I know that I'm late to this game, but Joyce Meyer is becoming a favorite of mine. Many of my friends are shaking their heads at me and muttering, "I told you so" because in the past I have not been very quiet about how I didn't care for her. Why? I don't really remember, but I think that sometime, long ago, I heard someone say that her teachings weren't Biblical. I added to this the fact that her voice drives me insane and I threw Ms Meyer out of the circle of people I allowed to minister to me.
Fast forward twenty years. One of my good friends gifted me a copy of Battlefield of the Mind. I grudgingly accepted the gift, but not before I let my friend Jennifer know that I didn't care for Joyce. Jennifer told me to read it anyway. So I did. And it was life-changing. If you struggle with depression, anxiety, anger, negative feelings, basically anything at all... you should read this book.
Lesson learned. A short time later, my friend Dana gifted me another copy of The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word. (Thank you, Lord, for putting these women in my life.) I keep this book in a makeup bag in my purse so I can whip it out every time I need to combat one of my "feelings" with scripture. Again, life-changing.
It's January and my family has been fasting along with our church. I've been trying to fill my mind with positive messages during this time, so I turned on a Joyce Meyer podcast in the car the other day. I was listening to a series about having trust in God and she kept saying the words "Trust God and Do Good". How simple, but how true. When you're mad and upset. When life is not fair. When you're sad and crying and frustrated with your teenager... just trust God and do good. When your college student acts like an entitled brat... trust God and do good. When your seven year old has a dramatic tantrum and you want to run away and hide from all the madness...trust God and do good.
I've been trying to remember to repeat this phrase to myself when one of these little situations presents itself to me. Before I open my mouth to yell and become "Monster Mom", quietly whispering "Trust God and do good" to myself has really been helping me parent my children in a way that's better for all of us. My family is complicated, like most families are. We have three kids in three different stages of life with a few extra issues thrown in. Most days I feel like I'm in some kind of sick reality show or a social experiment on mental health. But God knows what He's doing, even when I forget that He knows what He's doing and try to do everything my way.
Trust God and do good. I am a mom. My children are my responsibility. Sometimes I look at them and cry because I love them so much. Other times I look at them and cry because I think I could kill them with my bare hands and what kind of person feels that way about her own children? Trust God and do good. "Doing good" by my children does not mean yelling and losing my temper on a daily basis. Yes, they may deserve it, but what good does all the yelling really do? In our family, it makes things worse. So lately, quietly muttering "Trust God and do good" through my clenched teeth before I respond to whatever chaos I'm dealing with has really helped all of get along better. No, I don't remember every time, but I'm getting better.
I certainly am not qualified to give out spiritual or parenting advice, but this was on my heart today and I felt like I should share.
Until next time,
Trust God and do good!
