Soft Reminders

Such a sweet reminder today that even if we don't understand it, or if it doesn't add up in our heads, that doesn't mean God isn't working. For the past few months my husband and I have been feeling God work in our hearts to do more with our junior high youth kids. We wanted to create a safe place for them to hang out and just be kids. Not expecting anything of them, or pressuring them to grow up. Just be yourself; be a kid. We have been house hunting for this very reason and the doors have not been opening. I have been trusting that God is in this journey with us and there is a reason He's keeping the doors closed. But its still hard.

I've also been feeling, personally, that I'm not giving enough of myself. If only I had more space. If only I had more time. If only I had more money. All these struggles have been distracting me and tearing me down. I have honestly felt defeated. How are we supposed to grow and do good works for God if we don't have anything to give? That's when His soft voice gently asked me "Are you giving of your"stuff" or of your"self"?

Am I? Am I too focused on giving of my"stuff" and forgetting to give of my"self"?

Today we have a friend staying with us for the night. Not a usual for us. And for once I don't feel like I have to entertain. I have let the guys run the TV this afternoon and I cleaned house and cooked dinner. As I was washing up the dishes after dinner I heard that sweet voice again, "This is giving of yourself. Giving up your routine, your time, your space. Cooking food and making sure there is something available for your guest's comfort. He didn't come over tonight asking for money. He didn't come asking for a weeks worth of groceries. He wanted a safe place to sleep and someone he connects with to have fun and hang out with."

This is what it looks like to give of your"self". We are just hanging out, having fun. The guys are playing video games, having a blast, and I am getting caught up on my reading. (I'm extremely behind.) It didn't cost us anything, we didn't have to give him any "stuff", we're just spending time with him and blessing him with God's love.

How wonderful it is to be reminded of God's love through the little things. Just spending time with someone is equally a blessing as a financial blessing. I'm so honored that God chose us to go through this crazy journey and lesson. I'm looking forward to many more mind blowing break throughs of God's divine love and wonderful life lessons.

The Little Blessings

What a wonderful day! I'll back up for a bit (sort of a precursor to today), and explain what I've been thinking about off and on since we moved to central Ohio. Two years ago, when my husband and I turned our lives upside down and started following God, I prayed that God would start showing me that he hasn't left us. When I was little I remember seeing and hearing about radical experiences. When an elderly woman was struggling financially she would find a check in her mail for the exact amount she needed. When people at church became filled in the holy spirit, they would fall back. As I grew older I saw, and heard, fewer and fewer of these occurrences. I started to worry that the obvious evidence of God was at its end. So I prayed that he would show me that its not over. That was two years ago.

These past few months He has been proving to me over and over that He is still moving in obvious ways, and changing lives every day. Every couple weeks I see someone in our church filled with the Holy Spirit, not just with the evidence of speaking in tongues, but also falling to the ground. Two weeks ago, my dad received an unexpected vehicle repair bill, he prayed that God would provide and come through, and that night they received a gift of the exact amount of the repair bill. I was filled with joy, not just for my parents, but for the sweet reminder of how incredible my God is. And how He never stops proving His love for us.

These were all wonderful reminders for me; then I took it a step further. I prayed that God would move in my personal life. I know I'm not in any place to be demanding of God but my past few weeks have been crazy busy. And my husband has been battling with himself that everything he teaches our students just doesn't get through. Both situations has left me physically and emotionally drained. God waited till my lowest point this week to bring light into my life.

Today, I had to run a quick errand. Last I was in the car I was at an eighth of a tank and the gas light had just come on. Our plan was for me to get gas on my way to work tomorrow. But I had to run this errand and decided to risk it. When I turned the car on the gas meter read a quarter of a tank of gas. I ran to the store, got the few things I needed, and decided I should probably take this chance to go to the gas station. I pulled in just as the light came on (again). I thought to myself I'll only put $15 in and the rest tomorrow. I just need enough for today. I put that $15 in and it filled my tank to past three quarters!! The last thing I expected!! I was figuring just under half a tank at best. While I drove the car this past week, the tank just kept on going so I figured it would cost a lot to fill it up. What a serious blessing!! My heart was so overjoyed!

I know it doesn't seem like much, and there's a lot of realists out there who would try to prove that it wasn't God, or anything spiritual, but I know it was God. He gave me one more reason to thank Him today. One more reason to give Him glory and praise Him. And that's enough for me. I sincerely hope you all find something wonderful to thank Him for today. Even in the midst of a rough day, there's always a reason to be thankful and joyful.

A Full Heart

My heart is so full from this past week. We'll start it off with last Friday. The start of Teen Girl Conference. I was a leader for our junior high girls, which was so much fun! We had many churches from all over the state come out for the conference. I learned so much in that one weekend. I discovered as a leader what I'm willing to do for my girls, and just how far my patience really reaches. I'm thankful to say that I was able to stretch it much much farther than I thought I could. And my love for youth ministry grew significantly.

I also learned that being a leader means you have to do the tough things. Having difficult conversations, be a mediator for a teen argument, and dealing with confrontation. And not only that, but also learning that its okay to ask for guidance instead of trying to handle it all on your own. If any of these girls had known me when I was their age, I'm sure they would have NEVER pegged me for a future youth leader. I'm truly grateful for all the leaders I had back then who took the time for me. Some of them had to have those difficult conversations with me and I am so glad they did. I don't want to know where I'd be today if they hadn't.

Moving on to this past Saturday. My husband and I attended the OMN Synergy conference. We took many training sessions focused on leadership and particularly youth leadership. I chose my sessions based on where I was at in my life. The things I wanted to learn more of. Most of them had amazing lessons. I will admit there was one that I feel like I didn't get anything out of it. But I'm sure I did learn something that I have not realized yet. Or later on God will reveal something to me from that class.

The wonderful thing about both of these conferences is their passion for networking. They wanted us to meet new people and find a way to keep in touch. But I noticed that I was running into a lot of people from my home town. We did a lot of catching up and reuniting. And its awesome to actually see how everyone is going after God and trying to further their relationship with Him together. I also saw a lot of other people that looked SO STINKIN' familiar but I have NO IDEA where I know them from. But now I have a connection. :-)

I've included a couple photos from the week with my friends from home. It was so wonderful running into you guys! And my heart is so full from the reuniting.

 From Teen Girl Conference, love these two ladies! They always make everyone feel special and they can pull the silly out of anyone! Sorry for the poor camera quality, I'm not exactly a selfie (or a camera) person.

And this lovely lady was a huge part of everything! She was a volunteer for kids church when I was little, and then moving into youth she was a part of our very close group of friends. She also is an amazing photographer and did a few of my engagement photos. :-)

I know I've said this before, but I'm so grateful for everyone in my life and how they took time to help me grow into who I am today. Again, my heart is so full!