A note of praise!! GOD is so good!

So I promised a while back that restoration was on the way for my family and I. Some of it has come, some of it is still in the process of arriving. But it's on the way! Let me share with you some of what God has been doing in our lives.

Our car was repaired!! A friend of the family offered to find the part we needed for our vehicle and fixed it for us. We were so thankful. We hadn't heard from this friend for years and then we randomly reconnect with him and his family on Facebook. They were so gracious and generous with their help. Our car is running smoothly and I'm so incredibly thankful.

God has also blessed our health. I regularly pray for health and long life for my family. Over the past few weeks my Mom has been having pain in the front right side of her head whenever she bends or even coughs. This really worried us. We finally convinced her to go to the hospital to get checked out. Before we left my siblings and I anointed her head with oil and prayed over her. That night at the hospital I felt at peace as we waited for the results of her blood work and CT scan. I even sat there singing praises to Jesus. We were thrilled and so incredibly thankful to learn that her results were perfect!! They believe she is having some migraines, and while they are still bothering her, it's nothing to be worried about.

We've also been going to Church more regularly now that the car is repaired. Amber has started attending the youth ministry classes and THRIVE services (open to ages 13-25). I love having my sister there with me. She needs to be in that type of environment where she can be real and up front about life and faith.

The youth ministry is awesome by the way. I feel so grateful and blessed to be a part of the Salvation Army. I've met some of the coolest students anyone could ever have the privilege of knowing. I've had a chance to counsel students that are in need of God's presence. I've formed bonds with this wonderful group of kids. It is so exciting to see what God is doing in their lives and watching them grow spiritually. It's not just a youth group, it's a family.

My friend also offered to cover the fees for my ACT test about a month ago. It was very kind of him. So I took the ACT. I was probably the oldest person in my class that day. So not only did I feel out of place, I felt stupid- that test kicked my butt!! I prayed before, during, and after taking it. I haven't been in high school for many years now. The math and science portions of the test were difficult. I also did a poor job of managing my time (throughout the whole test). I would spend too much time on a problem, or take too long reading an essay. There were a few times where I ended up guessing at the end of certain sections when I realized I wouldn't have the time needed to finish the test. I needed a 17 to apply to Lee University. My scores came in the mail today. I prayed over the envelope, I was so nervous! I got a composite score of 20. I'm thrilled with this. I was so worried that it would be much lower than that. So it looks like I'll be applying to Lee University. I'm getting ready to print out the application right now.

I'm still looking for a job. So if you don't mind, please keep this in prayer. This would be the cherry on top.

I really wrote this just so I could celebrate how good God is! I love Him so much. Jesus is so incredible to me. The amazing thing- anything other than my death I don't deserve. Lecrae has a lyric that says: "If we fought for our rights, we'd be in hell tonight." It's amazing to think I deserve nothing, but God gave His everything, His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on a cross for me. I'm eternally blessed. I'm saved, I'm growing in holiness, I have a relationship with God, and I get to enjoy smaller blessings along the way. Life is good. And I'm so in love with Him.

Taking the ACTs, need your prayers

I've been praying about going to college. This has been a dream of mine for many years now, and I'm ready to make that dream become a reality. So I'm taking my ACTs on February 11th. This gives me about 3 weeks to study and prepare. I realize this isn't much time to prepare but I'm stepping out in faith and placing this in God's hands. This test is very important because my score could help me qualify for scholarships to cover my schooling. A good score could mean a good portion of my tuition is covered.

So I'm asking you guys for help. I pray that the Lord will bless my efforts and help me do well on this test. I'm praying for high test scores. If you guys feel led to pray or fast anytime within the next few weeks, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'm believing that God will work this out and give me favor. I pray that Christ will be glorified by my efforts and I'm already praising Him for what He's going to do. Once I get my scores back I'll post another blog and you guys can celebrate God's faithfulness with me.

Thank you for allowing me to be transparent.

