Meredith's Heart Full of Joy

There are really no words to express the feeling of losing someone close to you. Being 2 weeks into my freshman year of high school and losing one of my closest friends, it was truly an unfathomable feeling.

Despite all the grief and pain, I am able to look back on the thing that made her so special. Today marks the 6 year anniversary of one of my dearest friends going to be with the Lord. I wanted to take some time and share an important lesson she taught me, and my friends, throughout our years together.

If Meredith could be described in one word it would easily be: JOY. 

If someone was to ask what was lying at the foundation of that little 5 foot girls heart, everyone would say joy. What was so special about her foundation is that it was joy full of the Holy Spirit. From that joyful heart, she radiated a constant flow of Christ’s love onto others. She was placed on this earth, and from the time she could talk, began to influence and make an impact on the people’s lives around her. And let me tell you.. she knew everyone. It didn’t matter if you had known her for years through soccer or cheer, if you had just met her at youth group, or even if you took her order at Chick-fil-a... She treated us all the same. She loved us all the same. 

Her joy was contagious. Jesus was the foundation of her heart and because He was her deepest desire and she trusted in Him, He was able to make much of her. You too can experience the same joy that was in Meredith by understanding the person God can make of you! 

Here are 3 ways as believers, God makes much of us: 

• God makes much of us by rejoicing over us.
• Matthew 10:31 “Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows."

• God makes much of us by leaving us a seat with Jesus on his throne.
• Revelation 3:21 “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”

• God makes much of us by being pleased by us.
• Psalm 149:4 “For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.”

God making more of you allows you to know Him better. It allows you to treasure Him more and and to love Him more. It equips you to go out and spread His great word to others. 

Not a single day goes by that Meredith is not thought about and deeply missed. But what a blessing it is that she was able to leave such a happy, joyous feeling in the people’s lives around her! That she was able to be a pillar of light and a demonstration of what it truly means to have Jesus Christ in your heart.

I encourage you to go forward with a heart full of joy, just like Meredith and allow Christ to make something of you today!

Identity

Over a year ago God laid on my heart to start a blog and while I listened to Him in the short run, I let my busy and hectic life push it aside just after a few months. So as I’m sitting here today doing my quiet time, my heart feels heavy and convicted to start back what He intended for me to do. 

Do you ever ask yourself ‘who am I?’ If you stripped away all of the titles you may have... daughter, sister, friend, mother, student, teacher... who is the person that is left? Our identity does not lie in any of those titles. It lies in who we are in Christ. We must undoubtedly believe we really are who God says we are, and we can only achieve that through the Word of God. 

Here are just a few examples of the person Christ has made us to be:

I am a child of God.

John 1:12-13
“But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

I am a new creation.

2 Corinthians 5:17 

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

I am chosen.

Ephesians 1:4

“For he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless in his sight.”

I am a royal daughter.

1 Peter 2:9

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

I am free.

John 8:36

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

I am forgiven.

Ephesians 4:32

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

I am created for good works.

Ephesians 2:10

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, for good woks, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Without truly knowing who we are in Him, we will always struggle with our identity. Lately I have found myself finding my identity in earthly things. I struggle with finding security in physical beauty, nice clothes, and even through my friends. When my eyes started to get away from Jesus, I begin to find my worth in these material things. We must protect our identity in Christ so that it is not stolen by the enemy. The enemy can only take what we allow him to take. However, if you’re confident about who you are in Christ, then nothing and no one can rob you of that.

Don’t be afraid to ask yourself ‘who am I?”-- all you have to do is believe and live out the things Christ says you are.

Trust

Trust. A very short word yet at times a very hard concept to grasp. As Christians we are always supposed to put our trust in the Lord but that is much easier said than done. When bad things happen to us we either turn to God and trust more in the grand plan He has for us or we try to handle things on our own, venturing away from The Lord and trusting in worldly things. Either way, we tend to ask God a lot of questions. 1. Is He really listening to us and hearing our prayers? 2. Does He actually care? 3. Is He good? In Habakuk 2 we learn that the righteous live by faith. The Lord tells us to listen and share the Word, and when we believe that the Word is true and trust His timing, then we will live out that faith in real life. It is by faith that the righteous live. 

Just when you think things can’t get any worse, they do. The enemy will deceive you when you are at your breaking point: the most sick, the most depressed, the most heartbroken. However, it is so encouraging to know that God can redeem and transform any situation you may face. By trusting in Him and having faith in the plan He has for my sister’s life, I have been able to live without a cloud of doubt surrounding me. I know that He will protect her and continue to heal her. He will equip and prepare her for something wonderful. 

Every time we run away from our problems, God is pleading for us to return. And going back to Him isn’t always easy. It is not the shortcut out of a difficult situation. God is continually sending us aid and wanting to help us. He always has something better planned for us. (Don’t forget He sees and knows everything!!) When you open your eyes to God, you will move from a person who is seen by God to a person who sees God. 

I’m so encouraged by a woman in my life who has been battling breast cancer. Just the other day she found out she is done with chemotherapy! Over the past several months I have watched her keep her eyes on Jesus and live out a faithful life. I’ve seen her family turn what could have been a pitiful situation into one that glorified the Lord. I’m so blessed by the friendship I’ve only recently begun with the McIntyre family. It’s hard to believe I’ve only known these sweet people for a year but I greatly value the friendship I have with all of them. To God we give all the glory upon hearing this wonderful news! So proud of you Coco-- way to fight!! 

Proverbs 3:5-6  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all you ways acknowledge Him, and he will make your paths straight.” 

Isaiah 26:4 “Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.”

