Mother's Day...

I know it has been an eternity since I last posted. I honestly haven't been too inspired to write lately--until today! Thank goodness...I needed some inspiration! Today is Mother's Day. I will start out by saying that I have been TRULY BLESSED to have such an amazing person to be my mom! My mom is such an awesome example of what a great, Godly mother looks like. I have always had a pretty unique relationship with my mother. She is my mom, yes, but she is also one of my best friends. I have the best of both worlds. The thing I have always admired about my mom is that she has always been my "mother" first and foremost. Sometimes growing up, this may not have made me the happiest--especially at times when I didn't get what I wanted. But now I admire her so much for sticking to what she believed was best for my well being, even when I couldn't see it! As the years have passed, my mom has still been my "mother" but has also become so much more than that! She is the person who has listened to me cry when my heart was breaking, and she is the person who was there for the most exciting, joyous times of my life. She has taught me SO much about life. I owe so much to her. I couldn't have asked God for a more amazing woman to be my mom! Today, at church, a girl sang a song dedicated to her mother. I was surged by emotion and thought I was going to sob my eyes out. I couldn't keep my tears in. They were tears of gratitude for what my mom has done for me...they were tears of sadness because I couldn't be with her on Mother's day...but they were also tears of excitement. Tears of excitement...may seem weird. But as I sat there listening to the song, I thought about how amazing it will be to be a mother! Anyone who knows me well will probably know that I could honestly care less about a career or bringing in lots of money. I want to be a wife and a mom. I have always dreamed about it. Half of my dream has come true. I am blessed to be the wife of my favorite person on the planet. I look so forward to the day when I can become a mom! Before that day comes, I still have a lot of growing I need to do. I have a lot of learning I need to do. What a huge responsibility mother's have-but what a blessing! I am so blessed to know so many Godly women who are amazing Godly mothers and wives who I can learn from and seek advice from. To all you mothers out there-- Happy Mother's Day! May God bless you as you raise your family! Be blessed! Jenn

Love Challenge...

So...I know I mentioned in an earlier post that my New Year's "goal" was to become more like Christ. More like Him in action, thought, and heart. This is not always an easy task...which is why I daily ask for guidance in this journey. All this being said, the Lord has been revealing one thing me over and over lately. It's hit me like a ton of bricks. Love. Such a small word--but it's a huge action (and an action that does not always come so naturally)! God has really been "tweaking" my heart lately about what it means to love. I could say that I am a loving person--but a lot of the times I love when it's easy. It is easy to love my husband. It is easy to love my family. But what about that person who thrives on negativity? What about that person who is dirty and poor? What about that person who hurts me over and over? It's not so easy to love in those circumstances. What I have come to realize is that I am all of those people I mentioned above. I am hard to love. How many times have I been negative and didn't fully trust in the Lord's provision? How many times have I been filthy with sin? How many times have I made my Savior cry because I have strayed away? The simple fact is this: God loves me. Period. He loves me always...unconditionally...wholly...faithfully... If it is my goal to be like Christ...I must love always...unconditionally...wholly...faithfully...Even when it seems impossible! After all, it is my job to share Christ with others and further His kingdom. If God is love, and I show others love, then in the end they get a glimpse of God. My prayer and challenge is that I will learn how to love like Christ. I have a long way to go...but the Lord is changing my heart and it's exciting! Be blessed... Jenn

Don't Lose Hope...

"Don't lose hope..." "Put your hope in the Lord..." These are words I have been uttering to myself a lot lately. These are words I have shared with others lately. How easy it seems for us to lose hope. Tradgedies, sickness, death, hate...sadness, loss, pain, hurt...all things that can steal our hope away from us. I would be untruthful if I said there were never a time in my own life where I lost all hope or felt like giving up. Sadly, there have been many. I can honestly say, that even in these dark times where I feel like all hope is lost, the Lord restores hope in my life. He proves to be faithful over and over again. I am blessed to be a child of God. I have often wondered how people survive without Christ. How do they get through life's tough times? Because I believe in a God much bigger than myself, I am learning to truly cling to hope. I am holding on with all that I am. Sometimes my hope in the Lord is all that can get me through. Without it, I don't know where I would be. I choose to put my hope in the Lord because He knows my every thought and has ordained all of my days before they came to be (Psalm 139). I choose to put my hope in the Lord because He is FAITHFUL. I choose to put my hope in Him because He "works for the GOOD of those who love Him" (Romans 8:28). I choose to put my hope in the Lord, because in the end HE wins. Be hopeful in the Lord, even when it seems impossible, because He loves you! "Let us hold UNSWERVINGLY to the HOPE we profess, for He who has promised IS FAITHFUL!" ---Hebrews 10:23 Be blessed! Jenn

Forgetting...

I have never really been one to forget things. I rarely ever forgot my homework when I was in school. I hardly ever forget where I put my keys. I don't forget what people say to me very often. I guess you could say that I make mental notes in my head a lot. The last couple days I have had to almost laugh at myself because I have just been so forgetful and distracted. I was attempting to go to the store the other day, and literally had to get out of my car and go back into the house 3 different times because I forgot stuff that I needed. My husband was here, and thought it was pretty funny. The best thing I have done occurred this morning. I was in the shower shaving my legs, and I guess I got distracted. By what, I have no idea. I was putting moisturizer on later on in the morning, and realized that only one of my legs was shaved. Only one. I thought it was hilarious. Pretty cute only having one leg shaved and the other one all prickly. I think a lot of times in life we get distracted by "unimportant" things, and it causes us to forget. We forget the important things in life that really matter. We forget to take time to call up our friends and family to let them know we love them. We forget to spend time with the Lord. We forget to pray. We forget because we are distracted by the other things in life that are being thrown at us. Satan thrives on distracting us. He throws obstacles at us, tells us lies, and fills our thoughts with worries. When he distracts us--we fall into his trap and fall away from the Lord. Watch out for the distractions that are thrown your way. Focus on not forgetting the important things in life :) Be blessed! Jennifer

How is it 2010 already?

