Where He is is where I want to be...

This morning in my Bible Study a quote really stuck out to me that said:

" Anywhere Your Spirit's moving, that's where I need to be".

This went right to my heart. The only place my heart desires to be is where the Spirit of God is at work and moving and alive. So I started thinking hard on this thought...Where is He moving and how can I get there...and the conclusion that I came up with is that I must draw near to Him for it is only when I am close to Him and still that I can hear His voice and see from His perspective what He is doing. My goal is to be still and listen today.

He Is Enough!

Today has been so amazing! Yes, it is Valentine's Day, yes...a holiday that most single people dread....but NOT ME!!!! Today has been a day so full of joy and life for me! I determined along time ago that I will not waller in self-pity over being single...I will use this time to its fullest! Driving to work today I was overjoyed just talking to God all the way there, my best friend had texted me earlier telling me she was praying for me today, she knows me well!!! I was thankful for her prayers! I was just singing praises all the way to work...just happy inside! While I was working on my second customer I looked up and my sister in law and niece walked through the door at work...and it was the best surprise of all! This was the first time that the girls at work got to see Ava and I was so excited! We were able to go lunch with another friend and just hang out together for a couple hours...they brought me a dozen chocolate covered strawberries....mmmm yummy! I was so happy!!!! Then my friend's little boy called my phone and left me kisses over the phone...so sweet, and then, my mom brought me a dozen roses from her and my dad...more kisses from Jesus...then my other friend and her husband and boys invited me to go to dinner with them...and now I am home just enjoying my time with the Lover of my soul...I am overwhelmed with God's love for me....He doesn't leave me to myself. He cares so much for me that on a day where I could be feeling alone and down, He put several of His servants in my path to bring me so much of His joy and His love....I am truly blessed! Thank You Jesus for your unspeakable joy and love...You amaze me!

Made me smile....

Today, a good friend and I went to see the movie "Enchanted". A very good movie I must say! It's a cute cartoon/reality fairytale movie....I was waiting for my friend to use the restroom and saw the most precious sight. It was a dad and a little girl about 3 years old that had been to this movie walking down the hallway hand in hand, their leftover bag of popcorn all folded up in daddy's hand and his daugther's little hand in the other. I heard her say..."Daddy, I want to go do some more fun stuff!" her little voice, so innocent and precious and so full of joy. You could tell that spending that time with her daddy had made her day! He grinned from ear to ear..."What do you want to do?" he asked. Although I couldn't hear her response their little conversation made me smile! He was full of joy too...he waited as she went to throw something in the trash, lifting the lid when all she really needed to do was throw the trash through the hole on top...he helped her out not making her feel silly for not knowing how it worked...he was so full of patience and love for his little girl....when they exited the building, he reached down again and grabbed her hand...off they went in search of their car just smiling away. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face either. Then the thought came to me...that is what my Father God is to me. He rejoices when I get to have a Daddy date with me. I can hear Him asking me to spend some time with Him just as I am sure this daddy had asked his little girl if she wanted to go to the movies. I forget so easily that He is a Father to me. He rejoices and smiles over me, just like this dad did his daughter. He, my Heavenly Father, reaches down for my hand and wants to walk and talk with me...I was humbled and full of the Father's love for me all over again! It made me smile!!!

What if it's Him???

I wanted to share what God showed me on New Year's Eve at our church's annual card party... Every year, our church clears out the auditorium and sets up a number of card tables all in preparation for our Annual New Year's Eve Card Party! This year, I was supposed to be with the Youth Group at a separate party in a local gym...but asked our Youth Pastor if I could attend the Card Party in effort to reach out to the college group...and I am glad that he said yes. After filling our plates high with food and settling in to our seats, the game began. We play a game called Hokum Bridge which requires you to switch partners and tables every round...so, you are constantly meeting new people. A couple hands into the game, I noticed a new guy walk in the back of the auditorium. He was a big guy and I started to feel very intimidated. One of the ladies and a couple guys went to talk to him...no one knew who invited him or how he knew we were having a party. He went back to the food room and filled a plate of food and then went to our Pastor to ask if he could play in the game...there wasn't a space available right then, but he was welcome to wait and fill in if people needed to leave. I watched as he walked all the way around to the back of the church and sat down at a table by himself. So many thoughts were going through my head...compassion, fear, pity, intimidation....who was this man? I watched as different people would go up to him and sit down and talk to him...again...who was this man? To make a long story short an opening became available in our row, and this man ended up being my partner the next round....in the moment that I realized that he was to be my partner...the scripture that says...if ye have done it to the least of these, ye have done it unto me....hit me like a ton of bricks...I asked myself...what if this man is Jesus? I am not meaning to sound strange...I just realized that God puts people in my path every day and I am being tested as to how I will respond to them....what if it's Him? What if He disguised Himself as this man to see how He would be treated in a church full of believers? What was my response to Him? I learned a valuable lesson that night...Who am I to choose who deserves the Father's love...I can't pick and choose who I reach out to just because of their outward appearance...I need to extend the arms of Christ and His love to every person that I come in contact with...there is a hurting world out there that desperately needs to see and feel the Father's love...what am I doing to share that today? Who knows what this man's story was...but I do know that he was sent to our church that night to remind me that I need to reach out to every person that comes across my path and be an extension of Jesus to them...this world needs Jesus...am I showing them a clear picture of Who my Savior is?

