Talking It Over

“You will teach me how to live a holy life. Being with you will fill me with joy; at your right hand I will find pleasure forever.” Psalm 16:11

An evening of entertainment, music, and a wonderful spirit around me. We experienced an evening concert with Josh Turner. Josh and his band not only played some of my favorite songs, but they entertained with their stage presence. They danced, they interacted with each other on stage, and they had fun sharing their talent for music with the audience.

Josh Turner is a country music singer who is a Christian. He began the concert by singing songs from his new album – “This Country Music Thing.” Then in the middle of the concert, he shared his faith by singing several of the Gospel songs he wrote. In the midst of his entertaining he praised God.

Josh Turner is one of my favorite Christian country artists. His song, “Me and God” is one of the songs that I turned to during my grief and next steps of life. In the intensity of my grief, this song reminded me I was not alone. Life had changed, but God was the same and always with me. I could talk to God in the middle of anything. It continues to keep me grounded in what is important in life and where my focus needs to be. Some of the words of the song –

“Early in the morning talking it over, Me and God.

Late at night talking it over, Me and God.

You could say we’re like two peas in a pod, Me and God.

He’s my Father, He’s my friend.

The beginning and the end,

He rules the world with a staff and the rod.

We’re a team, Me and God.”

God shows up in the middle - in the midst of - every situation in our lives. It is in Jesus we can find rest in the middle of the chaos and struggles of life. When we are in the middle of grief, turmoil, pain, sadness, and struggles, we tend to become overwhelmed and barely exist in survival mode. We may feel like we are going around in circles, and feel like we are living on the merry-go-round of life. It just keeps going and never stops to give us a break. When we are in the middle there seems to be no way out. We see no possibility of life getting better because we are only focused on our own strength and abilities, and we are tired and not able to function well.

This is when the song, “Me And God” pulled me out of the middle of my own pain and grief, and reminded me that God is with me in the middle of everything I encounter in life. I can talk over with God everything that happens in life. God listens from morning until night, and even if I awake in the middle of the night, God will listen. God is my Father and my friend. He takes me by the hand and walks with me. I am on God’s team. I am never alone.

God loves us because we are His children. We sometimes think we have not done enough for God to earn the privilege of talking with God and asking for help, strength, or guidance. So we try it alone with our meager strength and ability and become exhausted, and life seems impossible to navigate. That’s not the life that Jesus came to offer you and me. Jesus died for our salvation and freedom from the shackles and burdens of life. He did not say we would not experience pain and hurt, but He promised to carry the load if we will just release it to Him and talk everything over with Him.

Jesus is with us in the midst of everything we encounter in life. We just need to recognize His presence and talk everything over with Him. I have come to the acceptance that life is about “Me and God.” That is the most important relationship. While I love the people in my life, my relationship with my Heavenly Father is the most important and it is with whom I talk about every detail and decision. For me, to describe this relationship it is like the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of God – lives in the back of my head and every thought, feeling, experience, goes through Him.

When I focus on just Me and God, the things of this world seem not worth the worry and fear. I know God’s got it. It is not that I don’t care, it is I care so much that I put it into the hands of God. My desire is to live so close to God and talk with God about everything and surrender everything to God. Then my prayer is to say and do what God wants me to do since we have been talking it over. God is in charge, and I just follow His lead.

We’re a team – Me and God. Just talking it over!

My Books are available through different venues

• Tea Story in Upper Sandusky

• Personally through me

• Amazon

Living In The Different

Live Different Moments

Life Lessons of a Lone Trooper

Check out my Newspaper Articles also on my Website – www.livinginthedifferent.com