Journey to Rest (Week 4)
For many years, I maintained a prayer journal on a daily basis; praying for wisdom, guidance, and for those I loved. I wrote through the good times, and I wrote through the painful times; times where tears soaked the pages of my journal, threatening to erase the words I had written.
For many years, I maintained a prayer journal on a daily basis; praying for wisdom, guidance, and for those I loved. I wrote through the good times, and I wrote through the painful times; times where tears soaked the pages of my journal, threatening to erase the words I had written.Truth be told, there’s a part of me that struggles with writing in a journal now, because I associate it with a darker time in my life; a time when my journal was the only place I could share the raw truth of my heart. My journal became my safe haven; the place where I begged God for mercy and deliverance, forgiveness, and healing.
If I am completely honest, there’s a part of me that has tried to simply erase my past by throwing away years of journal writings. Yet there’s also a part of me that needed to throw them away, to let go of my past so I could embrace the blessings of today.
Like Bonnie Gray, I sometimes struggle with letting go of things that hold memories of moments shared. Yet sometimes, the things I’m holding on to, are the very things that are binding me; holding me back from experiencing the blessings of today.
I needed to be reminded that the scars of my past are okay; they are proof that there was pain, just as they are proof that there is healing. To me, letting go of the journal writings was an outward display of an inner working. I was surrendering my past to the One who sets me apart from my past and sets my feet on higher ground; to a Journey of Rest.
Friend, I don’t know where you are, or what is behind you, but I just want to remind you of Who’s you are and where you are today! God doesn’t take us through the fire to let us burn, He takes us through the fire to refine us. Please do not allow the enemy to steal your rest, by keeping your past failures at the forefront of your mind. Part of this Journey to Rest, is finding peace with our past, and embracing the present. Our past doesn’t define us, it refines us!
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I have decided to continue my Journey to Rest, beyond the originally set 4 weeks. God is doing so much in my heart, and Bonnie’s book has so much more I want to explore. I hope you’ll continue on this journey with me!
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Satin Pelfrey
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This weekend I plan on going on my own little journey of rest. It’s so needed. This is a post I’d love to discuss further when we are together. Thanks for sharing your journey with us, Satin. Love you so much. xoxo
Satin, so grateful for your openness to the Holy Spirit. Oh the days we spend pouring out our hearts on journal pages. I so relate to that. Maybe those times are before our Father as..”truth in the inmost parts.”? Well something like that. What do you think. Lots of love, Sharyn (down under in Australia :).)
My journal has become my lifeline lately. I’m always needing the reminder ‘the past doesn’t define us, but refines us,’ thank you for sharing your faith journey to rest with us. You’re such a blessing!
“Our past doesn’t define us, it refines us.” Oh yes!
Thank you, Satin, for this comforting reminder – “God doesn’t take us through the fire to let us burn, He takes us through the fire to refine us.”
I do the rest ‘when I can’… life is a series of busy and then slow times. I am peaceful in my ‘quiet’ moments and still dealing with a lot of grief which in itself needs REST to process.