Have you ever felt like you were running from or avoiding something, but you weren’t sure why?  Ever been afraid of the “unknown”?  How often do we fear failure?   Life is so busy and filled with so many activities, sometimes it is difficult to slow down and listen to that “still small voice” or truly hear what the Lord may be trying to tell us.  Perhaps, maybe we just have selective hearing because we want to do what we think is best or what pleases us?

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

The Lord tells us in His word, that he has plans for every one of us…So many times, we are so busy making plans of our own we forget we are not the ones in control.  Being mindful of whose we are and what we are called to do is the first step… then we must listen to what God is calling us to do and step up!

The story of Jonah comes to mind, when thinking about stepping up to God’s commission… Jonah’s story depicts how God truly is in control and is in command of everything to carry out His plan.  If we acknowledge God as having full reign in our lives, He will use us in ways we cannot fathom.  There may be times when God is calling us to lead and we are fearful of failure…but with God’s direction and blessing, we cannot fail.  We can do all things through Christ … and to Him we can give all the Glory!

Jonah 17:9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good.  I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”

God knows our talents and abilities better than we know them, ourselves… and He has the master plan.  Resting in Him and stepping out in faith in every aspect of our lives and seeking what it is He calls us to do, requires faithfulness and results in a peace He can only give us.  Our heavenly father knows what is best for His Children before we even figure it out…and being aware of God’s purpose in our lives by staying in consistent communion with Him, allows us the opportunity to truly discover our heart’s desire.

Through personal experience, I can tell you that God can change the desire of our hearts.  He has the ability to change our hearts and put a desire there when it’s necessary to carry out His plan. It is then, when we follow His will for our lives, and obey, that we will experience true peace and happiness and ultimately He will be able to use us to help change lives.

Psalm 37: 4 -5: Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart. 5Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.

So, if the Lord is calling us into leadership, we must have no fear!  We must listen and faithfully step up!

“And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come.  And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.”

Matthew 14:28-29 KJV

Have you ever thought about why Peter wanted to get out of the boat? Why did he all of a sudden think he could walk on water? Well, you might say, “It’s because he saw many of the miracles performed by Jesus.  For instance, when Jesus opened the blind eyes and cleansed the lepers.” Yes, that’s true. But, the other disciples in the boat saw the same things. Why didn’t they want to get out?

Peter understood that it was his time. He stirred his faith up. He believed at that moment that he could do what God placed in his heart. Jesus said, “Peter, do you want to get out of that boat?” He said, “Yes, I do.” Jesus replied, “Well, come on out.” Notice that Jesus didn’t say, “Peter, stay in that boat. Don’t you know I’m the Son of God?” No, He said, “Peter, I like your attitude of faith. I like the fact that you believe you can do great things.”

Today, we should have that same kind of boldness! Start believing that your time is here! All the dreams that you have, those desires that you thought would never work out, it’s time to start believing again. So when you grab your flip-flops and beach towels take some time to reflect on what God has put in your heart.  Then activate your faith and step out of the boat. It’s your time!  Maybe you started but stopped-out of your courses at Belhaven.  Perhaps, it became too difficult and you felt you could not manage it all.  Whatever the situation is, ask yourself the question “Would God put it in my heart and not give me the power to accomplish it?”  Whatsoever God has placed in your heart, it’s time to be found doing it. He never said it would be easy…but His grace is sufficient.  We were created for good works and good works we must do.

As Christians, often times, we get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of the day that we lose focus on the fact that we are handling God’s most precious gift – the human life.  We could learn a thing or two from Moses and how he treated the people of God.  We must be careful to treat each other as we should and not as we feel.  This truth became apparent several months ago when we encountered an emergency with one of our students.

Call 911!  Call his wife! Meet at the Emergency Room!  Hold the baby! It’s after-hours… but he’s our student!  In a time when he was most vulnerable, everyone raced to his rescue.  The student was completely baffled by the care and concern of everyone.  You see, his prior disposition had caused everyone to deal guardedly with him.

