As I mentioned in my previous blog,
our church is having a 21-day fast to re-focus on God. Often, as we try to get
our life back on track, we also face incredible Spiritual Warfare. Satan would like nothing else than to keep us
down and discouraged. This month has definitely been a mix of blessings and
trials.
The biggest trial was that after 5
months, Alyssa was asked to move out. Although we love her and the twins, it
was time. I’m not going to go into the nitty gritty, but this transition has
been hard. I know I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to miss them
when they left, but I didn’t expect them to be completely ripped from our
lives. For now, we have no contact with them at all. I am still praying that
God will restore things and bring healing to our relationship with Alyssa. I am
also praying that God will be at work in their lives and they will come to know
Him as Lord and Savior.
After they moved out… Matthew and
Cooper ended up still going on their trip to Montana. It had been planned for months,
and it was a much needed get-away for the both of them. I spent that time
getting my house back in order. One thing I am very excited about is my house
will stay clean now. It was a lot of work cleaning up all the mess/stuff that
was left behind and we still have a few items we need to get rid of but for the
most part the house is back to normal for the first time in over a year. I was
also finally able to set the room that we originally planned for Cooper. He was
so appreciative of having a room of his own and no longer having to sleep on
one of the couches.
That same weekend, I was able to head
over and visit my Grandma. It has been a long time since I have seen her and my
Aunt called to give me a heads up because she has been in a lot of pain and is
not doing as well as she was in the past. I decided I should take advantage of
a weekend alone and spend some time with her. I decided to go during lunch
because she is not always the most talkative and at least I could people watch
and be entertained by her housemates. It was a pleasant visit, and I am glad I
spent a couple hours with my grandma. Of
course, when she started dumping her food, I decided she had enough to eat.
Of course, she was happy I brought her chocolate...
With everything going on, I decided to re-do a Bible Study I did with my D-Group girls. The Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer. I have been slacking with my quiet times lately and was in need of an officially devotional to keep me on track. I do much better when I have an actual study and not just using my Kindle to study. I also found my new favorite spot to do my quiet times during the winter months… the new blessings of a quiet house. There is a perfect spot on the couch where I can curl up and turn on my worship music and have my mate right next to me. It is just what I needed.
Going into week 3 of the Fast, I was
feeling stronger in the Lord. Things were
still hard, but my eyes were looking up. I went to the Pursuit night at Gen
Hope and was confirmed that I was on the right track… one of the speakers talked
about the Armor of God and our need to put off the negativity in our life and
focus on the positive. The Pastor also read Psalm 27, which spoke to what I had
been facing the past couple weeks. This night gave me a lot of strength and
hope going forward.
A lot of prayers have been going into
this week as Matthew had a trip planned to Florida to see his father. He has not
spoken to him since 2019 when we were in Florida and things blew up. I had been
having sporadic conversations with him, but Matthew finally came to a place where
he decided to show up at his door and talk to him. I took the day off and spent
the morning in prayer, worship, and studying God’s Word as Matthew laid out his
heart to his dad. What an answer to prayer it was when a couple hours later I
found out the conversation was going “Good”. God is a God of restoration and healing,
and I have no doubt that He has been work in the life of both men to bring them
to a place where healing could take place this weekend.
In the midst of my Armor of God study,
I decided that instead of doing the youth version over again, I would get the Women’s
Devotional that came with the videos. I also found a handful of other devotionals
to do afterwards. I am committed to keep my passion going and to keep my focus
on God going forward. As I was reminded doing my study… Spiritual warfare does
not take a day off so I can’t take a day off either… I can’t be too busy or
tired to spend time with God who provides all I need for every situation.
Of course, not everything that has
happened has been super big things… or even super spiritual. I have had a bazillion
appointments as I am still doing PT, Chiro and massage for my back/neck injury.
I was able to complete the training for the upcoming testing season at work. I
completed the materials for the new red boxes. I am almost done with all my
IEPs for the year (just a couple more to go). I figured out a plan for
Component 4 of my National Boards. I started planning our trip this summer and
did a little research of Norway where my ancestors came from… as we contemplate
staying longer and traveling Norway with my parents.
As you can see… life has been hard, busy, overwhelming, but blessed at the same time. Through it all… God has been good and my walk with Him is getting back on track.
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