"Hindsight is 20 / 20" is how the saying goes. Do you ever realize how much understanding, knowledge, and wisdom you gain from looking back on your life experiences? While you are living the specific situation, right in the midst, you gain wisdom, but it is always far less than what you gain from it years down the road.  Since we are finite and cannot know the end from the beginning, and our understanding is limited to what we can comprehend based on revelations and experiences, it is part of God's design for us to learn in this manner. 

I was spending time worshiping when I came across a song with the lyric, "If I had my choice. I would choose you every time."  All of a sudden streams of tears poured forth onto my face because the lyric fell so fittingly with what I had been feeling but not able to articulate. It was uplifting to my soul that there was another person out their wrestling and battling with the same struggle. Desiring to spend all their time with the Lord, worshipping Him, talking to Him, seeking Him, reading about Him, listening to Him, but sometimes that choice is not feasible because we have to work our secular job or love on those around us or we temporarily get distracted by the battle between our flesh and our spirit. Paul, like this worship singer, understood this choice and desire, and in a letter to the Romans explains this wrestling.

Do you ever forget the characteristics of the God who created you? I do. I find myself often needing to be reminded of how faithful He is so that I may trust Him. Or needing to be reminded of how He is a man of His word so it is without a doubt that His words will come to pass. My mind is so feeble. So forgetful. Emotions come in and rise up these irrational thoughts, and if I am not careful, result in foolish actions. However, because our God is so loving and knowing He is not taken by surprise by how His creation acts. In fact, He decided to build in constant reminders to all His creation how much He thinks about them and is working on their behalf. 

When you are first confronted with a problem where do you go for resolution? If we are honest we would probably have different sources for resolution based on how big of a problem we have analyzed it to be. If it is a minor problem we may rely on ourselves and our own resources to come to a quick resolution. If beyond our immediate resources we may call on a friend and our network. If enormous we may call on the professionals in the field. If really desperate we may pause long enough to pray. We all would like to answer this question as my Sunday school children do when posed with any question, "Jesus!" We know the Christian right answer. But let us be honest... where do we go immediately when we need a resolution? Acknowledging where we are and where would like to be will help us to actually change, if needed. Jesus knows where we are at and He is willing to help us regardless of where we are, if we believe. 

When air pods (wireless headphones) came about I remember thinking, "what is all the craze?" I will admit I am a slow adopter to new things I find frivolous. However, recently my husband bought a pair and there is one feature about them I was completely oblivious too. Noise cancelation! When you place these air pods in your ears, if set to noise cancelation, all the noise is blocked. Small noises like your heating system and loud noises like the people who live with you. What I think stood out to me most is how my physical body responded to it. All of a sudden with all those noises silenced, in a way, my shoulders became less tense, and my mind was able to hold on to a clear thought for longer. My physical body whether I was conscious of it or not was carrying so much weight from this sound, that when blocked all of a sudden my body felt like a weight had been lifted off of it. There is power in sound.