cool morning run

This morning's temperature: 68 degrees of awesome.  Perfect for a morning run with a friend... I've got the day off and I'm enjoying the cooler, sweatshirt-and-shorts weather, sitting on the porch with my Bible and some good music. 

As usual, I'm wanting to change things up a bit in my spiritual life and in the rest of my life.  My expectations aren't well-defined, other than the fact that I want to spend daily time in the Word of God and prayer--prayer for my husband, prayer for my family, prayer for work and ministry with Young Life, YL leaders and kids, and everything else that comes up in life.  Exercise, of course, is part of my life... but I'd rather this not be my focus (I fear it has been a focus in the past, but I'm pressing on, not dwelling in the past).

1 Timothy reminded me recently to "exercise [myself] toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come" (1 Tim 4:7b-8).

And I have been struggling with the old stuff and the realization that the enemy "wants to return us to the places God called us to leave" (Beth Moore, Daniel Bible-study Session 1).  My old "places" more or less refer to my insecurities about being "too quiet" or "too shy" to be myself in front of people, or the fear that when I'm being quiet that I'm not truly being myself and that no one wants to be around me.   "Places" that are far too focused on myself and other peoples' perceptions of me than on God and His righteousness and identity within me. 

"For You formed my inward parts; / You covered me in my mother's womb. /
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; /
Marvelous are Your works, / And that my soul knows very well"  (Psalm 139:13-14).

When I surrender to God and let Him live within me and express Himself in my life, does that necessarily mean that I become more vocal and more outgoing among other people?  Or is it possible that His expression of Himself within me looks a little quieter than it does in other people, such as my husband, for example?  These are the questions I'm asking God to teach me on and reveal himself to me: that He would express himself however He chooses in my life as I accept that my identity is sealed in Him, and that He would help me to be content in that.

This is going to be a good season.