Remembering

I know I said I was planning to talk about boundaries next, but a story came to me and I wanted to share it with you.  

During 2013, a few of my friends and I participated in a Beth Moore scripture memorization event.  This was the first time that I've ever memorized scripture in a disciplined way, and it's hard to really explain how much it meant to me.  I memorized a lot of verses that I've always kind of known, but didn't know exactly, and I also memorized a good number of verses that pertained to different things that I went through during the course of the year.  As a counselor, I know quite a few tools for fighting fear and anxiety, but I can truly say nothing has ever helped me personally the way memorizing scripture did.  Those verses hid themselves in my heart and they continue to pop right up just when I need them.  The incentive for this particular memorization program was the opportunity to attend a Beth Moore conference for the price of FREE this January.  So a few weeks ago Susan, Lesley, Emily, and I headed to Houston to hear what Beth had to say.  

I am typically pretty diligent when it comes to making preparations, but this event came after a very busy week, so I just gathered my things and got in the car that Friday afternoon in a bit of a rush.  I hadn't really thought much about how long the car ride to Houston was going to last due to being limited on my time that week,  but for some reason I assumed it was an hour or two past Baton Rouge, where we would be stopping to pick up our friend Emily.  

Somewhere along the way we encountered a POSITIVELY DREADFUL traffic jam situation that greatly lengthened the time of our trip.  It involved a detour through some unchartered territory on the back roads of south Louisiana, but Susan was able to carry us through with her excellent navigating skills. It was sometime around this point that I realized Houston is, in fact, four and half hours away from Baton Rouge. I then realized things weren't looking so good for our arrival time.

We finally made it to Baton Rouge, where we acquired both Emily and dinner from Chick Fil A.  We were already starting to feel weary, but we had told Beth we would be there (via electronic sign up, of course) so on we pressed.  Now let it be known, the group of ladies I was traveling with is no stranger to the late night road trip.  However, road tripping is all fun and games until you have risen at 4:30 am and worked many, many hours the week prior to your travels.  We visited very hard with each other like good friends do, and when my eyeballs started rolling back in my head it was time to pull out the music.  Obviously, our soundtrack of choice consisted of a nice combination of Garth Brooks Greatest Hits, One Direction, and Steven Curtis Chapman.  With Garth on our side we were able to arrive safely at our hotel at the wee hour of 3  am.  I think it's very safe to say that we were the last conference attendees to fall asleep that night, as the ladies who attended this event didn't really strike me as a late night bunch. 

We rose to greet the day what felt like moments after falling asleep, got ready, and headed to the church.  A fun fact is that to say we were among the youngest ladies present is a severe understatement, but we just took this as a sign that we were among women of wisdom.  Now let me say this-I did not grow up knowing who Beth Moore was.  I think I might have heard of her after changing churches in late high school, but I didn't really know who she was until the past few years.  I've done a couple of her studies and really enjoyed them, but I've never heard her speak, so I didn't really know what to expect.  But what a word she brought. 

Here comes the important part of this nonsense.  Beth spoke about memory that day, and while I am still processing many things that she said, one specific verse stood out to me:

I will remember the deeds of The Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.  

Psalms 77:11

I first came across this verse when I was reading a book last summer, and it has become a favorite for me. The whole chapter is about a person who is in a bad place and feels alone, but chooses to remember the deeds of The Lord.  I love the straightforward and simple idea of remembering the things that The Lord has done for me.  When I am waiting, waiting, waiting on The Lord or when trusting gets hard I like to think back on the uncountable ways He has come through for me.  The simple things I might have taken for granted, the things I pleaded for, the times He surprised me by giving me what I needed instead of what I thought I wanted, the times He saved me from making huge mistakes, and the times He blessed me with immeasurably more than I could have ever hoped or imagined.  And when I do this, I know for so many reasons that He will never leave me.  

The rest of our big weekend passed in a blur of a much needed nap, a slightly overwhelming trip to Ikea, an abundance of Tex-Mex, and large quantities of laughter.  I feel thankful for friends who are like family and a God I can count on always.  

I've been doing too much worrying and not enough remembering lately.  This week, I will work on the remembering. 

Whitney

Something New

Hi, I’m Whitney.  I’m so glad you’ve stopped by my blog today! Recently several people have asked me, “What if you started a blog?” and it’s something that I was a bit hesitant to do.   But after spending some time thinking about it I realized that this might be a good way to share some of the things that I’ve learned and that are on my mind. 

I’m a Licensed Professional Counselor, and while counseling is many things, it is NEVER boring.  I’ve worked with everyone from small kids to adults, and I’ve helped people going through all kinds of different issues.  I’ve seen people from a variety of different populations, and I’ve come to be certain about this:  Hurting isn’t easy for anyone, no matter how old you are, the color of your skin, or how much money you have.

How I came to be a counselor is a long story, perhaps for another post, but I know it’s what I was made to do.  I’ve always loved connecting with people, a fact that I’m sure many of my past teachers can attest to (it’s possible that I’ve been called Chatty Cathy more than once in a classroom setting).  I come from a family that loves visiting, so I come by this honestly.  As a child and teenager I loved big groups of people, but as I’ve grown older I’ve come to really love sitting down with one person or with a smaller group and connecting with others on a personal level.  Something in me just is not satisfied with surface level relationships.  It’s important to me to know people, not to just know about people, but to really know people.  To know what’s in their heart, what they love, and the parts of their story that make them who they are.  To me, counseling is just a natural extension of this. 

When I was thinking about a theme for this blog, I quickly thought about the idea of taking life one day at a time.  This is a topic that comes up in many of my counseling sessions.  I often find myself saying things like:

 “I know you don’t know what’s going to happen next and that’s hard, but try to take this a day at a time.”

“This didn’t happen overnight, and it won’t fix itself overnight.  You’re doing your best, just take it a day at a time.”

“I understand this is something you’re looking forward to, but don’t rush it.  Just take it a day at a time and it will get here.”

“This is a hectic season for you.  Try to take things a day at a time so you don’t feel overwhelmed.”

 Taking things a day at a time is not always what we want.  That method is slow, and we like things to happen quickly and on our time.  We want the things that we’re excited about to get here soon, and the seasons that we don’t enjoy to be over quickly.  I myself am a champion planner, and I start thinking about things LONG before they happen.  Quite often this can be a good thing, but sometimes I spend so much time thinking about things that I am looking forward to that I forget to enjoy today.  On the other hand, sometimes I spend so much time asking myself “what if” about the future that I find myself worrying about things that might not ever happen. 

The thing is this: We are not made to try to take on life all at once.  It overwhelms us.  God made us to trust Him day by day, because if we don’t we might miss what He is trying to teach us, even during the hard times.  I hope this blog can remind me to slow down and really think about what God is teaching me, one day at a time. And I hope maybe I can share some things that will be helpful or encouraging to someone else. 

I plan to write about a good combination of serious topics and lighthearted topics, because really, the world is serious enough and I just need to laugh sometimes.  Next up I’m going to be writing about setting some good boundaries with yourself and with your time.  I hope you’ll stop by and check it out!

Thanks for Listening,

Whitney