The next day, to our surprise, the student brought lunch and a thank you card for the staff to express his gratitude.  We were flabbergasted!  It wasn’t until we took the time to get to know the student that we begin to understand him. We had always reacted to situations but never really understood this student.  After the incident, he explained to us that he had suffered a traumatic head injury early on in life which severely affected how he dealt with his emotions. Like many adult learners, this student was bearing the burden of “life”.  He attended graduate classes, carried the weight of taking care of a wife and new  born baby while at the same time worked day in and day out to manage his own business.  He was overwhelmed!  But how would we know, if we don’t ask?  We’ve heard the old saying…you can’t judge a book by its cover…but many times we do.  It was unfortunate that this incident happened.  However, it brought about a realization that “people (students) don’t care how much we know until they know how much we care”.  We must be genuinely concern about the wellbeing of others.

This student has become one of our greatest proponents.  He has referred several students to Belhaven and now when we see him, he is wearing a smile.  The care and concerned experienced on that day left a lasting-positive impression on this student.  We have been given a special charge in Christian Higher Education…to be that beacon of light as we point individuals in the right direction.  Students should feel our prayers and support constantly as they maneuver their way through life.

You may be thinking I am referring to the weather. Depending on where you physically live in the Belhaven network, frozen may be a good descriptor this time of year.

However in this case, I am referring to the Disney animated movie Frozen. If you enjoy Disney animated classics and films, or have any children in your life including grandchildren, nieces and nephews; or neighbors and friends children too, you are familiar with this phenomenal hit.

One of the themes in the movie has to do with the unique gifts and talents of one of the characters, Elsa the Snow Queen. In the beginning of the movie, Elsa is afraid to show her gifts and talents. She is afraid of being different. She is afraid people will judge her. She decides to hide herself and her gifts – even from her sister Anna. By the end of the movie, she realizes it is okay to use her unique gifts and talents for good and that people will accept her and appreciate her.

Have you ever experienced this at work, in class, at home, or in your community activities? Been afraid to share your unique gifts and talents? Afraid that people will judge you or laugh at you because you are different or special? Do you ever compare yourself to someone else wishing you had their talents? You each have special gifts that are all your own.

Each year our President, Dr. Roger Parrott selects a verse of the year. This year’s verse is Peter 4:10. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” The good news is that God made each of us special with unique gifts and talents to SHARE. The key word is SHARE. Use them (your gifts) to serve one another. I challenge each of you to discover and use your unique gifts, talents and strengths to serve one another. As it relates to your classes, you never know when your gifts and talents will truly help someone else.

“Mama, I want to be like you when I get bigger.” These words were spoken by my five-year-old daughter who was watching me in the mirror as I finished getting dressed for work. Though these words warmed my heart, these same words made me slightly uncomfortable. At the time, I was in a mad rush to head out the door because I had overslept. I was preoccupied sorting through my mental to-do list for the day and became completely overwhelmed just hours into a brand new day. I thought to myself, “This is not how I want her to be”. It was in that moment I knew I needed to take time for self-reflection. How can I self-improve especially since my little girl wants to be like me? Am I really the person that she sees on the outside? Have I done everything possible to set an example that shows who I truly am?
Self-reflection involves asking yourself thought-provoking questions so that you can develop a deeper level of understanding about yourself. The key to a successful self-evaluation is to be honest with yourself. I find it necessary to warn you that self-reflections can be uncomfortable and downright painful, but it is essential to change. Here are just a few questions I used to perform my self-evaluation.
• Are you at peace with yourself?
• Are you making the same mistakes over and over again?
• What habits would you like to quit? Why don’t you start today?
• Do you live for others or for yourself?
• How important is social approval for you?
• What is true happiness for you?
• If you could free yourself from one burden in your life, what would it be?
In this New Year, instead of making unattainable New Year resolutions, I encourage you to take a minute to self-reflect so you can become a better you because there may be someone who wants to be just like you!