{"id":416,"date":"2012-09-12T02:38:39","date_gmt":"2012-09-12T02:38:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kandynolesstevens.com\/?p=416"},"modified":"2012-09-12T02:38:39","modified_gmt":"2012-09-12T02:38:39","slug":"18-days-to-go-my-help-comes-from-the-lord","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/?p=416","title":{"rendered":"18 Days to Go: My help comes from the Lord"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth! (NLT) Psalm 121:2<\/em><\/p>\n

It would come as no surprise to anyone who has ever put on a big event that Reed\u2019s Run is a ton of work.\u00a0 Most of the time, I flit about with the adrenaline of an alligator rustler accomplishing one task or another. \u00a0This year; however, I have been having bouts of anxiety and feelings of being overwhelmed.\u00a0 I really think that my main issue is that I have poured five years of my life into these four Reed\u2019s Runs and now\u00a0this is it.<\/p>\n

Even though I seem to be accomplishing tasks a little slower than usual, my passion for keeping things rolling hasn\u2019t waned.\u00a0 This past week, however, God has lead me to verses that have really helped me to remember that all of his promises are true, and that He truly cares for us.\u00a0 Just tonight as we were preparing for AWANA tomorrow, I was reminded of one of the verses that all my kids have learned.<\/p>\n

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your worries and cares to God, because He cares for you.\u00a0 (NLT)\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

Each and every day this week, God has reminded me that everything (including Reed\u2019s Run) has a season, and that He has everything under control.\u00a0 All the to-do lists, the order forms, the\u00a0financial\u00a0concerns, the weather, the meetings \u2013 EVERYTHING is under His control.\u00a0 The success of Reed\u2019s Run has less to do with us and more to do with God\u2019s blessings on the event.\u00a0 Even though Daniel & I and our kids are the keepers of Reed\u2019s legacy, the story ultimately belongs to God \u2013 who knew and loved Reed before we even met him.<\/p>\n

Today I needed to run an errand at a neighborhood church.\u00a0 I know the Pastor, and we had a short visit about life and about the nature of the errand.\u00a0 Being the sweet gentleman that he is, he inquired\u00a0how Reed\u2019s Run planning was going.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know what possessed me.\u00a0 Maybe it is the fact that I was standing in a church talking to a man of God.\u00a0 I stood there and was completely honest.\u00a0 I shared with Him about my feelings of anxiety.\u00a0 With tears, he walked over to his desk and shared what he had just been reading. \u00a0He simply picked up his Bible to where it was already open, and shared a verse in the Psalms on anxiety.<\/p>\n

Yes, I cried as he moved from the Psalms to Habakkuk 3:17 \u2013\u00a0 18<\/p>\n

17 <\/sup>Though the fig tree does not bud
\nand there are no grapes on the vines,<\/p>\n

though the olive crop fails
\nand the fields produce no food,
\nthough there are no sheep in the pen
\nand no cattle in the stalls,
\n18 <\/sup>yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
\nI will be joyful in God my Savior. (NIV)<\/p>\n

I cried even more. But in his gentle way this man reminded me that I had always praised the Lord in the storm so why should these planning days be any different.\u00a0Even more revealing to my heart, than the sweet intervention on my emotions, was the fact that God had the whole\u00a0meeting planned in the first place.<\/p>\n

In honor of today\u2019s blog, I am posting the official video of the song we have chosen for this year\u2019s Reed\u2019s Run official song. I guess I just needed a reminder of where my hope originates.\u00a0Thank you, Lord, for giving me eyes to see your presence in all the ways you have helped me this week. My help and hope really did come from the Lord.\u00a0 But thank you for reminding me in lots of ways that the detail that matters the most is Your Love for all of us!<\/p>\n