Two Words

I’ve really wanted to share about my experience this past weekend at Winter (youth) Retreat but the words weren’t there. Then one morning a few days ago, I woke up very early with two words on my mind – STOREHOUSE and WHEELHOUSE. It was probably only about 2a and I wasn’t prepared to wake up so I said a little prayer that I would remember them again when I woke up for the day in a couple hours. I did, and decided I needed to write them down before I forgot them. I’m not sure where they came from but I’ve been thinking about them ever since.   When I first thought of STOREHOUSE, I was immediately given the thought of having something to use later when we need it. I looked up the definition and one stood out:   STOREHOUSE: a large supply of something   I even googled STOREHOUSE in the bible to see what came up. What I found was that it is interchangeably used with the word TREASURES, most specifically, God’s treasures. Without going much deeper, I decided to rest on it…knowing good and well the time would come when I would feel an urgency to write about it.   The whole time, I thought WHEELHOUSE was just an overthought in my head that came from hearing the first one so I just brushed it off. Until this morning, that is.   As I finished my devotions, I got on my phone to make a few notes on things I needed to remember to do today and saw those words again. This time, I decided to look up WHEELHOUSE and the definition caught me off guard:   WHEELHOUSE: a part of a boat or ship serving as a shelter for the person at the wheel   My first thought was, God is MY shelter! This is what He was trying to share with me. But then it all came together. Stick with me for this one friends…   Let’s say that WE are the STOREHOUSE. We are God’s treasure, a STOREHOUSE full of HIS words and wisdom; best lived when we are open, when we dig deeper, and when we use the skills He’s given us for good — to bless others.   But WE are also the WHEELHOUSE…completely opposite from my initial thought. My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in me, whom I have received from God (Read 2 Corinthians 6:19-20). It is the WHEELHOUSE to protect the person at the wheel — God — who should be at the center of my life, guiding the direction in which I will go.   I would have never thought those two words would have actually come together, nor would I have ever guessed how. But it makes sense now. How quickly we come to think something is one way or should be but in fact, it should be another. If I am the STOREHOUSE I should be full of the things that will help me to be a better WHEELHOUSE. The wisdom God gives me to get through situations is how I protect His being at the wheel, making sure HE stays there and that I don’t take over. You see, often times we get caught up with trying to fix a situation on our own but He is the one who should be in control. We need to read His Word, go deeper to find meanings, take those pieces of wisdom He gives us to heart so that, when we need them, the answers will be right there.   In order to be the best at who GOD, not this world, has called us to be, we have to make sure that our STOREHOUSE remains full and that the WHEELHOUSE is in working order. Aligning ourselves with God’s vision for our lives, not someone else’s. Too often people look at social media and, unknowingly, are being fed lies that they will not know how to fight off on their own. They start to think about someone else’s vision as their own, wish they had what one had or did what someone else did. God wants you to be YOU and in order to do that, you have to put your focus on HIM not those around you. If you want to live the life you were called to live you simply have to get your eyes off of everyone else’s calling and back on your own. Direction will come when the time is right. It may not be as quickly as you would hope or in the manner in which you requested it, but keep on pursuing and He’ll keep on answering — in HIS time.   Not sure who this was for today, but if it’s you, I’ll be praying 

*Winter Retreat is a weekend getaway where students and leaders come to get closer to God and make lasting connections with one another.