{"id":2224,"date":"2019-10-06T06:00:50","date_gmt":"2019-10-06T10:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/?p=2224"},"modified":"2019-09-19T17:20:47","modified_gmt":"2019-09-19T21:20:47","slug":"guest-post-bethany-griggs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/2019\/10\/06\/guest-post-bethany-griggs\/","title":{"rendered":"Guest Post– Bethany Griggs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hi!\u00a0 My name is Bethany Griggs.\u00a0 I\u2019m a friend of Amaris and I live in Texas.\u00a0 While we have known each other for 7 years now, we never got to know each other very well until last year because we live so far apart.\u00a0 But, we started chatting a lot last summer when we both had something really big in common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      It\nwas July 2018, and something major was about to happen in my life.  The phone rang and my dad took the call.  It was our doctor calling with the results of\nmy test and letting us know that I had Lyme disease.  I have had health problems for years, but we\nhad never known what it was.  Looking\nback on it now, we can see that I probably had Lyme disease for over 16 years\nbefore I was diagnosed.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

     We\ndecided to do one week of antibiotics before treating it naturally, but we had\nno idea what it would do.  That one week\nof antibiotics took me from being a normally functioning person to being\nsomeone who could hardly walk from my bed to the couch.  Even today, I still use a wheelchair when I\ngo places.  I am thankful that I do not\nhave much pain like most people who have Lyme. \nI am really weak and have damage to my heart, nerves, etc.  It has already been over a year since I was\ndiagnosed.  Of course, that year has been\nfull of pills and trying many different things to see if they will help me\nrecover.  This trial has not been easy,\nbut at the same time, I am so thankful for it. \nGod has used it to teach me some special lessons that I had never slowed\ndown long enough to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     \u201cAnd he said unto me, My grace is sufficient\nfor thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore\nwill I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon\nme. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in\npersecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I\nstrong.\u201d  <\/a>II Corinthians 12:9-10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      God\nhas been showing me that when we are weak and are unable to do things in our\nown strength, it is then that He is able to show His power in our lives and\nreceive glory.  How amazing is\nthis?!  God wants to take our weaknesses,\nfears, and inabilities and create something beautiful that brings Him\nglory.  The God Who created everything\nand is all powerful, delights in receiving glory from our weakness.  That is such a humbling thought.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 When we feel confident in our strength and as though we have everything under control, do you know what often happens?\u00a0 That\u2019s right.\u00a0 We become proud of our accomplishments and forget to give God the glory.\u00a0 This is why God loves to use our weakness.\u00a0 When we are weak in a certain area and God brings good out of that, then it is obvious that it was Him that did it and not us.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

     Of\ncourse you remember the story of Queen Esther. \nShe was a Jew, and her cousin Mordecai asked her to help save her people\nwhom Haman was plotting to destroy.  When\nMordecai came to her, Esther said, \u201cOf course I\u2019ll help.  I\u2019m the queen, and my husband will listen to\nme.  You came to the right person.  Don\u2019t worry about a thing; I\u2019ve got this\ncovered.\u201d  By now, you are probably\nwondering what translation I read…that is not at all what happened!!  Esther was afraid and knew that she could die\nfor going to the king.  But, she agreed\nto fast and pray and then appeal to the king, and she said, \u201cif I perish, I\nperish.\u201d  God heard Esther\u2019s prayers, and\nHe answered her and used her to save her people.  The reason God used her was because she chose\nto act in obedience and follow His leading even though she was afraid and was\nin a weak position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     When\nGod brings opportunities across our paths, it is pretty easy to do them when we\nfeel capable and prepared.  But, what\nabout when God calls us to do something that we do not feel ready for?  It may be something like playing an\ninstrument in church, handing someone a gospel tract, or even giving a word of\ntestimony to a friend.  We do not have to\nwait until we have it all together to minister, because the truth is, we will\nnever have it all together.  God wants us\nto step out in faith and allow Him to work through our weakness.  When we do, then He can receive the\nglory.  People will be able to tell that\nit is God doing things through us that we could never do.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

     \u201cFor\nthe Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: NO good\nthing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly.\u201d  Psalm 84:11<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     This\nis another verse that has become more meaningful to me.  My illness has meant that I have not been\nable to do some things that I have been used to do doing.  I know that for various reasons everyone will\nhave disappointments to face from not being able to do the things that they\nwant to do.  Sometimes those things look\nreally good to us and seem like they would be best.  However, God has promised that He will give\nus what is truly good for us if we are in the center of His will.  If He withholds something from us, we can be\nsure that it is because that thing is not good for us.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cTake\ntherefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the\nthings of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.\u201d  Matthew 6:34 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 When you have a lot of time on your hands, it is easy to worry about things that are not in your control.\u00a0 It is hard to keep your mind focused on things that are true, lovely, and pure as we are told in Philippians 4:8.\u00a0 This verse tells us one of the keys to that.\u00a0 Don\u2019t worry about tomorrow.\u00a0 Most of the things that we worry about are in the future and not today, if they even happen at all.\u00a0 If we live one day at a time trusting the Lord, we will have a lot less worries.\u00a0 Another thing that helps is to give the things that we are worrying about to God and ask Him to take care of them.\u00a0 We can ask Him to give us peace and victory over our thoughts and feelings.\u00a0 When we worry, we are not helping anything, we are just taking away our joy from today.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

     So,\nwhen God asks you to do something, step out and be available.  If you are nervous about it and feel weak in\nthat area, talk to God about it.  Ask Him\nto show Himself powerful in the situation for you.  God is wanting you to be available and let\nHim take control of your life in every area. \nYou never have the strength to do anything good apart from Him, but He\nwill make His strength perfect in your weakness if you only ask.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

     If\nGod chooses to withhold something from you, trust Him.  He is withholding it because it is not best\nfor you.  Who knows what He is preparing\nfor you that is right around the corner if you only wait and trust! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

     Let\u2019s\nfocus on the blessings that God has given us today.  He will be with us step by step and day by\nday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassion’s fail not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.\u201d\u00a0 Lamentations 3:22-23<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you Amaris, for giving me this opportunity to write a guest post on your\u00a0blog. ~Bethany<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pictures from Bethany Griggs. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hi!\u00a0 My name is Bethany Griggs.\u00a0 I\u2019m a friend of Amaris and I live in Texas.\u00a0 While we have known each other for 7 years now, we never got… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2285,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,16],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2224"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2288,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224\/revisions\/2288"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amaryllismusings.nfshost.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}