Half-Year Marker

“At the Crossroads”

I challenged myself at the beginning of the year to make some changes and set new goals.  These goals centered on my career, personal health-wellness, and my desires for marriage and family.  My goals were set at the half-year marker…July 31, 2017. As that half-year marker is fast approaching, I find myself at a crossroads regarding how to deal with the results thus far.

While standing at this crossroads I look at the picture that I set for myself in January.  This vision is filled with glitter and color and words of encouragement. This vision is filled with prayers and affirmations and various scriptures.  This vision is filled with the hopes and dreams of something bigger than how I saw myself in that moment in January.  

“Reflections”
Sitting here reflecting on this vision requires me to contemplate where I desired to go versus where God has called me.  And I see that God has called me to fill in the blanks with more belief in His power and strength.  He called me to hold on in the tight and murky places. He called me to continue to show up even when I didn’t know the answer. He called me to finish running the race that He has set which sometimes requires me to make U-turns.

I have made a few U-turns within this half-year marker.  And as I reflect on those, I began to see that some seasons require you to make a few U-turns to go back, so that you can then move forward.  The going back part allows you to gather wisdom that you need for the next leg of the journey. So, I am learning not to despite those dreaded U-turns in life as much as I used to.

I see that the vision I set for myself still has open-ended places. The goals that I long to move forward have remained still in those places. But in those still places, I discover that I am being redefined by God’s calling. I am being redefined in a way that is not marked by my original vision. This marker has been redefined by His Word.

"In their hearts, humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps." Proverbs 16: 9 (NIV)

“We can make our own plans, but the Lords gives the right answer.” 
Proverbs 16: 1 (NLT)

“You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.” 
Proverbs 19: 21 (NLT)

“Favorable and Promising”
You see when I look at the verse that says that He will "establish" my steps I see so much more.  The word establish means "to make firm and stable”, “to put into a favorable position” (Merriam-Webster, 2017).   So God’s redesign of my original plan is now shining in a different light. His redesign is favorable, as well as promising.  And with that revelation, I now see that the crossroads that I stand at does not have to resonate with regret.  

This half-year marker illustrates how I saw myself in a specific moment in time. But I now see that the illustration has been shaped and molded by God's fingertips. So even if those open-ended places continue to remain a mystery, I can rest in the fact that God is establishing my journey with His favor. And I am okay with that.