In His Likeness w/ AntTBri

I like the month of August for a many reasons but mainly because it’s the eighth month of the year.   It serves as a reminder that life and love holds the promise of new beginnings.   It’s the month if we’re cognitive that we feel the pressure to Begin again.

I don’t know that I’ve always appreciated the opportunity to start over or that I saw the possibilities in beginning again.   But  I can confidently tell you now in this season life and love rejuvenates,  refreshes, restarts or resets itself at the appointed time. The eigth month figuratively or in actuality is a great month to prepare,  position or posture your heart to begin again.

Don’t worry if you’re feeling apprehensive  or are experiencing some anxiety even considering starting over or beginning again.  It’s a natural human occurrence , it comes with the territory but you have WHO and what it takes to push past your feelings,  fears and frustrations.The Holy Spirit is alive,  active and gives you authority over those things. God’s got you.  He knows the way that you take and HE is the completion of what He put in motion. This is all a part of His plan for your life and love (Jer. 29:11).

I can honestly say being forced to begin again got on my last nerve (prior to an enlightened perception) because I hardly ever was prepared or ready for the change.   It just happened and at best my response try hard as I may came across shaky, slow and not sure.  I felt inadequate,  ill equipped and inferior to the variables out of my control.   So many things could go wrong and every vulnerability would be exposed.   I remember screaming at God, ” Lord everybody can see there’s no covering. I don’t feel protected,  provided for..in a position to begin again”.  For a very long time, I couldn’t reconcile why previous effort couldn’t sustain life and love in the present. All the time,  talent, treasure invested building or working toward the last thing seemingly meant nothing,  was forgotten and didn’t carry over and the expectation was that I lived and love in the current flow. How unfair was that?   Who would want to start over and begin again having seen successes  and or failures with so many variables in flux?   Both scenarios meant expending more effort, energy and evolving  into the person needed in the present moment without fully resolving the person you were or had been.  Yeah,  it was not my ideal of fun either. But the Spirit helped me, held me and heard me and if you allow Him he’ll do the same for you

So how do we effectively deal with the pressure to begin again without begrudging the process?   How do we stir the embers of expectation,  build enthusiasm and excitement?   We reference the Source. The originator of all things new.  We avail all of who we are to God’s perspective,  process,  plan and promise.  Praying in accordance to what He wills for life and love and TRUST that He will work in us the will to do what pleases and honors Him while perfecting all things concerning us.   When we submit,  surrender and stop struggling for life and love our way the pressure to begin again becomes enjoyable,  exciting and experiential. We grow in grace and come to see life and loves possibilities /opportunities as a God thing.  We begin to understand and depend on His sovereignty,  accept,  adapt and acclimate to His will,  way and Word fashioning our times in His hand.  We relax and relish the things acquired while life and love develops new.

You and I come to realize if God then God!  Yesterday’s testimony pales in comparison to the hope current strides will yield.  What we’ve experienced or accomplished thus far isn’t the marker for life and love.  There are higher heights and deeper depths in/with God.  Things we will never come to know of or experience with Him had life and love remained the same.   God establishes,  settles,  secures and strengthens us while we’re feeling the pressure to begin again.  Celebrate that!  Cherish that and confidently embrace this season of dreaming,  daring and doing life and love again.

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace [Who imparts all blessing and favor], Who has called you to His [own] eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely, and strengthen, and settle you” (1 Peter 5:10 AMP).

Could God’s heart towards you be to encourage and strengthen your heart while you’re feeling the pressure to begin again?   If so the edification would be in the promise of new beginnings. The admonition would be to not accept or expect much of the same and the expectation is all things new.  New way of seeing and experiencing life and love is beyond this current pressure. God’s heart is to bless you above and beyond what you can think or ask for.  His new addresses the unmentionable request and regrets.  His new believes in your future greatness and isn’t desiring life or love replicating yesterday.  His love welcomes the acquaintance of who you are in Him today… Better,  blessed,  bountiful and God’s best for life and love.  His new nurtures that understanding,  will help you negotiate and navigate the new territory God’s sovereignty is gracing you with.   It’s with renewed excitement, energy, expectation and enthusiasm I pen “I’m looking,  living and loving forward to every new beginning we are graced with”.  May your head and heart joy continually in the Lord. We love you whole heart~AntTBri