My Calling: The Walk

Where there is devotional music, God is always at hand with His gracious presence. Johann Sebastian Bach

Each one prays to God according to his own light. Mahatma Gandhi

For prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God. Saint Teresa of Avila

The reality is we live in a busy culture where it is hard to simply sit still at the feet of Jesus. Courtney Joseph.

The last (?) post based on the book "Women Living Well," the book I has the pleasure to get a sneak peak of as part of her launch. The book is on sale now at most book stores or online.

This area has been an interesting one for me. For the last few months, I have faltered here. Life has been so crazy, so upside down that I have neglected my walk. As we settle into our new house, I'm hoping to fall into a new routine. Will I be able to continue to rise early and spend a few minutes in prayer? In reading His word? This morning when I woke, I grabbed my iPhone. And when to my Bible app. I love this app -- I can read the Bible in almost any translation I want. I can compare the translations, sometimes the use of a different word helps.

The morning, the verse of the day was from Isaiah 40:28-29:

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of hte earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Weary. Oh yes. There is so much to do and just not enough time. Our new home is a mess. Boxes are still everywhere. There are still many to go through and most likely throw or give things away. We do not NEED most of it. 10 boxes of toys. Several boxes and suitcases of clothes. Enough plastic containers to fill a shelf in the pantry. And then, of course, the boxes full of memories that we can't bear to part with, but hold little to no meaning to anyone else -- Rocky & I call these the boxes that are for Maggie & Jessie to throw away after we're gone.

After I dressed this morning and sat down in our new living room, and wished for a cup of coffee [coffee pot did not survive the trip], I started to pray, but soon became overwhelmed with it all. I wanted to just sit. And not think. And not look at what still needed to be done. And I only had a few minutes before I heard Jessie from the bedroom. And then before I know it, the morning rush begins.

I know I need to be deliberate about this. If I'm not, I will get even more out of practice. Just as I need to schedule time to go to the gym [and how amazing is it that I actually look forward to going now], I need to schedule time with God. I guess the good news in all this is that God doesn't move. He is still there, waiting for me to return. Waiting on me.

Women Living Well: A Review; A Giveaway

I do think that despite my best efforts to resist it, I am now a grown-up. It's due to lots of very difficult decisions that you make over a long period of time - about motherhood, wifehood, and work, and all the things that one has to make decisions about. Emma Thompson

 

 

 

The past couple of months have been quite the whirlwind. One of the highlights was getting invited to be a part of the Women Living Well launch team for Courtney Joseph. I've followed Courtney's blog for some time, mostly because I like the .gifs she posts on Facebook. So, when I saw the opportunity to apply to be part of the launch team, I thought it might be cool. I did wonder if she would have anything for me in a book. She is, after all, almost at the other end of the Christian spectrum -- stay at home, homeschooling mom, conservative -- I have to admit there have been times I've been tempted to stop following her because I've disagreed with a stance she has taken, I was tempted to leave the launch group after someone posted a couple of prayer requests I disagreed with. Would she have anything to say that I would find applicable to my life? And was "cool" a good enough reason to apply?

 

As you all know, God works in mysterious ways. And he used that homeschooling, stay at home mom to speak to this public school, day care using, work outside the home mom. Because at our cores, we are not that different. Courtney says in her book "The Biblical principles we apply to our marriages should be the same, but how this is carried out in our homes will look different. There are no cookie-cutter marriages. Your husband is not my husband, but my God is your God, so our principles should match." This is NOT limited to our marriage! Courtney and I worship the same God, so there is so much in her book that applies to me.

 

The book is divided into 4 parts, as indicated by the subtitle: Finding your Joy in God, Your Man, Your Kids and your Home. I have 3 blog posts inspired by My Man, My Kids and My Home. A fourth is coming, but it's been a crazy couple of weeks, so I haven't even had much time WITH God, much less time to write about it. And that's the problem, isn't it? When life gets crazy, as it does, the first thing to go is my time with God. Yet, I have time to watch TV, play with my girls, ignore my family while flipping through Facebook or Pinterest.

 

Courtney opens her book by asking us "Which voice are you listening to?" Am I listening for the Great I Am? I hope I am. About a year ago I started saying Yes to Him. A true yes -- which led us here to South Dakota. I've already said it so many times that He is blessing us with this move. But am I still listening for him? Am I taking the time to look for him? And will I?

 

Courtney's book, all 214 pages, is a challenge to look at your life in a new way. She has something to say to every woman -- not just those who are married or mothers -- but for all those who choose to walk with our King, those who call themselves Christian.

 

This book came into my life at the right time. We start a new chapter this week. A new home. Is this the right time for you?

 

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I was not compensated for this post other than a free advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and posts are my own.