Afraid of Change? Leave it here.

I once read a book that described a tip jar with that saying on it.  It made me smile then, and it still makes me smile now.  (If we can ever manage to have a tip jar at my work, I'm pretty sure this is what it will read.)  But the odd thing is, I actually am afraid of change.  Not coins, but actual real life change.
Change and I have never been friends to my recollection.  Change in my life has always seemed to be negative:  Mom dying suddenly; Dad deciding to date again (and again, and again); several different moves (none of which I recall being asked how I felt about); and now with my very first book, change rears it's ugly head again.  Honestly I usually try to avoid change, but I think that is part of the reason for this very difficult stalemate I have come to in my life.  I'm static, and not moving, and trying to avoid having any kind of change enter into my little world.  I think that sucks more than any change possibly could.
I've been doing a devotional with a friend the past month or two, called What Women Want: The Life You Crave and How God Satisfies (by Lisa T Bergren and Rebecca Price in case any of you are interested in it), and today (a chapter on Emotional Health and Balance), it had this to say on change: "Change takes risk and work, and it's not usually fun."  Yep, that about covers my feelings on the topic.  But at the very beginning of the book, it also says, "You can do it!  You can!  You can grow in every area of your life.  You can learn to embrace peace, laugh every day, and challenge your mind, heart, body and soul.  We're on this journey too, walking beside you.  No one can opt out - no one has arrived until she enters in to heaven's glory.  Until then, there's growing to do."
Growing... something I don't think can be achieved by playing it safe, and standing still in life.  So perhaps instead of looking at the title of this blog as a cute saying on a tip jar, we should look at it as Jesus talking to us from the cross.  "Afraid of change?  Leave your fear here."  Instead of letting that fear hold me back from change that could indeed have amazing possibilities in it, I need to choose to leave that fear at the cross, letting God exchange it for faith in him.  "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10).
Walking into this change in my writing, I just pray that I learn something more from God and from the characters he has placed in my heart and mind.  That's what I want from my writing; hopefully one day, Lord willing, you might learn something from these characters too.  But until then, I enjoy our little meetings by blog my friends.  Please keep me in your prayers as I move forward... because backwards isn't an option, and standing still just sucks.  I'll be praying the same for all of you.  Perhaps after reading this, you'll be able to leave whatever is weighing you down here.  I know I'm sure going to try to.  Much love.
<3 Kayla
P.S. My first counter strike on the basement starts tomorrow, so look forward to an interesting read on how that turns out. :P  (And let me know if you for some reason have a strange urge to help me clean haha)