This last month and a half has been on the tougher end. As I try to prepare and take care of things before launch, there have been days that have been extra hard. Some were just unnecessary worries that kept me from concentrating on the whole reason I am starting this journey. I had put God to the side and let worldly things get in my head and lose focus. I had let the enemy take my joy and peace temporarily. I felt so anxious and down. I can honestly say I felt a bit lost. How could I give all my attention to something that really did not matter? Worldly things and people do not satisfy us nor give us joy. Only God gives us JOY which is very satisfying.
About two weeks ago Pastor Richie (Freelife Church) started a new series “An Unexpected Christmas”. Now is the season of unexpectancy was stated in his message and gave 7 things we can expect that is unexpected. These things are to be confessed daily. I will share so you too receive these gifts;
1. Unexpected FAVOR, 2. Unexpected BREAKTHROUGH, 3. Unexpected FINANCIAL MIRACLES, 4. Unexpected RESISTANCE, 5. Unexpected JOY, 6. Unexpected RECONCILIATION, 7. Unexpected VISITATIONS
I felt like God spoke to me that morning and gave me affirmation of things I was worrying about. But as human, I still felt an uneasy feeling and was letting my worries take the best of me. That Sunday evening as I was trying to write out a lesson plan, I just could not concentrate. I felt so much anger on a certain situation I was going through at the time. Why could I not shake it off I asked myself? I told God that all I needed was my joy again. Let me tell you God is good. When we think he is not listening, we are completely wrong. He just waits until we stop trying to fix the situation on our own. While sitting on the couch, I realized God had used my aunt to bring back my joy. She happened to share a video regarding “giving up all my worries to God”. Such perfect timing. God showed up.
Psalm 43:5 Why my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
I put everything to the side such as laptop, IPad, and cell phone and decided to pray. I put some worship music, got my bible and just let God speak to me. I began to claim what is already mine. I am the KING’s daughter and I expect nothing less. From that moment I felt an unexpected overwhelming JOY. We have to speak good in our lives and if we believe whole heartedly, it will be done. So many times our own mouth condemns us. Learn to be optimistic and speak good in your life, even when everything seems dark. Leave your worries to God and he will take care of the rest.
Praise report:
With that being said, that previous Friday I had been told I needed an urgent root canal. Especially since I would be leaving in a month I needed to get this taken care of. I thought I did not need the expense but what else could I do. I Did not want to be hurting while out on the mission trip. Amazingly I was not upset and I just told my dentist to do what she had to. I prayed my Insurance would cover expense and the rest would not cost me so much. My dentist sent me to a specialist. I was trusting God would give me a hand. The following Monday at specialist office, my experience was the best. Well besides the pain, I realized when I left that God had found grace in everyone there. My bill was not as high as I expected and every single person made my experience less scary. Soon after, I scheduled an appointment for a crown at my dentist. They gave me an estimate of $1,426. I was told to wait and the office would investigate more as to the total charge. I still did not panic and continued trusting God. Office staff person called me the next day and stated the dentist really cared about me and would cover more than half of bill. I WAS SPEECHLESS. HOW AWESOME IS GOD!
The best part is yet to come. I went in for my crown this week and my dentist stated that I would not be responsible for one single dime. Can you believe that…WOW! She literally had left me with my mouth open so I definitely was speechless. God’s grace is so infinite. He again showed me the benefits of surrendering all and trusting him. How could I doubt his LOVE and all he has for us.
Luke 12:31 Seek the kingdom above all else, and he will give you everything you need.
Not only did God show himself off there, but he had to show some non believers some more of his work. I knew my next deadline for The World Race was coming up 12/16/16 that actually is today. As of last week I still needed almost $4,000 to meet the deadline. I knew that it was quite a bit of money, but I also knew and trusted God would provide. I set out to do a tamale fundraiser, babysitting, Threads of Hope, or just talking to people. God definitely uses people to his glory. By Wednesday I was $1,600 short, Thursday $1,100 short. I knew in my heart that the rest of the money was going to be taken care of. I prayed to God that he would touch people’s heart to help out or help me find a way to earn the money. Earlier Thursday evening I had mentioned what was missing to several people and I believe they were more anxious than I was. I just said God is good and he will provide. I felt so at peace as I went to bed.
Today I was scheduled to babysit for my friend since I was trying to earn a little extra cash to meet my deadline. As I was there babysitting early this morning, I received a text message from an Angel (the person may not think so, but he is). God used him and put in his heart to complete what I was missing to reach deadline. Not only did I meet this next deadline, but I still got more that will go towards my next one. How could I doubt God’s Love. We are his children and he just wants the best for us. Do not doubt what God can do for you.
God is there for you ALWAYS. Do not let life’s problem come between you and him. He wants you to seek him. He wants to take your burdens and fill you with JOY. Do not try to fix things on your own. Seek him first and let him take control. I have shared a little of what has happened to me. Not to boast, but to show he is the BEST. Let go of what you have no control of. I know for sure that when you claim what is yours, you will see God work in your life. REMEMBER this is your season and you too can EXPECT the UNEXPECTED. Do not doubt what God can do in your life.
MAY GOD BLESS EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU. THANK YOU FOR JOINING ME ON THIS JOURNEY AND FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
