Speaks in the Most Interesting Ways

I find it really interesting that certain times God prompts me or 'speaks' to me in very interesting ways. People who are close to me know that this month has been a really hard month, in terms of being busy, somewhat stressful and very exhausting. There have been a lot of projects and a huge push to finish up school with the kids. Being it was my first year doing this teaching gig, there was also a huge bar which I had placed for myself and that placed a huge amount of pressure on myself. I struggled to not worry about whether or not I had done enough in my school year and if my kids would be 'alright' for going into the next material in the fall.

Well, anyways, yesterday was the 'big day'...I had to take all my kids' work samples and my year-end summations for them down to the school board and meet with the homeschool rep. He's an extremely nice guy and puts you completely at ease right away...he's there to help you out in anyway and has this knack of having you leave knowing things will be just fine. The way God turned my eyes in this situation was that I was given some teaching materials to look at for the fall, for a couple classes...it would be a way of saving some money in ordering materials. When I got them home and looked at them closely, I realized something really interesting. It's materials for Little Mister's next grade level, but probably 3/4 of it, he learned this year through the curriculum we taught.

This little experience taught me something important...that I did the best I could do and as the rep said to a comment I made about being concerned about whether or not I had taught enough to the kids throughout the year...he always thought it was a good thing as a teacher to have that attitude, as it shows you care about the students you are teaching and want the best for them, whether you are teaching them at home or are teaching kids in the school system. So I would have to say that this morning as I sit, a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders and I'm taking a few days to have some well needed down time. The other important thing I've learned...I really need to keep myself in check and make sure that I'm not putting those invisible bars up all the time or at least if they do go up, don't put them at an insane level of reachability.

Last night as Mr. Cinder was reading stories to the boys, I got their devotion ready. They received a little devotion book with 366 devotions, one for each day of the year, including a leap year day...it's called What Would Jesus Do? 366 devotions in the footsteps of Jesus by Jan De Wet. The devotion for yesterday was entitled, "Sun-Scorched and Dry" and the scripture given came from one of my favorite books, Isaiah..."The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land..." (Isaiah 58:11). It talked about how travel in Israel during the bible times was hard, as many parts were barren, like a desert and also very hot. It then turned to talk about how our lives can sometimes go through parts of it which feel exactly like a dry barren desert. The devotion ended with these words..."Even if you feel a bit down today, know that the Lord will take care of you and lead the way. Just trust him." and the scripture..."Father, if you are willing...not my will, but yours be done." (Luke 22:42).

What really hit home with me was that I do know this, but sometimes those monkeys on our back get in our face and it makes it hard to see things and to hear the truth loud enough, as those monkeys sometimes tend to 'smother' us! The other fact was that the last few sermons at church have been on this topic of "not my will, but yours be done" and "less of me, more of you". So, along with everything going on this month, I've also been reflecting a lot on things and what I might need to change and how I can be more aligned with God. I guess I just found it interesting that God does speak in very interesting and unexpected ways sometimes. He doesn't have a few avenues, He has unlimited ones!

I won't be posting as regular in the next little bit, as I'm taking some time to rest. We're going away for a few days in order to ensure that I do rest, as then a lot of day-to-day responsibilities will be gone for a few days. Then, once refreshed and re-energized, I will be concentrating on some ministry projects and most importantly, my eyes will be set to God's direction for our missions trip in August, in terms of what He wants to be taught and how we'll be able to accomplish that most effectively. I'll still be reading and commenting regularly and will be back posting more regularly in a week or so. Blessings to y'all!