Balance vs Change

OK, so I'm in a season in my life where everything is changing. I mean everything. You name it, odds are something is happening. I've determined that this IS good thou! God is changing me to be more like Him, and conforming me to His image. With that being said, I pose these questions to my followers:

What are your priorities? How do you balance a busy lifestyle? More importantly, how do you adapt to the curve balls God throws you?

I'll respond this weekend with an update of the wedding plans to date! Love you all!

The God Chisel

In this time of transition, this skit by the Skit Guys blessed me so much today. Hope your encouraged by it today as well.

Reflecting God's Glory

So, we are in the process of finalizing the contract for the ceremony/reception site. I'm super excited about it, but at the same time, became very concerned when the numbers came into question. Now, don't get me wrong, my family is not poor, but money is not our strong suite either. God has always been faithful to provide, but as for abundance, I never really knew what that was until I met Kevin. Eating out was reserved for special occasions only, we found stores to provide what we needed, and we made due. I had a great childhood (in terms of financial management), I never knew the difference, until I met Kevin.

Now, Kevin is not rich, nor is his family. But, they do things a bit differently. I traveled more with him, ate out more, and just got introduced to a whole new type of quality. God helped me with this. God promised us abundance, not for ourselves, but so we can bless others, and that's exactly what we plan to do.

God gave us a huge mandate for this wedding, and its not just to get married. We've prayed about every step thus far, from the date, to the venue, to the vendors to see not only what we like, but what God desires. Why? Because God wants to be there. He wants to love on His people, and we're the chosen avenue for that.

Are we extra special? No! Anyone can show God's glory if we're open to it, but God gave us a specific call with specific instructions, and it is our prayer that only He will be seen. Not us. His love for His bride, mirrored in our marriage. So, we're trusting God to provide for His glory. His ultimate provision for His ultimate vision, however He chooses.

I get numerous email devotional, especially from this group of people. However, today I decided to open it. It gave me hope, and a great reminder that went with something Kevin shared with our family yesterday.

To quote Kevin:

"Isaiah says in v. 7-8: Their land is also full of silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures; their land is also full of horses, and there is no end to their chariots. Their land is also full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.

i. This was not an anti-wealth statement. God is not against wealth and riches, and may choose to bless some with significant resources. This is a rebuke of the love of riches, and any trust in wealth.

ii. This was not an anti-work statement. God wants us to work hard, and show forth the work of our own hands, and to see the accomplishments that our own fingers have made. This is a rebuke of the worship of what we have made and what we have done.

... I did feel like this was a gentle reminder to stay focused on what God has planned for this wedding and not come up with our own. This is not to discourage work or preparation, but just an encouragement to stay open to His divine purpose. We received a word from one the ministers at Breath that what we had been praying for, we'd already received. So while we don't know exactly how God's planning on doing it, we do know that His provision is already set for us."

I hope that this blesses someone else as much as it blessed me today. It's all about Him and His glory.

Today's Prayer

Dear God, I present to you my body as a living sacrifice unto You. Please help me to be holy and acceptable, which is my reasonable service (as Your Word exhorts in Romans 12:1). Guide and direct me, protect me from harm and evil, and shine through my life to influence the world around me for You. May You be glorified and may the lost be pointed to Jesus through the testimony of my life. Please keep me pure and forgive me, dear God, of my sins and failures so that I might start afresh, again today. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

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Reflecting His Glory
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1, by Os Hillman
08-11-2010

"They will tell of the glory of Your kingdom and speak of Your might, so that all men may know of Your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of Your kingdom." Psalm 145:11-12

How do you measure your effectiveness in God, or should you even be thinking like this? The early Church turned the world upside down in that first century. What made them so effective? Was it their theology? Was it great preaching? Was it due to one man's influence apart from Jesus?

The Scriptures are clear as to what made the early Church effective. It is at the core of God's heart, and it is quite simple. God desires to reflect His nature and power through every individual. When this happens, the world is automatically changed because those who reflect His glory affect the world.

