…”And He brought her to the man”

“That’s your wife”

God spoke to David while he was worshiping with the Youth group that Thursday night.   The fact that we had only had a handful of conversations and had only even known one another’s names for about 4 months was irrelevant to the truth of the statement and the deep peace that came with it.

At the same time God was speaking to me across the church campus, confirming the stirrings in my spirit that David was going to be much more to me than just an acquaintance.  I couldn’t make sense of it in my head but I also couldn’t shake the peace that was overwhelming me from the inside out. “He’s my husband.  What?!  How on earth, Lord, am I supposed to have THIS conversation?”

Rewind a few years…

Working Out My Salvation

I noticed the offering bucket out of the corner of my eye heading toward me, I had to select something and fast!

〉 I would like to know Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior

That statement had been plaguing me for weeks and the bucket was nearly to me…

Read Part 1 here

Four weeks later the Lord came for His answer.  I had swayed back and forth for too long.  My phone rang and a sweet lady named Kristy invited me to meet and talk about my connection card.  She said she would like to tell me about knowing Jesus as my Lord and Savior.

I must say, Jesus really does know your heart, if it had been a day, honestly, even 35 minutes earlier I likely would have turned down the invitation.  But the fact is, I accepted, and it was my first real step of faith.  That day Kristy explained the Gospel to me and I realized even after all the times I’d attended church in my life I had never understood WHY Jesus had to die.  Even though I grasped the idea of sin and was sure I was guilty of it, I didn’t get how His death would help me.

I walked away from Kristy that day with her phone number and a better understanding of the Gospel but

The Pursuit…

After reaching adulthood (or at least some semblance of it) my sister and I would often joke about how we should write a book about our childhood.  Exactly what genre that book would fit is uncertain; tragedy, drama, suspense or perhaps more the way we tended to tell it, as self-effacing humor.

Our childhood, while living it never seemed as crazy as it sounded when stories were recounted with an almost light-hearted nostalgia.  Remember  when we were 9 and 11

Obedience

Obedience

I can do GOOD all  by myself!

1 Samuel 15:22

“What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to His voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.”

Obedience comes easy to me.  I’ve never been interested in breaking rules or rebelling against authority.  Even before salvation my motto was “Tell me what the rules are so that I can follow them.”  I always really liked being the “good” kid, in fact I got so good at being good that I would assess the consequences of my sister’s choices or my friends choices and determine if their actions were worth it or not (usually deciding they were not).  I was a 13 year old who learned from other people’s mistakes so that I didn’t have to make them myself.  I never realized

He knows the plans…not I

My husband and I have been married for nearly 2 years (insert happy dance here) and I think the number one question we get is in regard to when we intend to have children.  We are never certain how to respond to that question because really the when isn’t up to us.

I can feel some blank stares, so please stick with me.

Acts 17:26

And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings…

Here in Acts it says that God has not only created everyone on the face of the earth but He has also chosen WHEN and WHERE.

Kill it!

Have you ever read the book of Romans?  It’s phenomenal, really.  I’ve read it a few times; in fact most of the book of Romans has had to be taped back into my Bible.  It might also be due to the fact that I’ve been using a $6 paperback Amplified Bible pretty regularly as my main Bible for the last 3 years.  Even though my husband gifted me a beautiful leather bound parallel Bible for Christmas in 2011 (it even has my name stamped on it); I still can’t seem to reach for anything but this tattered, little, overly-loved paperback.

Alright, back to the book of Romans.  

Breaking Ground

Jeremiah 4:3b 

Break up your ground left uncultivated for a season, so that you may not sow among thorns.

Have you ever tilled unbroken ground to start a garden?  Yea…neither have I, BUT I have watched someone do it.  It sounded like great fun when it was suggested to me, “Hey! I’m going to till out a garden plot in the yard, do you want to help me?”  I was all for it and then

No Words Needed

A storm was just beginning outside.  The sound of the rain hitting the window sounded like someone throwing small pebbles.  It was enough to rouse me from sleep, not wide awake but more conscious than I’d have liked at that time of morning.  I lay there half asleep listening to the storm strengthen.  Knowing that my husband is next to me; not fearful of storms but grateful he is there anyway.  A flash and then a great crack of thunder rattles the window.  Then I feel a hand slide across the bed and reach for my hand.  No words are spoken, yet my hand in his said so much.  

“I’m here with you, through the storms of this life.  Even when there is nothing to say, my strength will seek you out to protect you”.

Thank you Lord for this man, who can speak so much to me without saying anything at all.  I see You in him.

Descending Into Greatness

“Invisibility is not an affliction.  It is not a disease that erases your life.  It is the cure for the real disease of self-centeredness.  It’s the antidote to pride.  It’s an invitation to let humility be made flesh.”

– Keeping a Princess Heart; In a Not-so-Fairy-Tale World  By Nicole Johnson

The idea of being invisible is frightening and lonesome.  No one sees you, no one appreciates you or recognizes your efforts and gifts.  You walk through life utterly alone and useless

Little Red Flags

Does God really tell you when you shouldn’t do something or does He just wait for you to learn the hard way? If you’ve ever learned something the hard way you know it’s not ideal.  Now God does teach through process; as not much comes quickly if it is going to be of any value. That does not necessarily mean that every hard lesson happens because God “took you through a process”.

Several years ago I was preparing to study in Australia.