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You know what causes that, dontcha?

5/30/2014

***Disclaimer***

All stories that I share on my blog are things that God has showed me in my life. Any convictions I have had are convictions that the Lord has given me. You must discern what the Lord is saying to you.

Now, having said that, I can carry on with the story.

Newly married, living in Nashville, new job...life was good!

Then, all of a sudden...

I should have known that Catholics have always taught these kinds of things. I should have known when I was interviewed and when they asked me about my stance on birth control. I should have known when my co-worker dropped a pamphlet on my desk. I should have known.

Meanwhile, we start attending a church. We attended because Michael W. Smith was the worship leader there. That is so spiritual, right? :) Little did I know that one of the pastor's wives was also teaching about having kids. Little did I know she had a huge ministry, called Above Rubies, which is all about the beauty of motherhood. Little did I know they would invite us to dinner at their house and talk with us. Little did I know.

Brand new town. No friends outside of work. No friends outside of church.

God had me cornered.

I could not escape. It was everywhere I went. Someone talking to me about birth control! Really?! I had grown up in a Christian home. I even volunteered at a pregnancy center while I was in college. I was VERY pro-life. Put me right up there with Mother Theresa.

Well, if children are such blessings, why are you trying so hard to prevent them?

I was not at a place to answer that question. I still had my life to live. My first years of marriage to enjoy, just Michael and me. We did, however, decide (after about a year) to try for our first child. God blessed us with Caroline Elizabeth.

(Just in case you can't tell. . .I'm not one of those moms that puts on makeup and fixes my hair after giving birth. If I get a shower sometime in the first month, I'm doing good!)

But, He was not done with me yet. He would take me to a place where I tried to understand what He meant when He said:

"Or don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body." I Cor. 6:19-20 NLT

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And then there were nun(s).

5/28/2014

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Little did I know how or why God would open a door to work with nuns, of all people.

I saw an ad in the newspaper (remember when you looked for a job in the paper?) for a small, Catholic college in Nashville called Aquinas College. They were looking to hire a recruiter for their school. Perfect! That is the exact job I had at West Texas A&M. So, I sent my resume and cover letter and received a call for an interview.

I don't know if I had ever even met a nun much less worked for one.

When I went for my first interview (I think I had at least 3 or 4 and they lasted for hours), I was a little surprised to see so many women, of all ages, wearing full habits. If you don't know what a habit is, I didn't either. It is what the Sisters wear. Different orders wear different habits. The Sisters I worked for were the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia. They wear black veils and white robes.

The Dominican Sisters are very godly, and their faith challenged me greatly. As well as their teachings. I can still smell the incense that was used during Mass. I can still see myself, just newly married praying in their chapel, and sometimes even kneeling. Yes, kneeling, I miss that. Just getting on my knees in front of a Holy God.

I went through a grueling interview process....really! It was! And why they hired me, not being Catholic, was nothing short of a miracle. Considering that I would be "the face" of the college at high schools, college fairs, etc.

But God knew exactly what He was doing.

This is my story...

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A Prophetic Word Over Michael

5/22/2014

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Our first year of marriage, Michael and I took a missions class called, Perspectives.

It is a 15 week course in which you study God's plan for the world. . .His love for mankind. . .your part in the story, etc. It was a good experience.

But one day it became very personal for us.

All of us were sitting in chairs in a semi-circle and the teacher was standing in the middle. She was lecturing, as usual, then she stopped mid-sentence and walked toward Michael. She said,

"Young man, God is going to use you. He is not finished with you yet. God is going to restore the years that the locusts have eaten."

Then she went right back into her lecture.

We were stunned. We wrote it down in our journals, and we held tight to that word. Little did we know how the locusts would begin their descent into our lives.

This is my story...

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Passion 1998

5/5/2014

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The Passion Conference in Austin, TX in 1998 had a major impact on my life.

You know...the one with Beth Moore, Louie Giglio, David Crowder...well, forget all of that!

My Sister, Katherine, and I at Passion 1998.

This was the one of the clearest times that the Living God spoke directly to me.

We had just finished attending a worship service, and the leader asked everyone to go to a quiet place and seek God. So, I went out to the foyer of the convention center and laid down. I can still feel my face on that gray, cold, concrete floor.

"Alright, Lord. I am all yours. Speak to me."

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Day 1

5/1/2014

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It’s been on my heart, for a while now, to start sharing my stories.

I accepted Christ on Easter morning when I was five years old. My mom led me in a sinner’s prayer while we sat at the kitchen counter. My life was pretty easy and smooth sailing while living at home and even throughout my college years. I did well at my university, had a lot of great friends, served in leadership roles in my sorority, was almost homecoming queen….just had a total blast and, well, life was pretty much all about me and pretty problem-free!

The top 3 candidates for Homecoming Queen--the girl on the right won.

I got a job, as soon as I graduated, working for my alma mater, West Texas A&M University. I was a recruiter and traveled all over my great, home state of Texas speaking with students. That was when I met my soon-to-be husband. He was a recruiter for Belmont University. We hit it off and were married nine months later. That’s when I moved to Nashville.

That’s when the great unraveling process began.

I laugh when I explain it to my husband!  No, it wasn’t that marriage was bad or moving away was sad or any of that!  It’s just that that was when God had planned to pretty much turn my world upside down. Remove anything that I felt was a sure place to put my foot.  Remove anything that I put my trust in.  Remove any idea of thinking I had it all together and knew everything.  I think that that is when the deconstruction began. When the tearing down began.  When he started chipping away at the exterior…only to find out it would be years before the studs were exposed and He could start rebuilding the way He wanted to.

Over the next several days, weeks or months (I’m not really sure), I am going to share how He did this. There are a lot of stories. Throughout all of this process, I kept telling Michael that we were going to have so many stories to share.   Some are so unbelievable that they have God written all over them. I couldn't make them up if I wanted to! They are nothing short of God's work in our lives.

This is my story…

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You know what causes that, dontcha?

And then there were nun(s).

A Prophetic Word Over Michael

Passion 1998

Day 1

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