Even at Shechem

God's amazing. In the very recent past, I'd been rather irritated with myself and my personal failings. I get discouraged when I don't succeed as well as I would like to.

Point in case: yesterday I worked at the hospital. Everyone else had 5 patients, and I was the lucky nurse who ended up with 6. This is not a horrible problem because I have been able to take care of 6 patients before. But yesterday was absolutely insane and there were several times when other nurses had to come to my rescue and do something for me, like give a few medications or hang blood. It was very frustrating to me and I honestly felt like somewhat of a failure as a nurse.

Sometimes I feel like a spiritual failure as well. God, why do I keep getting stuck in the same mud puddles over and over? Sometimes I get discouraged and wonder if I will ever be where God wants me spiritually.

Thankfully, God knows exactly what I need, and this morning's worship was just it. I thought I would share a few quotes* from worship this morning. The things I read this morning really helped me to refocus and encouraged me.

"The hope lies not in the deviations but in the vision, the plan, and the ability to get back on track."

"You cannot stay where you are, and go with God... You cannot follow God and remain in the same place."

"This place (Shechem) where Jacob's family nearly failed is linked with rich spiritual imagery and decision... We can make decisions for God even at Shechem. The place of near failure can be the site of new resolve no matter how off track your family has gone."

"The God of Jacob is preeminently the God of the second chance to the Christian who has failed persistently... even failure can be a stepping stone to new victories. God wastes nothing, not even failure."

*All of these were taken from Wrestling With Angels: In the Grip of Jacob's God by Larry L. Lichtenwalter.