Am I Listening?

I'm back to blogging.. yay!!!!

So.. I re read my blogs from 10 months ago and to be honest, it upset me.  When rereading my blogs I saw a girl who was so passionately seeking only Christ in her life and for those around her to know and love Him.  She had total faith in her creator and was so content that she had no fret of what her future may look like.  She was in constant aww each day and moment giving complete thanks to her Heavenly Father.
Fast forward 10months, that same gal still LOvES the Lord, still acknowledges Him in every circumstance and still desires to bring glory to Him.  Yet, noticed she allowed herself to spend so much of her year in wonderment.. Spending more than enough prayer, reflection quiet time focusing on the future and not enough on what God has for her right now!
When contemplating my focus I turned to this passage and asked myself... Am I listening?
A Linen Belt
13 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” 2 So I bought a belt, as the Lord directed, and put it around my waist.

3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time: 4 “Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Perath and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks.” 5 So I went and hid it at Perath, as the Lord told me.

6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there.” 7 So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10 These wicked people, who refuse to listen to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them,  will be like this belt—completely useless! 11 For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown and praise and honor.  But they have not listened.

God bound Israel and Judah to Him to be His people for His renown and praise and honor. But they didn't listen. They followed their own heart and ran after other gods.
Guess what, how many years later is it and all too often God's people still aren't listening.
God has bound us to himself, to be his people, to bring praise and honor.  He has taken us, sinful, lost, people who deserve His wrath and He has bound us intimately to Himself. 
I think over the past few months I have forget too often, I start going off and thinking that I am my "own," that I have to have total control of my life.  But God has taken me (us) and God has attached me (us) to Him.
God didn't do it so that we could be our own, empowered people or so people could talk about us.  He didn't do it for people to praise us, or to say how wise, more sound than others,  passionate we are.  He did it so that we would be His people, so people would hear about Him. He did it for His praise, He did it for His honor!
My attitude.. our attitudes, should be like those who were rebuked for standing up for Jesus, who do not live for their own glory but for Jesus to be known and praised. 
Looking at the past few months, I've noticed that I have tried to hold onto myself and some ounce of ownership of my life.  Sadly, I do not feel as though I allowed myself to fully listen.   And God says that when His people are like that, He will ruin them and their pride. God will do what it takes to humble us. Even if that means ruining us so that we end up like that soiled ruined loincloth (gross). When we try to be independent, God humbles us.
Jeremiah 13  (9) He will ruin his people – (10)He will make us completely useless, if that's what it takes to get us humble before Him. He would rather us be humble than useful.
Will we listen to His instruction?!
Dear Father, for those of us who are suffering, may it draw us closer to you! May we find great thanks in this time and be in remembrance that we are your children, we are to be worked on for your good.  Discipline seems to bring so much discomfort, and pain, please help remind us that in this time you are building our character, our hope and our perseverance.  You are building us to be strong, loving ambassadors for You!!  I ask for peace and guidance.  Father, please use us for your glory and not for our own.  Please open our heart, our eyes, and ears to what it is that you want for us, that we can be in your Will, in your desires and not in our own.  Thank you Father for binding us to you, allowing us to bring praise and honor to your Great and Holy name.