Today was my first day back, rejoining the Protestant Women of the Chapel on Andersen Air Force Base. These are a wonderful group of women who love the Lord, and love to study his Word. They are wonderful for Christian fellowship, and it is a place to get fed God's Word and to hear other women who are walking with my Lord recount what he is doing in their lives. One of the great things about belonging to God's family is that, even though you might leave one part of the family for awhile to be with another, God's Spirit welcomes you back when you return. It is His Spirit within the body of Christ that gives us unity. This is why we can move, join another church, and feel connected almost at once! This was my experience today. I saw new faces and old faces, but all of them were shining brightly with the joy of the Lord!
One scripture that comes to mind often when joining my sisters is:
Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
Sometimes, fellowship with our brothers and sisters can be difficult. It is not always as easy as it was for me today. Sometimes, we enter the room with many worries, complaints, doubts and hurts inside of us that only our Lord can see! Some are struggling with pain in hurting marriages, adultery, lying, stealing, addictions. We, the body of Christ, can still be susceptible to these trials and tribulations. We can drift into sinful practices and feel as though we are all alone. We may even feel as though we are the only person in the room who is struggling with these "sinful" issues. Many of us feel the need to bottle up our pain, and our struggles and simply work them out between ourselves and the Lord in prayer. While this is necessary and important, the Lord has given us giftings for use in the body of Christ to lift up one another. Some have the gift of mercy, others have exhortation, and others have prophecy, giving, serving, administration, teaching or pastoring (1 Corinthians 12). There are many gifts and talents that God has placed within the body to help us to grow up together into Christ, as is said in Ephesians 4:15 (NIV:
"Instead, speaking truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ."
We are meant to build up one another and grow up into Christ! However, a major hindrance to doing this is that we often do not share our problems with one another so we can receive the gifts of the others members of the body!
Romans 15:1-3 (NKJV)
"We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please himself; but as it is written 'The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me."
We need to bear one another's burdens for the edification of the body of Christ! When we see a sister falling down, sinning, or just struggling to be strong in the Lord...it is the time to reach out to her and lift up her arms, and help her to have victory in the Lord! The same goes for the men of the body of Christ, but today this message is directed to my Christian sisters! Let's make a point to help one another to be lifted up, and bring God glory through the unification of the body today in the name of Jesus! All honor and glory to our Father God who is in heaven!
Today, I pray that as other members of the body come to you with a burden, you would be flexible with your time and your thinking to encourage him/her, bear the burdens of others, and to unify and edify the body of Christ, so that God may have glory! Do this with a grateful heart. I pray the Lord gives you the strength to be obedient to his commands, and the wisdom to know how to approach each situation in a Godly manner! I thank God for all the times he has shown me to let my sisters bear my burdens, and for the healing and victory that came through doing so! I pray for peace and joy to overwhelm your lives today, and that he would open your hearts to the hearing of his Word. I pray all these things, giving honor and glory to God, in the name of Jesus! Amen.
Overwhelmed by his Grace,
Sarah
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Monday, September 1, 2008
Labor Day!
Today, in Guam, is Labor Day! I was interested in the history of this holiday, so I researched Labor Day on www.history.com. The information I found was that in the late 1800s, people were working 12 hour days, 7 days a week. Children were working for low wages, and child labor laws were not enforced. This is exactly what my God, the Creator of this world, wanted to guard us against. The chapter of Genesis 1 details how God created the world in six days. But the passage that is pertinent to Labor Day is
Genesis 2:1-3 (NASB)
"Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day, God completed his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made."
In the past year, I have learned the importance of keeping the Sabbath holy, and resting on that day. You see, God understands that we have six days worth of work to do. He understands what it means to have a full schedule. I can't even begin to imagine what God's schedule is like, with taking care of every minute detail of every single creature's life every day. But he gave us a way to get rest, in fact, he commanded us to not work on the Sabbath and keep it holy. It is a day for rest and refreshment, both spiritually and physically. The world has duplicated this idea of a day of rest in Labor Day, although only once a year. God is much more generous and knows that we need more rest than one day a year. Many people believe that keeping the Sabbath is legalistic, and that because we are redeemed in God's grace, we no longer have need for the commandments. It is sad that many Christians do not know that the law is life-giving, if it is obeyed by the power of the Holy Spirit. They are missing the blessing of rest that God has provided for us.
Mark 2:27 (NIV) says:
"Then he said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.' So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."
