Every Challenge is a Gift

January 14, 2023 Cathleen Zahradnik

'Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Philippians 3:12

There are some amazing opportunities waiting for you this year! You may see glimpses of them on the horizon or they may just be vague shadows in the back of your imagination, but they are there. New challenges. New relationships. Perhaps a new job. Whatever this year holds for you, it brings opportunity. Above all the opportunity this year offers you and me is the opportunity to grow.

You and I are going to face the unexpected this year. We may welcome some of those unexpected challenges. We may be tempted to run from others. What if you positioned yourself to accept every challenge as a gift? What if you received each challenge as a stepping stone toward fulfilling your divine potential? What perspective would you need to take so that you could meet every twist and turn with peace and strength?

It’s taken a long time and I don’t do it perfectly by any stretch of the imagination, but I am working on these perspectives. Maybe they’ll help you, too.

A Blank Page: What Do You Want to Do With This Year?

January 7, 2023 Cathleen Zahradnik

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Philippians 3:12

A new year. A blank page. What do you want to write on it? What is it that you really want this year? Have you thought about that?

The famous quote, “If you aim at nothing, you are sure to hit it,” is full of truth. Without a goal, wandering is inevitable. Do you want to wander this year? Or would you like to reach the end of this year feeling satisfied and fulfilled, knowing that you have achieved something meaningful?

I’ll bet your life is crazy. Mine, too! Family responsibilities fill your brain and call for attention. Work fills the daytime hours and sometimes follows you home. All the things you want to do stand off to the side like the little kids who were not chosen to play on the team at recess. You want to get them in the game, but the immediate needs of life just seem to clamor for attention, so you choose them. In the end, you feel scattered and like you aren’t really accomplishing anything important. Right?

What if you were to take just a few moments of reflection now, at the beginning of this year, and choose one or two of those off-to-the-side, some-day things to work toward? What would it feel like at the end of this year to know that you have made progress toward or accomplished something that you have been wanting to do? It would feel good, right?

So, let’s take some steps to make that happen. Ask yourself a few questions.

What really matters to me?

What's Your One Word?

December 31, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3: 12-14

2022 is ending. Are you glad? What are you grateful to say goodbye to? Has this been a tough year? What can you celebrate? What are some of the good gifts God gave you in 2022?

What do you see in 2023? For me and my family, it will be a year of BIG changes! And here is the big question for all of us: What do you want to say when you get to this time next year? How would you like to grow in 2023? In what way is God calling you to move forward and how will you focus on that?

The New Year represents a fresh start, an opening of possibility. It represents a blank page where you get to write a new story. What story do you want to write?

Every story starts with one word, right? Here’s your challenge: Choose one word to focus on for your 2023 story. I have found it a great practice to help me focus on what God wants to accomplish in me each year. Let me explain.

Who Am I?

December 17, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

'Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ' Colossians 3:12

You stand in front of the mirror. The face looking back at you is familiar, but how do you describe the person that you see? What defines you? Who are you? How do you answer that question, my friend?

That may be an easy question, but then again it may not be. My younger self was defined by the expectations of other people. My greatest fear was making the wrong decision or disappointing someone else. My identity was based on avoiding conflict. I didn’t really know who I was. I let what other people thought define me. I was afraid to voice my opinion. Afraid to express my own needs and wants. Afraid of failing. Afraid of rejection. Afraid to be me and unsure of who that person was.

Do you know who you are? A strong sense of identity will settle you. You won’t be as heavily influenced by others or by the media. Knowing who you are brings peace and confidence. You are who God says you are. Do you know who God says you are?

Is God Really With Me?

December 10, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

“‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).’ ” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭1:23‬ ‭NIV

‬‬As I listened to the preacher’s story, I had the same questions. He shared a time of sitting in a chair feeling alone and abandoned by God and saying to God, “Don’t You care? Don’t You love me?” The story continued with the man’s little child coming to him at just that moment, climbing into his lap, putting tiny hands on either side of his grown-up face, looking directly into his eyes, and saying, “I love you, Daddy!” At that moment the preacher recognized the love of God coming to him in the form of his child.

I had the same question, “Don’t You care? Don’t You love me?” and I wondered how God would answer me. Later in the service, God used that preacher to answer my questions in a way that I recognized as Him sending His love to me.

There are times in life when we feel absolutely alone. Rejected and abandoned by the people we most hoped would be there for us. There are even times when we feel rejected and abandoned by God. Key word: FEEL. It often seems like He is not there as we walk through difficult circumstances. You may think, “Where are you, God? Don’t You care? Don’t You love me?” Maybe you are in one of those times right now. I am so sorry that this time so tough but let me encourage you to look around and recognize Immanuel, God with you. How is God sending His love to you today?

