Getting back to it....

I know it has been ages since I have posted on here, but the past year has been somewhat of a rollarcoaster. My husband didn't have a consistent job for 15 months... during some of which he was contracting consistently for a company, the rest caused us to learn to completely rely on God in an entirely new way. I have never known my neediness so acutely, nor my Savior's love and provision so abundantly. Tyler was contracting for a company consistently until October of last year, and was under the impression that he would be put on a 2 year contract, which would have provided some stability. 2 weeks later, he was moved to a different job, and upon the completion of that task the company had already overstaffed their other contract. So, while I had mentally been preparing for some stability, God was planning for a journey. From November 2010 until June of this year, Tyler worked any individual contracts that were offered to him. He has a friend whose private company occasionally had work for him installing networks in large hotels and businesses. While the work was a blessing, it meant that Tyler had to leave (sometimes on a moments' notice) for work anytime it was offered, because we did not know when it would come again. You may ask why he would not just go get a job in a restaurant... but when he did work, the money that he made was far better, and typically made up for the weeks that he was off. However, there were many times that I would ask if he were planning on going and applying at a restaurant for a job the next day... and it would NEVER fail.... the NEXT day he would be offered a contract for work, exactly in time (this happened multiple times). This was a huge blessing, but incredibly stressful, as Ty would sometimes leave for what we thought would be 3-5 days, and end up being gone for 3 weeks. While sometimes he would come home for three weeks after that, there were times when, a week later, he would again be gone for 2-3 weeks. It was a very emotional time. Yet throughout this time, God's was working. He worked in Ty and I's hearts in so many ways. In February of last year, Tyler began interviewing with a company in a process that would last 5 months. 5 long, drawn out, months in which he still was travelling consistently. We wanted to hope, but were scared to, wanted to get excited, but didn't want to be disappointed. So we continued to trust. Finally, in June, he was hired full time as a Field Service Engineer for a company that works on and maintains servers. This company is truly amazing. The way that they run their business, the work environment that they seek to create, and the things that they value are a huge blessing. So, while we have been stressed, stretched, and strengthened, we also were then handed a job for Tyler that not only fits him well, and he is good at, but that he enjoys. Never once during those 15 months did our bills go unpaid, we learned so much of the faithfulness of God, and our walk with our Father was a close walk, grown in desperation as we sought HIM as Hope, Provider, Protector, Warrior, and Savior....

Ash Wednesday

This past week, I attended my first Ash Wednesday service. Previously, I was under the impression that Ash Wednesday was for Catholics, and thought nothing of it's meaning or application for me, but then found out my church was holding an Ash Wednesday service, and decided to attend. I was so encouraged.

It is a day to remember. As Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, people laid palm fronds on the ground, and hailed him as a king. He was their accepted king. Later, those very same people jeered and spat as he hung on a cross as their Savior. We do the same thing.

We also remember Cain and Abel. Cain killed his brother. Then as God was punishing him, (and driving him from the land), he begs God for mercy. We do the same thing. We commit murder, we sin in the most atrocious ways, and then ask God for mercy. God was merciful with Cain, he did not allow Cain to be killed in spite of the fact that he had killed his brother. Instead he marked Cain with a sign, so that others would not kill him. This was a gracious act. God was gracious to Cain. We don't know what this mark was, but it was a visible sign that others could see. It was a mark of shame for his deeds, but a mark of grace, because God spared his life.

And so we burn palm fronds, and we put the ashes on our heads, we remember that we deserve death for our sin and should be ashamed, but God is gracious to us and saves us.

Grace so Amazing

I haven't been on in a while. Ty and I have been working a lot, and enduring life in a way that makes you hopeful, and grateful. I have never so desperately needed the faithfulness of God, and He has never been so graciously faithful in my life. We have experienced job loss, several times over, and every trial that comes with that. Trying nothing more than to be obedient to what we feel God has laid before us and everything stands in the way of that- it's overwhelming. Yet, God is faithful. There were times that bills should not have been paid, when God graciously provided. I have cried out to God in desperation multiple times, and He has always answered. I am more amazed by His grace in my life than ever before. I don't deserve salvation. I am a wretched sinner, and I certainly don't deserve for him to be my Rescuer when I fail; yet he has, and does, again and again. He cares and provides, continuously. The Perfect Holy God of the Universe has time for me, cares for me, knows my every need and meets me where I am. Sometimes he allows the struggle so I can grow, and trust, and seek Him, but always, He is there.

He is SO faithful, and SO gracious to me.

Love So Amazing, So Divine... Demands My Soul, My Life, My All

And the Change Continues...

It's funny how we make plans. Plans fail. So we make more plans. Perhaps our planning is running with what we think God has in store. Perhaps we should tread with more trepidation as we step. At any rate, plans have continued to be made, and continued to be changed.

I am no longer working on my BCBA. At least not for now. Perhaps down the road. But then again, maybe not. I'll have to pray about that one a bit more first.

Tyler has a new job that he likes very much, and we are very grateful for. Praise God! Our prayer is that we will now be able to free ourselves from debt and then be able to be freely used by God in our finances.

The church plant is going well. God is blessing it, and we are being blessed by being able to be involved. We are excited to see where things will go and how the Father will use us.

Job. We've been studying Job at Sojourn, and boy, it is a swift reminder. I have been both blessed and overwhelmed as we have studied this book. It has made me eager for the Word, and I have been overjoyed to watch the effects of it work in my life.

I feel like this is just a short update, and my prayer is that in the future I will do a better job of updating on here, so that it will less look like a calendar, and more like a journey.

Change

Alot has been going on lately. Tyler and I are helping our church with a new church plant we are launching. I am seriously looking into grad school for my BCBA certification. We are making plans to move into a bigger apartment, and Tyler is currently working on a resume for a new job. Phew. Alot to think about, and all very exciting.

We are so excited about getting involved in helping with Sojourn's new church plant. It's an exciting time to be involved and get plugged in. But there is always the sigh of *change*. It's not a bad thing, in fact, it's a good thing, but it won't be " the same". I think that is a good thing. I think God is once again making me flexible so that he can use me. I am really excited. But still, sometimes in the quiet moments, I find a big sigh coming from deep within me- sort of like a breath preparing for the road of change ahead.

Grad School. God has seemingly opened some big doors that will allow me to do a one year master's level certification program to have a BCBA degree (Board Certified Behavior Analyst). This will open many doors for both Tyler and I, as Ty looks at grad school ahead, and will allow us to potentially accomplish some very clear goals that we believe are God- given. That's exciting too.

Bigger Apartment=more to clean. Haha just kidding. A bigger apartment will allow us to not only have room to open our home to friends and family that are traveling, or need a place to stay, it will also allow us the space to spread out- so that as we head into a few years of grad school (me first, then Ty), we won't be breathing down one another's necks as the other tries to study.

And finally, Tyler is currently working on a resume for a new job that a friend recommended him for. We are praying that if he is supposed to get the job, he will, and if not, the door will very clearly close.

As you read, please join us in prayer for these big events in the days and weeks to come.