I am definitely not fan of this cold, rainy, gloomy, make you want to stay curled up in a blanket all day, weather we’ve been having. I don’t despise winter but I truly only appreciate winter during the first snow fall of the season and on Christmas morning. (My dad always told me I would stop liking winter as soon as snow days were only a figment of my imagination…don’t tell him but he was right) I do however love fall. Mostly, I love pumpkin spice lattes, Saturday’s full of football, crunching pinecones under my feet (I’ve been told it’s not a normal thing to do but the term normal has never really fit me anyway), outdoor festivals, and evenings spent in sweatpants. And not just any sweatpants. I am very low maintenance in most areas of my life but I do have a few areas of my life where I refuse to cut corners and sweatpants selection is one of those areas. (In some states, I could be considered a sweatpants snob.) It’s not about brand or even look (I still have my all time favs complete with holes and a missing elastic waistband); it’s about warmth and comfort. Fortunately for me, my all American best friend, who happens to own a plethora of North Carolina apparel, gave me the most winter weather appropriate pair of sweatpants (I’m still waiting patiently on a pair of autographed shoes) I’ve ever owned. It was love at fight donning and I have worn them every day since receiving them. If I could implement sweatpants into my work dress code; I would take every 7:30 AM patient for the rest of the year.
I am very blessed that my best friend inherited many perks from being a collegiate athlete and I am even more blessed that she gives from the depths of her heart. (I once watched her give the jacket off of her back to a waitress simply because our server fell in love with it) Because she loves and gives like her heavenly father (and because she will read this blog and realize I would be heartbroken); she would never take away my beloved sweatpants. In fact, some would consider her a terrible friend if she asked for her gift to be returned to her. But do we consider ourselves bad children of God when we take back something He has already removed from our lives? I would certainly make national news as the crazy girl from WV if I went to God and said, “Lord, please give me back my stomach disease, my daily need to drink Jack Daniels, and my depression/grief over losing my pap.” I would never want any of those healings removed or undone and once I was delivered from those areas of my life; I never considered being bound by them again. But I have crept my way successfully back into the schemes of the enemy and taken back areas of my life that God had previously delivered me from. I’m not referring to addictions or outward sin; I’m talking about my deepest fears, pains, and insecurities. I am completely guilty of picking back up the pain from a broken heart. I am a repeat offender for the crime of allowing the intense pain of my past to bind me from my future in Christ. And I have stolen my fear back from Christ more times than I can count. When God removes our hurts, fears, and pain; He removes them for two reasons. First, He removes them so He can begin the healing process within us. Second, He removes them so Satan’s previous hold on/in our lives is permanently removed. When we take back the most painful areas of our life from Him; we disrupt our healing that comes from Him alone and we give Satan permission to attack us with areas of our life that are crippling to an abundant life in Jesus. When we surrender any area of our lives over to the healer of ALL of our hurts we must leave it at His feet or we will end up heartbroken. We end up heartbroken because Jesus is our very best friend and He would never take back the peace, joy, or satisfaction we find in Him. In fact, if we let Him; He will give us more of His blessings and love us with an unspeakable love. Are you guilty of taking back pain and fear that you have already surrendered to God? Or maybe you have only experienced a portion of your healing because you have asked God to give you back your pain and suffering. Satan wants us to view Jesus like I view winter. He wants us to appreciate Him during the first glimpse of His glory and on Christmas morning. But God wants so much more friends. He wants us to become a Jesus snob. He wants us to set standards in Him and refuse to cut corners no matter how tempting it is to take back whatever it is we have already given to Him.
It will only take me a short while (probably the end of next winter) to transform my new sweatpants into a tattered and worn version that resembles a few other pairs I have stashed away in my dresser drawers but each time I put them on: I will remember the love and generosity of my All American best friend. It may take me a short while to transform a worn and tattered version of myself that resembles a defeated, repeat offender into a redeemed and restored child of God. But each time I lay something at His feet, I will remember the healing, resurrection power, and the permanent freedom of my All in All best friend.
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
