Well. Tonight is my last night to stay up late (Past 9:00 pm)

I have to go back to work. My four month hiatus is over. The company I mentioned in a earlier post made me an offer, and wanted me to get started with training, asap. The position is new, I'm the first person in it! I get to set up the guidelines and procedures for the position, and hopefully sculpt it into a department. This would be a great accomplishment. (Supposedly I may have to travel every now and then-that could be interesting)

I have mixed emotions about going back, I enjoy my freedom and being able to work on things that are important to me and my Pastor, and on my own time! But having money is important to me too! lol.. You do what you have to do? Either way I know God will be with me, in it all. I make a decision to glean "Life Long Lessons" from all my secular jobs. And each time I've been able to apply them to ministry! This one won't be any different. "Lord please bless me to love it more than any other company or position I've had" (I may as well love what I'm doing since I'll be there for most of my day!)

At least I can wear Jeans and Tennis, this will make going to work everyday, a lot less stressful!

Auntie's cute little Aryn! (1 yr birthday Party..she'll be two this April? Time seems to disappear into thin air.)

Job Hunt


Okay. I had another job interview today. This one was much better! It was a small office.(a rapidly growing family business called Veneer Stones)As I pulled up, I didn't notice any office buildings..the parking lot was graveled and there was a trailer, with pallets of custom made stone everywhere? I thought, okay? This should be interesting. I was dressed very professional(in a suit) so I didn't expect this setting at all. As I got out of my car dust was flying all around from the small trucks going in and out of the parking lot.(Did I say this one was better??(lol) just keep reading) Anyway, I though oh-kay? I did say I was tired of corporate America, but this is...I didn't know what to think!(it was a first for me) but I couldn't wait to see where it would lead! (lol)

When I walked in I could see the trailer was set up like a small business office, with smaller corner offices, and individual cubicals. Everyone was running around in jeans, and some in tennis shoes! They all seemed joyful, and the jeans? Huge plus! (I was smiling on the inside) They were transiting into another office building because their previous one had an electrical fire.(I knew something was up) But the jeans they said, has always been apart of their dress code. (Yes!!!)

I really enjoyed this interview. It was very different, more relaxed..it was real. I was interviewed by one of the Owners and Managers.(The manager shares my name!) They both were very down to earth, open and upfront about the business and the position(something corporate rarely is) The position is client services(same as my last) but definitely not corporate. They both said they liked my personality and thought I'd fit in well. The position is brand new, so I'd be the only one in it! They'd give me complete power, and said I could create procedures and build the job manuals as I went along. They repeatedly stressed that the dept was mine, do with it what I wanted as long as the customers were cared for and happy! So I thought, sounds great to me! (I hate to be micro-managed) They asked for my salary range, and I gave it to them. (We talked for over an hour-good sign I guess.) We'll see if they call me back! If they do..that's God's will; If they don't that's God's will too! I will rest in that, because it's definitely how I've been praying. All and All, I know it is God's will that I "not" be broke!

II Corinthians 4:18

While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen [are] temporal; but the things which are not seen [are] eternal.



I love it, Everything "we see" is subject to change! Thank you Lord

Who are you looking at?

So. I got a phone call today from a fairly new saint. They called concerned, wanting to know why they hadn't seen a few of the "veteran" saints at church lately. Truth is, I've been dreading conversations like these. How do you tell new saints, trying to hold on, that those they've looked up to and admired all this time, had walk away? I had rehearsed over and over in my mind how I would answer this question without damaging people's Faith, in God. There was not enough sugar, or smoke screens that I could throw up, to make this sound any better. (I know! I've tried it before and it didn't work, my answers didn't make sense so, the questions kept coming!)

I briefly paused..and said; "They left." "They are no longer members of our church." I could hear the gasp in their voice, "What..Why?" they asked. (and this person was not trying to be messy, they were really concerned about these people. (I was hoping they didn't ask me why, only these people, and God know the real reason) So I said, people walk away or go somewhere they think is better for them. I left this person in a state of: It is, what It is, and quickly ended the call.

The phone rings again, they are back on the line. (Voice sounding a little dismayed) They say; "You know, its sad. You go all of this time looking up to people, admiring them for who they are in God, you see them as someone you'd want to be like, and then they just walk away from it? That's wrong." I quickly sighed and said, "that is very true." (You better have your eyes on God.)

WHO ARE YOU LOOKING AT??

It's natural for us to admire a person and want to be like them. (especially if they are accomplished, talented, or anointed) God wants us to be great examples. But at any time the person you admire decides to go down? You better shake it off, an keep your eyes on Jesus!

Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Today was So So....

 

I had a job interview today, complete waste of time. Took up most of my morning!

 

I've been struggling with whether I should go back to work full time or not. Make no mistake, we "need" the money. But I am kind of dreading it because I am so over Corporate America.   However, it's what I'm experienced in so I'm most competitive wage wise: in this arena.  I don't want to be sucked into the ball and chain again. 

 

I was layed off from a very lucrative position in Sept. of last year,(the branch closed down) and I've been enjoying my freedom! It's given me so much time to write and focus on what I really want to do with my life.

