I finally have a quiet moment to reflect on 2012, all it has brought and has not brought. To some, this post may be a little premature because most do their reflection on December 30/31, not November.
Did you read my post about passing the regret please? I decided to change it up a little instead of mourning over missed opportunities, I will celebrate what God has given and taken away.
Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." The Lord laid out the plans for my family and I like a finely tuned instrument, and I just wanted to list a few of the little things that changed my life this year.
1.) I am not sure how my friendship with the Schim family started, but this family showed me what true worship true faith alone is. They put everything, I mean everything out there for God this year when the whole family spent 6 weeks in Costa Rica ministering and loving on people that had never met before. The youngest child being in middle school, sat night after night talking to a man trying to pursued him for Christ. He never gave up, never gave in and never was one of "those". Ya know "those" pushy people who have the right desire in their heart who knock on your door to tell you about God but their mannerism turn you off instead of on? Little G never did that, his honesty, sincerity and passion for this man, is what most adult men dream about doing by witnessing in this manor. I have to give it up to H, because she is a teen-age girly girl and she never once complained about sleeping on a floor, taking cold showers or washing people's feet like Jesus did. I do not know H as well as some, but I wish I was a teen-ager that followed that hard after her God and loved her parents enough to trust them to take her some place completely outta her comfort zone. My friendship with Mama H is astounding! She is that prayer warrior friend that every Christan should have. She helps pick me up when I am down, she never judges me and she has a crazy faith that I aspire to have. Their was a heart breaking moment in Costa Rica when she could have given up, packed up and came home. But instead she put her hand in the hand of God, and said, "For saking all, I trust you." Man! That is faith! On the flip side of crazy faith is her crazy husband, K. K along with another friend I will talk about later, has really I mean REALLY shown me how to worship!! I thought I knew how to worship before coming to Kirby Church but boy, was I wrong! I was hurting in my soul after leaving our last church, and a few things I experienced there. But through the friendship of the Schim family, I learned the true meaning of leaving at the alter from K. He has a crazy, mad passion for his Lord and Savior, and if you are with him for a moment you can feel something different about him. If you don't you should check you pulse, seriously! K brings the gospel to your front door in a manor you can "get it". K said once that he thought he missed the opportunity for his calling, but man friend!! I totally do not think so, you and your family have changed my life forever!!
2.) Small group. These women uplifted me in my darkest times. Sharing my secrets and my joys. I love these ladies!
3.)My husband. This year there was a point Rod was lower than I had ever seen or experienced before. I had no idea what I was doing, or how to continue to help him or if my help was hurting him. But God knew what he was doing. This is my blog, not my husbands. His story is his to tell, and for that reason I will not go into to much detail but one moment our life was flipped turned upside down and God totally changed "meant evil against me, but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20). Today Rod, although not perfect, it trying harder to "put of the old man" as Paul says in the book of Ephesians. I love to see him worship and some of our greatest moments in life these days, are spent side by side worshipping together at church. The "everyone service", changed us both forever, as well as the brotherhood Rod feels in his small group. I could not list these men even if I wanted too because what happens in small group stays in small group. It may sound silly to you, but it allows for a freedom that you can only describe once you have experienced. These men know who they are, and I am thankful for the friendship they have provided Rod.
4.) My wedding band it super loose because of my weight loss, and as a result I wear it on my middle finger. Never did I expect to loose it in the front yard on a very dark night. Rod & I searched for HOURS in the dark on our hands & knee's, only to come up with one of the two parts of the ring set. I cried most of the night, and begged God to please help me to find my ring! It was more than the ring, it was the symbol of what it meant that I needed to find. I reluctantly asked for prayer about finding a lost object, and K asked bluntly what did I loose?? Since I thought it was best not to lie in church, I told my Sunday morning class about my ring. During the second day of crawling around on our leaf filled lawn, two cars pulled up in front of our house and out poured my Sunday morning class and all of thier kids to help search through our lawn to find my ring. My heart was over flowing with the love I felt from my friends at that moment. Did you ever find a group of people you knew you were meant to be with?? That was the moment when down on my knees searching for my ring that my search became praise. When Rod & I left our last church, we lost many friends and I mourned the loss of their friendship for a long time. It was amazing how God had replaced those friendships 10 fold, with honest sincere friends who in our time of craziness never stepped back and through their hands up but joined in! My sincerest prayer is that my boys have friends like this when they are adults!
5.) Korbin's Testimony. We sat together on his bed trying to write out his testimony. It had to be his words, but for a 7 & 9/10ths year old boy putting your feelings into words is very, very hard! As he began to cry in frustration, I left him alone to be with his thoughts. After a few minutes, the words flowed and it was amazing to see God working through my baby. It was just as amazing to hear his word broadcast through out the church just moments before he was baptized.
6) God's perfect timing. Just 2 weeks before Rod's unemployment was do to run out completely, the Lord lead Rod to the right job. We received his very last UIA check the very day he started with the company he is at now. Of course, we are still praying that the temporary assignment will become permanent but we can very literally see that God will never leave us nor forsake us.
7.) On Wednesday night our church did a "move" service where everyone in the church changed places, the adults were where the kids usually were, the teens were where the adults had always been and the kids moved to the teens spot. In one of the rooms, Ms. W shared a very personal, private story about " Be Still and Know that I am God". Recently, I had purchased a small little plaque that quotes the scripture and I really was unsure why I had to have that particular item, but without thinking too long I purchase the 5.99 item and was on my way. It was clear to me that night, why God had laid on my heart that item and now He was using Ms. W's story to tell me again, "Be Still and Know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).
It is clear to me now, that is post is meant to be one of several or it will be w a y too long. I will continue on again tomorrow, as we start a new month, I will continue to reflect on 25 little things!
~Kristy~
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