We serve a jealous God. He is a God who will not share His glory with anyone. God sets up situations in order to demonstrate His power through them. He has done this since the day He created man. His desire is to reflect His glory through you and me, so that all men may know of His mighty acts and the glorious splendor of His Kingdom. The apostle Paul understood this principle: "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power" (1 Cor. 2:4-5). If you do not see His glory being reflected through your life, then you need to ask why. He has promised to do so if we will walk in obedience to His commands.

Today God Is First (TGIF) devotional message, Copyright by Os Hillman, Marketplace Leaders.

Let God demonstrate His power in your life today. Love you guys!

Here's the finale guys! Part three includes some wisdom points from Kevin (things he has learned while courting me), with some input by me, and the conclusion of our story! Hope you enjoyed our little mini-series!

Our Story-Part 2

Here is part two of our story: Our Ministry. I'll post part three later today or tomorrow. Enjoy!

So, I so excited about this post. Thanks to my brother Israel Owolabi we now have a video in which I detail our story. Our story is broken up into three parts. Part one is our story, which basically details how we began our relationship as a couple, including where we met, how we took our relationship to the next level, and other loving things. Check back every day for a new video! (3 part series!)

1. Our story
2. Our ministry/Kevin's wisdom gleaned in our relationship
3. More Wisdom, Conclusion and Recap

Below is part one! Enjoy and leave comments, we encourage interaction! Love you all!

The Wedding Dress:

So yesterday I went dress shopping. It was the single most stressful event surprisingly. Not because the people I took made it stressful. In fact, they were a great crowd, very anti- "say yes to the dress" if you know what I mean. Instead they were kind and loving but I still left extremely disappointed. Dress shopping opened the door to an extreme amount of insecurity in me. I realized that the dresses I loved were overly simple. Meaning, so simple, I would look underdressed for my own affair. Why you might ask? Because that's all I'm comfortable in. I tried on one dress that everyone loved, and I, well, didn't hate but didn't love either. It was a princess type of gown, a-line. While I loved the embellishments, the fit was so not me.

I left that day with a better idea in mind at what I wanted, and a very stark contrast to what God expected. Do I say this to mean that God expects me to be more outlandish? No. But He's been really stretching me with this wedding. This thing is extravagant! As something that is expressing God's love should rightfully be, but its more than I can imagine, and even worse, feel I deserve. I trust God to bring His vision to pass, but honestly, I just feel like a small town girl and that a small town wedding is all I deserve. I've never pictured myself in white, because that was reserved for true virgins in my mind, which reveals my lack of belief that I have really been purified in the blood of Christ. Somewhere in the back on my mind that thought doesn't override what I've always believed. My dad took one look at that dress and said I looked like a princess, and unlike the other dresses, I didn't just blend in with everyone else. He said it looked like it was my day, and I was the bride. My mom almost cried, my sister wouldn't let the train go (she's my maid of honor) and then promptly told me nothing else would look as good as that one. But how do I pick out a dress that screams "its all about me!" when I've centered not only this wedding but my life around Christ being glorified, and serving His people. I mean, I picked out my bridesmaid dresses first, and discovered that the wedding dresses I liked the most put me as just another person on that day.

I left so disappointed with myself for not liking the dress everyone loved, and moreso I think because it donned on me that I don't feel I deserve it. I don't want to be a princess I want to be me, the same ole Brittany, who puts everyone else before herself, and Christ first, no matter what the cost. But where is the balance? I am so conflicted and perplexed on the inside that I honestly don't know how to express it all. What do you mean it's what I want? Huh? Smch…clearly not, because God is trying to elevate me to a level I don't feel I deserve, or ought to accept. It's almost like I don't know how to operate like this. So, to pick a wedding dress is almost like to pick an identity where I get to say, its ok to not be mediocre and settle, and that God desires to bless me with more (even if I don't deserve it). I'm stuck in the mentality, who am I to be chosen to be loved like this? What does this mean to me?

So, the search continues for not only my dress, but for who God really wants me to be? Can I say like Ruth and do what Esther was anointed to do, just because I'm comfortable that way? Or is it time for my period of purification for a lifestyle elevation, just because it's God's plan to bless me to be a blessing? Can I accept it and get there? Only more time with the Father will tell.