I hate when someone asks me "How are you doing?"

I realize this is common small talk and a standard greeting in most conversations. But when things are difficult or you're having a bad day it can be hard to answer that question. People always want to hear "I'm doing great" and I love being able to provide that answer honestly. But what about those seasons when things are difficult? I mean I want to say "I'm doing well" because I realize I'm so incredibly blessed. I realize that I have a billion things to be grateful for and that if I focused on these things I would more than likely celebrate this standard greeting as a way to glorify and praise God. But sometimes the hard times can blind you and you're left feeling not so great.

Lately it seems like I've been facing a series of storms. I'm really looking forward to the end of this stormy season in my life. Some of you guys have an idea of what the weather is like in my life. Others are well informed when it comes to some of the storms I've been facing. I want to let you guys know I value your presence in my life. You don't realize how much I appreciate the way you guys allow me to be transparent about my life. I feel so incredibly blessed to have friends that call me up or text me just to say "hi". I feel so blessed to learn that some of you guys are praying for me on a regular basis. I feel so blessed knowing that you guys love me and are anticipating the end of this stormy season in my life.

Thank you. When I consider the great friends I have, it makes it very easy for me to say "I'm doing well."

Tyler Perry Repost

I like Tyler Perry, a lot. He has made me laugh so many times. So today when he posted this status on facebook (yeah, I follow him on facebook) it caught me off guard. It was exactly what I needed to hear at where I'm currently at in life. I believe Tyler Perry definitely spoke God's heart with this. Enjoy!

OK,

To all of you that use the cell phone light like I do, I just want to say this. For me, as I was walking through my dark house trying to get to my bedroom, it was truly an exercise in faith. I could only see the light at my feet. I had to trust that even though I could only see three feet in front of me, if I kept following this light, I would get there.

It reminded me of a scripture in the bible, Psalm 119:105 "The word is a lamp unto my feet and a light into my pathway." Back in those days when people would travel through the night, they would use little lamps that were attached to their feet. The lamp only gave them enough light to see just a few steps in front of them. As long as they kept moving, they could find their way. If they stopped moving, so did the light.

This moved me because this is how I have lived my entire life. I have always walked by faith. Sometimes there was only a little light, a little hope that kept me moving. There were so many times that I didn’t know how I was going to make it. So many times I didn’t know where my next meal was coming from, if my hope would be realized or if my dreams would come true. But no matter how dark it got, I kept moving. That is one of the keys to making your dreams come true. JUST KEEP MOVING FORWARD!

If you’d allow me to, I’d like to challenge you to do more of that this year. Live by faith! No matter what you see happening around you, no matter how dark it may be, follow the lamp at your feet that God provides to us all, no matter who we are. A small step is still a step forward.

At the top of every year, I stop and go away to reflect. I will usually take out my journal and read over some of the past years and look at all the things God brought me through, no matter how dark the times. What rereading my journal taught me is that there was always a lamp at my feet. I think if you look at your life, you’ll see a lamp too. :-) If you don’t, look closer. I promise you it's there!

If you’re struggling in any way, financially, school, business, relationships, children, sickness, heartache, I so believe that God will be a light unto your pathway. IF YOU LET HIM!! Stop looking for the light at the end of the tunnel and look at the light at your feet and you’ll get there.

I hope you remember this every time you use your cell to light a path. God Bless you in 2012! You can make this your best year yet, through faith.

Restoration is on the way... again.

From the fall of 2010 to the early parts of 2011 my family and I were going through a season of brokenness. Jobs were lost, our home was lost, we ended up moving to a different city and this took us away from our Church, I was no longer able to serve in youth ministry, nor was my family able to serve in their areas of ministry, health issues overwhelmed us, our vehicle was having issues, we had no money, we had to do without more than once, and we were temporarily living in a horrible environment as we tried to get back on our feet. To say our faith was merely shaken would be a horrible lie. For a few people in my family there was a season of spiritual backsliding. Sadness overwhelmed us day in and day out. It was hard to look past our circumstances.