When all you want to do is give up, don’t. Trust in the Lord and live out your faith for the watching world to see. 

Friendship

Friendship is such an amazing thing. Too many times I forget to thank God for the friends I have in my life. Some of them I’ve known since I was 3 years old at Hutchison and others I’ve just met while at Ole Miss. I have been able to grow with these people during some of the hardest times in my life and in theirs. It’s no surprise that God places certain friends in our lives for a particular reason and purpose. With your friends you are supposed to love one another unconditionally and over the course of the past year I have felt that love more than ever.

Having a community of friends that support you and encourage you in your walk with Christ is so important. In the Bible we are told that in order to grow, we are to surround ourselves with other believers. 

Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.”

James 5:16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” 

In order to grow in Jesus, we also need our friends to criticize us and call us out. And most importantly love each other. John 13:34-35 says, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

In Acts 2:42-47 we see what a true community is supposed to look like. We must be devoted to each other, devoted to the word and prayer, and devoted to the good of all. Sharing life together is the underlying message of that entire passage. 

From the beginning, we were made to live in a community of believers; and now you have to make the decision: live together or die alone.

Stewart's Surgery

Today, as I'm sitting in the waiting room of Regional One Outpatient Center, I think back at how quickly things have changed in my life. You never know what God has in store for you. Stewart went from never having injuries or surgeries to constant, religious visits to Regional One Medical Center. We've had to adjust to the dressing changes, multiple medications, garment fittings, laser surgeries, and much more. My "not-so-medically-educated" family has become pros with burn patient recovery. God has blessed us with such an amazing team of doctors and nurses, who Stewart has befriended and looks forward to seeing with every visit. 
This morning before getting her IV I asked if she wanted to hold my hand before they stuck the needle in. All the nurses kinda gave me a weird look and Stewart laughed and said, "Sissy you know I've done this a time or two..." 
I'm so proud of how far she's come and her positive attitude about the long road she has ahead of her. I know God is preparing my sister for something great. She's going to use her accident to minister to the lost and broken, and even now I see how The Lord is placing people in her life to allow her to do so. 
Stewart just came out of surgery-  Dr. Hickerson said everything went great! She is still very tired and currently in recovery with her favorite team of nurses. 
Thank you to everyone who has prayed for us and will continue to do so! 
Ephesians 2:10 "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Difficulty

God does not tell us that life will always be easy. We will face difficult situations but we have Him to help us through them. In John 16:33 it says,"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” In that verse we are reminded of who really is in charge. 

God is always making a way for us to do His will in the world. But so many times there are obstacles that get in the way from us fulfilling his purpose. For instance, you want to volunteer for some organization but your schedule tells you that you’re too busy. You want to lead a bible study but you’re too afraid to speak aloud in a group setting. You convince yourself over and over that things are too difficult to do at this time. 

Difficulty is the barrier that is stopping you from doing God’s will. Difficulty loves to remind you about the potential hurdles and burdens that will affect your life. Difficulty has been around since Moses. When he led the children out of Israel difficulty was present the entire time. And Difficulty doesn’t leave when things are over either. Difficulty lurks and hangs around-- he was there in the desert when there was no food, no water, and no clear path to the Promised Land. Just think if the Israelites had turned around and gone back to Egypt, they might still be slaves and building the enemy’s kingdom. Don’t let Difficulty keep you from going out and going where God wants you to go.  

God made a way for the children of Israel again and again for more than 40 years. When they got to the Promised Land, God had Moses send out 12 scouts to go and see what was ahead. He did not ask his scouts if they could posses the land (God already told them they were getting it), he asked them to consider how to go. They came back, not understanding their directions, and reporting that all they could see were obstacles and giants and that it was going to be impossible. However two of the scouts did what they were told. They had kept their eyes on God and not just what was right in front of them. Rather than seeing all of the impossibles, they saw what was possible. They knew the miracles God worked to get the children of Israel out of Egypt so certainly He could get them into the Promised Land. Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Whenever Difficulty is bullying us, we must remind ourselves that we are well able. Psalm 18:29 says, “For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.” 

We need to get our eyes off of Difficulty, and onto God, who promises us nothing is too difficult for Him. 

Fear

Everyone fears something. 
I myself am a very fearful person. I fear tight spaces, heights, cats, someone kidnapping me... the list goes on. Of course there are some healthy, rational fears like walking across a high tightrope or bungee jumping off a building but I’ve come to realize that fear can cause you to miss out on so much in life. When your fears become the forefront of your life, they consume you. You start living your life saying “what if this..” and “what if that..” happens. When fear runs your life, you could miss out on an opportunity that God is calling you to do. 

God tells us 350 times in the Bible to “fear not!” He puts us in situations to confront a fear and take a risk. 

• He stands by our side before, during, and after. 
• Psalm 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”
• He tells us He will never leave us.
• Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
• He tells us to not be discouraged. 
• Isaiah 41:10 says, “fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

I know many people are getting ready to go off to college for the first time or are just graduating college and looking for a job. This is definitely a time where you can choose:: either to let fear rule your life or to allow God’s inevitable power to free you from your fears and direct you in the path He has paved specifically for you. 

God knows that fear will not get us through danger. However, love can. When you have the will to persevere even in the face of fear, it can show unbelievers the faith and trust you have in Jesus.
2 Timothy 1:7 says, “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” If we love truly Jesus, we are supposed to keep our eyes on Him and believe in what He has created for us.”

So starting today, let Jesus take you out of the places in your life that bind you to fear, and you will begin noticing opportunities in your life that will cause you to focus on Him and fear not.