When Jeff and I first acknowledged that God wanted us to keep the Sabbath holy, we wondered how we would ever have enough time to get everything done during six days of the week. We both have very busy schedules, and we always have household chores to do! But we decided to give it a try. On Sunday (the day we believe to be the Sabbath), we do not work. We enjoy our family, we rest, and we go to church. We have not yet mastered getting everything done by Saturday, but we have learned to just let things go for one day a week. I can say that I feel I get sick less often and I have more energy for my family, work and God the other six days of the week.
God really knew what he was doing when he gave us a day of rest! The only thing keeping you from your blessing is deciding to accept it!
Today, I thank God that he knows our limitations and our potential. He knows that we work very hard for six days a week, and our physical bodies, and our spirits need rest and refreshment. I thank God that he has opened the eyes of my family to realize our need for his holy day, and that he is giving us the strength to rearrange our priorities and live the abundant life that He promised us! I pray today that God would open your hearts and eyes to this message of how he wants to bless you with rest! Please take the time on Labor Day to thank God for creating this world for us, and for giving us our very own "Labor Day" every week! Praise God for his kindness and his mercy. May He bless you today with the hearing of his Word!
Matthew 11:28 (NKJV)
"Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
In His Rest,
Sarah
Genesis 2:1-3 (NASB)
"Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day, God completed his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made."
In the past year, I have learned the importance of keeping the Sabbath holy, and resting on that day. You see, God understands that we have six days worth of work to do. He understands what it means to have a full schedule. I can't even begin to imagine what God's schedule is like, with taking care of every minute detail of every single creature's life every day. But he gave us a way to get rest, in fact, he commanded us to not work on the Sabbath and keep it holy. It is a day for rest and refreshment, both spiritually and physically. The world has duplicated this idea of a day of rest in Labor Day, although only once a year. God is much more generous and knows that we need more rest than one day a year. Many people believe that keeping the Sabbath is legalistic, and that because we are redeemed in God's grace, we no longer have need for the commandments. It is sad that many Christians do not know that the law is life-giving, if it is obeyed by the power of the Holy Spirit. They are missing the blessing of rest that God has provided for us.
Mark 2:27 (NIV) says:
"Then he said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.' So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."
When Jeff and I first acknowledged that God wanted us to keep the Sabbath holy, we wondered how we would ever have enough time to get everything done during six days of the week. We both have very busy schedules, and we always have household chores to do! But we decided to give it a try. On Sunday (the day we believe to be the Sabbath), we do not work. We enjoy our family, we rest, and we go to church. We have not yet mastered getting everything done by Saturday, but we have learned to just let things go for one day a week. I can say that I feel I get sick less often and I have more energy for my family, work and God the other six days of the week.
God really knew what he was doing when he gave us a day of rest! The only thing keeping you from your blessing is deciding to accept it!
Today, I thank God that he knows our limitations and our potential. He knows that we work very hard for six days a week, and our physical bodies, and our spirits need rest and refreshment. I thank God that he has opened the eyes of my family to realize our need for his holy day, and that he is giving us the strength to rearrange our priorities and live the abundant life that He promised us! I pray today that God would open your hearts and eyes to this message of how he wants to bless you with rest! Please take the time on Labor Day to thank God for creating this world for us, and for giving us our very own "Labor Day" every week! Praise God for his kindness and his mercy. May He bless you today with the hearing of his Word!
Matthew 11:28 (NKJV)
"Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
In His Rest,
Sarah
Sunday, August 31, 2008
God Can Heal Your Marriage Today!
This morning, as I sit at home on a Sunday with my family, my heart has drifted toward thinking about how many marriages are ending in divorce. How easy it is to just give up, and move on with "your" life while devastating the lives of others, including the spouse that you once madly loved, and the children left in the wake of disaster. I can speak very personally and with great emotion about this topic. I have been on that edge of divorce when everything looks as though it could never be right again...we were "out of love" with one another, and fighting every day. We did not even want to spend time alone together, and my thoughts were filled with anger, bitterness and thoughts of how to leave. He was also trying to find a way out. It was miserable at times, to say the least. I began to pray with all my heart, and many, many tears, that God alone would draw us back together. I prayed that he would rekindle love in my marriage, and that he would turn our hearts back to one another, as we followed Him. I prayed, and prayed, and prayed. I cried, and cried, and cried....and tried so hard not to leave in the meantime every time we had a fight and it just wasn't turning around. But God taught me to be persistent and I had a voice inside of me telling me that somehow, it was going to be better someday. I held on with everything I had, and let God keep me in my marriage when I felt I could not stay any longer. That is when the real bomb dropped on my marriage. I found out there were problems UNDER the surface that were causing much of the distance between us. Out of respect for the intimacy my husband and I have now built, I will not go into details. But there was a current working against us that I could not even see. It took the work of the Holy Spirit in my heart to convince me that something more was going on, and for me to confront my husband about it. When I confronted him, and we talked, tears started to flow as we told each other how we really felt about what was going. There were confessions made, and healing poured into our hearts by God Himself. We forgave each other.
