A Place of Surrender

Throughout my adult life I have struggled with feelings of failure and defeat. I always look ahead at life.."when I get married...", "when I live on my own...", "when we have more money...", "when we have a house...". Over time I have accomplished many of these goals but never find myself satisfied. I turn to God and ask "Why am I such a failure?" "Why can't I just be happy?". Then I would turn to guilt over these feelings, "I know I am blessed...". This study has helped me to realize I am not alone, nor am I a failure!
When doubt and fear starts to creep in I think about my "I can/am" statements...
1. I am a good mother
2. I am a good wife
3. I do a good job at my career.
I have also started backing these statements up with Gods promises.

"For I know the plans I have for you..."

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well."

"For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love ⁵ he^[a] predestined us for adoption to sonship^[b] through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—"

I also look at my past to see how God has fulfilled the plan he had for my life. I have gone places and experienced things I never could have dreamed of.

I became and wife to a wonderful man...
I became a mother to two beautiful girls...
I have my dream job of teaching...
I lived in Arizona establishing myself as an adult and realizing how valuable and important family is...
God blessed me with a move back close to family....

Lord,
 I surrender my fears, anxiety and worry to you. I know you want what's best for me and although I am not in control you are. Thank you for all the blessings you have bestowed upon me.
Amen.

Isaiah 49:23

I learned to S.O.A.P from Palm Valley Church in Arizona. I had never heard before how you could dissect a scripture verse and really dig into its meaning..I love it. Also through my OBS studies I have learned about verse mapping. Today I am going to S.O.A.P our verse of the week.
S: Scripture, O:Observation, A: Application, P:Prayer

S: "Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.”

O:If we put our hope in the Lord he will not disappoint us. Hope for a better tomorrow, a better world, hope for healing for those that are afflicted by illness, hope that we can full fill the plans the Lord has laid for us.

A: I want to make sure I am careful about this verse, we could easily read it as if you hope in the Lord he will not disappoint meaning you will get what you hope for, but this is not always the case. The Lord knew the path of our life before we were even conceived. Our "hope" is not always the same as Gods plan for our lives, but His plan is so much greater than anything we could ever "hope" for. I believe that we will not be disappointed because although we cannot always fathom God's goodness, grace and mercy, his love for us is unfathomable. When we are able to look back one day although we may feel disappointed that life didn't work how we wanted it planned we will see how Gods glory is so much greater.

P: Dear Lord, Allow me to always have "hope". Not to give in to the devils thoughts of "I cant..I'm not good enough..". Nothing is impossible for the Lord, if you want to heal the ill you can, if you want to save a struggling marriage you can. But I also want to trust in your judgement and follow the path you have laid for my life. I never could have imagined the great life you have planned for me. Thank you for staying by my side each step of this journey. Amen.

Keep Calm Study On!

Wow so excited to be starting my 3rd OBS "A Confident Heart"! I have gone kind of bible study crazy lately I am doing a total of 3 bible studies! In the break between "Saying Yes" and this upcoming study I have been doing:
1. Financial Peace University: This is more of a course than a bible study, but it really is teaching me biblical principals toward my finances and strengthening my marriage. If you have never taken it I highly recommend it!
2. Love Does: I am doing a book study through my church entitled "Love Does". It is about a man who lives and practices Jesus's principal on love. Really inspiring great read!
3. 30 Days to Taming Your Tongue: What You Say (and Don't Say) Will Improve Your Relationships: Wow is this a powerful study I am doing with a group of women through my work. As I first glanced at the chapters I thought "this doesn't apply to me, I don't do this" but as I began reading I quickly realized how wrong I was. None of us our perfect but this study has made me so aware of how powerful our words really are.

As I grow closer to Christ I desire more and more to know and understand better the principals of the bible and the lessons he wants us to learn. I am going through a lot of changes in my life right now many as a result of our last study "Saying Yes to God". I cant wait to see how through my choices I can have "confidence" to follow through with the choices I have made.

Dear Lord,
 Allow me to seek you always, and grow closer to you through this study. Thank you for all the leaders who are willing to accept your call.
Amen.

