The Captivating Woman

Designed with purpose.

Rethinking Your Commute

I recently changed jobs, and went from living 2 minutes from the school where I worked, to being an hour away on a good day. I’ve never lived more than 10 minutes away from my place of work and school (other than the 2 years of preschool ages 2-4) until now.

I have never minded time in my car, I used to drive home for weekends usually once a month in college, and had a 4 hour drive to myself both directions. Last summer, I took a solo road trip up to Seattle from Bakersfield, and while the trip up there was slow and fun, the trip home happened earlier than I was planning, and I was in my car for 1100 miles without stopping for anything more than gas and food.

There is peace and simplicity when I am in the car.

I definitely yell at semi’s that pass each other, and get frustrated with bad drivers (I make too many references to Driving Miss Daisy), but the vast majority of the time, I enjoy being alone in my car. I sing weird harmonies, or try to sing all of the parts at once and make myself crack up. I listen to audio books on longer trips, I run through random scenarios that will probably never happen, and I have imaginary conversations with people in my life because of said scenarios that I will most likely never have in real life. I’m a little bit more external in my processing, and those hours in my car have helped me process and work through far more than I realize until after the fact.

I also have some of my best conversations with God in the car.

I tend to use distraction as my best method of avoiding dealing with hard things. I am chronically busy between finishing grad school, working two jobs, training for a half marathon, participating in several ministries and trying to find time to blog with any frequency. But when I’m in my car, I can’t send emails, work on papers, work, mentor or minister. It’s just me, with the jumble of things I’d rather not deal with, and God.
I really was expecting to hate this commute. And I admit, the hour in both directions really kills any ability to get things done in the evenings when I finally do get home. I do want to move closer, because a 15 minute commute makes scheduling my life much easier.
But even with all of that, I treasure that hour in the mornings in the car.
I spend more than half of it talking to the Lord, praying for people, conflicts, and relationships. For people I work with, minister with and those that just randomly are on my heart. For my family and my friends as they go into their lives. For myself that I would be more aware of God in the everyday hustle and grind and have peace and direction. For the people I work with in outreach and the community I work in. For the family I will one day have.
Honestly, I’m not sure anything exists that can center you so fully before you encounter traffic, work problems or the little annoying things that come (and add up) with having to get from point A to point B and deal with people. I definitely still am guilty of yelling at semi’s, and people on the road who are annoying to me. I don’t always get into work feeling nearly as zen as I was 30 minutes before. I don’t even go into each morning looking forward to the praying. Sometimes, I procrastinate on it, and get maybe 5 minutes in of hastily mumbled well wishes for my “regulars”.
I can say confidently, though, that my favorite mornings are the ones spent with the Lord, watching the sun rise on this dusty and beautiful valley. It’s definitely not the sunrise that makes the morning (as anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I’m not very often a willing participant in mornings), but rather time that could be considered wasted, is set aside and guarded as time to spend with the Lord.

Big Talk. Real Talk. Get down with your real self!

How many of us can say that we are always our true selves?

How many of us can honestly say that we don’t ever wear a mask…we put up a front and act like we have everything under control?

I can honestly say that for many years I felt like I could never let anyone know that I was not okay, that I did not have everything under “control” or even that I needed help or prayer.

A couple of days ago I went out to dinner with a couple of friends and as we were getting ready to eat one of the guys said, “I am going to challenge you guys to continue the rest of the night with big talk, instead of surface level or what you call small talk, let’s be real with each other”.

WOW! I can tell you that changed the whole atmosphere right then and there! I knew that God was challenging me to “get down with my real self” and not only let people in my world but also allow opportunities to really be interested in others lives as well. No more surface level conversations, be completely honest, open and really be interested in listening, encouraging and even praying right then  and there for people around us. When I say people, I don’t just mean close friends and family, I also mean people at the grocery store, your server at a restaurant, your customers, your sisters/brothers friends and the list goes on and on.

One of my daily prayers is:

“Lord, help me be more like You! Let me be Your hands, feet, mouth and let those around me see Your love, compassion, grace, kindness.”

But what good does that do if I don’t ever seek those opportunities to love people and really be generous with my words and time?

For most people when you ask them, “How is your day?” they will answer, “It’s good” when really sometimes it is not good. I found that a lot of people get thrown off and often times tend to try to veer away when someones response is other than, “It’s good”. I believe those are the opportunities we have to really provide a listening ear, encouragement, or even an opportunity to pray right then and there for someone and really show the love of God.

“Let me give you a new command: Love one another in the same way I love you. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples – when they see the LOVE you have for each other.” – John 13:35:36

I challenged myself and now challenge you, to begin to have “big talk” with people and when someone says ” I am good”,  be bold and ask the follow-up question, “Are you really good?” I can assure you that 99 % of the time that follow-up question will lead you to a deeper conversation. I know that has changed relationships all around me and even provided opportunities to build relationships and truly begin to exercise characteristics of Christ. Get uncomfortable, inconvenienced, be generous with your time and words, let people know we are imperfect people serving a perfect God. All God requires of us is availability and obedience, God will do the rest!

Blessings/Answered Prayers Jar

Hey ya’ll!

So a few years ago I was looking on Pinterest and I realized I had pinned a bunch of prayer jars onto my “Crafts I Love but Will Never Have Time to Make” board. It was summer time and for the first time, I actually had time to make a craft. The jars all were so pretty on Pinterest and seemed easy enough. So I went out and got the materials I needed from Michaels.

While I was making it, I was thinking about all the prayers I would write down and put in this jar. Even just thinking about it, I was thinking about putting in things like family, friends, future school endeavors etc. There were so many, that I thought if I wrote them all down I would probably fill at least a quarter of the jar in one sitting. Then I got realistic and realized more than likely I won’t actually use this every time I have a prayer because prayer is constant and I feel that I am just always adding to the list of prayers I have.

