Exciting Announcement!

Hi everyone!

As I promised yesterday, I have a really exciting announcement to make today!

No...I'm not having twins. LOL

I am taking on a new business venture, though...I'm joining Brandi Ward's team as the newest NYR Organic  Independent Sales Representative!

I happen to know what you're thinking, by the way.  You're thinking, "Alissa...seriously...we thought there was something really exciting coming...like twins."

But please understand, folks, this is truly exciting for me.  As you all know (or should if you're keeping up :P), Josiah and I have decided that I will not be returning to my job after I have the baby.  That means half of our income is leaving...bye bye half our income.

Now, we made this decision prayerfully.  I mean to tell you, we prayed HARD about whether this was what was right for our family, and everything - scriptures, feelings, godly advice - all of it pointed to it being time for me to take care of my family full-time.  It also pointed Josiah to something God put on his heart...he feels it's time to switch careers.  Yeah...we've got a lot going on.

Anyway, with all of that having been said, our income is about to seriously diminish, and we're trusting God will provide a way for us to make ends meet because we truly feel we're in His will...and I feel like NYR is part of that.

Brandi has been softly nudging me toward this opportunity for some time, but I just wasn't able to focus on it.     Then, for some reason, it just clicked.  As I said on yesterday's post, our dinner plans changed unexpectedly (we were supposed to have plans with a different couple), and I told Josiah I really wanted to get together with Brandi to talk about NYR, and I really wanted him to be there too because I wanted this to be something I tackled with his blessing...I wanted him to feel like it was the right opportunity for us, too.

Before we got together for dinner, I did my research.  If you know me, you know this is totally typical. I'm a researcher.  I'm not going into ANYTHING without researching it.  I read everything on the company that was in the folder Brandi sent me months ago.  I scoured the web for what people were saying about NYR...good AND bad.  I searched for unbiased information on the company.  I researched this, people.

And I prayed.

And it worked out perfectly.

Josiah and I talked after dinner and we really felt like this was a good fit for us.  It will still allow me to take care of my children full-time, but also to make some extra money on the side that we're probably really going to need.  Plus, I know God will take care of our needs, but honestly, there's some NON-need stuff coming that I really want...I have some "wants" that we're going to need extra money for!!  Example?  Josiah has never met my Papa and my other relatives down in Houston (except Nana), and Papa can't travel anymore.  It's really important to me that he get to meet them, and as you get older, you realize you just don't have all the time in the world.  I want to do it before it's too late.  Plane tickets don't grow on trees, though, folks.

So...next thing you're thinking: "What the heck is NYR?!"  I'm getting really good at this mind-reading stuff, huh?  (Stop thinking about twins!!  It's not happening!)

NYR stands for Neal's Yard Remedies.  It's a company that has been in business in England since 1981, but has just recently entered the US market through direct sales.  If you want to know all about the company, you can find everything out here, but mainly what you need to know is this:

They (or shall I say "we"!) specialize in natural health and beauty products - lotions, balms, makeup, aromatherapy, mom and baby products, etc. - and the line is growing all the time!!

In doing the research, I've found that while our food is pretty closely scrutinized by government agencies, what we put on our skin really isn't.  There's some pretty yuck and scary stuff in our products, folks.  I won't go into great detail here, but I'll have more info to give anyone who wants it, and the link above has a lot of information.  NYR is certified by the Soil Association, which has very stringent requirements for certification, they have a strict code of ethics, and is simply very socially and environmentally responsible.

Hey, I'm going for cloth diapers, and now I'm going to sell organic products!!  I'm becoming a regular environmentally responsible gal!!  I even recycle.  Whoda thunk?

The launch is set for Sunday afternoon, February 17th, and I'll have lots more details to come!!!

See?!  Exciting news!!

Still Under Construction?

By an odd turn of circumstances, we were able to have dinner with our wonderful friends Chad and Brandi last night, and I'm so glad we did!  Brandi and I had some more serious matters to discuss, but we could only manage them in little snippets between talks on religion, babies, and laughing so hard we cried (seriously...Brandi spit out her water and I can't even say anything because I was hysterical).

At some point in the conversation, I mentioned my blog and Chad said something to the effect of "what's the under construction business?  Shouldn't the construction be over by now?!"

It was a comment made in jest, but for some reason it got me thinking.

When does the construction end?  When do you know when you've crossed the invisible plain from spiritually immature to spiritual leader?

The easy answer (and the one I gave Chad) is this: the construction is never really over...and he knew that, of course. :)

The Bible says as believers we are made complete in Christ (Colossians 2:10) when we accept Him into our hearts and receive the Holy Spirit, but we're definitely not perfect.  In Paul's letter to the church at Philippi, he said:

I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me (Philippians 3:12).

We are never perfected until we meet Jesus, but as the Holy Spirit works in us we should constantly be heading in a more Christ-like direction...drawing ever closer to Him as we become more intimately acquainted.

