“So neither the one who plants or the one who waters is anything but only God who causes things to grow.” 1 Corinthians 3:7

Firmly Planted and Growing. . .

This morning I had the privilege of speaking to the women at The Gate in Franklin, TN. What a precious group of girls. So much life represented there. One hopeful mommy is now expecting after several miscarriages and we had a sweet time of prayer for another still believing for her miracle. Here’s a little bit of what I shared after I told my story. This has been on my heart for some time now. Nothing completely earth-shattering but I believe good reminders for us no matter what it is we are walking through.

I’ve always said, we never know what the Lord is going to require of us because he is more concerned with our growth and his glory than any outcome here on earth. I never imagined how true that would be for me. I’m sure many of you can say the same. We never start out on the journey expecting it to be hard. We are wide-eyed and hopeful. I know I was.

Throughout my journey to motherhood, I kept asking the Lord to spare me any more heartache so I could see how deep my relationship with him would go apart from sorrow. But I realized, the heartaches and the sorrows are the rain that cause our growth. Without them we would remain stagnant and unfruitful.

And growth requires both sunshine and rain. Too much sunshine without the rain leads to drought. Too much rain without sunshine leads to flooding. We need to seek him for balance but hope for both sunshine and rain to nourish us. This is how we become firmly planted and ultimately grow.

This Thanksgiving season I challenge you {as I am also challenging myself} to ask the questions:

What things are sunshine in my life?
What things are the rain?

Acknowledge and thank him for it all. Your life and it’s growth and fruitfulness require both.

Thankful for sunshine and rain,
Jessica

I have to confess something. . . transitioning from one to two kids has really rocked my world {thus the lack of blog posts from me, sorry}. It’s been as if the very lives I begged God to bless me with have become too much of a burden. I’m ashamed to admit those feelings. But I attended a women’s retreat this weekend about getting real so this is me getting real. I had such a time of refreshment in those 24 hours I got to spend with other women – no little people demanding my attention. It’s amazing what a day to yourself can do for your soul.

My biggest take away was actually something I’ve blogged about before. Having a heart of gratitude and thanksgiving. When things get tough or overwhelming, it’s a heart of thanks that will put everything back into perspective and give us the grace we need to continue. Gratitude refills our tanks and fuels us to keep moving, even when our bodies and souls are worn out and tired. It requires a daily refocusing of the heart and mind. . .a practice that I often forget in the midst of changing diapers and managing meltdowns.

I did not ever complete my list of One Thousand Gifts {I got to 250} so as I once again purpose to practice daily gratitude, I am committed to add to my list. And for those mommies or women like me who have been struggling during this season, I offer this prayer that I am praying this morning:

Dear God, Thank you for your tremendous blessings.  As I look into the face of my children, I see Your love and grace. Please give me the wisdom and strength I need to get through today, as I steward the gifts you’ve graciously given me. Forgive me for allowing my weariness to overshadow your goodness. You are worthy of so much more than I can offer but still, I will offer you my best thanksgiving. I love you. Amen.

What are you thanking Him for today? We’d love to hear your best thanksgiving as we hope to foster an attitude of gratitude amongst our readers during this season leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday. . .

So thankful,

Jessica

My pastor gave a powerful sermon on Lent this past Sunday. What I loved about how he presented this age-old religious practice was how he clarified that Lent doesn’t have to be about giving something up. Lent is about the addition or subtraction of something in your spiritual life that causes you to focus on the season leading up to Christ’s death and resurrection. I was so relieved to know that I was not a failure because I couldn’t give up chocolate for 40 days each year. I don’t believe I’ve ever successfully observed Lent. Probably because my goals were too lofty and thus I became so fixated on what I was giving up that I missed the very thing I should have been focused on. How counter-productive.

This past week I started reading an amazing book: One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. I have to admit, I reluctantly picked up this book. I’ve followed Ann’s blog for a while now so I knew she was an amazing writer. But having worked in the publishing industry I’ve grown very cynical to new books. They all say the same thing with merely a different, polished title and pretty cover. I couldn’t stomach another voice. But I love Ann’s writing on her blog so I bought the book. I began reading over a month ago and it confirmed immediately that yes, she is a wonderful writer. Yet only 4 or 5 pages in, the book sat on my coffee table for weeks. I just couldn’t further contribute to the noise inside my head. As I gathered my things to set out for Tulsa late last week, I spotted the book on the table as I scanned the room for something to read on my flight. The book is small so it would fit nicely in my purse. Why not? I’ve got time to spare, I thought. Crammed into my seat on Delta flight 2089 I opened that book and was immediately drawn back in. With two legs to Tulsa and two legs back, I read and read and couldn’t put it down. To say that Ann is a wonderful writer is an understatement. She is poetic and prolific and a beautiful translator of words that could only have come straight from God. Within the first few chapters I was broken, challenged and encouraged in a way that doesn’t happen with many Christian books. Ann lead me on her own journey of gratitude and I felt like I was right by her side.

Despite a simple life filled with loss and disappointment, Ann found herself challenged to give words to the many gifts that surrounded her daily. Life’s simple blessings. The book chronicles her journey in documenting those gifts. It’s as if the revelation of each new gift gave way to another. And the gratitude is exponential. It just keeps growing and growing. I thought reading about such a journey would make me feel guilty and condemned for not feeling that level of gratitude in my own life. But it didn’t. It made me excited to begin my own journey of thankfulness.

So in this season of Lent, I am adding One Thousand Gifts to my life. I am purposing to add daily gratitude that will allow me to focus on the gifts God has given me, most of all his son, Jesus.  I may not get all the way to 1000 in 40 days but I will begin my journey during this time. In a season where life is ever changing and out of control, I am excited about the thought of taking time to stop and count my blessings. It sounds so simple but it’s a profound process. . .one that I know will forever change me.

So here I go: My One Thousand Gifts:

1. Grace, by which I stand

2. Miracle Life, that is now growing within me

3. Rain, and the new life it nourishes

4. Solitude, a night at home by myself

5. Hope, my daughter and my faith

If you would like to join this process, take a moment to visit Ann’s blog or onethousandgifts.com to read more.

I pray your season of Lent is filled with many gifts that draw you closer to the miracle of salvation.

Love,

Jessica