I am such a slacker when it comes to blogging! Well, here we are with a new year ahead of us. I cannot believe it is already 2010...so weird! I am at the point that I am at every year where I have a hard time writing the correct date...I am still stuck in 2009. I am happy that 2009 is over with. It was an amazing year, but a crazy one at the same time. It is always nice to have a new beginning. I need some refreshment in my life. It gives us all a chance to reprioritize and reorganize. A little update on our holiday season: It was amazing! We spent Christmas in Brewton and New Years in Pensacola, therefore getting to see EVERYONE we loved! I have missed my family so much. I have missed Pensacola so much. There is so much to be said about familiarity. Something in me just automatically became joyful when I was where I consider to be "home." I feel like I have been so far from "familiar" that it was refreshing to be around what/who I know and love. One of the highlights of our Christmas was getting a Wii from my parents and some pretty awesome Wii games from David's family. I have wanted one for a long time, but never expected to get one! I am pretty much in love with our Wii! David and I have so much fun playing it together, and competing against one another (by the way, I win MOST of the time!). Now that I have caught up on life...a little about what God is teaching me! I know it may have been evident in several of my past blogs that I was seriously struggling with this season of my life. I was questioning everything and losing faith. I was so anxious that it was making me sick, and I seriously thought something was wrong with me. For a while, I wondered where God was...why wasn't He listening to me? I finally just gave in...and God took over. He has filled me with so much PEACE and JOY! I am feeling like Jenn again...and not like this person who is losing her mind! Satan was getting to me, but I am sooo thankful that I serve a God who reigns supreme! Last weekend, when we were in Pensacola, we were able to go to our church, Liberty Church, which is ALWAYS a blessing. I have never left that building not being moved or encouraged! My brother-in-law, Amick, is the worship leader there. During worship, he said something that hit me hard. He talked about how we all make resolutions to lose weight, or get our finances in order, or whatever...but then he said WHY DON'T WE MAKE IT OUR GOAL FOR THIS YEAR TO BECOME MORE LIKE CHRIST? That is my ultimate prayer for this year. To be more like Christ. To listen more intently to what He is saying. To take the time to study His word. To spend time talking to Him everyday. To trust and seek Him in everything. To lose my life so that I may live. What are your goals for the New Year? Praying peace and good health on all of you this this New Year! Be blessed! Jenn

Christmas is almost here!

So, right now I should be packing, but I am avoiding it. What better way to do that than to catch up on my blog. It has been a long time since I have last written! December has been a pretty crazy month for both me and the hubby. I think I am finally adjusting to my new job. I have my good days, and my not so good days--but all in all I am thankful that God has provided me with a job! David (after two weeks of final exams) is finally on a break, which means I get to have my husband back for a while. It is hard having your spouse in school, especially around the end of the semester. I literally didn't see him for like two weeks. He was either at school or stuck in our office studying! There was a lot of stress those two weeks--him being stressed out just makes me stressed out, but God was so good and helped David survive his tests! He did great and finished the semester strong...I am so proud of him! We have definitely enjoyed being able to spend some time together! We added a new addition to our family after a lot of consideration. We have a new puppy named Duke. He is an eight month old Boston Terrier with a great personality! I must admit, I have never really liked Boston Terriers--their buggy eyes kind of freak me out--but I guess Duke is okay. David may love him more than he loves me :) Kitty is still adjusting to not being the only pet...but him and Duke are beginning to play together. I love our little family :) Tomorrow, David and me are heading to Brewton to spend Christmas with my family! I am so excited about seeing them, and getting to spend some time with them. It is going to be great! I hope that everyone has a very BLESSED and happy Christmas with their families! May God bless you all, and may we all be thankful for why we celebrate Christmas in the first place! Jenn

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year...

December is here, believe it or not. I have to admit that this fact makes me slightly giddy! I absolutely love this time of the year. How could you not? Christmas decorations, pretty lights, Santa Clause, singing Christmas tunes, family traditions, and most importantly--taking time to reflect on the birth of our Savior. The other day, I decorated our home for the holidays, which brought me so much happiness. As I decorated, I thought about the story of Christ's birth, and although I have read it a million times, I had to read it again. The story of Christ's birth is almost magical to me. It is one of those stories that draws you in. And the amazing thing about it is that it is completely true and factual! How powerful our God is! As I read the story, I thought about Mary's character. What an amazing woman she was! She may be one of my favorite characters in the Bible. Honestly, if I would have been in her position, I would have probably said, "God, are you crazy?" and ran the other direction! Mary was a true example of what a servant of God looks like. When the angel informed Mary of God's plan for her, she didn't grumble...she didn't question "Why me, Lord" but instead she replied "I am the Lord's servant...May it be according to Your word" (Luke 1:18). There have been many times in my own life where I wish I would have had the attitude of Mary. There are times when I have felt the Lord leading me to do something, but fear and lack of faith stopped me. I feel like sometimes I almost argue with God like a child-- "But why?" or "Please don't ask me to do this!" If only I had had Mary's spirit of servanthood. It is good to read on in the story. God asked something great of Mary--and He never once left her out to dry. He took care of her and blessed her with HIS Son! We have to remember that as God's children--He will do the same for us. May we always strive to say, " I am the Lord's servant..." Be Blessed! Jenn