God Winks

Don’t you just love when God speaks to you. Confirms something in your spirit, uses others to speak to you, sometimes even uses that big flashing neon sign that we ask Him for. At the end of 2017 God spoke to my heart and gave me my word for 2018; Obedience. I have been praying and seeking God’s direction on how my word fit into my year, really without a clear guidance, YET! 

Lifeway had sent out an email back in the Fall of 2017, I would say around October/November, that Priscilla Shirer was going to be offering her latest Bible Study Free online for a period of time. She was also offering the study guide as well as her 90-day devotional at a special discounted price that you could purchase together. I LOVE Priscilla Shirer; I have heard her speak live a few times, and have done many of her studies, and read all of her books with the exception of the one she just came out with. I bought the bundle pack, and hoped I would be able to do the study. 

The first week the email came with her video included I was not able to sit down and watch it immediately, nor had I even cracked the study guide open yet. I had opened the devotional and started it a few days before that. On January 28^th, we had turned off the TV and my husband was reading in the bedroom, and so I decided that while I had the time I would go ahead and watch the video, and boy was I blessed!! 

I call these moments God winks, where He calls us to something, and then opens the door/confirms it. The study is on Obedience/my word of the year. Day one of the study she says, “hearing Him starts with our commitment to humble obedience. We won’t do it perfectly---but we must do it purposefully, with ears primed to hear and discern God’s voice.”   

My prayer and desire for this year is faithful obedience to God. I want to surrender my will, to do God’s Will. I want to obey immediately and not procrastinate or question why God is calling me to do something. God’s Will is perfect, His plan is perfect, I must be faithful to be obedient. 

God also gave me another word for the year, and that word is Joy. He has already opened my eyes up to areas of my life where I am lacking joy, and how life is not about being happy, but about having Joy in Him, even in the hard stuff. God wink #2 was when I was using one of my new highlighters in my obedience study that has joy written on it J I reached into my bag of highlighters, and pulled it out, started using it, happened to look over after I laid it down and realized it had joy on it. I had to chuckle. 

I look forward to being faithfully obedient and joyful in what God is calling me to do, not do, give up, or pick up.

How can I pray for you today?  

Finding joy in the midst of pain

I’ve dealt with infertility for a long time. Longer than I thought I would ever deal with infertility, and being honest longer than I thought God would allow me to deal with infertility. Some days I have a great handle on it, and don’t really think about it, but then there are other days, like today, when it rears its ugly head. A day when that negative test brings you to your knees. When tears burn behind your eyes, because you refuse to allow them to run down your cheek, because you know if you do you won't stop, and you are just not mentally prepared for the ugly cry. You realize that you are probably “late” because of your recent bout with the flu, and it did wonky stuff to your body, so now you just wait.

When this happens, I go to the Lord. I beg for His strength, His peace, His understanding, His patience, and His joy. When I think of joy, I think of my girls. They have a joy for life that is contagious. They have Down Syndrome, but Down Syndrome does not have them. They love life, they love people, and most importantly they love Jesus. Johannah has the biggest most infectious smile, and Ellee has the best laugh especially when she is tired and it is a delirious laugh actually it’s more of a delirious cackle. It is the best. They are the perfect examples of God’s joy.

So even in the midst of a little pain, even during a time when I’m not “happy” I need to remember to “Always be JOYFUL Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NLT).