Tag Archives: Journey

{When the Basket is Full}

Adventure, Calling, Contentment;, Journey, Peace, Protection, redemption, Rest, ,

Laundry is common thing to every housewife and/or mama. Some days it may feel like a mundane task, because the laundry basket never seems to stay empty for very long at all. I mean, it just feels rather overwhelming at times.

But here’s the thing.

I love doing laundry.

I always have and probably always will.

What a joy to put smelly clothes into the washer and just an hour or so later, you have clean, fresh smelling laundry.

Ahh! So satisfying.

But here’s the kicker.

I don’t like folding laundry and putting it away.

I don’t like it sitting in the laundry basket either.

I enjoy the satisfying feeling of once it’s all done, as in folded and put away.

But folding and putting away, uhm meh😳🥴My general plan consists of just getting the laundry folded and put away as soon as it drys, that way it’s done and I can move on to other things. You know, fun things that I actually enjoy.

But God took me to a place far past the laundry basket being empty, far past being caught up with laundry, I mean it’s not like it’s a status thing to be caught up on laundry, yes it’s nice but there’s more important things.

Here’s where God took me and it challenged me. Would I rather have an overflowing laundry basket and my children’s hearts taken care of or an empty laundry basket and a child/children that feel unheard and misunderstood?

Oh Lord, give us grace, wisdom, courage and strength to keep our eyes focused on what’s important. You as a mama, are teaching and nurturing your children for all of life! And God’s Mercies are new every Morning!❤️

Maybe it’s the not the laundry basket for you, maybe it’s something else, but whatever it may be, just know it’s okay to not always have it perfect. You are human! God is the giver of much wisdom and grace! Ask Him and He will give it to you❤️

“You are Loved”

Calling, Contentment;, Freedom, Healing, Journey, Love, Protection, redemption, Safety,
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:4‬ ‭

With Today being Valentine’s Day, a day of celebrating love, we spend lots of money on flowers, cards and chocolate. And I will be the first to admit that, chocolate and flowers are some of my favorite gifts that have been given to me by my dear husband. It’s a joy to receive such a fun gift.

There’s three groups of people I would like to acknowledge in this particular post regarding Valentine’s Day.

To the lady or guy that is single or widowed and you feel like no one has noticed you or even said anything about celebrating today. Maybe some of you even joked that today would best be named, single awareness day, I have been there. In fact, I used to hate Valentine’s Day, I would be absent on social media that particular day, because I couldn’t stand the thought of seeing yet one more sappy post. So yes, for some of you it’s a hard day, and it’s okay to admit that, in fact I would encourage you to admit that it’s a tough day for you. If you have lost your beloved spouse, I am sorry, my heart weeps for you. But I do want to encourage you and remind you, that you are Loved, you are important and you are cared for, first and most important, by your Heavenly Father who created you! You are Loved❤️ And I challenge you to embrace the Father in this journey you are on, May you rest knowing His grace is sufficient.

The second group of people that I want to speak to and encourage is, those of you who either didn’t get flowers, chocolate and etc. because you chose not to celebrate this Valentine’s Day, or maybe it was because financially you could not afford to buy anything extra or special. I want you to know, it’s okay! My encouragement is that you love your spouses me those around you unconditionally, and still let them know you love them and you are thankful for them. Speak words of blessing over them, that is such a gift all in itself! And when you see the sappy posts and bouquets of flowers in social media, enjoy the Beauty of them, but please don’t allow jealousy and bitterness to take root in your heart, because you don’t have any flowers! And may you also know you are Loved by your Heavenly Father, rest in that, He is Enough!

And lastly, to all the spouses and fiancés that are celebrating and did receive gifts, flowers and etc. Enjoy them, take all the pictures you want! It’s okay to do that! But also remember, the flowers will wilt, the chocolate will be ate, the most important thing is that you love each other and tell each other that! Don’t even stop that! God has brought you two together for a reason, seek Him and He will lead you. You are Loved by Him❤️

So what is Love to you? How do you show/portray love to a desperate world that longs to fulfill the God sized vacancy within them?

Frequently in today’s culture and society, love is something that feels good, sugarcoating what truth is, just like slapping a bandaid over on a wound and hoping it heals.

Just as we know that a wound will not heal if the proper care is not given, in the same way, we know at some point in every situation, truth must be spoken, and very likely feelings will be hurt and there may be someone offended by the truth.

Love is speaking the hard things, speaking truth in a society, during a time when truth is often swept under the rug and what we want to hear and what feels good to us is spoken instead.

Warrior friends, are we willing to still speak the truth, knowing it may cost us some heartaches and trials? Will you stand the test and still stand for truth? Will you love your spouse even in the hardest of times?

Just remember you are Loved by One who Died for you on the Cross.

