It's that time of year . . .

It's that time of year again when we think back on the year gone by and make plans for the new year ahead! I like to come up with a theme or focus for each year. I don't always stick super close to that but I try to be consciencous of my goals and area of focus. When I take the time to identify something I want to do better that theme stays in mind as a good reminder to myself throughout the year. Its a way of motivating myself and also a way to aim for something higher.

2015 was my year of Purpose...I wanted to do things with purpose and direction and with specific goals. In 2013 I had completed my master's degree after a great deal of effort and hard work through about five years. During those challenging five years our family was changed by me losing my job followed by the birth of our precious baby Isaac in 2010. Jason earned his master's degree during that time as well. We were at our limits trying to work, take care of our baby, and study! I was also continually working from home as a freelance writer and editor completing various writing assignments and editing projects. Chaos was the normal at times but thankfully God gave us strength to complete what we had started. It was a time of great celebration when we were done with school!

So, in 2014 we were transitioning to new goals and a somewhat new outlook because of less demands on our time and schedules. The graduation goal was no longer pressing and so it was time to focus on "what next". Setting the theme of Purpose was my way of wanting to grow into a better disciple of Jesus Christ, sharing and caring more.  I wanted to put my heart into what I do more and more and more instead of just burning steam and spinning my wheels but not knowing where I was going...

It was also a time when one of our deepest desire came true --we found out we were  pregnant with baby #2! We had prayed for our family to grow and hoped it would happen soon. We were so excited when we confirmed our pregnancy with the doctor and started to dream and plan with excitement and longing!

Unfortunately, at 11 weeks, we lost the pregnancy to a devastating miscarriage. Complications after the miscarriage took several months of 2014 hostage because I had to be on bed rest to recover from severe anemia. It was a slow and lengthy process. We thank God for His love and comfort during that time and even now as we continue to pray and surrender to God our dream of a growing family.

Finding Purpose after the ground gets knocked out from under you is not as easy as when everything is "going exactly how you want". We still had our faith in God, that never has changed, but we struggled to understand what had happened to us and to regain focus. So, day by day we discovered joy in the Lord more fully than ever, and we discovered that He wants to work in and through our lives no matter what challenges and tragedies happen in our lives. A broken or damaged pot can still grow wonderful things, lush greenery, delicious fruit, and beautiful, fragrant blooms! God is still God and always will be. Pain, death, and sadness are the result of sin and were never part of God's plan for us or this world. Our story is not over, because God is giving us life day by day. We are thankful. We seek Him and His will no matter what it is.

Then in 2016 it was my year of Completion ... I wanted to finish things I had started but later abandoned. Some things had been abandoned because I started working full time the week after we moved into our house and was very busy ever since. Some things were abandoned during the years we were pursuing our master's degrees because it was such a demanding time with reading, writing, and projects to complete and classes to attend. Other things were abandoned because I like to save stuff and most of the time I save too much. I'm learning to be better about not saving everything but instead either giving it away, sharing it if it is inspirational, or putting it in the paper recycling bin or donating it to Goodwill or another charity. Life for several years felt more like a white water rafting trip with highs and lows and twists and turns --some we could see up ahead and others that were around a blind corner --and always hanging on to avoid landing in the swirling waters of life.

I wanted to wrap up loose ends of various projects or situations. Praise God I was able to experience some pretty amazing completion experiences (message me if you want some specific stories/testimonies). I was able to clean and organize some areas in my house that had been crammed with unfinished stuff or with just stuff I had not had time to go through and get rid of. I wish I had completed even more things, but I plan to continue my efforts towards better efficiency and organization so that less things need to be in completed after they have been started.

I kept reminding myself that during each week we have certain things to do and those are the things we should complete. Instead of filling my work load so full that I could not get it all done in one week, I have been learning to only say yes to the things I can finish within the time necessary and say no when I am at my limits. This is a hard lesson for me to learn, but I am doing better.

God gives us six days to do all our work and the seventh day is for us to rest.


Exodus 20:9-11 "Six days you shall labor and do all your work,  but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.  For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it."

I aim to complete my work for the week and then enjoy the weekend Sabbath rest! It is such an amazing blessing for me and my family!  If you want more information about Sabbath, message me!

There will always be some projects that obviously take more than one week to complete, but even those projects I want to be more organized and efficient about completing them on time and with a clear deadline and purpose in mind.

Now as we are approaching a new year, I am thinking about what I want my theme and focus to be. 2017 will be my year of Thankfulness! I know that sounds simple, but praising God for everything is such a blessing and life-changing! I want to truly feel thankfulness in my heart and live in a way that recognizes all that I have to be thankful for. I want to praise God more and do that through prayer and song. I want to be more thankful towards my family and friends. I want to see the good things and be uplifted by focusing on them.

Happy New Year! 

A Time for you . . to experience closeness with God

I'm reading this wonderful book right now called A Time for You by Mike Tucker. Today, this quote really spoke to me . . .

 "God doesn't want anyone to perish, so even before Adam and Eve broke their connection with Him, God had devised a plan by which He could reconcile His estranged creations to Himself. Part of the plan involved a Substitute who would care for the sins of humanity by dying in our place. That Substitute was Jesus, the Second Person of the Godhead.

