How to Choose Gratitude in the Middle of the Crushing
This is not your typical story on gratitude. I have never said it before, but I’m in the middle of a crushing, and I’m grateful for it. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always heard people talk about how glad they are that they went through difficulty (emphasis on went). However, I rarely hear people talk about how glad they are that they’re going through.
Well, I’m here to raise my hand among the number of people you could probably count on one hand because today, I am grateful that I am going through. I can feel the Lord doing something in me, if for nothing more than the healing Holy Spirit has for each of us.
You see, I recognize that “no” is a full sentence, but it’s one that I rarely tell myself. And it’s definitely not something I hear on repeat from God. I’d much rather tell myself that thing is good for me. I’d much rather hype myself up with various affirmations while finding countless ways to tell myself how amazing I am.
I’d much rather see doors open wide with blessings only God could provide as I pass through proverbial green light after green light. But that is not my story. At least not right now. Because I am in the middle of a crushing.
The story of my crushing
What’s being crushed you ask? My will. LOL. It sounds dramatic, but it’s true. My own selfish ambitions have blinded me from asking how I could lead others to trust God more completely. Instead, I have sacrificed the integrity the Lord was developing in me on the altar I built to garner influence. But not any longer.
God’s Word tells us that He disciplines those whom He loves, and, sis, I am incredibly grateful He loves me because I have picked up some unhealthy habits, and they have to end here. I have spent too long lying to myself about my motivation. Professing to “make God’s name great,” I made multiple decisions that would lead others to compliment how great my name is.
And the Holy Spirit has shown me, so I’m in the middle of a crushing. This crushing is humbling, and if you’re wondering what it looks like, I’ll tell you. It looks like the opportunity to celebrate others who receive the very things I prayed for. It looks like the chance to open up about what I placed my identity in all along. It looks like an invitation to surrender my desire for people’s approval in pursuit of God’s presence. And it looks like a lot of uncomfortable silence in my devotional time.
Grateful for the crushing
Still, I don’t want you to feel sorry for me or turn away from any opportunities you have to embrace similar seasons you may endure. Because this is where God’s peace fills me. This is where I feel His approval. This is where I feel His strength flowing through my veins. This is where I belong in this season.
There’s a small story we often quote from Exodus 33 where God instructs Moses to take the Israelites on ahead to the promised land-without Him. God tells Moses He’ll send an angel before them, but Moses refuses. He instead asks the Lord to teach Moses His ways. In response, God answers, “My presence will be with you, and I will give you rest” (Exodus 33:14).
Similarly, a psalmist known as a son of Korah centuries later would say, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked” (Psalm 84:10).
And I couldn’t say it better myself.
Friends, I’m grateful for the crushing that I’m going through because this is where God is moving in my life, and I wouldn’t exchange it for my wildest dreams if it meant achieving those without Him.
I invite you to remember 2 Corinthians 4:11 with me, “For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body.” May Jesus be revealed in each of us a little more every day.
Meet Liv Dooley
Now that we’ve all become experts on Zoom and can claim that we are international speakers, Liv is doing the same. As a Bible teacher, podcaster, and speaker, she has hosted events that have brought speakers and participants together from six different countries.
She has led a Christian nonprofit for girls and women called The Colorfully Candid Paradigm in Las Vegas for eight years, and she now spends the majority of her time podcasting and writing.
When she’s not writing, teaching, or podcasting, you can find her hiking a mountain, taking a road trip with her husband, or curled up in the corner with her dog, a cup of coffee, and a good book. To connect further with Liv, subscribe to her podcast, The Best Kept Secret with Liv Dooley, read her newest devotional on YouVersion, or take her Confidence Quiz.
Where to find her . . .
Begin Within is a series to inspire a year-round lifestyle of gratitude that will impact not only your own life, but the lives of your neighbors as well. Gratitude is a theme we talk about often around here because it ties so closely into other missional living rhythms. Practicing gratitude reminds to keep our hearts soft and expectant and our eyes open. Therefore, the more we embrace gratitude, the easier it becomes to truly see our neighbors and where we can join what God is already doing in our neighborhoods.
If you would like to contribute to Begin Within, you can find the submission guidelines here.
Creating Ripples
If you would like to cultivate rhythms in addition to gratitude that will empower you live on mission in your neighborhood, check out Cultivating a Missional Life: A 30-Day Devotional to Gently Help You Open Your Heart, Home, and Life to Your Neighbors. This small book will help you make a big impact in your neighborhood as you learn to let missional living flow from the inside out. Get the 30-day missional living challenge free when you purchase the book.
4 Comments
Beverly
Thank you Twyla, “Cultivating a Missionary life…To Your Neighbors” and “Being Grateful for the Crushing I’m Going Through”. WOW! What a way to start my day with two new thought processes. Thank you,
Bev Young
twyla
Liv’s story about her crushing spoke right to me too. Thank you for grabbing a copy of Cultivating a Missional Life! I sure hope it’s a blessing to you.
Melanie Connatser
Such good truth! I’ve felt the crushing in my own life yet know that’s exactly where I need to be. Thank you for sharing this. It encourages me to keep pressing through.
twyla
I’m so sorry you’re walking through your own crushing. I am too, and I also found Liv’s story immensely encouraging! Praying for you as you keep pressing into the hard and holy place of absolute surrender.