Kyle's and Karen's And Terah's

In this world there are many different types of people....but you are well aware of that fact. Last week while jumping around...I mean managing the kids...on one of the inflatables, I defined two different types of people. There are Kyle's and there are Karen's. No, I'm not pointing out the obvious that there are guys and then there are girls. Kyle's can be girls and guys and vica versa.

Kyles: Kyles are the guys that walk into the room and everyone yells "KYLLEE!". He's the guy everybody wants to be friends with but no body really likes. And no one can be mean to him because they all secretly want his approval. So you put up with his egotistical self and just blow it off as "Oh, that was SOoo Kyle!".

Then...there are Karen's.

Karens: The girl no one likes but she just happens to show up everywhere...without an invite. She's the girl that would find out about an event that is even marked as secret on Facebook but somehow she would still find out. When Karen walks in the room no one yells Karen...except for..well, Karen. No one likes her but she's so wrapped up in the thought that everyone likes her, that she doesn't seem to notice.

Could you think of a few Kyle's and Karen's? Yep. Now you're going to go around hanging out with your friends and the thought is going to hit you...oh my, they are a "________" fill in the blank with Kyle or Karen. Now don't get me wrong, there are many different types of people out there...I was just naming two of them. Let me give you a third.

Terah's.

Say whattt? Yep. Terah's. Do you know about a little man named Abram? ...Do you know where the book of Genesis is?....Do you know where your Bible is located? Go find it and turn to Genesis 11:31.

This little paragraph with a few little words has completely hit me in the face the past couple of days. 2 mornings ago I was listening to a wise woman, Joyce Meyer, and she was talking about this story. You see God's plans will be fulfilled whether you are the person He uses to do so or not. Terah was Abram's father and God had called Terah to take his family and move to an unfamiliar land called Canaan. Kuddos go to Terah because he actually uprooted his family and made his way to the place God had called him to. But what happened along the way?

He settled.

He settled in a place that wasn't where God had called him to. It says in Genesis that "When they came to Haran, they settled there. Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran" (V31). You see once he made the decision to settle there...he never left, he ended up dying in the place where he had settled. So what did God do? Not withdraw His hands from the plan He had, he just held onto the blessings He had for the one to trust him and raised up someone else to receive those blessings.

So along comes Abram, Terah's son, and in chapter 12 God asks Abram to leave the familiar place and his family and go to the place God will show him. Abram uprooted, left the familiar behind and went to the place God called him to...without settling anywhere before the place God had shown him. God then made Abram a promise, Verses 2-3,

"I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you...and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

What if you did something God asked you to and then He made you a promise like that? Insane. If Terah had only gone all the way to where God asked him to, he would have gotten a promise and blessings like that. But along the way things may have gotten difficult and he may have started to doubt God's hand in his journey, so once he found somewhere that would be suitable to live...he settled there. Who knows how many times we've settled? God asks us to do something and we get discouraged, frustrated, and doubt starts to creep into those cracks in our faith. Then of course an opportunity comes along that seems like it would make us content...even though it's not what God has called us to..but what do we do? We settle.

We settle even though we know that what we're taking is nothing compared to what we could be having. But we're too scared to walk through the wilderness anymore. We're too afraid of debt, loneliness, insecurities, etc. Who knows who you could be if you just let God's plans unfold in your life and stop trying to take the easy way out.

Joyce Meyer told a story about a man watching an eaglet hatching out of it's egg shell. The eaglet was having a hard time getting the shell to crack so it could be free and the man could see that, but what the man didn't realize was that the peck peck pecking of the eaglet to get out of the shell was the process required to develop the boldness and perseverance that makes the eagle such a strong figure. The eaglet has a special little growth on the top of it's beak specially designed to help it crack open that shell, but it takes the eagle's determination to get out that develops it's perseverance and make it into the eagle it was meant to be.

I could tell you numerous stories of times that I and other people that I know have taken the "harder" path and have reaped incredible rewards. God knows what He's doing, so trust Him in this season. Don't settle. Never never never ever settle. If you don't have the courage and faith to rise up and go where God has called you, He will raise someone else up to. You don't want to miss out on what He's got up His sleeve. Girls, you are worth more than scripted words and being hurt - get out of that relationship. Boys, don't settle for being just another guy who does the frat boy thing and thinks it's cool to lead girls on - man up and uphold your values.

Don't give up. Keep going. You are worth what God has for you, you may not deserve it, but you are well worth it.

"I saw the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body will also live in hope, because You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; You will fill me with joy in your presence." Acts 2:25-28