God showed up!!

Don't you just love it when God shows up and exceeds your expectations! I know I do. You would also think by now I should know that God is in the business of blowing my socks off with what He can do.

This past weekend I went to a prayer retreat. God started working on my heart before I even got there...so I knew something big was coming! And the way God worked, was not the way I expected. He knew what I needed more than I did!!

This empty nest this has been rocking my world lately. I think for awhile after we moved Brian and I were operating on adrenaline. Well, as you know eventually adrenaline runs out! I spent the first few months just pouring myself into making our house an inviting home. In all our past moves I have had the house to where I wanted it in a matter of weeks...never months. But each of those other moves, I had kids who needed for the house to feel familiar and like home. This time, the kids weren't here, so I took my time. To be honest I think I did that so that I would have something to distract me from the fact that this fall our homeschool no longer had students. I decided to keep busy and deal with that "later".

Well, "later" came and with it came the tears and sadness again. All these emotions arrived just in time for the prayer retreat! My newest saying is that I wonder what I want to be when my kids grow up. So, I figured this weekend God would give me that answer! He didn't! But He gave me something even better...peace!

This prayer retreat was so amazing. We were given lots of time to study and pray on our own. We were given some direction, but we were also told it was our prayer retreat to do with what we needed done. And God knew what I needed!

There is so much God and I talked about this weekend, but Saturday afternoon is where He really worked. We were given the assignment to get outside and find something in nature to bring back and share how God used it to speak to us. There are these amazing benches at Trout Lake Camps that have Bible verses on them. Who knew a bench with a Bible verse could be so powerful?! Well, they were for me, and I didn't even find them all. I found the ones God knew I needed to find! Numbers 6:24-25...the Lord bless and keep you...Romans 15:13...may the God of peace fill you with all joy and peace...Psalm 105:4...look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always...

The way God used these particular verses was to tell me I need to seek him, I need to trust Him, I need to lean on Him for answers. The word, always, in the last verse got me...I need to make seeking Him more a part of my life. In seeking Him, studying His word, worshiping constantly through my day, then He will show me my purpose and what He wants me to do in this new phase of my life. He also showed me that there are ministry opportunities already before me that I need to embrace. But, also that it is Him that I truly need to embrace.

In the midst of this amazing experience I found my nature object lesson to share with the group.

This leaf is huge!

 It is a big leaf and the change in my life is big. Just as this leaf has a hole, I too have a hole...one that is there because my day to day job of mom has changed. Spring is coming, and the tree that lost this leaf will have fresh green leaves. My life is undergoing a season of fall and winter, but spring is coming. The new leaves on that tree will not have holes in them...they will be whole. God will fill the hole in my life...but only God can fill that hole. I have to let Him. I can't just jump into a ton of activities thinking they will be the answer...because they won't.

The bench I next found had this verse...Psalm 149:3...Let them praise His name with dancing! As God works on my heart to prepare me for the next season of my life, my heart is dancing and praising Him. I am waiting with great anticipation to see how He grows me in this season!! Growth occurs in the valley...so I am primed for growth!!!

Our time of singing praise to the Lord were powerful as well...this is the cross I focused on during those times of amazing praise and worship.