"However, God knew that the wall of separation would be difficult for man to penetrate, even after receiving Jesus' gracious sacrifice. So God provided special methods we could use in order to restore the intimacy we once enjoyed [in the Garden of Eden]. These ancient practices are simple things, such as prayer, worship, Bible study, praise, and many more. Each of these practices was designed to help those who have been redeemed by Christ's sacrifice to enjoy an experience of personal closeness with God. They can help us bridge the gap between God and ourselves that our rebellion has caused.

"God understood that it would be easy for us to become so involved with the daily grind of earning a living and raising a family that we would let these things crowd Him out of our lives. He knew that as we became busy with all kinds of things --even good and necessary things--we could neglect the one thing that is essential to life. We could neglect spending meaningful time with God.

"In order to protect against this, God gave us a very special gift. He called that gift 'Sabbath'. Sabbath is a twenty-four-hour period of time designed to let us experience intimate interaction with God. It is a time when we step back from our work and the ordinary cares of daily living to focus exclusively on the relationship [with God] that renews and restores us. It is a time for rest, worship, praise, joy, and celebration.

This book is available for purchase at: http://www.adventistbookcenter.com/a-time-for-you.html

This Week's Top 10 Note-worthy Quotations

I love to read. Reading the Bible is the best. The first five quotations that really spoke to my heart this week came from God's Word.

1."Do not withhold good from those who deserve it when it is in your power to help them. If you can help your neighbor now, don't say 'come back tomorrow and then I will help you.'" Proverbs 3:27-28

2. "If you enjoy any fellowship together in the Holy Spirit, then make Me truly happy by working together with one heart and purpose." Philippians 2:1-2

3. "If you need wisdom, if you want to know what God wants you to do, ask Him, and He will gladly tell you. He will not resent you asking." James 1:5

4. "His Divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness." 2 Peter 1:3

5. "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition." 1 Timothy 6:9

Wealth in this world? 

Wealth in God's Word? 

Which are you seeking today?

The next five quotations I want to share are from small articles in magazines or online and Facebook posts. I do not always have time to sit and read, but I love it when something I read helps provide some really great inspiration to help fuel a more positive outlook in my life. I don't know about you, but I really need to read regularly. Reading refreshes my perspective, reminds me of things I have learned in the past, teaches me new information, and shares interesting ideas. Reading provides calm and quiet in the midst of a rushed, busy day.
I was waiting at the driver license office earlier this week, and decided to read two local parenting/family activities and events magazines. One of the articles was all about living in gratitude, which is so appropriate for the month of November! Here are a couple of quotes that I really liked on gratitude . . .

6. "Close your eyes for a moment and imagine a life where you get up every morning and feel overwhelmed at how wonderful it is. Imagine the warmth of an abundance of blessings. A life where everything is exactly as it should be and things are simply perfect." - Nadine J. Larder


7. "When you feel helpless, help."
- from The Secrets I Share With My Friends: Life Lessons from an Imperfect Woman by Nadine J. Larder

8. I got some of this wonderful chocolate at Kroger the other day. I had not tasted this kind before, but I love anything with chocolate and almonds together. So, I had to try this!  The package said it contains a poem on the wrapper. Here is a snippet from the poem it contained. . . .

 "Love is not love until love's vulnerable." - Theodore Roethke

9. I get pretty tired and overwhelmed sometimes, and so this quote really made me think. I want to do more to help others and stop being so focused on me and my personally challenges. Personal issues can loom so large when you focus on them long enough! It is so much better to place our focus on Jesus and His mission --to love others and help them while offering them eternal life and salvation from their sins.

"The best cure for weariness is the challenge of helping someone who is even more tired. One of the great ironies of life is this: He or she who serves almost always benefits more than he or she who is served." - Gordon B. Hinckley, author of Standing for Something: 10 Neglected Virtues that Will Heal our Hearts and Homes


10. Lysa TerKeurstf has written many beautiful, encouraging, thought-provoking devotionals. She has a ministry called Proverbs 31 Ministries, and has also published several books. She speaks on the radio and for women's ministries events around the world. I receive her Proverbs 31 ministries updates on Facebook, and almost always find something that seems written just for me. Without going into pages of details, I share with you that I had a miscarriage last year. It was a very difficult time for me physically and emotionally. I am still experiencing this tragedy in various ways, which I will keep private. Having said that, I read Lysa's devotional the other day called "The Gift Found in Disappointment." Wow!  So beautiful and exactly what I needed to hear. Feel free to read her devotional HERE. The quote she said in this article that spoke to me the most profoundly was this one. It is ancedotal about her daughter's experience, but I could relate on so many levels.

"Ashley was born to be a leader. Put her in the right environment to lead, and she’ll thrive. I asked Ashley in the midst of rehearsals what she thought of the whole experience. She beamed and said, 'I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else than the role I’ve been given, Mom. I love being the student director. I love it so much.' When the curtain fell to the thunderous applause of proud parents cheering for their child’s performance, I couldn’t see my little brown-eyed beauty [who was behind the stage serving as student director of the play instead of acting in a lead role she had tried out for.]. . . .I even had a reply ready, just in case the mama sitting next to me leaned over and asked which one was mine.
"The one who is right where she should be."

This quote reminded me that . . . I am right where I should be. It helped me voice the truth --I love being who I am right now. I love being who I am because that is who God is leading me to be day-by-day, moment-by-moment.