Wholly Committed

Wholly Committed – Is God calling you to a deeper level of commitment?
I am currently doing two studies... one through my online bible study group "What Happens When Women Say Yes" and "The Resolution for Women". God is amazing me through the message He is giving me. I even heard the message this past Sunday at church.
God has been questioning where I spend my time, who do I spend it with? Where are my priorities and is God the center of it all? I don't spend my time with too many frivolous things as I don't have time for it...most of my time is dedicated to: Parenthood, being a wife, My job, My church/faith, and friends. It was hard for me to look at these things and figure out where to cut back.
Over the past year not only has God been telling me I am spread too thin but I have had family and friends suggesting I cut back, and not try to be "perfect". So I have re looked at my priorities, and realizing if I don't get to everything and do everything and be with everyone God is OK with that. God is OK as long as I am fully committed to Him and His will for my life.
What is my goal? Is it trying to make others happy, to look good at my job? Or am I committed to God, is my life dedicated to him. I made the choice that God is not a priority he is not on my list but rather God is at the center, I am putting God all throughout. Not just my priorities, but my daily life.I have made the choice to be wholly committed to God. I cant wait to see how God will use me for His good works.

Say What!!!

God knew I would need the Study "What happens when women say yes to God" right at this specific moment in my life. I read the book back in June when God placed an opportunity for huge change in my life. For the last five years there have been moments throughout the last few years where I have been praying for God to give me the opportunity to return back to Ohio close to family. Five years ago the Lord answered my prayer to become a teacher with a job opportunity in Arizona where I said "YES to God". From that obedience five years ago I feel God blessed my life with friends, learning opportunities and a chance to touch others lives in ways I never could have done on my own. Only by Gods will could I have become the teacher I am today and had the amazing adventures he allowed me to go on.
This past June God answered my prayer with a job opening in my alumna mater teaching middle school social studies right where God had placed me. When I went to college and recieved my Secondary Education Degree I had the intention of teaching high school...but God knew the plans He had for me when he placed me in a Middle School position in Arizona. I love middle school students and the teachers who have a passion for this age group. And the Lord knew that years down the road by giving me the experience in Arizona it would open the door for me to teach in Mason where I dreamed of teaching through my college years.
Although this was a dream come true it was a major "Say What!!!" moment in my families life. We were established in Arizona with two good, steady jobs, a beautiful home, and an amazing church family. It wasnt as easy to say "YES" as I anticipated it would be.  Taking a job and moving within a month and a half along with saying Goodbye to all these relationships God had brought into my life was no easy task. There were moments of great anxiety where the devil attacked...tears, and times of doubt. But through prayer and conviction I kept hearing God say this was His will...that this was what he was asking me to do. God was asking me to be obedient.
So I have said "Yes Lord!" and here I am in Ohio about to start a new school year teaching 8th grade social studies at an amazing school with amazing people. I have been made to feel welcomed with such support and caring people. I still am thinking "SAY WHAT!!" But I know by following Gods will amazing things will happen through my obedience.

With All My Heart

So I am currently doing an Online Bible Study entitled "What Happens when Women Say Yes To God". It is powerful...and boy is God speaking to me through this study. I read the book ahead of time and it was right in the middle of God dropping the bomb in my lap that it was time for me to return to Ohio. So what else could I do but say ok God this is your doing..."YES GOD..I will go here you tell me, YES GOD..I will take this dream job...YES GOD I will trust in your provision".
This week after reviewing chapter one Lysa asks us to: Read Deuteronomy 6:5 and answer how we can love God with our heart, soul and strength.... this took me some time to reflect and think but here is what I came up with.

I can love God with my heartby simply spending time with Him. The more time you spend with someone the greater the relationship becomes. We love God with ou soul through the choices we make. (Boy have I made some bad ones this week but am I ever so grateful that I have been saved by Jesus ultimate sacrafice!) WE are not perfect (that is or sure!) but we can strive to make the right choices. Follow Gods word...THe word is truth and leads to a living soul for eternity.

We can love God with our soul by our actions...do we live a life negative all th time? Or do we try to have a positive attitude and be contt with the blessings God has given us?

Loving God with our strength means to love God withour "resources, abilities and time".
"Love Him with what our hands do...
Love him with our eyes what they see...
Love Him with our ears to hear...
Love Him withour feet to go...(wherever you may send me Lord...)
Love HIm with our mouth to speak...


Credit to:http://gregsimas.org/how-to-love-god-with-all-your-heart/

As I was writing this blog this song kept going through my head so I had to share it...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ek__Gdw9TOs

Little Seed

http://proverbs31.org/online-bible-studies/2013/08/07/a-message-from-lysa-terkeurst-2/
CHeck out the above link and watch the video to understand what I am talking about...