I tried my best to be strong and try to stay encouraged during this time. Since we were now living in Cleveland I decided to visit a larger Church in our area, Living Word. I had been there once or twice before and God had really blessed me during this time. The Church offers cards to write your prayer requests on, then they gather them and pray over these requests throughout the week. Knowing this, I decided to write our my prayer request in advance on a piece of notebook paper. One page quickly turned to four pages as I poured my heart out on that paper. When I arrived at the Church I asked one of the greeters to pass my written prayer request along to one of the pastors.

When it came to the part of the service where they collect the prayer requests I decided I might as well turn in one more request. Not knowing how I could express everything on my heart, I quickly wrote the word "Restoration" on my card and handed it in. After the service had ended there was a group of men and women still at the front of the Church praying for those who wanted prayer. These people were so incredibly welcoming and kind and they were quick to join me in prayer. There was such a heaviness on my heart, I was being weighed down by all of my circumstances. During our time of prayer a man walked over to our prayer circle and said he had heard from the Lord and had a word for me. I do not know who this man was, and I'm not even sure he was aware of anything that was going on in my life. But he said "The Lord has said that restoration is on it's way." My heart jumped at this encouraging word. That's what I requested on my prayer card. That day I left that service with a new hope. I shared with my family what God had said.

It wasn't long after that things did start being restored in my life. Provisions were made for bills, food, our vehicle was fixed, my stepfather found work, we moved into a small place, my family came back to the Lord, I found work, and so did my sister, and even our health was restored. We were invited to the Salvation Army Church here in Cleveland and God even allowed me to start doing youth ministry once again. God kept His word and brought the restoration He had promised.


Why am I sharing this now? Well because I'm grateful and I know I don't give God the praise and testimonies I should. I've witnessed God's faithfulness over and over again this past year. But I'm also sharing this in hopes that you'll join me in prayer once again. The latter half of the year has been difficult. Earlier this year I had a dental issue that caused an infection, severe pain, and headaches. I missed a lot of work due to this issue and eventually ended up leaving my job. I regret this decision because it caused my family to face a lot of financial hardship. However I would've ended up losing this job because shortly after I quit, the infection came back again. So I've been looking for another job. My sister and step dad have been working hard to support our family, and things have been very hard. The other day when Amber went to leave for work the car would not start. We've had it looked at and nobody can figure out what is wrong with our vehicle. Our vehicle is older and we were in a car accident earlier this year. I honestly feel that this vehicle cannot be repaired. Due to our lack of transportation, Amber has lost her job. This leaves just Darrell working and we fear he may lose his job, too, due to our lack of transportation. I also fear that I'll have to resign from my position as a youth leader at Church due to this transportation issue.

I could go on and on about how things seem to be falling apart. But really, I'm tired of circumstances. I'd much rather brag on my Lord. I've seen His faithfulness, I've seen His restoration. I know I can see it again. I'm trying to remain faithful and trust Him. So I'm going to do the opposite of what I'm feeling right now- I'm going to praise God for what He has done, what He's doing, and what He will do! Because my God is faithful and bigger than my circumstances. Please keep me in prayer. I'm really looking forward to blogging about God's restoration in these circumstances. I'll leave you with a Scripture I feel is fitting with everything I'm going through:

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Christina talks about spiritual unity.

I was discussing unity with a friend. A couple I don't know all that well recently got married and I was impressed by how they seem to be so spiritually united and like-minded. I admire that greatly. While I may not agree with this couple's religious beliefs 100% of the time, I love the fact that they're committed to them and each other. When discussing this with my friend I told him that I hope my husband and I are like that, but the Pentecostal version. I continued to go on about what that looks like inside my head and when I re-read what I had written, I couldn't help but laugh. It's funny but true. The following statement was taken from my conversation:

I want my husband and I to be in ministry and when we receive a phone call at 3AM we get out of bed and he's like "Honey where did I put my anointing oil? I gotta go cast some demons out of this guy and anoint him." and I'll all be like "babe, it's near your Bible. And I'll grab it for you. let's go handle this in Jesus name. They messed with the wrong ministers tonight."

