SHELBY TOWNSHIP – At the beginning of the summer, God was calling me out to meet with Him during the sunrise. I have to be honest, those first few days of summer were so nice not to have to be up at the crack of dawn to get my kids ready for school. I chose my bed several mornings over an early morning sunrise with God. Finally, one morning I woke up early without having to depend on my alarm, and I knew this was the morning I needed to go!
We live about seven minutes from a park right on Lake St. Clair, which has become a sacred place for me to meet with God. I got into the car, put on a playlist, and drove to Brandenburg Park. As soon as I pulled out of my neighborhood and began to head toward the park, I couldn’t believe my eyes! The sky was full of color: purple, pink, and orange hues like I had never seen before!
When I got to the park that morning, I felt like I was in a dream. I had never seen the sky so breathtaking! As I was walking toward the water, I felt the Lord tell me this time with Him was a gift. He knew that once I experienced that sunrise, I would want more, which is exactly what happened all summer long. I spent many mornings in that place with the Lord.
Recently, I have been in a season of recovery from burnout. It has been a much longer season than I would have liked for it to have been, but God has been kind and gracious to me. I was at the height of my burnout in 2022 – 2023 and it has taken me well over a year to recover. There was a period of time where I was too focused on what happened in the past. Little did I realize, my looking back was keeping me from the healing that God wanted to bring.
I went on a spiritual retreat last spring and was challenged to bring an item that represented where I was currently in my relationship with the Lord. I began praying and thinking about it, and ideas started coming to my mind, but none of them felt like they were from the Lord. Then one day He spoke clearly to my heart, “Karen, it is time to rise.” So, the item I chose to take on my retreat was a picture of the sunrise in Florida that I had enjoyed just a few months before.
When God spoke that word to me, I knew exactly what it meant. He was telling me to stop looking back and that it was time to move forward. Truth is, God was realigning things in my life so I could step into the purpose He created me for.
I can relate to this passage that Jeremiah wrote in Lamentations,
I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
Lamentations 3:19-26, NIV
Jeremiah expresses in Lamentations such deep suffering and grief. He states in verses 19-20 that when he remembered his affliction that his soul was downcast. Unfortunately, this is where I found myself, too. To put it simply, I was having a pity party. I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit, our internal Counselor, who spoke just the right word, “It is time to rise,” to help me overcome that downcast spirit.
My time with the Lord at sunrise this summer was the reminder I needed of his great love for me. I love verses 22-23,
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23, NIV
I love this version of these verses,
The Lord’s unfailing love and mercy continue, Fresh as the morning, as sure as the sunrise.
Lamentations 3:22-23, Good News Bible
As sure as we know the sun will rise each morning, His love and mercy continue. Great is His faithfulness!
Friend, I don’t know what season of life you find yourself in today, but I pray that you will remember to look forward to each new day full of endless possibilities with God’s love and mercy flowing over you! We can take what we experienced in those hard seasons, learn from it, and come out stronger and with a greater purpose than we ever thought possible. It is time to rise and step into a new day!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Karen is married to Scott Blanchard, pastor of Lakepointe Church, and moved from Florida to Michigan in the summer of 2009 to plant Lakepointe Church in Shelby Township. She enjoys mentoring and discipling women and also leads women’s life groups through her church. She is passionate about helping women find their purpose in who God created them to be. She is on staff at Lakepointe Church and loves being part of what God is doing in the Metro Detroit area!