Happy Valentine’s Day! We went out last night for sushi with our adorable third wheel.

My mind has been running a mile a minute since the beginning of the new year. God is rerouting and reforming so many things — it’s both wonderful and unsettling (in a good kind of way because He’s kind). I wanted to share a few things I’m learning in real time, clumsily and joyfully.

1. “Your feelings aren’t the boss of my feelings.” And vice versa. I heard this said a few weeks ago from a fellow Enneagram 2 and WHAM, clarity. It’s loving to sympathize and empathize but when I start eating everyone else’s feelings and making them my own is when I’ve crossed over into an unhealthy place.
2. The Bible is not just what God said at one time, it is what He is currently saying to us. When this hit me a few months ago, it stirred a fresh love and motivation for spending time in the Bible. Whether it is a few minutes or an hour, from cover to cover the Scriptures are God’s words for me today.
3. I am more thankful for my husband than I ever have been. It’s not only because of his love and care for me as his wife, but his help and joy in being a parent with me for our daughter. Having him to lean on, brainstorm ideas with, share struggles with and laugh with make all the difference for me.
4. Quiet rest and Netflix rest are two completely different things. In my mind, I think sitting down to a few episodes will help me feel rested, and sometimes that is a nice thing to do. But more often, it just numbs me until I have to get up and go again, and I hardly feel recharged at all. True rest for me looks like settling down all the thoughts of my mind and the work of my hands and pouring in that which refreshes, the presence of God.
5. “When you carry peace in your heart, you actually communicate peace to your child.” This from my wise and caring friend Lauren. Something I will be wrestling down for the rest of my parenting life is the reality that my ultimate peace cannot be attached to Anna. It must stay anchored in Christ.
6. Sanctification is God changing what my heart wants. I get caught in thinking that if I want something it must be selfish. And while that can be true, God is continually changing and conforming me in Christlikeness. With the Holy Spirit inside us there is a freedom to submitting our desires to Him and then doing what we want (because hopefully what we want is what He wants). As Dallas Willard said, God wants to work on your ‘wanter.’
7. My mind is on all the time, humming and running with prayers, worries, plans and hopes. After weeks of feeling like I was in a fog, I rediscovered the great release found in journaling. Pages filled with sentence fragments and honesty have helped me step outside the intensity of my racing thoughts.
8. I’m trying to kick a sugar habit and it is CHALLENGING. That speaks for itself. You all know what I mean. Those Oreos are too. good.

What are you learning right now?