I would love to say it was perfect that day, and every day after, but that is not the case. I continued to boldly pray that God would not only save my marriage, but that he would create a marriage that was fulfilling, loving, and absolutely amazing. God had to work in both our hearts to begin to make that happen. There were many times when I felt I was the only one who was praying, but I don't believe that is probably true. I know that others were praying for our marriage...intercessors, close friends, pastors, and who knows who else God enlisted to help us! After months of solid prayer, the tides began to really change. The Lord had to deal with my heart first because I had been hurt so much in my life, and I did not understand or accept being loved by anyone unconditionally. It took an older, visiting mother of one of our elders who spoke a "word of knowledge" (information about my life she could not have known) that broke me down to tears and revealed the hurt in my heart. God healed the hurt, and we moved forward. Then God had to heal the pain of all the problems that had existed in our marriage. There was a lack of trust, warmth toward my husband, and a condescending judgmental nature about me. The Lord had to work out all these things before he could heal my marriage and give us a fresh start. But I thank the Lord that he works tirelessly when we pray. As I prayed harder, the Lord began to work in bringing my husband's heart back to me. He rejoined us in intimate ways, and we began to want to spend time together. We began talking, laughing, and accepting one another for who we both are. Our marriage is still not perfect, it is a work in progress, but we have peace, love, acceptance and joy in our marriage. We enjoy our children together, and spending time together. We are working on our level of communication and our knowledge of one another, but we are on a positive track.
You may wonder why I chose to tell you the history of my marriage today. This morning I ran across a new movie that is coming out September 26th called "Fireproof." I have not seen this movie yet, but I have watched the trailer, and it addresses lack of understanding "love" within a marriage, and is about a couple who is on the verge of divorce. They are given a book called The Love Dare (which is available to buy online), which is 40 days to learning about God's definition of love in marriage. This movie's theme hit me on a personal level, and I feel as though I should strongly encourage any of you to see it in the theaters. I would love to see it here, and I will be praying that it comes. Many movies never make it to Guam because of the small audience and long distance. There are a couple of websites to check out if you feel led to support this movie, or to find more information about it.
http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/
http://www.fireproofmymarriage.com/
The lead actor in the movie is Kirk Cameron from Growing Pains and Left Behind. This movie comes from the same makers of Facing the Giants and Flywheel. This is their next movie.
God has really put a burden in my heart for marriages, and the high rates of divorce here in Guam. You see, Guam is a place that people from all over the US come to get a divorce because you only have to stay here a short amount of time, and it is inexpensive. People travel to Guam just to get divorced! That is just heart-breaking. I see the impact of divorce on this military community, with many husbands divorcing their military wives on island, and many wives leaving and never coming back to the island. A friend of mine and I were talking the other day about how "out of control" the divorces have become for the base. I KNOW that God can heal marriages because he healed mine. There are just too many reasons why people are not seeking God for his help and healing in marriage.
-They do not know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.
-They do not have a local body of Christ to enlist for prayer support and pastoral counseling.
-They are Christians, but do not believe God can heal their marriage, so they do not pray.
-They give themselves excuses or "grounds" for leaving the marriage, but the Bible does not support their grounds.
-They believe it is easier to give up and start over than to fight to have an amazing marriage.
One great piece of wisdom came from my own brother. He said, "In order to stay married, you have to decide that divorce is not an option anymore." He then told me about his own marriage stuggles, and gave me encouragement to go on being married. That really woke me up! He was right. We all need to take the biblical stance that divorce is not an option anymore, and fight for our marriages with prayer, faith, and perserverance.
May God bless your marriage with peace, joy, intimacy and faith today in the name of Jesus. I pray for each of you that your marriage would be based on solid foundation of God's Word, and that you would allow him to be the strength that holds your marriage together in times of trouble.