In looking back over the last couple years, I am amazed at the miracles God has performed in my life, and the way He has worked through the Holy Spirit to change my heart...slowly, but surely.  It's astounding that when we become followers of Christ we are given all the Holy Spirit we'll ever get or need...that's it.  I mean, it's not like I have more  Holy Spirit in me now than I did a few years ago. But some of us take SO incredibly long to actually GET IT.

I've been a believer ever since I can remember, and was baptized at 14, but it took me forever to stop seeing God as my boss - a provider of rules and regulations - and to realize He is infinitely more.  I am still in awe of Him.  I still respect Him.

But now I also have a deeper relationship with Him.

I love Him.  I can't wait to spend time with Him.  I can't wait to know Him more.

I think I'm in an in-between stage right now.  I'm more of a leader than I was, but I still feel like I need guidance quite a bit, too.  Maybe that never changes.

For now, the blog will stay "Alissa's Life Under Construction."  Maybe one day it will change.  At some point, perhaps, I'll be a real grown-up and write blogs that actually guide people more than just share my revelations, but for now, this works.



OH!!  And sort of unrelated, but SUPER EXCITING...

I have a really awesome announcement to make tomorrow (Wednesday).  It's SOOOOO hard to wait, but I don't want to mesh blog posts too much.

SEE YOU TOMORROW!

Sneaky Little Idol

My wonderful friend and wedding photog Amanda posted something yesterday about taking a day of rest. It really struck a chord with me, but not until reflecting late last night.

I got off work yesterday and raced over to my in-laws' to get the kids. Couldn't stop to talk...too much to do!! Raced back home with the snow pouring down so I could prepare for the life group lesson and make chicken for the meeting. Spazzed out because I could not find the leader book anywhere, just the participant book and the DVD.  Made chicken, snapped at the kids when they were coming in from the snow, and freaked out about the chicken and how much to make.

The house was a wreck. I was a wreck.

We ended up canceling due to the weather...and I realized I had just made an absolute terror out if myself in order to meet people...at church...so we could fellowship and worship God together.

Anyone else see the problem in this?

Let me be clear. This is not about Life Group. This is about:

1.  Making myself busy to death, and

2.  My idol of not wanting to disappoint anyone

First, I need to take a break from the endless scheduling.  I've talked about this before, but it seems to be something I constantly struggle with.  We. Are. Always. On. The. Go.  And I love it...which is what makes this hard!! I love doing all the stuff I do. I love helping on committees and meeting friends and organizing events and letting the kids be involved...but I'm exhausted. Even more than that, I'm frustrated. When I run around a ton and the house gets ignored and starts falling apart, it starts an endless cycle because then I HATE being in my house. I'm already tired and the thought of everything that needs to be done here makes me want to run for the hills...or the mall. Whatever.

So, last night I freaked out because I was unprepared and too busy and I couldn't function in my wreck of a house. That's just not okay. I need to make sure I'm taking care of things at home like I need to be, so that I can function in order to prepare for the really important things...and Life Group is one if those things...

Which leads me to my second point. Life Group is really important, but I've been really discouraged about it lately. It's been REALLY difficult for us to meet the last couple months. First it was the holidays and everyone having plans, and then recently, everyone had had the flu. Seriously, we canceled one time for Hollydazzle. Plus, with me being as busy as I have been and still working full-time, and baking the baby I've had a difficult time even finding the time to coordinate the mass texts to get everyone on the same page.
I feel like I'm letting everyone down constantly.

Once again, fast forward to last night. I have gotten everyone together. Well, a couple families anyway. I have made arrangements. I know everyone has been frustrated by the canceling, so this will not be canceled! WILL NOT!! Did you hear that, Snow?! Keep coming down! You will not alter my course! I won't let everyone down! Should we cancel?? Of course not!! It's just an inch or two. Sticking to the roads? It can't be that bad!!

Stress. Frustration. Yelling at the kids. Grumbling in my head and in my heart.

All in the name of meeting for God.

Yuck.

Then I got the message from Josiah that said the roads were really bad. I didn't want to cancel again, but I couldn't ask people to risk their families' safety either.

So instead of Life Group last night, we sat down to a dinner of A LOT of chicken and leftover salad, and then we cuddled on the couch and watched a movie.

I also prayed. I prayed that God would give me wisdom. I have to start using my energy more efficiently, and that may mean cutting out some things for a bit. Or at the very least, I need to schedule as many nights IN as I schedule them out. I also asked for forgiveness for putting my feelings before Him. My behavior yesterday in no way glorified my Lord, and my need to please people is nothing less than idolatry.

And today is a new day, and I'm thankful for the grace He extends through the blood of Jesus, knowing He is always at work in me...sanctifying me. Amen!!

