And Then
I'm a bit of a journal notebook collector.
Ironically, I'm not a big journal-er, so most notebooks have 1-2 pages filled out, and the rest remain blank, awaiting some motivational musings yet to be created.
The first few pages within each of the journals laying in pile in the back of a drawer in my file cabinet have similar vibes even though they span many years.
The words on the pages are written neatly with hopeful declarations telling God I'm going to try and be better, that I will lose weight, be a better mom, wife, and friend, crush my career, and finally complete the to-do's I've not been to-doing.
I don't know what it is, but I don't like using journals that have already been written in, even if I rip out the penned-in pages and the little ripped strip left trapped in the notebook's binding.
When I'm ready to begin again, a new notebook is a must.
Recently, a friend gave me that very thing. This new journal is so pretty, with lovely spring flowers on the front and nice, thick, lined pages, waiting eagerly to be filled.
As I stared at the first page, I thought of us and how our journey together is like this blank page.
Every day, we arise and choose what we will write in the books of our lives.
So, let's get cracking.
Look around and find one of your new, unused journal notebooks (I know you have one).
Next, find your favorite pen (I know you have one of those, too), and open to the first page.
As we begin, I want you to remember that everything up to this very second is over—you can't erase the past or change the course of events that have already occurred.
All we can do now is move forward.
God is sitting right next to you as your co-author, ready, willing, and able to help you write what happens next.
OK, pens ready?
Let's begin our first page with these two powerful words:
"And then..."
Perhaps you finish that sentence with:
I saw the angels and support team God was sending that helped me repurpose all the pain and difficulties into something beautiful.
I found the strength to say goodbye to what no longer served me and began a new life filled with good relationships, healthy choices, and firm boundaries.
I chose life and allowed God to heal me of the wounds that festered for so long, and hopeful joy filled my days.
I turned my eyes and ears to God, no longer listening to the lies of darkness and fear, and began to see the world in a whole new way.
I lived happily ever after.
Whatever your first "And then..." sentence is, make it a doozy.
Don't start with "And then she lost weight, or "And then she cleaned her windows," or "And then she organized her file cabinet."
Boring.
Your "And then..." is a proclamation from God himself, your effigy - the very declaration of everything being repurposed into your new beginning that starts today.
Your "and then..." holds amazing power and will not only change your life; it will change the world.
And boy, oh boy, I can't wait to hear all about it!
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
2 Timothy 1:7
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.