Character Confession: What Desperation will Do
Last year I facilitated a Made to Crave study based on the book by Lysa TerKeurst. We’d watch the video and each week she’d have a word that we would replace with a better word.
My notes for Week 6 have the word Desperation. Letting go of desperation, the new word we are to exchange was courageous.
As a desperate woman, I’ve ran to Oreos, friends, ice cream, writing, pretty much anything that could give a short term lift, and forgot about God.
Desperation recently had me dipping prunes in milk chocolate to help a child consume them. (Didn’t help, by the way.)
Desperation has a wife inviting her husband’s mistress to Christmas shop with the family.
Desperation leads a physically healthy person with unhealthy thoughts about themselves to a bathroom to purge.
Desperation leads good people not seeing results come fast enough to take matters in their own hands.
Desperation is an offspring of fear. And when I’m walking in fear, I put faith on the back burner and then some.
Courageous is a hard word to exchange because there is a faith element involved. You don’t know how this is going to work out. There are no guarantees this is going to happen your way, and/or in your time. But the mask comes off and you can wave a white flag and stand still instead of running all over the place physically and emotionally.
The last few months have been chaotic at best and heartbreaking at worst. And 9 times out of 10, I acted in desperation. I forgot to go to God first, didn’t have the sense to pray. Google got my time and attention way more than God did last week. That’s desperation.
My notes say: (Remember Made to Crave was about food, but it can be any life controlling issue.)
Make the courageous choice not to be consumed with food any longer.
A simple orphan boy made a courageous choice in the midst of his desperation. He made a declaration that he’ll praise God and make the courageous choice.
Can’t this be the beginning of a lifestyle instead of the end of a study?
Another kind of courage is the woman who has struggles and is courageous enough to say, God, thank You for letting me have this issue because if I never had the issue, I never would have discovered these beautiful truths, sprint through the Scriptures as I did with Made to Crave.
Our God is faithful and He WILL do this.
You WILL get to a place where you will thank God that food is your issue because that struggle brought you closer to Christ where you made a courageous choice.
Your assignment is to find a spiritual marker that tells your story.
Jeremiah 29—Plans to prosper you and give you a future.
Maybe get a frame or trinket as your spiritual marker. A scale with peace on it, a white rock, whatever it is, never forget that you are a courageous woman capable of craving God and God alone.
Webcast #6
Nothing can separate you from God’s Love.
God’s love is patient whether we are on the path or not.
His love does not depend on our performance.
Read Romans 5:8
Christ’s perseverance: Just uttering His name will invite all power into your situation.
Karen Ehman—lost 106 lbs and son looked at before and after pix and said “they both looked like mama to me”. She gained 1/3 back after economy dropped. Her husband unemployed, lost savings, ate her way through pantry.
Measure obedience not by scale but by emotion—did you run to food out of hunger or out of reaction? Who was your God today? Food or Him?
Courage fills in those gaps. Jesus has infused your soul, mind, body.
I share not because I enjoy giving you a glimpse into my mess, but that you see you aren’t alone if desperation has been your theme. You can make the exchange. Be courageous, and watch the peace come, even and especially if the circumstances don’t change.
God’s got you!
