Today I want to highlight a post written by my wise hearted blogging friend, Diane at,   an encouraging word.    Change is never easy, read how Diane chose to handle the change in her life.

Wanted: Job Title

My Father is an awesome God.  I wrote this post very early a week ago Sunday morning, but didn't post it.  I wanted to go over it one last time after I got back from church. Please read the post first, then I'll tell you how awesome The LORD is to me. This is what I wrote:

Is there a lost and found for job titles?  I’ve lost mine.

No longer a wife. No longer a mother.  What’s a woman to do?

From my earliest remembrances all I ever wanted to be was a wife and mother. No career aspirations. Except that. That was my career, as well as serving The LORD in whatever capacity.  

So, what’s a woman to do when she finds herself no longer an active mother – as all her children are self-supporting adults living everywhere but here?

A mother is prepared for the day when her children will “fly the nest”.  I did not suffer any kind of empty-nest syndrome, except for the months of August/September when I would ache to shop for school supplies.  Nine years later and I still experience those pangs come school time.

This woman continued to fill her life with ministry work and serving/supporting her husband and his business venture, just as she did for the last 40 years.

So, what’s a woman to do when she finds herself no longer a wife?

A wife is not prepared for her husband to "fly the nest".  

So, what’s a woman to do who now has no husband to serve/support?

What’s this woman to do?  My purpose in life abruptly ended…

Yet, my husband is still my husband. He just no longer wants to be served or supported – not from the wife of his youth anyway…

I’m still his wife, but not. I have a husband, but I’m not a wife. 

It’s no longer my job title.

…sigh…

I don’t know how to not be a wife.

…sigh…

So, what is this woman to do?

Is there life after 40 years of being a wife?  Of course there is. Ask any woman who has forged on after her husband has died. But, in the lost and found department of job titles, I’m definitely in the "lost" section.  

For this you can pray, if you are so inclined…

~~~

And now for the postscript:  

I closed my computer and went to church.  I entered into worship and immediately, I heard the Holy Spirit speak one word to me: "Daughter".  I knew in my heart what He was saying.  My job title is now Daughter of the Most High God.  

"Lord, I know I wasn't the best mother, and obviously I wasn't the best wife, but I will do my best to live the rest of my life being the best Daughter I can be", I sobbed back to Him.    

Two days later, I was praying with my prayer partner and I shared about the post and then going to church and what The Holy Spirit said to me.  As I was talking, she gasped.  "Oh my gosh, as you were telling me about the post, I was going to say "Daughter of God".  

We rejoiced in The LORD confirming His Word to me.  We rejoiced in His Lovingkindness, Goodness, and Faithfulness. We were thankful for those who are praying for me during this transition in my life.

For those of you who have been praying for me, I thank you. God is faithful. He meets needs.  He supplies.  He comforts.  He promotes.  He hands us our job titles. 

Because of Him and Unto Him,

 

 

 

Even Though



  Even Though (C.Wells)
 We’ve watched the house fall - right before our eyes,  we have seen countless  children die
We have wept tears at - the end of dreams, no one is free here from suffering
But the life we gain through Christ cannot be taken

Chorus
 Even though we lose it all, we’ll not be lost, we’ll not be lost
Behold, this love of God has ransomed us, He’s ransomed us
Even though

We’ve been the lepers outside the gate,  we were the poor man without a name
The unfaithful woman falling at His feet, I am the unloveable and He came for me
His arms are fastened firmly round us now

Chorus again

 We had nothing when He found us, we had nothing to recommend us
His grace is like an ocean, His gifts are overflowing
He will care for those who know Him, His promises are certain
We will not walk alone

I don't know about you but I get probably 40-50 some request for prayer a day on my facebook wall from all over the world.  Friends with dying family members, families who have lost it all because of a job loss.  Children being abused,  spouses left to care for children after their mate walks out.  Family and friends who are battling cancer.  Prayer request for missionaries for wisdom, strength to continue on in the face of danger.  On top of that there is the news, families grieving for their love one on a missing plane.  Soldiers fighting wars across the sea,  countries in civil war.  Tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes (just had one today here in southern California), disasters everywhere.  Everything we hold valuable can be taken from us here in a moment here on this earth.        EXCEPT HIS LOVE. 


Roman 8:35-       Who will separate us from the love of Christ?  Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  Verse 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, verse 30 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 


Even though you may be suffering at this moment, even though you may feel separated from God because of your suffering,   you are not alone. His love follows you, pursues in you, dwells with you, keeps you, hugs you and does not forget you in your suffering. 

   Today I needed to hear the message in this song, how about you?

IT'S OVER

It's over!

It's over...all the boxes are unpacked, everything put in its place, pictures hung, former place clean, keys turned over to owner, scouted  the new neighbor for closest store, gas station, pizza hut and taco bell, (those last two are important).  Cooked my first meal in our new place.  If you are one who prayed for me during this move, thank you, thank you.  I think I have come a long way in adjusting to stateside living again, I mean I found the closest Taco Bell within one day?

Last move it took me three or four months to realize God had given me several of my desires.  1. To live surrounded by  mountains.   2. To live close enough to at least one of my children and grand children.  And 3. a fireplace, got that.  Depression causes a blindness that keeps one from seeing how God is not only meeting our needs but giving us some of our desires.

Something has changed for it only took me a couple days before I realized God had answered all my prayers concerning this move.  1.  This place would be cheaper then the last, $55 dollars cheaper, praise Him.  Second for a place with a washer and dryer hookup...got that.  Third, the apartment would be downstairs, got that.  Forth,  it would have a fenced in patio for the grand children to play outside , got that too.

Since my word for this year is, "perspective" God has been helping me see from a different place.  I love it that God gave me some of my hearts desires but what if He hadn't.  What if...it had cost us more, what if there was no hook up and I had to go to a laundry mat to wash clothes.  What if...they only had upstairs available.   What if...there was no patio. 


I love what Jim Elliot wrote in his diary, God I pray to you, light these idol sticks of my life, that I may burn for you. Consume my life God, for it is yours.” And then he said,  “I seek not a long life but a full life, like that of Jesus Christ.” His prayer was answered, his life was not long, he died taking the gospel to the Auka Indians.  His prayer was answered in that his life was full. 


That prayer of Elliot's makes my prayers for my desires look so weak and well, selfish.  You see, they were all about me...what I wanted, not what my Lord wanted.   But as a blogging friend pointed out, God perspective was , "my child needs these things she prayed for."   They will help me lead a more productive life for  Him.  Easy to compare and disvalue the answered prayer.   I have lived a long and full life already but I know there is more to learn about God's perspective for the rest of my  life.