You are Loved❤️

•God is the Author•

Healing, Journey, redemption, restoration

With head bowed, tears streaming down his face he turned and walked away from the grave where he had just laid the love of his life, he thought he had prepared himself for this moment, yet when those first shovels of dirt landed in that grave, the emotions within himself were like a fresh fountain turned wide open. The physical state of his heart felt like a freshly plowed field, each furrow laying in plain sight for all the world to see, and oh the pain, it felt like an endless, lonely road to walk.

She awoke with a start in the early morning hours, unsure of what had startled her awake, but she was aware that her physical being was in tremendous levels of pain. Her heart feeling like it was ripped from her chest and shredded into millions of unrecognizable pieces. The reality was there was a painful path she needed to walk to find healing from past wounds caused by those who should have protected but had caused pain instead. Read more 👇🏾 http://southerngalwithadventures.blog 2018/03/03/596/

A few months pass by, the heartache within him was lessening, yes of course the pain and loneliness was still ever so real, but the Father in His gentle and compassionate way was healing what had been ripped wide open, was ever so gently being knit back together. The journey was hard, but the Lord was with him and gave him strength.

For her the months that had passed were somewhat of a blur, many days she barely had the strength to keep on going, but the Father In His tender compassion carried her along and she was beginning to find joy even amidst the hardest of days and she now began to understand the Father’s love in a new dimension.

In his heart he knew that the Lord was asking him to trust Him in a new depth, and to begin to seek to love again. He knew it, he felt it and he told the Lord, one day as he was seeking Him for direction, “Even though I may never see the light of day again, I will still serve You!”

The Lord spoke to her so distinctly one day as she walked to the mailbox, “My daughter, there is part of your heart you have not entrusted to me. Will you allow me to care for the part of your heart, where a man will someday care for you? I promise you, my daughter, I will take care of you!” Her answer was a barely audible yes, despite the tears, but she knew it was the Lord speaking!

Another month passes by, and now it’s obvious, the Lord has and is still speaking. A prophetic word given by the Lord is being fulfilled and while she never dreamt a story would unfold as such, the Lord orchestrated and sees a picture much bigger then we could ever lay our eyes on. What a mighty God we serve!🙌🏽💃🏽😭

“For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.” Psalms‬ ‭66:10-12

Two lives, two hearts, and now He has led them together, to pursue each other, to dare to love again!

‬ ‭

The Rose

Healing, Peace, Protection, Rest, Safety

It’s the close of day, the Gardner strolls through His Garden, His eye upon each plant, each blossom and each new bud. He keeps close watch on His rose garden, for it is His Masterpiece.

As He strolls along, He notices a bud, about to burst forth into full bloom. Immediately He stops, checking the structure of the plant, giving it life giving water, adding some extra love(fertilizer) to aid in it reaching its full potential.

“The rose is a rose from the time it is a seed to the time it dies. Within it, at all times, it contains its whole potential. It seems to be constantly in the process of change: Yet at each state, at each moment, it is perfectly all right as it is” ~Coelho

Each rose and each new bud in this garden is so special to the Master and He will do whatever it takes to help it reach it’s full potential, whether that be through pruning or transplanting, each step of the process will be done with Love❤

The following morning as the sun rises, the Gardner enters His Garden once more and begins his morning stroll, admiring the works of His Hands, but suddenly He notices something very startling, for where there was a clean swept path before, there are now wilted petals lying along the path he is walking, so he follows the trail and the sight that meets his eye is horrifying!

The very bud, that was about to burst into full bloom the night before, is Gone! And upon further inspection, it appears hands crushed it, because where there had been potential beauty, there was now utter destruction. Not only was the bud completely gone, the plant itself was already wilted and it looked like life was gone.

The Gardner sprang into immediate action! With the gentlest and most loving hands he picks up the pieces, the broken, the wilted and the crushed. He begins to breathe Life, mending each wounded part, and the pieces that seemed so devoid of life begin to start changing from dark to beautiful. What had been crushed, began to be restored and come back into alignment. Color and life begin to come forth, and as the Master continues His work, the bud begins to show signs of blossoming once again.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord , thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope”
~Jeremiah 29:11

With the Master’s gentle and loving care, the blossom begins to open and a flower emerges, a rose more beautiful then ever blooms. Its stem stronger then before, its roots deeply rooted, and its colors more vibrant then ever before, it is the proof that despite the destruction, the Master redeems and restores Everything, even to deeper levels then before.

My brothers and sisters, the Master’s Garden is the earth and we are the roses! And you are not reading this by mistake, because this message is for you!

“Of one thing I am perfectly sure of, God’s Story never ends with Ashes” ~Elliott

We all have a heart, a spirit and emotions, and unfortunately we all have hurts and pain, and each of those hurts affect us emotionally, physically and spiritually.

Will you allow the Father to gather the broken pieces of your heart, your spirit and your emotions? Will you allow Him to hold you in His loving hands? To restore what is broken and shattered?

He delights in making beauty from the ashes! He restores! He redeems!

“And provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor” ~Isaiah 61:3