clarity

Sabbatical brought to you by: Generosity and Grace

Many of us have dreams of where we would like to visit or vacation. Perhaps the beach. Maybe the mountains. Or it could be somewhere ritzy.

For me… I just wanted… AWAY.

God called me to come away with Him this weekend. I had some incredible time alone, by myself, just Jesus and I in Pine Mountain, Georgia. He recharged my heart, mind and soul for doing His work. I could talk about the words He spoke to me for about a month’s worth of blog posts. But I will spare you all of the major details… For now. ;-) (Don’t worry– Thanks to this weekend, I’ve got plenty of new Jesus revelations to share AMERICA! )

But for this current moment, know that my sabbatical weekend was filled with generosity and grace.

At the risk of sounding like an award acceptance speech, this weekend wouldn’t have been possible without the following folks’ generosity:

  • Thank you to my dear friend Lauren for covering my duties at church on Sunday
  • Thank you to my  friend/boss/mentor Kelli for praying for me and encouraging me to be obedient to “Come away”
  • Thank you to my darling husband who provided the finances and encouragement to have my own “retreat” while he attended our church’s mens retreat.
  • Thank you to Debby and the Homestead Log Cabins family for being so generous and making this weekend financially feasible.

How I got hooked up with Homestead Log Cabins is a long (awesome) Jesus generosity story, but I will give you the semi-abbreviated version: As of last Thursday afternoon, I still hadn’t found anywhere to “go away” for the weekend. I knew I needed to be in nature since it is where I am closest to God, but I also knew He wanted me to rest. (Which is why sleeping in a tent wasn’t legit. It’s a TON of work to do by yourself. And a lot of planning.) I was getting desperate because no where I called had availability or was even remotely affordable for a woman (that would be me) working for Jesus dollars.

God laid Homestead Log Cabins on my heart earlier in the week as I had called them a few weeks ago when my cousin was down… but I knew it still cost dinero. But I was getting desperate. I pleaded with God during CRAVE on Thursday that if He really wanted me to come away for the weekend, He was going to have to make a way.

So at the nudging of God, I called Homestead Log Cabins. I talked to Debby and pretty much word vomited what I needed for the weekend. It wasn’t a vacation. It wasn’t a romantic getaway (although it was awesome to be with the Ultimate Lover of my Soul.) I simply needed a roof. And a bed. Out of town. AWAY.

After some quick negotiation with the manager, she gave me an incredibly generous deal for the weekend. I almost cried.

It was a sweet little three bedroom chalet on the lake. She said that she firmly believe that all of their reservations “Come through God.”

Isn't Jesus gorgeous??

Oh. Did I mention this adorable weekend home was owned by a preacher? Talk about divine intervention.

So long story still long, my weekend with Jesus was incredible. I left my laptop and iPad at home… and just sat at His feet. Thank you to Homestead Log Cabins for their incredible generosity (don’t be shy about booking them for your next Georgia getaway!) And thank you Jesus for a weekend full of grace.

Refreshed and Ready,
SGK

“My lover spoke and said to me, “Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me.” Song of Solomon 2:10

PS: Don’t forget! “A Latte Love” contest to win a Starbucks gift card is still going on until the article runs in the Bayonet this week. Be sure to share this post with your friends and leave a comment here!

Categories: adventure, attitude, clarity, faith, God, hope, Love, relax, rest, retreat | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Clarity in the Chaos

Today I have a little brain teaser for you… What does this mean to you?

DLEKMTRUSTIPWETRTIINWIGNXTHESLEQP
PDRELORDADVCWITHOIWTHIALLSLGMDIW
CYOUR XSAQLKHEARTCRETWMEAMENLSGF

Is it just a random jumble of letters to you? Or were you able to break it down and see something hidden in the chaos? Not sure? Look again…

DLEKMTRUSTIPWETRTIINWIGNXTHESLEQP
PDRELORDADVCWITHOIWTHIALLSLGMDIW
CYOUR XSAQLKHEARTCRETWMEAMENLSGF

Cool, huh? It’s amazing what we can see when we take a few moments to slow down and look closer at something that initially looks a little bit chaotic. (It kind of looks like I just punched the keyboard.)  This isn’t just true for randomly created puzzles for a blog… It also holds true to God’s plan for our lives.

Life can be CUH-RAZY. Sometimes it seems like plans change every 14 seconds. It is hard to keep up, let alone embrace and thrive in the midst of it. We can easily become confused or overwhelmed if we try to deal with all of our issues/challenges/questions all at once.

But here’s the best part: God has already got it figured out. He breaks it down and feeds it to us in little chunks. Sure, sometimes it feels as if we are going to choke on those chunks. And I know it is cliche– but God really isn’t going to give us more than we can handle.

Anyone else out there ever beg God to show you the “whole picture?” I know I do. Especially in the midst of tragedy or trial. “God, why oh why am I faced with this?!? Tell me what the purpose is!!” As much as I think I want to see the big picture, I believe there is a very legitimate reason as to why God doesn’t give us the whole big picture of our life mission at once.

If He did, we would like to think that we would say “Ok, that make sense, Father. Thanks for that. I appreciate the clarification. It’s cool. Do yo thang.” But if we are being perfectly honest with ourselves, I can’t help but wonder if we wouldn’t be overwhelmed with the huge things that would eventually be facing us.

I would probably feel the same way you did when looking at that “brainteaser” above. I personally might be inclined to panic. Or be confused.  My eyes would swim. A headache would approach. I’m a human. I would probably still want to doubt God’s plan. Or at least negotiate.

Sometimes it feels like life is one big puzzle.

I don’t know what you are facing right now in your life. I would be willing to guess that things aren’t always hunky-dory perfect. Maybe things seem overwhelming… confusing… scary… uncertain… or just straight up give you a headache.

But there’s great news. God is the ultimate problem solver. He is going to take a the jumbled up word puzzle that is our life and show us the answers. It might take awhile. But eventually, God will reveal His plan for our life, whether on this side of heaven or the next.

What things seems chaotic in your life right now? Share your story by commenting below– I would love to pray for you! And  remember that you can trust God with all your heart… and He will ALWAYS bring clarity in the chaos… no matter how long it takes.

From clueless to clarified,
SGK

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.” –Proverbs 3:5-6 (MSG)

Categories: chaos, clarity, confusion, God, puzzle | Tags: , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

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