Psalm 46:1 (NIV)
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
In Christ's Everlasting Love,
Sarah
I would love to say it was perfect that day, and every day after, but that is not the case. I continued to boldly pray that God would not only save my marriage, but that he would create a marriage that was fulfilling, loving, and absolutely amazing. God had to work in both our hearts to begin to make that happen. There were many times when I felt I was the only one who was praying, but I don't believe that is probably true. I know that others were praying for our marriage...intercessors, close friends, pastors, and who knows who else God enlisted to help us! After months of solid prayer, the tides began to really change. The Lord had to deal with my heart first because I had been hurt so much in my life, and I did not understand or accept being loved by anyone unconditionally. It took an older, visiting mother of one of our elders who spoke a "word of knowledge" (information about my life she could not have known) that broke me down to tears and revealed the hurt in my heart. God healed the hurt, and we moved forward. Then God had to heal the pain of all the problems that had existed in our marriage. There was a lack of trust, warmth toward my husband, and a condescending judgmental nature about me. The Lord had to work out all these things before he could heal my marriage and give us a fresh start. But I thank the Lord that he works tirelessly when we pray. As I prayed harder, the Lord began to work in bringing my husband's heart back to me. He rejoined us in intimate ways, and we began to want to spend time together. We began talking, laughing, and accepting one another for who we both are. Our marriage is still not perfect, it is a work in progress, but we have peace, love, acceptance and joy in our marriage. We enjoy our children together, and spending time together. We are working on our level of communication and our knowledge of one another, but we are on a positive track.
You may wonder why I chose to tell you the history of my marriage today. This morning I ran across a new movie that is coming out September 26th called "Fireproof." I have not seen this movie yet, but I have watched the trailer, and it addresses lack of understanding "love" within a marriage, and is about a couple who is on the verge of divorce. They are given a book called The Love Dare (which is available to buy online), which is 40 days to learning about God's definition of love in marriage. This movie's theme hit me on a personal level, and I feel as though I should strongly encourage any of you to see it in the theaters. I would love to see it here, and I will be praying that it comes. Many movies never make it to Guam because of the small audience and long distance. There are a couple of websites to check out if you feel led to support this movie, or to find more information about it.
http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/
http://www.fireproofmymarriage.com/
The lead actor in the movie is Kirk Cameron from Growing Pains and Left Behind. This movie comes from the same makers of Facing the Giants and Flywheel. This is their next movie.
God has really put a burden in my heart for marriages, and the high rates of divorce here in Guam. You see, Guam is a place that people from all over the US come to get a divorce because you only have to stay here a short amount of time, and it is inexpensive. People travel to Guam just to get divorced! That is just heart-breaking. I see the impact of divorce on this military community, with many husbands divorcing their military wives on island, and many wives leaving and never coming back to the island. A friend of mine and I were talking the other day about how "out of control" the divorces have become for the base. I KNOW that God can heal marriages because he healed mine. There are just too many reasons why people are not seeking God for his help and healing in marriage.
-They do not know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.
-They do not have a local body of Christ to enlist for prayer support and pastoral counseling.
-They are Christians, but do not believe God can heal their marriage, so they do not pray.
-They give themselves excuses or "grounds" for leaving the marriage, but the Bible does not support their grounds.
-They believe it is easier to give up and start over than to fight to have an amazing marriage.
One great piece of wisdom came from my own brother. He said, "In order to stay married, you have to decide that divorce is not an option anymore." He then told me about his own marriage stuggles, and gave me encouragement to go on being married. That really woke me up! He was right. We all need to take the biblical stance that divorce is not an option anymore, and fight for our marriages with prayer, faith, and perserverance.
May God bless your marriage with peace, joy, intimacy and faith today in the name of Jesus. I pray for each of you that your marriage would be based on solid foundation of God's Word, and that you would allow him to be the strength that holds your marriage together in times of trouble.
Psalm 46:1 (NIV)
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
In Christ's Everlasting Love,
Sarah
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Quick Clarification - Fasting
As I read the blog, I realized that many of you might wonder why I would fast during pregnancy...and even think that it was the reason for miscarriage. I want to clarify that it was not a total fast, or a liquid fast, but simply fasting from soda and caffeine, which was the direction the Lord gave me. He is wise and knows what our bodies need for health. Any pregnant woman could benefit health-wise from such a fast, but I benefited spiritually!
God bless you!
Sarah
God bless you!
Sarah
Season of Change
Ecclesiastes 3:1-3 (NASB)
"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven--
A time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build up."
