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Friday, March 21, 2014

She Shares Truth: Jonah 1 & 2


"But Jonah ran away from the Lord..." Jonah 1:3

Several years ago I had a vision.  Not a vision as in the heavens opened up and I saw what was to come, but a dream that came to me as I sat and prayerfully meditated on my future.  I saw an old white house, restored and brimming with life.  There were 5 bedrooms and each was occupied by a woman and her child[ren].  These woman were from different places- some had left abusive husbands, some were homeless- all were searching for another life.  A life with meaning, an existence with purpose.  

In this old white house, these women and their children found God.  They grew to know love and what it means to be a mother.  They learned how to stand on their own two feet.  They gained strength and found their smile.  They learned how to be self-sufficient, how to manage money, how to cook, clean, sew and garden.  Most importantly, they found joy in being a mother.

I knew this was my purpose.  I knew I had to find that old house and make a home for those women.  

But, like Jonah, I ran away.  Who was I kidding?  I know absolutely nothing about shelters and rescues and battered women.  I have zero business sense.  I didn't even finish college!

Fast forward to 2013.  I'm having a conversation with my pastor when it all comes out.  That vision I had years before.  He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms over his chest and listens intently.  He almost seems surprised.  We talk about it for awhile and my heart is about to burst!  I love talking about it- I know every little detail and I can feel my eyes light up.  I lean in and start to use my hands to express my excitement over the plan.  I spend the next couple of days dreaming about it.

And once again, I run away.  I push this vision down- deep in the deepest file of my mind.  Hidden away where it can be forgotten.  I don't have time for it, Lord.  (I don't have time for you, Lord.  I don't have time for your work, Lord.  Not now.  I am so busy with my family and my church.  Maybe another day.)

I run away.

Fast forward to March 2014.  It's all coming back again.  I am reading Jennie Allen's Restless and I am discovering my threads.  Hospitality, Caring, Teaching, Encouraging- these are my spiritual gifts.  I am weaving the threads together when I realize I am outlining my vision.  The vision I had years before.  Once again, I feel the excitement brimming up.  But where do I go from here?

To be continued....

2 comments:

  1. Such a wonderful vision, I pray that you will soon make it into reality and pursue God's vision for your life, and not run from it.

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  2. So exciting to follow God, and often SCARY. Praying for you as You seek His will and step out in faith. As a former battered woman, may I thank you and say bless you on behalf of all those you will help? <3

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