 

 I feel, its been a waste of my time, to spend  8 hours working to fulfill someone else's dream.  However, the security it brings is always tempting, and it's enough to keep you bound.    

 

I've been applying for jobs here and there. Looking for preferably part-time work, so I won't be as tied down. (but haven't received any call backs on those.)

 

I've been praying for strong direction on this one because if I have to go back full time, I definitely don't want to be some place I will come to dread.       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IT'S ALL ABOUT "ME"

What happens when we decide to ignore or reject "wise"(Godly) council? When we decide I have to do things "my way" in order to find true happiness, how does that thing turn out? I think Proverbs 1:24-31 sums it up quite nicely.



24 "I called you so often, but you didn't come. I reached out to you, but you paid no attention.
25 You ignored my advice and rejected the correction I offered.
26 So I will laugh when you are in trouble! I will mock you when disaster overtakes you
27 when calamity overcomes you like a storm, when you are engulfed by trouble, and when anguish and distress overwhelm you.
28 "I will not answer when they cry for help. Even though they anxiously search for me, they will not find me.
29 For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord. 30 They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them.
31 That is why they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way. They must experience the full terror of the path "they" have chosen.

(It's just not worth it.)

I'M STILL STANDING...

IT's SUNDAY MORNING, and I am preparing for church with great anticipation. I have prayed and asked God to give me a fresh and exciting love for him. I am so thankful that God has kept me in His peace. I'm thankful that I still have a desire to serve him, and trust his word, no matter what.

It's been proven. It doesn't matter how long you've been saved; Satan will constantly try to turn your heart away from God, and His word. Today our praise team will be singing "I'm Still Standing."
This song is very befitting and is hits home like never before! Many that I personally know have given up on God, and walked away from His word. They have wrestled with it so long and twisted it so, that they no longer know what they believe. Just as Satan planned. It's as old as the trick in the Garden of Eden.

Adam and Eve understood what God meant when he said, Do not to eat from "that tree". But Eve allowed Satan to twist the meaning of God's word to her, and so they fell. (If you'll notice. Eve was not content with keeping her "damanble doctrine" to herself, she had to share it with Adam, taking him out as well.) Beware of people that come to you with a new meaning of what God has "plainly forbidden", because Satan is after your soul.

We may not understand a lot of things, as God told us we would not (Deut 29:29) But we have enough clarity to keep us until the end! This much I do know. Well I'm off to prayer service.. I must go higher!!

Check out my Slide Show!

Well it's a new year, and my journey has begun, again! Last year I had a few goals that I vowed would be accomplished. Become certified in CPR: Check! Become a certified group excersise leader: Check! Author and Publish my first book: ummmmm-not so much. Unfortunately I allowed things in my life to side track me, months at a time. I could literarly hear the empty pages of my book calling out to me, but I could not bring my self to write. I simply busied my self with other projects for a temporary fix. And when the year turned I couldn't be upset because I hadn't put in the work to get it done. I was frustrated, but not upset.

You see, when you do little you get little, and when you do nothing, you get nothing in return? It's just the way it is. We can't withhold parts of ourselves or make tiny investments into our dreams and expect we will be successful. We can only be great in the areas we give most of our energy. Now, to be clear, my first goal for 2008 is without a doubt: to grow closer to God. I want a greater relationship with God because I know there is much more to Him than what I know now. Knowing more about Him can only make me love him greater! God has more to share with me in spirit, and I want to receive that. I understand that I can do nothing without Him. Matt 6:33 reminds us all that we should put God first and expect the rest to follow. This I will do with gladness.

As for my writing: I spoke to two accomplished women who are involved in my areas of interest. I asked them, "How are you able to accomplish so much?" One of the women(not much older than me) is a mother of two,serves on 2 or 3 committies, has a law degree, recently authored and published a novel,consistently book signings for her novel, and she held a full time job at a demanding investment company! I asked, "Where do you find the time?" She simply said, "You make time for what's important to you". The second woman: separate coverstation, resides in a different part of the country, said the exact same thing. She said, "At that time nothing is more important to me than "that project", I focus on that and don't stop until it is finished." She stressed, "You make it your most important thing." And after I heard that, I said, "this is so true."

We can talk about what we want to accomplish, and what our passion's are in life. But our actions show what our passions are! And if we are investing in everything else except, "that thing" we say, we desire most.(and hopefully God approves) then we are only deceiving ourselves. I will not let that happen to me this year. I made some good accomplishments in 2007 that I am happy about. But this year I've got to give it all I've got. This way if something doesn't happen the way I planned then I know it wasn't because I didn't "do the work", I am going to be prepared as I can be for all my successes. I know God won't let me down. When the right time comes He will be standing at the door, holding it wide open for me, and I will be ready to walk right on through it, or shall I say, Shout on through it!

2008! Who Knew?

If you're reading this then you must be bursting with excitement!

Why? Because you made it through 1 more year! I know there were times when you didn't know how you would make it, but God knew, and He made it happen. Without His mercy you never would've seen today. So glance over your shoulder; smile,wave,and Shout Thank You Jesus! 2008 brings with it another oppourtunity to live the life your were created to live. A life that blooms, in the light of Jesus Christ!