knowing” heavenly father placed me in my family to witness and experience the fundamental Christian groundwork that my praying mother gave me. I will never forget the “Torch” that mom gave me that dark morning before daylight when I had to run along a dark country road to get to my exam early in the morning. Only those who had a taste of experience of no electricity can understand the emotional trauma that I experienced as I ran down the dark country road alone… And of course the wind blew out the torch. I was eleven years old. Time and time again I have reflected on my life and on that day. In time the Lord revealed to me a spiritual parallel. For sure my Mom not only gave me a physical torch, but a spiritual one. She gave me the spiritual foundation that gave me light along my way. I also acknowledge that I have a great spiritual family legacy. I was rich and did not know it. I would not trade my family for any other in the world. Thank you Lord.

Nugget~ Rights

I tend to be a “type-A” personality type. I like to see all the ducks in a row, the “t’s” crossed and the “i’s” dotted. I actually was proud of being this way and expected no less from others. (God is merciful. He spared my children). I ran into a decent amount of conflicts with people both in the job arena and socially. My thought was that there are standards to maintain and we should always strive for excellence at all cost and without exception. I insisted on this because I knew that this was “RIGHT” until the Lord confronted my spirit one day.

I heard Him say, “So you are right, so what?”

I was shocked. “Eh?”

The Lord said “What are you going to do about it? What will you do with your rightness?”

I answered, “If I am right I need to speak up Lord”

The Lord responded, “Is this the time or place to implement your rights?”

I was at a loss as to what to say, so I surrendered myself and my rights then. Now make a conscious effort to constantly surrender. My attitude now is “I give you my rights Lord”.

I thank you Lord for being so patient with me.

"Lord, Thank You!"

Nugget~ Healing

Over the past year I have gotten new insight into “PURPOSE”. I was diagnosed with breast cancer and faced surgery, radiation and chemotherapy… Just at the same time I was getting a letter from my health insurance that my policy would be expired in a short time (6 weeks I recall). Was I calm and relaxed? “NO”. I had issues with that. All my working life, I have had health insurance and stayed healthy but the time I needed it most I was loosing it? I had real issues with that. I said “Lord, what’s going on?” The Lord made me aware, not just then, but from time to time of “it” being “a set up”. Yes, whatever the “it” I was going through at that time, was a set up. The Lord used that to show me that “when I have come to the end of my resources, His giving is only just begun”. He was taking me through a school of higher learning.

The Lord has blessed me with the ability to “compartmentalize” and function well in the middle of dire situations. As I spoke with docs, therapists etc. in what seemed like a robotic fashion, the Lord helped me to navigate my way through the myriad of scenarios that was a part of my care. He carried me one step at a time. Through this experience God has proven Himself in my life not only as my lover and ever present God, but as my provider and the one that sustains me.

“And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail” (1Kings17:16). 

He has provided for my need through unfamiliar sources. Praise be to God who causes me to triumph.

Years ago God said to me “Be faithful and endure”. I thought it was regarding issues at that time, not realizing that it is a demand on my life for the entire journey. Regardless of the storm, God is faithful. He reminded me that He has measured it against the grace He has given to me in ability and determined that it will not destroy me.  Well, the onslaught has come, I have escaped, and I am being taken care of. God’s plan for my life is larger than any storm. He is directing my steps towards His higher purpose and no storm will succeed in changing His plan.

In the storm we tend to fear the storm will overwhelm us. We fear we are alone in it, we fear we caused the storm, and sometimes with warped perspective, we fear the storm is here to stay.

Praise be to God, He has brought me through. I was never alone and there was a limit on the severity. He knows what we can bear. The Lord showed me also that many diseases are just the natural result of living in a fallen world, but His grace was and remains sufficient for me.

Isaiah 43:2 says “when thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you; when thou walketh through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon you”.

A most awesome experience I had during the recent illness was how the Lord gave me a “vision” or a “dream” of my healing (I did not know if I was really asleep or awake). There was this woman walking towards the woods with an unleashed chihuahua angrily yapping at her heals. A few nights afterwards I continued the dream, but this time the dog was on a leash and amicably walking along with her as friends.  Several nights later I saw the woman over in the opposite direction from the woods. She was praise-dancing and glorifying God! It was beautiful to see. Then I noticed that the dog was missing… As I contemplated the missing dog, the interpretation came to me that I was the woman and the dog was the cancer. It was gone. The Lord gave me this when I needed it most.

I have had many storms in my life and I am sure I am not unique in this as we live in a fallen world. I am eternally grateful for the new insights God is giving me day by day as I gain momentum in my spiritual journey. Time would not permit me to chronicle all the amazing reports and testimonies of Gods faithfulness and blessings to me. Thanks be to God who causes me to triumph in Christ.

To those who are reading this testimony, I encourage you to seek the God who sustains in the trials of life. Regardless of where you are in life, sick or healthy, rich or poor, employed or unemployed, even on the streets or with an addiction… His Grace transcends barriers and avails for you. You will never learn true faith in comfortable surroundings. It is the very thing that comes to break you, that God uses to propel you to a higher dimension in Him.  Ask Joseph who was sold into slavery by his brothers and who eventually became govenor of Egypt.  Ask Moses who was banished to starvation in the wilderness and he eventually became the deliverer of Israel.  You might not like the principle that God uses, but it is the same principle that He uses for all His people. Question is, do you really want to follow Him? If you do, then let Him use the adversities of your life as spiritual stepping stones to a higher triumphant level in Him.

 Venoris Patten, Florida USA

Thanks be to God who causes me to triumph in Christ!