Pondering My Year of Returning

So......it is now the end of 2014 and, as seems to be the theme for this time of year, I have been reflecting on the past year. The word God gave me for 2014 was RETURN. I have spent much of the year, focusing on returning everything back to God. My attempt was to give everything back to Him and only accept what God gave back to me. It may sound like an odd venture, but focusing on that has certainly helped keep my attitude in a different place.

It has been more than six months since I last blogged. This is because my life has been incredibly busy. As I write this particular post I am in Hood River, Oregon on a much needed vacation. When I last posted in this blog, I had just given my final notice at a job that I loved, where I was working with people who had become great friends, and was hired by a local hospital emergency room. Since June, I have been working night shifts each week, building my private practice, singing in the church choir, and learning how to be a mom to two young adults. It is such a new experience for me to have adult children. I'm still processing that change so will likely discuss that in a later post. As for now, I believe I have begun to understand why God gave me the word "RETURN" to work on for 2014.

Stepping out of my comfort zone in my professional world has been quite the challenge. I am learning how to adapt to working in a medical field, which has been a good experience for me. My private practice continues to grow in ways that amaze me and I have been given the honor to work with people who allow me into their lives, work with their children, and in their marriages. I constantly have to remember to return my career to God so I stay in line with His goal for this world where He has called me to go.

As far as my personal life, learning to return every aspect has begun to become a coping mechanism. Returning my finances, my relationships, and my health to God helps me stay more focused on God's will for my life than my frequently poor judgment. Trusting that God has a plan when finances are tight, that health concerns are controlled only by God, and that the relationship to keep focused on is my relationship with God are all definitely goals to keep in mind. Previously, when I would feel hurt in my relationships with family or friends, I would translate that into my own self worth. In returning these situations to God, I am learning to not allow other people to have that much power in my life. My self-worth is more appropriately evaluated through God's lens, not the lens of others. Boundary setting at it's best. 

"I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart."                                                                                                                                        ~ Jeremiah 24:7

An interesting side note as also occurred in focusing on returning everything to God. I have found myself becoming more focused on gratitude. In the midst of returning people, situations, and decisions to God I realize that I feel thankful for God's GPS system and the circumstances He allows. Pretty productive year, I do believe. I sure wonder what 2015 will hold as I consider my "JOURNEY."

"Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us as the winter rains, like the spring rains that waters the earth." ~ Hosea 6:3

                                                                                            all contents (c) 2014 Laura Inglis