When I first committed my life to Christ, and asked him to be my Lord and Savior, I was told by many people about the "seasons" which Christians go through. My walk with the Lord started red hot, on fire, and it was absolutely amazing! I was seeking knowledge of the Lord, seeking his face, seeking his presence and observing his power in amazing ways! My friend kept telling me that eventually, a different season would come and it might not be exactly like it was in the beginning. God takes us through many different seasons, as he teaches us, and he guides us into perfection.
These past few weeks, I have gone MIA on this blog. I apologize for my lack of faithfulness, as my first trial came to writing daily about my walk with God. You see, it is easy to write when everything is going really well, but it is much harder to share the more difficult parts of walking with God. Instead of doing what was right, and required of me by my Lord, I just stopped writing. So, I am going to explain what has been happening with me recently and hopefully use it to give you all hope as you might be going through your own difficult season.
Honestly, I don't remember exactly what my last post was about, but I believe it was telling you about how God was working in my pregnancy. Well, the first change of this new season was that my pregnancy ended completely with a full miscarriage. It was surprising and unexpected, even after I had believed with so much faith that the Lord was going to continue a healthy pregnancy. I had a deep sense that it might end, but I was not going to give up. I kept believing the Lord to heal my body. Well, the Lord in his Sovereignty chose for me not to have a child at this time. I trust that, and I have great peace and joy knowing that my Lord is in control of ALL things. I trust him deeply with my life, and I know that he makes plans based on what is best in the long run for us and others around us. It was difficult, as my body did not recover immediately. I was tired, sick, and in some pain for most of the day. I felt as though I had been run over by a semi-truck, and was having trouble getting out of bed. In all honesty, I had one real dark day with the Lord in which I told him how I felt about it all, and then this amazing warmth (God's healing) just washed over me. I had peace all throughout my body and soul, and my body began to feel better. I am now back at full strength of energy, and the nausea and pains have ceased. Praise the Lord....his mercy endureth forever! Many people began coming up to me all around our community, talking to me about the fact they "heard" I lost the pregnancy. News travelled fast, but that was fine with me. The strangest thing was happening to me. I felt joy and peace, but others would look at me with sadness and I was even told that I was still mourning, or that I should be mourning! I would tell them that I had peace and joy, and it seemed no one believed me. I can honestly say, with all my heart, that I have peace and joy in this circumstance. I am not dwelling on the loss, and I know that in God's time, I am sure I could have more children, but I will wait upon the Lord to find out if this is what He desires for our family.
So, moving on after this, yet another change of this new season. This change seemed sudden, but it actually was not. When I started working at the Christian preschool, I believed the Lord was telling me that I would not work there for a long period of time. But sometimes, we make oaths to people that are not in line with God's perfect will. This is what happened. I opened my mouth day one to tell my new boss that I would be working with her until May 2009 when we left Guam. Shortly after beginning my new ministry, I realized that I had spoken very presumptously. The Lord directed me to fast for 40 days, and I was obedient. During this time, the Lord showed me amazing scriptural truths, but he also began to show me that I had a task to complete other than teaching. Upon completion of my task, I would no longer work at the preschool. This is exactly what happened.
I cannot share the details of the situation on this blog, but know that it was an amazing, but very difficult task to complete. The Lord has blessed me and my family because of our obedience, and I thank God that he sees the larger picture of the path of our life. We truly have nothing to worry about if we trust God to make our paths straight. He is always faithful!
The former season ended on a Friday, and on Monday, my daughter started 1st grade. I also got a chance to see my Christian sisters at the Protestant Women of the Chapel "Meet and Greet" and signed up for a fall Bible study on Wednesday mornings called "Created to be His Help Meet." Relationships that had been put to the side during my former season are now coming new again, and being refreshed. I am currently asking the Lord about what is next for me and my family, but I am encouraged knowing that God has a plan for our lives, and it is a plan to prosper us and not to harm us. I am focusing once again on my own family, serving them, and it is wonderful to be the one raising my son at home again. It was hard for him to be with someone else all day long, when I wanted to be with him. It is a new season with new joys, new challenges, and new lessons to learn. Just one more step on the path to eternity~
May God bless you today, regardless of what season you are currently in. Know that the Lord loves you and is with you, he will never leave you nor forsake you. If you are in a difficult season, know that the Lord sees you exactly where you are, and there must be a change of season right around the corner!
Be blessed today in the name of Jesus!
Sarah
"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven--
A time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build up."