Wow what a great video message today!!! I was that seed! I felt like she was describing my life...I was comfortable in Ohio with all my friends since high school with all my family surrounding me..but called me this little seed to leave the "packet" and move to Arizona this "dark, messy place". I didnt know anyone I didnt know how to do the job God had called me to do (teaching). But God watered me and I grew..and he blessed me in ways I could never imagine. I had two beautiful girls in Arizona, I purchased my first home in ARizona, I made life long frinds I never would have met had I not said YES to GOD. Wow...God is so amazing and yet it is so hard to trust in Gods plan!

Overcoming Fear...

As I prepared for my next Online Bible Study.."Saying YES to God" I first prayed.."Lord let me hear your voice"...be careful what you pray for! I have heard the Lords voice as I read this book and I am doing my best to say "YES" Lord...but a big part of that is overcoming my fear and anxiety when it comes to change...especially major life change. 

I have been praying for years for an opportunity to move closer to family, especially after having my two sweet girls. But I always felt as if Gods answer was "wait, or not now..". I really felt that answer every time my husband would question why I would ever want to move back, or would list all the reasons why we shouldn't move away from all of the blessings we currently had. My husband's reasoning always made sense, and out of respect for Him I would never have seriously considered moving back since he did not feel it was God's will. However at the begining of this summer everything changed. 

A major change occurred for my husband..his little sister his best friend (other than me of course) got engaged to a wonderful Godly man. My husband has always been very close to his sister to the point where he knew a lot about her and her daily life. Once we moved thousands of miles away their relationship was not as close as it once was. Dont get me wrong they both loved each other and cared deeply but distance can cause division in a relationship, and when his sister got engaged that was the very first time he had met the love of her life. After that Mark gave me his blessing, he said "If you can find a job we can move back!" That is all it took to spur me to action but I knew it wouldnt be easy. 

Our first order of business was to pray...we prayed individually about Gods will for our families life, we prayed together, we asked others to pray for us. And God answered about what direction we should take...

My dream job became available at my former school and I applied and got an interview...that was the first miracle. There were thousands of applicants and out of all of those I was selected for an interview. You would think ok she interviewed and then got a job...oh no again it was not that easy. To make a long story short it was a 5 interview process and after two weeks, tears and a whole lot of prayer I found out I got the job. But to make matters even more complicated I found out this position was only going to be for one year...so we prayed and prayed. And together we decided I should take the job and we as a family are going to trust God and his will for our lives. 

I have been so fearful over this whole process, applying, interviewing, making the huge decision about whether or not to take the job. And then once the decision was made, moving across country and figuring out all the logistics within the matter of a month and a half time! But when it is within God's will he provides..things came together and although there have been many stressful tear filled moments we have been so blessed. 

Now I need to remember that God has a plan for me and through prayer and my faith in God...and the fact that I know God has my back I can get through the any moment that comes my way. These next few months are not going to be easy but I am going to choose to trust in God no matter what. 

Change

So much change is going on in my life right now. Just a month in a half ago I made the choice after much prayer, and discussion with my husband to accept a job across the country that will bring us closer to family. At the time of the decision it was very hard to make...I really wanted to make sure this was God's will and not my own emotions making the decision. Up until the job was offered to me I had not made up my mind but I vividly remember when the superintendent called me to say she wanted to offer me a job at Mason City Schools my responses was YES!. In that moment I felt confident that this was what God wanted me to do.

In a very short period of time many decisions have been made, many changes going on. And boy has the devil been trying to derail me, to make me question myself and the choices I have made. I have experience extreme anxiety and fear. So in this weeks lesson when asked to use God's word to pray for a specific situation I chose "change" and "worry". These are my prayers:

Worry
Dear Lord help me to stop being in constant worry about life, work, money, marriage, etc. You state in Matthew 6:25-27 "Doesn't God take care of the birds? Are you not much more valuable than they?" Remind me to look at the birds and not worry so much. Amen.

Change
Dear Lord you state that change can be good in Jeremiah 7:5 you state "If we truly change our ways we can live int eh promised land." In Matthew 18:3 "For those who change and humble themselves is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Help the anxiety I feel over the change going on in my life to diminish and to focus on your great plan for my life. Amen.

Although change brings about worry, I am excited about the adventure I am about to go on, and the things God will do through and in my life according to His great plan.

