Beauty for Ashes

Have you ever felt like something was coming?  Heart racing....eye twitching....kind of anxious...like prom night..butterflies in your tummy...seeing your favorite person on the planet walk through the door something was coming?

I have had this feeling all week, and I can't shake it.  I have no rhyme or reason to feel this way.  My quiet time is still riddled with unanswered prayers, but this time it just feels different.  Something.is.coming!

And I hope it's good.

I read the final sessions of my James bible study this week.....I started January 1st, but when I cracked open that book for the first time, I knew that I would take my time.  I would really meditate on the lessons, and if I knew I wasn't in a place to really inhale and ingest the lessons, I wouldn't force the issue.  You can do that when you are studying alone.  I loved every bit of it.  Every in your face, uncomfortable, love for the poor, love for the weak, love for the sinner, examine your heart, examine your motives minute of it.

However, about the last couple of lessons in James, I could feel God asking me what I would do next.  Which lesson I would embark upon....what I would slough off of myself for the next ...6 months....ha!

I started feeling like getting my house in order...cleaning out closets, drawers, organizing, really taking a good look at my finances, and cutting off the fat, saving more (seriously, who am I), and just getting free.....

So I set out to find the perfect bible study for me.  But more importantly, I asked God to show me what He wanted me to do.  And in true Saviour fashion...He did not disappoint.

I've never really had a scripture that I lived by, read all of the time, have everywhere in my home, but in late 2013, God started showing me that everything that I thought I had lost, He would give it back to me.  It was in my dreams, thoughts, the theme of most scriptures I read...it was a real word that I needed, and still need.

Isaiah 61:1-3

New International Version (NIV)

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

61 

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,

    because the Lord has anointed me

    to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

    to proclaim freedom for the captives

    and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]

2 

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor

    and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn,

3 

    and provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty

    instead of ashes,

the oil of joy

    instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise

    instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

    a planting of the Lord

    for the display of his splendor.

Little did I know that Beth Moore has an entire study on those very precious verses to me, Breaking Free.  I am so happy, and so excited to see what God will do through me as a result of what I learn.  So happy to get rid of some baggage, junk, mess, stuff, just ugh!  I can't wait to get rid of it!!!

So, I'm starting this new journey, with an expectant heart, knowing that something is around the corner. Whatever it is.....I know it will display His splendor.

Lovin' Life!

It is October....OCTOBER!  Seriously, where did the time go?  These past few months have been interesting to say the least.  Wanna hear about it?  I'm in a place that I feel like talking.

I believe the last time we spoke, I was coming off of my 100 days of life changing, knock your socks off, Jarvis you'll never see life the same again prayer.  I know this may sound totally dramatic, and if you know me in real life, then you get it, but yes folks...I will yell from the rooftops that UNLESS you are really, really, really, really READY to lose all control, question your sanity, then 100 days of soul searching prayer is not for you...just keeping it real.

But enough about that.  What I didn't tell you was that I resigned from teaching!  Yep! I.quit.my.job!  With no income to speak of.  I officially resigned in June..but my principal and I went back and forth literally all summer about whether or not I would come back.  (I should have followed my first mind...God had already spoken...but you know me!)

Anywho...a super long story short God closed, locked, and boarded the door to me returning to teaching.  Yay right?!  This is what I wanted.  What I had talked about for a year.  But fear is a bad mamma jamma, and I panicked.  I had no job...which mean I had no money!  Sweet Jesus, what was I going to do now?

All I can say is that God has provided.  I am in a very good place, and if I have learned nothing else, I have learned to trust God at His word.  Y'all, to get up and be able to leisurely sip coffee, listen to music, and spend time with Jesus...it doesn't get any better than that.  If you ask me what's the best part of working from home, I'll tell you my quiet time.

My relationship with the Lord has deepened in a way that I never thought I could (or really wanted to) reach.  I thought those relationships were for other people...more spiritual people.  Do you have hope...?  LOL!  I am so not worthy of the favor and love, and just joy that I have.  Like, this is my life y'all!  Gym in the middle of the day...business and not so business lunches...somebody pinch me!

I love that I have time to help my family and friends, and be there when they need me.  That has been another favorite.  I can tell someone I'll pray for them, and actually get a chance to do it!  Even the bad moments are worth it knowing that I am truly in the will of God!  That's peace right there!

I have this devotional book, Jesus Calling...have you heard of it?  It's a sweet, sweet book.  Get it!  It'll knock your socks off!  The author is Sarah Young!

Well, I have written a book!  Sorry about that.  If you're still with me, bless you!  Would you do me a favor?  I have a friend (God knows exactly who she is), and her family has a long road of healing ahead of them.  Will you pray?  It takes a million years for me to share on this blog, so I dare not overstep someone else's boundaries.  The beauty in this request is that God knows who she is and what she needs.  Gotta love that!

Until next time sweet blogger friends!  (P.S.  I'll be 32 in 2 weeks...say what?!  Seriously y'all...I feel 16..HA!)

New Car Blessings!

Ok..so since the last time I posted A LOT has happened! Remember I told you about my 90 Day Focus? Well, that is still going strong!

Have you ever had so much to say, but can't get the words to come out right? Well, that's me today...I can't get my brain and my fingers to get on the same page!

I can tell you this...I got a new car! The details behind this story are just amazing! Two weeks ago, I took my car into the shop because it was trembling. I expected a couple hundred dollars, and Froggy and I would be good to go. Well...that Tuesday, I called to see what the damage was, and got the "bad" news....$5500 motor replacement, or in the words of the technician...."it's time to get a new car honey...!"

I have to admit...I started to panic...I mean, I was planning on purchasing a new car, but I wanted to wait until the new year..to get a "good deal." Needless to say...my attitude about the entire situation was less than ideal.

I'm ashamed to say that for a moment, I forgot who was in control, and who allowed things to happen. I started to calculate gas prices, car notes, insurance on a new car...UGH! BUT GOD! He had a plan all along. To make a long story short, God was in this from the very beginning, and He couldn't have picked a better car for me.

It has EVERYTHING I ever wanted...and more, the price is right, and the interest rate...heavenly. God is so faithful! Here's my new ride:





I still don't know why I waste my time worrying about the details of my life. God has my best interest at heart..I hope I start remembering that!

I'll write more later, but I've got an early morning, and a late day!!!