Shifting My Focus: Still There

"Still there."

It's a statement made in NASCAR by spotters who are helping their drivers know the location of others cars so that they don't wreck.   I know this because my six-year-old son loves to watch YouTube videos where he can hear the spotter talking to his driver.  "Still there" is said a lot throughout the course of a race.  My very unofficial explanation is that it means a car is still beside a driver and he should not switch lanes unless he wants to crash.  (Sorry, sweet NASCAR writing husband of mine if I just made you cringe with my lack of racing knowledge).

"Still there."

We've heard that expression so much - thanks to our son's racing obsession - that it's become a family joke of sorts.  We will randomly say it throughout the course of a day for various reasons resulting in laughs that no one else would understand.  So it's no surprise that while I was exercising a few days ago (before going out of town and NOT exercising for a few days) that it popped into my head.  It was actually in reference to my accountability partners.  I wanted to give up about 6 minutes into a 27 minute workout.  I had multiple excuses for quitting:  Sleep was scarce the night before.  It's just too early.  I am out of the routine due to vacations.  I need to do laundry.  I need to make a grocery list.  I need to just pause and think about if I want to finish.   On and on went the excuses in my head. I didn't quit though because I knew my success sisters - as we refer to each other - were  STILL THERE.  Working out in their own living rooms...not giving up...fighting along beside me...helping me not to make a wreck of myself by allowing excuses to dictate my health journey.   It motivated me and compelled me to suck it up and finish.  

"Still there?"

It's the question I've pondered at times throughout life.  Is He there when I am so burdened by weights of this world that I can't feel Him?  Is He there when I feel overwhelmed in parenting and even though I pray to be a better mama, I still fail daily?  Is He there when my husband and I allow the responsibilities of this world to get in the middle of our relationship?  Is He still there when I can't seem to hear His voice even when I try really hard to listen?  Is He still there...beside me...in front of me...behind me...carrying me...in any type of close proximity?  

"God, are you still there????"

Like much in my life, I get from point A to point B the hard way.  So while I am contemplating if He's still there, anxiety begins to overtake me and suddenly the world as I know it feels like it's crashing in on me and I FINALLY get desperate enough to drop to my knees.  (Note to self...make prayer more of a priority on a regular basis and maybe you won't freak out so much.)  It's not in the desperation that He always responds to me.  Sometimes He does, but sometimes it's after the desperation...when I have emptied myself of myself.  When I lay aside how I WANT Him to respond and diligently seek Him with a willing and grateful heart...sometimes, that's when I hear Him the loudest...

"Still here."

It's something I know within my soul.  When I open my Bible, His promises flood my heart and mind. Verses that remind me that He will not forsake His believers.  I can see His mercies in the hardships that grow me. I can see His beauty in the nature that surrounds me.  I can see His grace in forgiveness.   I can see His presence in the many blessings he bestows upon me every single day.  As I think about those blessings and begin to THANK Him, I release all inhibitions and suddenly I KNOW that He is here.  And, much like a NASCAR racer is compelled to move forward and not sway when his spotter calmly states, "Still there" I can look toward Him  and move forward in full assurance that the God who ordered my steps before I was even born is "still here."

Friends, there is so much power in thanksgiving.  In finding gratitude in all areas of life.  When we shift our focus from ourselves and our inabilities and instead focus on Him and His goodness, the results are life-changing.  Let's hold ourselves accountable to this verse:  "In everything give thanks..." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

**Just for fun - and because this proud mama thinks he is super cute - a photo of my NASCAR loving boy who got this mama thinking about "Still there" to begin with. ;)