Learning to Read the Signs

In my last post I made the confession that I hadn't really been doing quiet times or reading my Bible that often, and I said I had made a date with myself to go to Lifeway to get a new book...one that would hopefully help reawaken my desire to get up before everyone else and spend some quality time with Jesus.  Well, I did...and it did!

I prayed before I went in.  I always feel so overwhelmed when I want a book like that and there are just so many books!  So I prayed...I prayed that God would help me find a book that would open my eyes to whatever it is He wants me to see.  Honestly, it feels a little like trying to use a divining rod to find water...but it worked.

I gathered up 3 books and settled into the comfy chair to investigate their contents.  The first two were on the bestsellers shelves.  They were Not a Fan and Crazy Love.  I'd heard good things about both and decided to give them a closer look.  The third was a harder choice.  I'm like a kid in a candy store in a bookstore, but this just wasn't any book I was looking for...I wanted THE book.  I finally made my way back to the Women's Christian Living section, and I spotted the books by Prinscilla Shirer.  I thought "Hey, I should at least pick up a book by her as an option.  I really enjoyed the last one (Resolution for Women)."  My eyes landed on one titled Discerning the Voice of God.  Josiah and I have been attempting to do a lot of that lately, so that seemed the natural third choice.

I'm going to take a moment here for a little aside...background info, if you will.

I told my boss last week that we'd finally made a decision...

I won't be coming back to work after the baby.

This was a decision that we really wrestled with because, while it was truly the desire of our hearts (especially mine) to be able to stay home with the baby, we were (and still are) concerned about how difficult that might be financially.  Nevertheless, after a lot of prayer and talking to some of our Christian friends, we decided it was what God was telling us to do.  HE put the desire in our hearts, and when you are following His will, He will make a way.

But I kept questioning whether or not I was reading everything properly.  What if the I was basing my decision off of circumstantial evidence because it was what I really wanted?  What if I was twisting my will and trying to make it God's will?

Okay....that's the end of the aside.  You can see why I was interested in the book though, right?

So...there I sat...three books in hand and a choice to make.

Both of the first two seemed like REALLY great books.  As a matter of fact, I have every intention of reading them down the road, which is why I included the links to them above.  But then I got to Priscilla's book...*sigh*

For those of you who know me, books are part of my soul.  I love them, and when I connect with an author, there's really no going back.

I connect with Priscilla.

She is funny and honest.  She tells it like it is, but with grace, humor, and love.  She also uses some great real-life examples in her writing, whether personal experience or metaphor, and I really appreciate that...heck, I have a tendency to do that too.

Her example in the first chapter was a sure sign.  She said she went to lunch with a good friend and was upset about something.  Priscilla rambled on and on throughout lunch, and when she got to the end of her tirade and asked the friend what she thought, her friend gently said she had some things to say during the story, but Priscilla never let her get a word in edgewise.  On the way home, humbled, she began to wonder if God felt that way when she prayed...like she never let Him speak.

You might be thinking, "Yeah, that's great Alissa, but how is that a sign that God wanted you to get the book?"

In the aforementioned previous blog post, where I set a date with myself to buy the book, I said this regarding the time I've been spending with God lately:

Think about it this way...how great would your relationships with other people be if all you did was talk, but never listened to the other person.  Shallow?  One-sided?  I'm thinking it's the same thing. 

Sound familiar?  Tomorrow, it will be a week since I got the book, and I have to say, I look forward to each and every chapter.  I don't know how to describe it exactly.  So much of what I'm reading just confirms everything I thought...but is also helping me find the Scripture to back it up, and THAT is important.

So, with highlighter in hand, I'm marking each page...and pages in my Bible.  No longer is it just sitting in Josiah's car, waiting for Sunday morning to roll around.  It's becoming a blessed part of my day...a part that I look forward to greatly.

I feel like I have so much more to say...more about how I see God's hands working in our lives and how I feel Him nudging us...but I this post has been long enough.

Let me ask this though: if you have quiet times with God, do you structure them?  Do you leave time for Him to speak to you?  How do you choose what scripture to read that day?  I'd be happy to hear about everyone's "relationship" advice!

Reconnecting

This one is going to be really quick.

It's confession time...ready?

I've slipped.  Like an AA member who fell of the wagon, I've slipped back into complacency.  I realized in the last week or so that, while we might be in church a lot, there's not a lot of time and heart being put into seeking God at home...at all.

I mean, sure, I still pray all the time and I sing to Him in the car...but let's face it folks...neither of those things is a replacement for being IN His Word.  It just isn't.

We went to church last Sunday, and I knew exactly where our Bible's would be...in the car...where we left them last Sunday.

If that's not lukewarm, then I'm not really sure what is.

Think about it this way...how great would your relationships with other people be if all you did was talk, but never listened to the other person.  Shallow?  One-sided?  I'm thinking it's the same thing.