Pursuing Jesus

I have found when I actively pursue Jesus I manage to see Him more in my day to day life. I see him in the trees, birds, the people who just smile and make my day. I see Him in the little things like the slight breeze that cools the day down, or the fluffy white cloud that rolls by. In the last few months I have truly tried to actively pursue Jesus...to take time for him. Within the last few weeks I have really attempted to make Jesus a priority in my life not just an after thought. Through this daily time with Jesus I have witnessed his blessings and heard his still small voice speak to my heart. It is amazing how the word speaks to me as I read it on the pages of the bible where before when I would try to do my daily reading at the end of long day they were just words on a page that I felt obligated to read.
As of late I have been pursuing Jesus by saying a prayer as the very first thing I do after I wake up...I try to make it my very first thought of the morning. Then I have been opening up the word and doing my daily assignments as soon as the fog of my mind has lifted (I am not a morning person). I have felt such peace since starting to do this...
Prayer is huge in my life...I really believe in the power of prayer. Prayer is something that through the years I have found to be simple and something I can accomplish throughout my day. As I am driving or stuck in traffic...I can pray, when I want to just scream and pull my hair out, I pray for patience and understanding. Prayer is essential to my walk with God and my efforts to full out pursue God with a passion.
I encourage you to pray and to daily get into Gods work, It truly opened my eyes and amazed me when I started doing this. My spiritual goal at the moment is to continue digging into Gods word and taking time at the start of my day instead of the end to give it to God. Give God the best of me.

Martha v. Mary

Mary and Martha...I had never really thought about this story in depth until the last few weeks as it has come up multiple times in my online bible study. We have Mary who is enthralled with Jesus and taking in his teaching..Mary who is not concerned about the things going on around her...what happened yesterday, the stresses of the day, or what the future might hold. Her focus is on Jesus..isn't that where every one's focus should be? I have to reflect on that a moment and really ask myself "Where is my focus?" I can state right now it is not always on Jesus or his plan for my life..I let stress and worry and planning take over.   On the other hand we have Martha...who is busy planning and preparing and creating this meal for a KING! The time and thought that Martha must have spent in preparation for their honored guest! How often do I get put out when my husband comes home from  a long day of work to rest. How dare he! I have been home all day trying to take care of two small children and he rests when we have so much stuff to do? Ha...I need to be a bit more like Mary who takes time for what is important.   Instead of being worried about planning this and doing that I need to take time to focus on the truly important things in life. God, my family and friends and my health. I need to take more time to simply just play with my children not worrying about if the laundry is folded and put away, or the dishes cleaned. I need to spend more time with my husband simply enjoying life rather than stressing over finances, and decisions that always need to be made. Most importantly I need to spend more time with God. There can never be too much time with God. Quiet time is essential to my life at this point.   Saying all of this does not mean things don't need to be planned or accomplished at certain times. However the issue arises when it consumes your life as it does mine. I can't truly enjoy all the blessings around me nor do I let those close to me enjoy the blessings of the day either. It is always go here or do this, or we need to be there. My goal in the next week is to find a day to just let go...let everything go and just enjoy the blessings of my life.

Pop Beads

Sharing this story from Summit Church blog:
This illustration is truly fitting to my life right now and how I need to trust God even though I cannot see the big picture!
A little girl wanted some pop beads. All of her friends had necklaces made of pop beads, and she longed to wear a pop bead necklace too. She begged her parents for some. They told her that she would need to earn the money to buy them and gave her some chores to do around the house. Within a few weeks, she was able to buy the pop beads.




The day that she got them, she was ecstatic. That night after dinner, she sat on her father’s lap and couldn’t stop staring at the pop bead necklace around her neck. Gently, her father asked, “Do you love me?”



“Of course I do!” she replied.



“Give me your pop beads,” he said.

The little girl laughed and said, “Daddy, you’re silly!” and ran off to bed.



The next night, the little girl sat on her father’s lap. Again, the question came. “Do you love me?”



“Yes,” she answered.



“Give me your pop beads.”



The little girl was very confused by this, and went off to bed with the pop beads still around her neck.



This went on for several nights. Soon, the girl began avoiding her father. She did not want to face him because he kept asking for her most prized possession. Finally, one night her father called her over and sat her on his lap. “Do you love me?” he asked.



