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Frustrated or fulfilled?

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By design#860




Discovering how God created you leads to living your 
purpose and mission with strength.

Frustrated or Fulfilled? That was the question I heard on a radio program years ago, and it caused me to stop and think. At the time, I wondered…which am I and why am I feeling this way?

Admittedly, I was both. Frustrated because I knew there was more and oddly, at the same time, content with the status quo. But that little frustration part was bugging me. Why was I frustrated?

When I thought about feeling frustrated, it wasn’t in the material sense. Rather, it was a persistent sense of knowing that there was more to life. Could there be more? Was the best yet to come? And yes, of course, Heaven is the ultimate “best to come,” but how do you get to that “more” in the everyday? How do you get to a point of relishing each day instead of just trying to get through it?

I am reminded of the lyrics in Steven Curtis Chapman’s song, More to This Life. In it he sings, “Make the most of your own journey from the cradle to the grave…But there's more to this life than living and dying, more than just trying to make it through the day; More to this life, more than these eyes alone can see…”

So, it can be frustrating if we remain stuck in this space of simply trying to get through the day especially when you have a stirring that you know there’s more.

Today, more than ever, I’m surrendering my life with a greater sense of awareness.

The last twelve months of isolation have led me to take inventory of what God has gifted me with. I reviewed an exercise I participated in many years ago that involved mapping out my life. I highlighted all the highs and all the lows I experienced over the years. They all played a part in forming who I am and as I reviewed this life map, I saw recurring messages. When I connected all the dots, I clearly saw the things that God crafted me with. Things that make me feel alive. This exercise was and still is pivotal for me. The past holds many things, good and difficult, rich in truth as it reveals your God given gifts.

Discovering how God created you leads to living your purpose and mission with strength.

Every day my hope is to truly live out of those surrendered moments I mentioned. It’s in this space that He unlocks the work He wants to do through me. I just have to step out of the way. If I don’t, it gets messy. I question my abilities and start to make life about my will, not His. Ultimately, I don’t follow through. Choosing to live this way is what breeds frustration.

When I fully enter into these moments of surrender, my heart is open to truth. God’s truth. This leads to clarity, which leads to courage, which leads to confidence. It is in His strength these muscles are developed. Not mine. As I do this, the frustration subsides. But it takes intentionality on my part. To be still so I can receive from the Holy Spirit. This is important because there is so much out there that wants to steal God’s truth from my life.

I’m challenged to live my life fully…from the cradle to the grave…and part of that for me, is to help others live their lives fully too. That’s what keeps me going. I am fulfilled because it’s my hope that I am living out a life that reflects my Creator and the hope given to me. So, I want to pass it on. All that I do can be a mirror, not of what I am, but of who He is. So, what are you? Frustrated or Fulfilled?

But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. 2 Corinthians 2:14

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us… Romans 12:3-6

Sharing some news!


God is at work in your life in ways that may not seem intentional. Nothing is an accident! A Walk to the Well is a devotional intended to engage you in pushing away things that may be limiting your awareness of God at work in your life. 

This book is designed as a self-study or can be used in a small group setting. Now available on Amazon. Click here.





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