Awe... The time-elusive Shiny-Object Syndrome (squirrel)... In other words - PROCRASTINATION! How quickly can we become distracted by something "shiny" that diverts our attention from what we either should or need to be doing? For me, it some times feels, it's all the time. There are things I'm supposed to be doing but don't feel like it. Forcing myself can be so difficult at times. But why is that, especially if I know it's something very important? I just shake my head because I can't give … [Read more...]
Does God Have a Plan for Me? #ArmorOfGodStudy #ControlGirl
I haven’t felt compelled to write like this in quite some time. I’ve been having my daily Quiet Time (QT) with God each morning at 4am. Yup, you read that right: 4AM. Let me explain the significance here. I am a die-hard NIGHT OWL (you know - whoot whoot). So me and anything before the sun comes up is so not my thing. However, several months ago I felt God convicting me that in order to start my day off right, a consummate night owl needed to start her day bright and early (well, dark and … [Read more...]
Nehemiah, The Story Continues…
Wow, another long one. I feel like when I'm on a roll, the words just flow out of me and onto the page. I loved how I can see the Holy Spirit working through me as I was studying just the background of the Book of Nehemiah. I hadn't even gotten into the book itself yet. Today is November 8, 2015 and I'm doing week 4 day 3 of the study guide today. Continuing in the Book of Nehemiah 1. Nehemiah, the actual person, wrote the book more as a memoir than just a simple non-fiction book. A … [Read more...]
Miraculous Breakthroughs (they really do happen)
I did week 3 day 5 of the study guide back on November 5, 2015. This was a huge break-through day for myself as I discovered some things God was showing me. I literally snapped out of a very depressive state. It was one of the greatest feelings I've been through and grateful the Holy Spirit worked through me the way He did that day. Now I'm going to share it with you what I wrote that day. We are asked to turn back to Psalm 68:5-10 for week 3 day 5, only we’re going to use another study … [Read more...]
How to Find Sincere Love
Today (week 3 day 3), Jen has us looking at Romans 12:9-21 again. She has us choose from a list of original phrases found in this set of verses and then has a cross-reference for a specific phrase for each one. I chose two of the nine she has listed on page 173. Original Phrase (NIV): Romans 12:9—“[sincere] love” Cross-Reference: 1 Timothy 1:5, which reads: “The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart (2 Timothy 2:22) and a good conscience and a sincere … [Read more...]
A 61 Day Bible Study Quiet Time Plan for going through Ephesians
(Since I originally wrote this post back on February 25, 2016, I started Ephesians, then made it through the third chapter, stopped for a while, started up again from the beginning last August then stopped again. When I started to have my quiet time again last month (April 2017), my desire to go through Ephesians had passed. I instead chose a short book, Jude, and went through it in about 14 days. I was debating on whether to post what I wrote below or not as I'm no longer going through it. Then … [Read more...]
How Do I Get My Priorities Straight?
I've created something I like to call my "Daily Priorities Notebook". At first, I did it in a 3-subject, 120 sheet, college ruled, spiral bound notebook. The original idea started back in February 2016. The first day I did it was on February 29. I did it everyday until March 10, then missed three days, did it one more time on March 14, and then I stopped for a while. I picked it up again on my birthday last year (August 2, 2016) and only did it until August 9. On August 10 I got a weird … [Read more...]
Motivation… Or the Lack There of
Motivation. I can be a tricky thing to conquer (especially when all motivation has failed you thus far). You know in your heart you want to do this (whatever it is) and nothing you say or do moves you forward to do it. It's rather irritation quite frankly. For me, I have a couple of things I want to be continuously motivated to do but I'm simply not: Writing and a Personal Quiet Time After Mari died writing became cathartic for me. I had constant ideas floating around my head. However, … [Read more...]
Did You Know I’m a S.H.E.?
By the title alone you have to be saying to yourself, "Well, yeah, of course you're a she." But if you look a little further, and maybe you already have, you'll notice that it's not actually the word 'she'. It's an acronym from a book I read recently (actually my mom introduced me to the book years ago, but I never actually read it). The book is called Sidetracked Home Executives, hence the acronym S.H.E. For those of you who don't know, I didn't exactly grow up in a house that was clean. … [Read more...]
The Journey with Cathy Elliott #acfw #thejourney
Please welcome this week's guest Cathy Elliott for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? Bloom Where You’re Planted? When I finally answered the writer call, it was with the words, “What shall I write?” The desire had long been nestled inside, popping up every so often, tapping me on the heart. But the nudge seemed playful, without purpose. Now, at-the-ready, I felt lost before my journey even began. At my first writers group meeting, … [Read more...]