When I first committed my life to Christ, and asked him to be my Lord and Savior, I was told by many people about the "seasons" which Christians go through. My walk with the Lord started red hot, on fire, and it was absolutely amazing! I was seeking knowledge of the Lord, seeking his face, seeking his presence and observing his power in amazing ways! My friend kept telling me that eventually, a different season would come and it might not be exactly like it was in the beginning. God takes us through many different seasons, as he teaches us, and he guides us into perfection.
These past few weeks, I have gone MIA on this blog. I apologize for my lack of faithfulness, as my first trial came to writing daily about my walk with God. You see, it is easy to write when everything is going really well, but it is much harder to share the more difficult parts of walking with God. Instead of doing what was right, and required of me by my Lord, I just stopped writing. So, I am going to explain what has been happening with me recently and hopefully use it to give you all hope as you might be going through your own difficult season.
Honestly, I don't remember exactly what my last post was about, but I believe it was telling you about how God was working in my pregnancy. Well, the first change of this new season was that my pregnancy ended completely with a full miscarriage. It was surprising and unexpected, even after I had believed with so much faith that the Lord was going to continue a healthy pregnancy. I had a deep sense that it might end, but I was not going to give up. I kept believing the Lord to heal my body. Well, the Lord in his Sovereignty chose for me not to have a child at this time. I trust that, and I have great peace and joy knowing that my Lord is in control of ALL things. I trust him deeply with my life, and I know that he makes plans based on what is best in the long run for us and others around us. It was difficult, as my body did not recover immediately. I was tired, sick, and in some pain for most of the day. I felt as though I had been run over by a semi-truck, and was having trouble getting out of bed. In all honesty, I had one real dark day with the Lord in which I told him how I felt about it all, and then this amazing warmth (God's healing) just washed over me. I had peace all throughout my body and soul, and my body began to feel better. I am now back at full strength of energy, and the nausea and pains have ceased. Praise the Lord....his mercy endureth forever! Many people began coming up to me all around our community, talking to me about the fact they "heard" I lost the pregnancy. News travelled fast, but that was fine with me. The strangest thing was happening to me. I felt joy and peace, but others would look at me with sadness and I was even told that I was still mourning, or that I should be mourning! I would tell them that I had peace and joy, and it seemed no one believed me. I can honestly say, with all my heart, that I have peace and joy in this circumstance. I am not dwelling on the loss, and I know that in God's time, I am sure I could have more children, but I will wait upon the Lord to find out if this is what He desires for our family.
So, moving on after this, yet another change of this new season. This change seemed sudden, but it actually was not. When I started working at the Christian preschool, I believed the Lord was telling me that I would not work there for a long period of time. But sometimes, we make oaths to people that are not in line with God's perfect will. This is what happened. I opened my mouth day one to tell my new boss that I would be working with her until May 2009 when we left Guam. Shortly after beginning my new ministry, I realized that I had spoken very presumptously. The Lord directed me to fast for 40 days, and I was obedient. During this time, the Lord showed me amazing scriptural truths, but he also began to show me that I had a task to complete other than teaching. Upon completion of my task, I would no longer work at the preschool. This is exactly what happened.
I cannot share the details of the situation on this blog, but know that it was an amazing, but very difficult task to complete. The Lord has blessed me and my family because of our obedience, and I thank God that he sees the larger picture of the path of our life. We truly have nothing to worry about if we trust God to make our paths straight. He is always faithful!
The former season ended on a Friday, and on Monday, my daughter started 1st grade. I also got a chance to see my Christian sisters at the Protestant Women of the Chapel "Meet and Greet" and signed up for a fall Bible study on Wednesday mornings called "Created to be His Help Meet." Relationships that had been put to the side during my former season are now coming new again, and being refreshed. I am currently asking the Lord about what is next for me and my family, but I am encouraged knowing that God has a plan for our lives, and it is a plan to prosper us and not to harm us. I am focusing once again on my own family, serving them, and it is wonderful to be the one raising my son at home again. It was hard for him to be with someone else all day long, when I wanted to be with him. It is a new season with new joys, new challenges, and new lessons to learn. Just one more step on the path to eternity~
May God bless you today, regardless of what season you are currently in. Know that the Lord loves you and is with you, he will never leave you nor forsake you. If you are in a difficult season, know that the Lord sees you exactly where you are, and there must be a change of season right around the corner!
Be blessed today in the name of Jesus!
Sarah
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