Living Each Day With Purpose

Obedience to God is a decision we make daily. I would say most days I choose to obey God, so, when God gave me the word obey to focus on throughout 2023, I told him I got this. I’m sure he laughed. I was doing what he asked of me, well, for the most part. I did not expect 2023 to be the year that God broke me, stretched me, and expanded my understanding of who HE is.

Pull up a chair and sit with me as I walk you through my year of obedience.

My Year of Obedience to God

In January I stepped out of my comfort zone and went to a writer’s workshop by myself. I came back with more knowledge of writing and was encouraged to keep writing. This was just the beginning of what God was going to do because of my obedience to his call of me writing.

February brought negotiating with God and acceptance that if I was going to truly obey God I would have to let go of what I thought my future looked like. I would have to listen to what God was telling me to do even if God was telling me to leave coaching/teaching. I wasn’t quite ready to walk away from my job and I needed my husband to be on board with this life changing decision.

As my husband and I prayed we agreed that I needed to stop coaching. I figured God would be okay with that and went to him with that proposal. God’s response to my negotiation was, that is NOT what I told you to do.

I sulked around for days before deciding that He was right. I couldn’t wrap my mind around how things would work out.

March came and the time I spent writing started to increase. The more I wrote, the more I knew I was doing what God called me to do. My obedience left me giddy.

By the middle of March, my husband and I agreed that it was time for me to walk away from teaching. My health had deteriorated and was not improving. The doctor couldn’t figure out what was causing my health problems, however, we knew the stress was not making the situation better.

Track season ended in April and I officially resigned from my coaching/teaching position. I was excited to see where God would take my writing, but I was scared because I had no job lined up.

Again, the negotiating took place because I am a planner and needed to have something lined up. I was sad because I would miss working with kids.

The end of the school year was finally here. God gave me the green light to apply for two jobs. I ended up getting a phone call from both companies on the same day.

June brought summer break and that is when God broke me. I am such a planner that I had a routine/schedule for every day during the summer. God decided it was time for that to stop. He showed me that I wasn’t allowing Him to work in my life. I spent a good portion of June feeling confused, scattered and uncertain of what was going on.

The majority of my mornings I spent on my back porch, reading the Bible, praying, and listening to what God wanted me to do. My time with El Roi fed my hunger and confirmed that my obedience to my calling would open the door for God’s blessings.

Mid-Year Lessons

I was learning to let go of my plans and trust that God’s plan for my day was better.
I was learning to obey God in each moment of my day and allow him to have control.
I realized that while I said I trusted God I didn’t fully trust God.
If I didn’t fully trust God how could I truly obey him.

Still Working On Me

I started working at my new job on July 3^rd. It was a new experience for me in every aspect of new. I had never worked in the business world, so everything was new. At the end of July, I attended the Christian Communicators Conference.

Once again, I was out of my comfort zone. God worked on me throughout the conference. I met women who encouraged me, supported me, listened to me, taught me, and invested in me. They truly cared and wanted what was best for me. They lifted my spirits and helped me rise up. I left a new person and regardless of being scared, I was ready to keep saying YES to God.

In August, God continued to open doors for me to be around these ladies. God was showing me it was important to stay connected to these new sisters. To emphasize this importance, I was invited to attend a retreat in Alabama in October. I signed with Redemption Press to have my book published.

In September, I attended two conferences where God continued to show me that I could trust him to meet all my needs. Every time I obeyed Him, he blessed me. For example, I was gifted a coaching class which kicked me into gear with working on my book for Redemption Press and outlining what ministry would look like. The month of September brought affirmation for my calling and kept my fire for God ignited.

During October, God worked on my heart. It was ready for him to do what needed to be done at the retreat in Alabama. He was calling me to surrender. I left for the retreat knowing I wasn’t coming back the same person and it scared me. In fact, God broke my stronghold the first night and my healing began. I recognized who God was to me at that moment and started calling him by a different name; Jehovah-Rapha.

The beginning of November was the ladies retreat for my church. It was my first event to plan as the women’s ministry leader. I allowed God to direct and guide me in everything. I was once again in awe of what happened when I let go of the control and said yes to Him.

December flew by and God showed me the importance of trusting Him with every detail. He met our needs and worked things out financially when I didn’t see how it was going to happen. He showed me that my obsessive planning is what caused me to be so stressed.

I enjoyed reading the advent devotional titled, Seeking Joy through the Gospel of Luke as I found joy each day.

My life changed drastically when I said yes to God and started obeying him in all aspects of my life. I live each day with a purpose.