The little girl broke down into tears. “Yes, I love you Daddy, and I know you want my pop beads. I don’t understand why you want them but here…take them.”



The father took them and immediately threw them into the fire that was crackling in the fireplace. The little girl was mortified.



But then the father took out a beautiful pearl necklace and handed it to his daughter. “A real princess deserves real pearls,” he said.



Sometimes we need to give up smaller dreams to pursue God’s bigger vision. The little girl clung to her pop beads because she didn’t think there could be anything better for her, but there was.



I’ve been challenged this week to think about what “pop beads” I’ve been holding on to, and I can think of a few… Do you have any? It’s my prayer this week that we all trade in our pop beads for pearl necklaces

Priority Shift

Time....it is my worst enemy. We hear it all the time and it is so true there are just not enough hours in the day! Where does time go it seems to fly by...this saying is true as well the older you get the faster time goes! I cannot believe my two sweet angels are already 3 and 1 years old! I just watched a video of Evelyn walking for the first time and the memory feels like it was just yesterday not 2 years ago!
 I reflect on a regular basis and pray about where my priority's truly lie. Here is my most recent list:
1. God
2. Family (immediate: husband, girls)
3: Extended Family and close friends
4. Work
5. Health...the list could go on and on.

I watched a sermon recently that discussed how God should not be a "place" on your priority list but should be all encompassing. He should be a part of each priority listed. God should be in your family, with your friends, at work, in your health life. This message in some ways was life changing for me. God in everything All the time.
There are many ways you can go about doing this for me the easiest and most natural way is by praying. I pray when I first open my eyes, I pray before I close them at night, I pray while I am driving. I pray when my patience is almost gone and a child is screaming...I pray, pray, pray.
I have also made it a priority in my to always learn and grow in my faith and I have started to become involved in the online bible studies offered by Proverbs 31 ministries. What I love about this is that it is not overwhelming or difficult to do, if I miss a week or day that is OK, no one gets on my case about not doing the homework, or fulfilling a blog. I can do it as time fits, for instance here I am blogging at 12:38 at night when the kids are in bed.
Something I want to work on is taking a few moments each morning and really devoting them to God..this is a huge struggle for me as I am not a morning person, but I truly feel my day would start off a whole lot better if I did this.
Another way I make God a priority is by being involved in my local church. I do this in a few ways:
*Attending church on a regular basis...hearing Gods word is a great way to get fed.
*Serving: Serving is a way to give back to feed Gods people. I serve every weekend in the preschool department.
*Small group: Being involved in a small group has been such a blessing to my life. It is a christian family of itself. WE are there for each other to support and meet each others needs.

All of these things help me to keep Christ the center of my life not just my number one priority but a part of Everything!

Need

Oh Lord! I am in need of the faith to trust in YOU! Verses swarm through my head as I suffer through anxiety, doubt and insecurity. I dont deal well with change and I have many changes going on in my life right now. At this moment I am trying to multitask I am watching Lysa's TerKeurst webcast, and writing this blog at the same time. Ha... I keep struggling with time there is just not enough hours in the day to: Be a good wife, keep a clean house, take time for each of my children, focus on God, have time just to do what I want to do.

Getting back to the point of this blog "Need". I am in need of God's peace and trust in HIm. Trust that I have to take a leap of faith and follow through with what I commit to. As I watch this webcast the theme of Women of Faith is "Believe God can do anything!" Oh how I need to hear this right now...I need to truly belive that God Can do Anything!!! I know I cannot do it on my own but with God by my side I can do all things through christ!

The one thing that brings me comfort is "I am a child of God and therefore God's word is with me!"  God is with me through his word and how he works through my life. I am so unsure of what the future holds, and whether or not the choices I am making are the right ones. I want to do the Lord's will but I am not sure of what that is. I am going with my gut...what I feel is the right thing.

Oh Lord I give up these circumstances to you. Jesus I put my trust in you! Help me to always remember you walk side by side with me in each and every moment.

