Stir me up Lord!

Have you ever been excited about something to the point that you have a stirring in your gut? You know, a nervousness, but in a good way. Butterflies in your stomach. A few years back, we decided to take a family trip to Disney World in Florida. My husband, my sister and I planned to take all of our kids there for a week. There were three adults and five kids. I don't know how we rode in the vehicle for that long, and everyone still made it out alive. Anyhow, we decided months before, at the beginning of our planning, not to tell the kids about it. We wanted to surprise them, and if you know how kids are, if you tell them anything in advance, they will ask you every minute, of every hour, of every day..."When are we going?"or "Can we leave today?" So, we didn't tell them until we were actually in the state of Florida. We live in Louisiana, and had told them that we were going to a water park, that was only an hour away from our house. We left at about three in the morning, so they slept for the first part of the trip. They were so busy visiting and playing, with the many games we had brought, that they didn't realize how the hours were passing. I don't know how we pulled it off for so long, without them knowing, but we did. It was like a secret, covert mission for the CIA. Lots of whispering, late night phone calls after they had fallen asleep, and all our travel information sat on my bedroom desk for several months, with it labeled, "Medical Bills-Confidential!" I must say, we impressed ourselves by pulling it off the way we did. If my writing ever fizzles out, maybe I have a future as a spy. During the whole planning time, my husband, sister and I, were like kids ourself. Planning our "secret mission" felt like playing as though we were young all over again. Our excitement grew every passing week, getting closer to being able to surprise the kids. As the day grew closer, my stomach stirred more and more. Mostly for the kids, but also for us adults. None of us had ever been to Disney World before as children, so it was a dream come true for all of us. My stomach stirred and stirred. I was so excited, I couldn't eat. I don't think I have ever lost so much weight in such little time. We couldn't wait! The moment finally arrived when we decided to break it to the kids that we were heading to Disney World. We had stopped off at the Florida state line at the Tourist Center. After taking a well needed bathroom break and stretch, we piled back into the car. My husband asked if anyone knew where we were. My oldest daughter said, "No Dad, but it sure is taking a long time to get to Blue Bayou Water Park." We all laughed, then my husband shared our surprise with them. I will never forget the expressions on their faces. The kids' excitement rang out in the car, nearly breaking the glass with their shrieking. My daughters even turned to one another and hugged! That alone was a sign of true, whole-hearted happiness. Now, ALL our stomachs were stirring with excitement! I didn't think my stomach could have so many butterflies in it at one time. No words can express the feeling of jubilation that we all felt being there together. Needless to say, it was a vacation that we will never forget and well worth all the stomach stirrring and planning it took. I think that is how we should live our lives out with God. Our stomachs should stir with excitement all the time, waiting in anticipation of where God will bring us next. Waiting to see what surprises HE has planned. He truly wants to bless us and bring us to places we never thought possible. But, part of our excitement exists in the waiting. Although, not the easiest thing to do...it can be the best part. Waiting builds up your excitement. It should stir your spirit up to the point that you feel you can't wait any longer. That is what we should do everyday with God..anticipate the unthinkable! Expect the impossible! Wait for the unexpected! We should desire God to stir up our spirit! HIS love alone should do that within us! These past few weeks, while writing this blog, my spirit has been stirred like never before. "What will God do next in me?", and "What surprises will HE have for me?"my spirit keeps asking with excitement. But, never forgetting that HE anticipates the same from me. We should constantly want more of God! We should sit and wait with "butterflies" stirring in our spirit for the things HE has in store for us and what we can do for HIM. We should desire a new place in HIM each day. We should desire to be stirred up! Never ceasing in claiming good things to come! God desires to see our faith in HIM that strong! Hebrews 11:1, "What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see." We must believe and hope for the things we haven't seen yet. I've learned that when I apply that kind of faith into my life, the things that I imagined God doing, were nothing compared to what HE actually did. Our minds can't imagine the good things HE has in store for us. Each time I have dreamed of something, prayed about it, and claimed it to be in my life, HE made it one hundred times better than I imagined. And the look on our face when HE reveals it to us...priceless! Allow God to stir up something new in you today. Desire a new place in HIM and wait to be amazed! Seek HIS goodness! Matthew 6:33, "Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the kingdom of God your primary concern." Phillippians 2:13, "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do His good pleasure."