Thought of the day...

Raking leaves can be so theraputic...this afternoon I had some time so I decided to tackle the mound of leaves that are in my front lawn...I have never seen so many leaves! It was very theraputic for me...I got lost in my thoughts...it was good excercise but about 20 minutes into it, the caffiene from my afternoon Starbucks was wearing off and the thought crossed my mind...sure would be nice to have a strong guy doing this job instead of me...my body was wearing out and i am sure the people driving by were thinking..."what is she doing outside right now...it's freezing!" So in the midst of my thinking, the thought came across my mind of what is said to me time and time again..."you sure are gonna make a great wife some day...you sure are gonna be a good mom....blah blah blah..." What people don't realize is the effect that comments like that have on single people...I know that they mean it well but when that is truly ones hearts desire...it's almost like rubbing salt on a wound...I'm not at all trying to sound ungrateful for where God has me...but then the thought came to me, what's wrong with being a great child of God? great daughter? great sister? great aunt? great friend? great leader? great co-worker? great neighbor? great confidant? great mentor? great servant? great soul-winner? the list went on and on in my head....this is what I want to strive to be great at for these things are what I am now and what I have been created to be. Why wish my life away thinking that I am not fulfilling God's plan just because I am not a "wife or mother" yet? I have the opportunity right now to be great at what He has already made me to be! I refuse to get wrapped up in thinking that my life doesn't count just because I haven't become the things that the world deems as being necessary to be successful or "great". Scripture tells me that to be great in His kingdom, one must learn to be a servant of all....that is what i want to be great at!





by the way...just had to share some pics of my precious lil Ava girl!

I am so blessed...

For some reason or another, I cannot sleep tonight...maybe its the fact that I went to the gym so late, or that I drank coffee too late...or that my roommates always seem to find themselves in my room and we cant control the laughter over the silly girl stuff! Anyways...as I am sitting here checking emails, looking at blogs, shopping for a car (carmax.com is a really cool site) ...I smile because I am so blessed...blessed with an awesome family that seeks God and encourages me in my walk with Christ, blessed to have this home that I don't deserve, blessed to have friends that genuinely care about me and pray for me, blessed to have a job with a boss that seeks to glorify God in everything, blessed to have co-workers who smile when you walk through the door only because they want to share what Christ has done for them with you....blessed to have roommates that accept me for who I am and always find a way to make me smile...
love you girls...

I'm blessed to have Jesus Christ as my Savior and best Friend....I am so blessed...blessed with a kitchen full of food, blankets on my bed....water in the shower...I am blessed with so much...
God, I thank you that I am so blessed...I pray that my life blesses His heart.

My Sweet 'lil Niece...

Ok, so I am head over heels for this precious little one! I cannot begin to fathom what having your own children is like and the love that comes out of you....seeing as I have so much love inside of me for this precious little girl that is not even mine. Ava is such a blessing in my life. Her smile lights up the room and to hear her precious voice cooing and jabbering...makes me smile just writing this. This thanksgiving was wonderful. It is amazing how a little baby can bring so much joy into a family without even knowing it. She just sits there and does what she does best and has no idea the impact she is making on the 6 adults sitting around her. I am so thankful to God that He has blessed my family with this precious one. And as I write this....I parrallel it with my walk with Him. I hear Him say to me..."my child, you have no idea the joy that you bring to Me when you just sit there and do what I have created you to do....you have no idea the smile that you bring to My face just for being you...." I then began to think about the Father's love for me....I cannot fathom the love that He has for me and I am His child! I come from His family....I belong to Him!!!