Breaking Point

I reached my absolute breaking point in the summer of 2008...my doctor called it  "situational anxiety". I called it absolute breakdown of the mind and soul. The previous six months had been a time of GREAT change.
 I had gotten engaged to my boyfriend of 6 years a year earlier, after Gods intervention was hired at my first teaching job in Arizona (I lived in Ohio, where all my family is located), decided to move a wedding from the year 2009 to 2008 which allowed us 6 months to plan all while orchestrating a cross country move. My husband and I were happily married on July 11 2008 and the very next day while returning a wedding gift were in a horrible 9 car accident where with Gods protection we lost a car but survived unscathed. We then proceed to drive/move across country which would also serve as our honeymoon to the sunny land of Arizona.
It took me about 3 weeks before it hit me...the wedding, the move, the new life away from family, brand new job. I couldn't do it...I knew nothing of being a wife, teacher, renter, and on and on. The anxiety started, then the uncontrollable crying...what was missing in the midst of all this despair was God.
One day my husband came home with flowers and a inspirational card to try and lift my spirits, when I opened the card it sang "I will Praise you in this Storm" by Casting Crowns. At that moment it reminded me that hey I am not alone in this, God is with me. I wish I could say all my troubles were wiped away and everything was better from that moment on..alas it was not.
It took months, years of God reminding me again and again that he is there for me, that I need not worry...

"Therefore I say to you, Take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much better than they? 27Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit to his stature? …" Matthew 6:25-27

Needless to say God has brought me healing. Although I still deal with bouts of anxiety I know where to go when I am feeling stressed, overwhelmed, etc. I turn to God and his word. They are the most powerful tools I know to fight off what is ailing me. God always has the answer, I might not discover right away, but if I reflect on the past 5 years God has always delivered.

Below is a picture of Gods greatest blessing to my life...they came after what I consider my breaking point...they were so worth it!

Spiritual Vitamins

I have loved digging into this study specifically Chapter 9 of Stressed-Less Living "Choose Your Weapons". Of all the weapons to choose from I use Spiritual Vitamins the most. Sometimes on a daily basis and other times in life as needed. My goal after reading this chapter is to focus on using them on a daily basis to relieve my stress and anxiety. As I type this though I am slightly stressed as I just wrote this entire blog and then proceeded to loose it...

Moving on...

The Spiritual vitamins I use are digging into Gods word through daily reading, devotions and bible studies, and prayer. The summer time is when I really dig into Gods word and am more consistent about it...the reason being I am a teacher and that is when I have more time and less stress. I value the moments of quiet time I get with the Lord especially now that I have two small toddlers. I find I am most at peace and feel my best spiritually when I am routinely digging into Gods word, taking my time to understand and reflect on what I am learning. Really letting His word soak in and speak to me.

I also find prayer to be very effective. For awhile I would start my day off as soon as I opened my eyes in prayer and would pray a very simple prayer: "Lord, show me what your purpose is for me today, allow me to full fill whatever plans you have for me Lord, that I may do your Great work. Amen." But as life got more stressful, as I tended to wake up later and later the prayer time in the morning even though it only took a few moments of my time began to slip away. I believe that the more I pray the more I take time to make it a priority to take time to talk to God the less stressed I am and the more peace I feel. Any good relationship takes dialogue. I also strongly believe in having others pray for you. This was a rough year for me and through prayer and the faithfulness of others the Lord saw me through.

I am doing another bible study at the moment and we were challenged to keep God the center of our life, day and each and every moment. If we do this we will not only see God in the moments we designate for Him, but all around us, EVERYWHERE. I really want to attempt to do this as summer goes on...really take my spiritual vitamins on a daily and regular basis.

Stressed-Less Living!

Now that I am done with teaching for my 5th school year I am excited to really dig into an online bible study I have been apart of entitled "Stressed-Less Living" based on a book written by Tracie Miles.
Stress has been a major part of my life for the past five years and I am learning spiritual tips to help me battle stress and anxiety.
At this point we are on week nine of the study and I have had ups and downs, there are times where I love this book and there are other times where the things being dicussed hit so close to home that I really feel as though I dont like this study at all.
Some things I have taken away so far...
1. I cannot live my life without God at the center...I have tried this year to make decisions on my own, or based soley on my feelings and it ends up being an utter disaster. I am not strong enough, smart enough or capable to do things on my own.
2. I have allowed stress into my life and I need to make the choice to eliminate stress. I am constantly on the go go go...i never stop and I really need to just take time for God, my family and myself.
3. I cant worry about making others happy...I am not ever going to be successful at this. I need to realize that although I love making others happy, I have to do my best at making the right choices regardless of whether or not it will make others happy or not. This doesnt mean I disregard others feelings, but I cannot base my happiness on whether or not others are happy. I can only make choices for me...I cannot control the choices others make.