God is writing my love story.

What I'm about to share is deeply personal. I've only shared this with a few close friends. One of my friends, Gabrielle, suggested I blog about this. I put that idea on the back burner for a while because I wasn't sure I wanted to share something so near to my heart. But recent situations have inspired me to share some thoughts I've had about the possibility of marriage in my future.

I'm single. I've never been in a serious relationship before. I turn 26 in March of 2012. I recently heard a statistic suggesting that 26 was the average age of brides in the USA. I'd like to get excited about this because if I'm average, I should be walking down that aisle sometime next year. But lets face it, my plans and my ways are far different from what God may have planned for me.

I look around at my friends and it seems like most of them are married. Some of them have already had or are expecting their first child. My other friends are engaged. I know 2 couples that have been able to change their Facebook status to "engaged" recently. I was even able to attend my first wedding this September. I feel like marriage is all around me. Please don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly happy for these friends of mine. I have no doubt that God has ordained these marriages and love stories they share. But I must confess that I feel like the marriage boat is passing me by as I stand upon the dock, watching everyone else board.

It doesn't help that I'm such a cheesy romantic at heart. My friend Eric always jokes about how he can so easily imagine me laying on my bed, writing in my journal, while listening to love songs by Taylor Swift, and just sighing in agreement. It's easy to imagine (probably because I've lived out that moment more than once). I get giddy and whimsical when I think about romance. I've spent so much time thinking about marriage here lately. I daydream about my future husband, our wedding, and our family. I also get overly excited about the idea of having someone I can talk to all the time about God, someone that I can pray with, someone I can worship with, someone I can minister with, and someone I can have Bible study with. I truly desire these things.

I could easily date around and see if I meet the right guy. But that's not what I want, not at all. I think our culture's idea of dating is very flawed and leaves a lot to be desired. I'd rather just have a friendship turn to something more. I don't want to pursue someone just because I'm longing for a relationship. I want something with a true foundation of love and friendship. Because if I can't be friends with someone, I probably can't expect much from a romantic relationship.

Well a couple of months back I was praying about what God would have in store for me. I truly believe God spoke to me about dating and has advised me to remain single for at least a year. When praying about this God lead me to the book of Esther and showed me something very interesting within that book.

"Each young woman’s turn came to go in to King Ahasuerus after she had completed twelve months’ preparation, according to the regulations for the women, for thus were the days of their preparation apportioned: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women." Esther 2:12

Before Esther was to marry and become queen she was prepared for a year with beauty treatments. Now I'm not suggesting that God told me to head to the salon in 2012. But I do believe there is something very special for Christian women to take note of here. What preparations are we making for our future marriages? Are we going to be ready, are we going to be as beautiful as we can be for our husbands? This is not just a physical thing. God is not a shallow God that is merely concerned about the outside. God sees our heart. I believe God also spent this year with Esther preparing her spiritually. I believe God has told me that He will beautify me both physically and spiritually this year, but my eyes must remain upon Him.

What does this mean for me? It means I need to stop trying to be such a princess when it comes to marriage. I need to trust what God has spoken to me and walk in obedience. I need to stop daydreaming so much. I need to avoid flirting or anything that could be misconstrued as such. I need to trust that God is writing my love story. So that's what I will aim to do over this next year. I pray that I will not waste this precious time, nor will I dread it. I will aim to use my every day and my every word as a way to glorify God in my singleness, and if He wills it, one day I hope to glorify God in my marriage. But for now I desire my heart to belong solely to the Lord, after all the Scriptures say:

"For your husband is your Maker, whose name is the Lord of hosts..." Isaiah 54:5