Ah…my very first blog. So much to say that I’m not sure where to begin. I guess with the basics…who I am and how did I end up where I am today. The brief story…I was born right here in Wichita, KS USA. I was born to a single mother in the early 70’s for which in that day was almost completely unheard of. I was the only one in my kindergarten class that did not have a dad living in the home. Imagine that!!!
I was raised in a Catholic home and went to Catholic school most of my educational days but not all. My entire family is Catholic. I never remember a day when I didn’t believe in Jesus or felt a love of Jesus but I can honestly say I did not have a relationship with Him nor did I really “believe” the teachings of the Catholic church.
Needless to say as I grew older, I strayed FAR from the church and to the morales that I had been raised with and valued. Skip forward to October 26, 2001. I find myself with three small children and a marriage that had fallen apart and was in the middle of a divorce. I was as lost as one could be with no hope or understanding of the future. Only through divine intervention did I find myself sitting in a pastor’s office trying to make sense of it all.
Pastor Ray Emery was the man God chose to lead me to Him. He sat down and opened the bible and for the first time in my life, (remember those countless hours in Catholic school studying the bible when I say this next sentence….) for the first time in my life the words in that bible spoke to me as if they were written just for me. “For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God”…yes that was me…”For the wages of sin is death”…yes…that is what I deserved for the life I had been leading….”It is by faith, not works that one is saved”…BINGO…for some reason that verse lit my soul on fire….it was like a flood rushing over me. I finally understood what it all meant.
So my friends, on October 26, 2001, I turned my life over and was born again…born free from sin…born into His likeness. I would like to say that was the end of the story and everyone lived happily ever after but that wasn’t meant to be. My husband and I reconciled and for about three years, I grew daily as a Christian Disciple and led my life as such. But slowly, I allowed the lure of the world and slow decay of my marriage to encompass me and I lost sight of my way. I wondered aimlessly for the next four years…in and out of church…in and out of relationship with Christ. The last year and a half was spent without a church family and without much of a relationship either. My divorce was final June, 2008.
And then through death, a new fire was again lit within me. My cousin who was only 26 years old had lost his battle with brain cancer. The funeral was officiated by a member of the family to my cousins in-laws. God spoke to me at that service. Nudging me saying…find out what church this guy belongs to and go visit it. So I did that very next Sunday…only days after the funeral.
Well my friends, that is how I was introduced to the GracePoint family. I loved it the day I attended service and my love continues to grow every day. I am FINALLY in the place I am supposed to be. God is calling me to participate in the great things this church is destined to do. But the question is…will I have the faith to listen and follow or will I let “self” get in the way? Follow my blog and we will find out together.
So, that is a little background to who I am. I hope to update on a daily basis but knowing me, I will miss a couple here and there. I invite you to my world. Some blogs will be funny, some will be sad, some will be deep, some will make you think about your own life and your own direction, some will be completely silly and most likely, some will have you leaving asking yourself, “What was that?”. But I promise one thing, it will not be boring.
I just request one thing from you…don’t be so quick to judge me. I offer you the gift of me…I think the best gift you can give to someone is your true self….not an image of who you want to be or what you think others want you to be. True Self…who you are in your core….good or bad. Some people haven’t even discovered who they are so I feel blessed knowing who I am and am willing to share that. God does not expect me to be perfect so I will NOT waste my effort trying to be perfect for my fellow man. Either take me or leave me. If you take me…just be prepared for a journey.
