Showing posts with label Lynette Chang. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lynette Chang. Show all posts

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Follow the Light

A few years ago, my family took a road trip from Texas to Wisconsin. On the way home, we decided to plow through and drive the whole 17 hours in one day. My husband Tom and I took turns driving. My final turn came around hour 12. The sun had set and our GPS decided to take us on some less than major Texas "highways." While it was a four lane road with highway speeds of 60 miles per hour for most of the trip, the roads were really dark. There were no streetlights or reflective paint, and I was beginning to wonder if my eyes had aged well past their 40 years. I found that the only way to drive safely was to stay focused on the road right in front of me. I couldn't look around for landmarks or look too far ahead because it was too dark and the lights of any oncoming cars were distracting and disorienting. Once I figured out that I needed to focus on only the road that my headlights illuminated, I was able to relax and the drive became more comfortable.

The experience brought to mind Psalm 119:105, which says "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Life is much like my drive on those dark roads. If I try to focus too far into the unknowns of the future or dwell on the what ifs, I am overwhelmed and burdened. However, if I focus on Jesus and what He has called me to for that moment or that day, I find that I can confidently walk in faith, trusting that He will show me what I need for whatever He has called me to do.

Fix your eyes on Jesus, dear sisters! He has done it all for us on the cross. The road ahead may look dark, but He offers us the light we need, as we seek Him, through prayer and His Word. Take the next step. He will continue to light your path.

Lynette Chang
Writer


Monday, September 9, 2013

Be Like Me

I recently attended a women’s conference intended to inspire and encourage. My best girlfriend and I packed our bags with as many girly, pampering items as we could fit. As mamas to kids under age 7, we planned to maximize our fun with grown up meals, accessories that wouldn’t be tugged or chewed and even face masks and hair color for do-it-yourself mommy makeovers. I was ready to be transformed inside and out!

Yet I came away feeling a bit overwhelmed. The main speaker’s ideas sounded beautiful and peaceful, effective and life-giving…for her. I didn’t catch the conflict at first but as I listened to woman after woman tell me she was overwhelmed by the speaker, I realized that instead of allowing ourselves to be inspired, we were choosing to compare. God didn’t intend for us to be the same as the mommy or wife or friend next door. He didn’t design a human race of clones. Instead He gifted us each uniquely – from the color of our hair (even that gray I was trying in vain to hide) to the things that inspire us or bring peace to our busy lives. My cup of tea on the beach may be your hot coffee on a mountaintop. Yet as women, we are so good at comparing and coveting instead of embracing who God made us to be. In a world of Facebook and Pinterest, there is always something else to aspire to. How many times do we add extra stress in our lives when we compare ourselves to others or try to live up to the 15 word Facebook post someone has shared about her life? The only One we should be trying to become more like is Jesus!

In Psalm 139, the Bible tells us that God knit us together in our mothers’ wombs. He created us uniquely in His image. This doesn’t mean I shouldn’t work on my areas of weakness nor that I should have pride in other areas of strength, but rather that all glory goes to Him and all strength in my weakness comes from Him. Embrace who you are and make it count for the Kingdom.

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 4:10

Lynette Chang
Writer