Patience in waiting. Be still my soul part 6

Well.. It's been 2 weeks since the judge received paperwork from my attorney. It's been 3 weeks since we had our court date. It's been a year 2 months and 12 days since my life was turned upside down. I have not once given up nor turned my eyes away from God through all of this. The times have been hard. I feel like many days I'm just a disaster and cluster of emotions just waiting to set off but through all of the crazy emotions, depression worry and anxiety He is always there for me. 

I pray daily for wisdom and discernment of his Spirit to reign down on me and flood my path of life. I never pray for patience because it doesn't say to pray for patience. We are commanded to Love and trust our Father. With trials and suffering produces wisdom, patience and perserverence. Over and over and over again. It doesn't say you will have just one experience in life and be done. 

"The Lord doesn't qualify the called he calls the Qualified."

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. (James 1:2-6 NIV)"

I asked for those things while praying and he's definitely giving them to me. As each week passes by I'm learning that when I pray I must believe in what I'm praying. I can't just ask for wisdom and not BELIEVE  that God can give it to me. The true test of faith relies on waiting on the Lord to reveal in his own time the answer. Everyone around me is getting so anxious to know this one answer. Like it's going to just end there... 

I mean I know that is possible but I just say that God is not ready to reveal the answer yet and that there is a reason it's taking so much time. There has been a reason all of this has drug out longer and longer. The longer it takes the more I feel I'm losing my mind but also the closer and more dependent I am on my Heavenly Father to just wrap his arms around me and help me trust in him. 

The enemy knows our weaknesses and he preys on them. But let me declare this.. YOU WILL NOT WIN. Satan you are the thorn in my side but the battle 

has been fought and the debt has been paid. Jesus didn't suffer and die for me to be filled with worry and doubt. The worry and doubt that comes with waiting. The worry from the unknown. Questions left unanswered. All these things you attempt to plague my mind with.. I will continue praying you away until the victory comes. Though I may be weak.. HE IS STRONG! 

My Jesus loves me this I Know. For the Bible tells me so. 

If I must wait. I will wait in peace! I will accept his grace and mercy that he gives to me abundantly. If you are waiting on an answer today or waiting for your prayers to be answered I pray that you will fix your eyes upon the Heavens above and Trust him with all your heart. 

In good time. It will be revealed. 

In Grace 

A Healthy Hot mess. Thrive Blog post for may

We all hear stories and some of us have even experienced the part of life and being a mother where we let go of ourselves and get so overwhelmed that everyone else is dressed nice, house is clean, laundry done but you glance in the mirror and WHOA... Can I climb back in bed already?! I mean look at me!! I'm just a simple hot mess right here. Is this you? Because I'm guilty for sure. Way too many times.

But God tells us to be productive, not busy. He wants us to be fruitful not running in circles all the time and just letting ourselves go. I read an article a little while back that talked about how perceiving being healthy because God wants us to be healthy and vibrant. It explained some very personal things dealing with self image, weight gain and the stress of our own image. It was then that my perception of being a mom changed. I wanted to be healthy for Him and to have my actions glorify Him not for my own personal gain but to know that I'm taking care of myself because I have others depending on me. 

I've battled weight my whole life. My life this past year was turned upside down so stress and emotional eating.. Well you see where I'm going. It didn't turn out good. Not with me, how I felt or looked for sure. I have had many pivotal moments over the course of the past year but taking back control of my health and wellness for the sake of my family and my own personal sanity is definitely paying off. For too long I let my circumstances and life's messes just take control and before I knew it I had gained 20 lbs. in 4 months. 4!! I had to make a change. I was not happy and I just couldn't enjoy things the way I use to. I looked a hot mess because I couldn't fit into ANYTHING!!! So in Sept 2014 I joined a boot camp class called VERSUS. Its been my best yes and I am not looking back.

I take 3 days a week for an hour each evening to workout outside with a bootcamp group and its by far the best decision I've made that's had a positive impact on being a better mom and better wife. It relieves stress and has helped me get back into old clothes again. I am down 23 pounds and 2 pant sizes since December. YAY!!!  

I say all this to say that you too can take back control over your life with just some intentional effort! You deserve it! Aside from busy schedules and running around taking care of everyone you should start by taking care of yourself. It makes God happy and end the end if mommy is happy it reflects a happy home because your feeling of self worth and confidence come back! Had I not made the decision to jumpstart my life back to that of a healthy mom I would still be that depressed mom with no energy and excuses for days for not doing the things I once enjoyed.

My name is April Grissom. I am a wife and I have an amazing, blue eyed little boy that is 3 years old. I am a nurse, a housekeeper, a health and wellness coach with Advocare, new to writing and blogging and I have a love and passion for running and working out. My purpose in life is to serve and help others. I live in South Mississippi. I love God with all my heart. The past year may be the hardest in my life but its by far been the best spiritual growth I have ever experienced and I'm now closer to the Lord than ever before. God is so good. Even with life's messes. I have a story to tell and this is just the beginning of my journey.

Seek Him and you will find Him.

"Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:12-13 We serve a mighty and powerful God. He can work miracles and do some amazing things in our lives but if we do not seek him daily.. Pray.. And live His word, the blessings He has in store for us we won't find and he can't give to us. We have to do our part. We can be blinded by our wants and desires but what truly matters is taking ourself out of the equation and letting Go and Let God. Seek him today and you WILL find him.

They say Let go and Let God but most days we cling to our own selves and still try to control everything around us. If you are waiting on something in life the Lord may be teaching you patience or he may be working out the situation on his time. 

Trust him. Pray diligently. Serve others and just remove yourself from the equation. Easy to say but harder to do. God is a loving and faithful God. He always pulls through. It just may look different than our expectations.