Peace. Rest. Thanks.

December 3, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

'Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ' Colossians 3:15

This has been an interesting week. “What interesting thing has happened,” you ask. Nothing. Nothing has happened. Both Tom and I have been sick and all we have been able to do is sit on the couch and stare at the TV. That’s it. That’s all we have been up to. So, what makes that interesting?

Peace. At another season of my life, everything in me would have been fighting against that reality. I have struggled with some guilt about being sick and not being able to fulfill certain responsibilities, but not like other times. The reality I’ve had to accept is that I can’t. And the amazing thing is that I’ve been okay with that. Others have been able and willing to step in where necessary. Where I have been is where I have needed to be. I have been at peace with that…most of the time.

Rest.

What's Your Story?

November 26, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

“Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.” Psalms 107:8

Think about it: What is your story? Where were you this time a year ago? 5 years ago? Ten years ago?

One of the traps people have always fallen into is forgetting where they have come from. Read the Old Testament and you'll see it over and over again. God's people forgot that they were slaves and God sent Moses to deliver them. They forgot that they while they were wandering in the wilderness because of their unbelief, God provided for them. They forgot how He split the Red Sea or opened a path through the Jordan River, or sent food they didn't have to grow or hunt for in manna and quail. It goes on and on.

The Scriptures bear witness that God's people continually, even habitually, forget what God has done for them in the past, complain about their present, and don't expect God to fulfill His promise for the future. As much as we hate to admit it, you and I are just as prone to such forgetting. It's not pretty.

God's Will: Be Joyful, Prayerful and Thankful

November 19, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” ‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It was a life-changing, perspective-shifting moment. I was in college, overwhelmed by an emotional situation that wasn’t going the way I wanted it to go and I was miserable. I was a member of the Geneseo Chamber Singers and we were heading back to town after a trip to Boston. As I sat in the back seat of the bus feeling extremely sorry for myself (a very familiar feeling at that time, by the way) I had a sudden revelation. It was one of the first times that I became aware that the Holy Spirit was revealing something to me. I was immediately conscious that being miserable was my choice, had been my choice, and didn’t have to be my choice. It was the beginning of Lent, and I made a decision to give up being miserable for Lent. Truly, I did! My life has never been the same because after that Easter, the end of those forty days of Lent, I have never gone back to being miserable.

I’ll be honest that for a while I overdid the positive perspective and ignored anything negative without dealing with it. But over the years I think that I have found my balance. Balance comes as I acknowledge what is and choose to trust God’s goodness in the midst of it.

There is actually a simple formula for this kind of life in the First Letter of Paul to the Thessalonians. It goes like this: “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” ‭‭(1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

Grateful IN Everything

November 12, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. I Thessalonians 5:18

You want to be someone who says YES to God. It's the motivating factor of your life, isn't it? Yet, there may be an aspect of saying YES to God that you hadn't quite contemplated yet.

Don't stop reading now! I promise you, this will be worth it! Part of being a person who says YES is to cultivate grateful. I know! That's tough, right? It's easy to look at our circumstances sometimes and excuse ourselves from gratefulness. I mean, look at how tough everything is! Maybe it's your finances or your relationships. Maybe it's your own health or the health of someone you love. Maybe your job is wearing you out. Maybe you feel like you have been giving your all for God and getting nothing back. "If God is supposed to work out all things for good in my life (Romans 8:28), then why do so many things seem to be bad?" you may be saying.

I don't want to minimize anything that you are going through. It's tough, and that's the truth. However, I want to park on a verse from the Bible that may help you get some perspective on what you are going through and help you get to a new level of YES. Are your ready? Are you willing?

Cultivate Grateful: Getting God-Centered

November 5, 2022 Cathleen Zahradnik

'Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.' 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 MSG

Have you ever thought about what a grateful heart does for you? What's the benefit to cultivating grateful? How does gratefulness affect us and our relationships? Most especially, how does cultivating grateful affect our relationship with God.

In his book Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God Pastor Tim Keller contemplates the most familiar prayer of all time as a model for building our communication with God. He considers what we call "The Lord's Prayer" as a structure for approaching our Heavenly Father. As I read Pastor Keller's thoughts it seemed to me that cultivating grateful is a key to opening the door to experiencing God's presence.

Keller says, "Adoration and thanksgiving - God-centeredness- comes first. Because it heals the heart of self-centeredness, which curves us in on ourselves and distorts all our vision."(p.114)

When I cultivate a grateful heart I am more able to recognize God's majesty and goodness. A grateful heart can glimpse God's great love and longs to honor and obey Him in response. A grateful heart opens the door to closeness with God.