Cast of Characters by Max Lucado

Cast of Characters: Common People in the Hands of an Uncommon God by Max Lucado...very good read!!  The book is actually segments from a lot of different books he's written through the years (and if you know anything about Max Lucado, you know he's written A LOT of books!) and details the lives of "common people" from the Bible.  Not only were they common people, but they accomplished amazing things with God's help.  This quote from the conclusion sums it up well: "If you ever wonder how in the world God could use you to change the world, look at these people.  This ragbag of ne'er-do-wells and has beens, failed followers and despairing church leaders who found hope, not in their performance, but in God's proverbially open arms." (pg 219)

My favorite chapter was about Mary, Martha and Lazarus.  If you don't know their story, find your Bible and read John 12.  But what I loved most about this chapter is the way Max described each...we all have a place at the table. The book as a whole is a good read and the shorter chapters make for quick reading as well.

This book was provided to me as part of the Thomas Nelson Booksneeze program.  All opinions are my own.

He's Not Finished With Me Yet...

Have you ever started a project and got about half-way through it before realizing it wasn't taking the shape you thought it should?  Maybe it was off-center, maybe it was larger (or smaller) than you thought it was supposed to be.  Maybe you used the wrong materials and didn't realize until it was too late.  I've done this quite a few times throughout my (getting longer every year) crafty life. 

As I was working on a project last night and having one of those times listed above, something hit me:

God's not finished with me yet!

While I may see a project in my hands that is not going the way I planned or desired it to go, God could say the same thing about me!!  The difference??  I would probably (and have at times) just decide to scrap the idea/project and start over (or NOT start over and just give up) yet God doesn't!!  God knows the end project...He knows how all the pieces fit together...He may see a partially complete project (and may not be pleased with its current state!) but He knows how it ends!  He's not finished with me yet!

There is a wonderful freeing feeling in those words, but you have to trust that they're true!  A song by Brandon Heath called "Wait and See" uses the phrase "he's not finished with me yet," and my favorite part of the song is this:

Still wondering why I'm here

Still wrestling with my fear,

But OH! He's up to something.

And the farther on I go, I've seen enough to know

that I'm not here for nothing, He's up to something...

He's not finished with me yet.

My prayer today is that I would continue to believe those words.  That I would KNOW He's still working in my life!!  And whether or not I know how things will all come together in this project of my life, God's word tells me in Romans 8:28 "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."  Thank you Lord that you are NOT finished with me yet!!