So, I've made a date with myself.  Tonight, while the kids and Josiah are at Awana, I will be at Lifeway looking looking for a new book.  Now, I know...you don't need a study book to read the Bible.  I understand that.  However, I also feel like having a book to aid in my study, especially one that I really look forward to reading and that assists me in delving deeper into the Word, helps me stay on track and motivated to KEEP studying.

I miss the time spent with God in the morning.  I miss the deep connection I felt when I was reading His Word every day and listening to what He had to say about my life.

I'm looking forward to reconnecting. :)

Sunday, Solitude, and Facing Giants

It's quiet.

Normally the house would have been in a tizzy for the last couple hours with everyone getting ready for church. Today, all is quiet.

Josiah is at work.

The kids are with their dad.

And I am quenching an overwhelming thirst for solitude.

I don't feel this need very often, or at the very least, I don't allow myself to feel it.  I'm a really social person; I thrive on social interaction and the energy I get from being around people.  Nevertheless, every now and then I feel like God is calling me to BE STILL.

Today is one of those days.

He and I have spent a lot of time together this morning, though, so maybe it's not quite solitude.  For a Christian, I suppose there's never absolute solitude.  While we might not be in the presence of other people, our God is always with us and speaking to us. As a matter of fact, it may be that the times we spend in quiet seeking His face may be the least alone we ever are.

Apparently, the quiet is making me wax philosophical.

In other news, Josiah and I spent some time last night with some very dear friends watching the movie "Facing the Giants."  For those of you who don't know, this is the second movie made by the Kendrick brothers, who also made "Fireproof" and "Courageous."  As our friends promised, it was low budget, the acting was stiff in places...and it was absolutely amazing.  Simple, heart-felt, and amazing.

I think one of the things I found most peculiar about the movie was that the acting may have been stiff during a few off the simple dialogues, but in the scenes that were truly emotional, where most novice actors would have the hardest times connecting, these people were stunning.  They might not be able to talk about dinner or the stove being broken with a lot of skill, but when it was time to connect with the character during a heart-wrenching battle these people gave some Oscar-winning performances.  They connected.  It was beautiful.

I also find it miraculous that with all the major things going on in the world, our God finds the time to speak to each one of our hearts exactly when we need it, and in the way we need it.  I needed that movie last night...desperately.  I didn't know I needed it, but I did, and I am truly grateful our friends allowed themselves to be a conduit for God's grace and love.

This movie was all about facing the obstacles in front of us with the knowledge that God is always with us, and nothing is impossible with Him.  Absolutely nothing.

Josiah and I are at a very exciting, but very scary, point in our life together.  We are about to have a new baby, and we feel so blessed God has given us this precious gift (in addition to the three precious gift I brought with me into the marriage).  At the same time, this means a lot of changes for our family...especially financially.

Secretly, deep down, I was starting to doubt...not God, but my ability to interpret His will in my life and what  He's trying to accomplish.

I talked to Josiah after the movie last night, and I guess I thought if I was correctly interpreting His will for my life, then I would have known something by now.  I thought He would have given me some inkling of His plans for me...a thought, an idea, a feeling...a post-it note from Heaven.  I don't know.  Something.

On the other hand, if He gives me all the answers before I have to step out in faith, then I'm not really acting faithfully am I?  Anyone can ace a test when they have the answers in front of them.  I need to face this test in my life understanding that it wasn't designed for me to have the answers in advance.  I'll get them exactly when I need them...not a minute before or a minute after.

The movie taught me something else, too...being stagnant while I wait for the answers is not okay either.  At one point someone tells the main character a story about two farmers.  Both farmers prayed desperately for rain, but only one of them went out to prepare his fields for rain.  Which farmer showed the greatest faith? The one who prepared his fields to received God's blessings.

My thoughts and actions need to reflect my faith in God and His ability to care for me.  Furthermore, until God chooses to show me my next path in life's journey, he expects me to blossom right where He's planted me NOW.  He expects me to grow where I am.  I think I had forgotten that.  I had become so obsessed with the future that I forgot to take care of my heart today.  None of us is guaranteed tomorrow; it seems a shame to waste the time we know we have been given while waiting for a time we don't even know will ever come.

In this very same vein, Time Warp Wife (see her blog here) posted this message on her facebook wall this week.  It spoke to my heart at the time, but even more so after seeing the movie:

This morning I spent a lot of time praying.  I had quiet time with my God that I had skipped out on a lot lately.  I don't know what God has planned for us in the next few months, but no matter what I will praise Him and trust His absolute wisdom, goodness, and love.

How about you?  Are you somewhere today where you don't know the answers?  Where your entire life seems overwhelming and wrapped up in fear? Are you praying for help but acting like you already know it won't come?

Praise Him...Praise Him, seek Him, and watch the movie. :)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.  ~Matthew 6:25-34