It was then that I realized how rarely I really sit down, praise God and thank him for answered prayers and the blessings he provides in my life.

It’s easy to forget to do that, huh? So I decided to make a Blessings/Answered Prayers Jar instead. I thought it was a great concept to write down answered prayers and put them in a jar as a reminder of the times that God came through and answered my prayers. It reminds me that when I am in the midst of waiting for a prayer to be answered, I need to be patient.

I have had this jar for three years now. Reading through some of these have brought tears to my eyes because God is good. He is so good. He provided. He answered my prayers in ways that I did not even realize until later. They were better than I had ever hoped. I had a prayer from before I even started college that wasn’t answered until the beginning of my senior year of college. His answer was better than I could have ever prayed for or imagined. Having this jar has changed the way I pray. It has reminded me to just say “Thank You” because He is working and He is working for your good.

Materials Needed:

  • Jar
  • 2-3” Ribbon
  • Sharpie
  • Glitter paper
  • Hot Glue
  • Index cards
  • Scissors

Step 1: Go to Michaels/Hobby Lobby/Craft and buy any of the supplies that you do not already have.

Step 2: Pick a Bible verse that you like or that you feel reminds you to be thankful for your blessings. I chose 1 Chronicles 16:8-12:

“Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength;
seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced.”

Step 3: Write the Bible verse or part of the Bible verse on the ribbon.

Step 4: Glue the ribbon around the jar. I chose the bottom portion of the jar for mine, but you can chose another spot.

Step 5: Cut out the colored or glitter paper and write Blessings Jar, Answered Prayers jar, or whatever you would like to call your jar. If you use glitter paper I recommend cutting out other non-glitter paper and writing on that and then gluing that to the glitter paper.

Step 6: Cut up a bunch of pieces of paper. I recommend index cards and cutting them in half as it stays sturdier and looks cleaner when it is in the jar.

Step 7: Enjoy your jar as well as thanking our Father for the blessing and answered prayers.

Prayer

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I don’t know about you, but the words “pray without ceasing” are almost enough for me to just throw in the towel. There is absolutely no way I could ever pray forever, let alone rejoice forever and give thanks always. These verses sound so much more like ideas then actual commands.

Funny thing is, the more I pray, the more I realize how desperate I am, and in turn the more I want to pray.

Prayer for me comes in many forms. Quick prayers over meals, long prayers with lots of tears by myself in my room, written prayers in a journal I keep with me at all times, desperation prayers for a friends battling cancer for the third time in her short life. There are really countless prayers I could list.

I feel like prayer is so important that it needs its own ceremony. I need to go somewhere special, break open my journal, and pray specific things in a specific order. God can definitely meet me there, but God can just as easily meet me at my desk as I type this blog. He can just as easily speak to me in a moment of silence at a stoplight. The reason why I don’t tend to find God at my desk, or in my car, is because I’m not looking for him there.

The real point of prayer is communication with God. The real reason I don’t have prayer without ceasing is that I don’t try. I don’t give God breathing room. I don’t let him into my every moment. But, that’s exactly where He wants to be.

The more I think about it, I really want to be a person who prays without ceasing.

There is a great story I will leave you with: my friend DJ has been going to our church since 1957. She is who I want to be when I’m old. She has power in her words, love in every hug, and joy in her worship. My pastor’s wife told a story recently about DJ. They shared a room for one night at a women’s retreat a few years ago. DJ warned that she talks in her sleep. The reality is that she goes to bed praying, prays in her sleep, and wakes up praying. Just amazing.
I’m in this journey with you all. Attempting to be a person who is joyful, prayerful and thankful. At the start, I have to have a routine time set aside for prayer. My hope, is that it will become the thread weaving through every part of me, just like DJ.

Will you join me? Lent is a perfect time to get centered with God. That’s what I’m doing. Getting centered, spending my first hour after I get off work with Him. When will you set aside time? What are you doing? Let me know so I can pray with you as you pray for me.

Advent – Day 22

Today we enter the fourth and final week of Advent. From now until Christmas Eve, the focus of Advent is preparation for the celebration of Christ’s birth.

With Christmas just five days away, the mad dash has begun! As we take time to prepare ourselves for parties and get-togethers, the last few hurried workdays of the year, and holiday travel, let’s take a moment to prepare our hearts by praying this prayer:

In this season of expectation
We prepare to welcome Christ Jesus, Messiah
Into the bustle of our lives
and the hard-to-find moments of solitude.
We prepare to welcome Christ Jesus, Messiah
Into our homes and situations,
along with friends and families.
We prepare to welcome Christ Jesus, Messiah
Into our hearts, and those often hidden parts of our lives.
We prepare to welcome Christ Jesus, Messiah.
For beneath the surface of your story
Is an inescapable fact:
You entered this world
As vulnerable as any one of us
In order to nail that vulnerability to the cross.
Our fears, our insecurities, and our sins –
All that can separate us from God
Exchanged by your Grace for Love.
We cannot comprehend the reasoning;
Only marvel that Salvation comes to us
Through a baby born in a stable,
And reaches out to a world in need.

In this season of anticipation
We prepare to welcome Christ Jesus, Messiah

As we enter this last week of Advent, we pray for the peace of God’s presence in our preparation. The day we celebrate God’s greatest gift – Jesus – is so near! Let’s put our hearts in order and dwell in the assurance that the Prince of Peace has come and is coming again.

Credit: Photo by Sarah Simon // Instagram: @themintgardener // Prayer source: Faith and Worship – Christian Prayers and Resources

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