Another Check In

Hi Friend,
Your words are so encouraging. I am so sorry I still have not been able to check in every day. Things are so busy, but they are really good. I will definitely give Echo a call in the next week or so. I am so glad she opened up to you about her questions and that you were able to share truth with her. Hopefully she will read the Blessing Your Spirit book, and also hopefully whatever I share with her will confirm what you've shared, making it doubly powerful in her mind.

I am so hopeful about your words about bearing fruit. I have been getting so many prophetic words about moving into a season of abundance and harvest. I can already see that happening.

I went to my first Writer's Room meeting with our church. I did tell you about that, right? I hope so. It is going to be an incredible experience and a fantastic opportunity for developing my skills as a writer, making connections, making life-long friends who share my passion for writing and loving on people through words and film, and for future income potential. I am so excited about it. I was overwhelmed on my way home with the goodness of God to the point where my brain almost frizzled. It was so amazing!

I did tell you that rent is covered for November and December, right? That is a huge relief, yet it looks like we will need God's miraculous intervention for January still. I know it won't be so hard to trust this next time as it was for this time. Also, my friend who just came from Washington to stay with us for a few days brought us several weeks' worth of groceries!! So amazing! We will have to buy a few things this week, but not much. And we probably won't have to buy much for next week either! Amazing!!!

We are also considering having a young woman come and live with us. She's coming over tomorrow to have a discussion with us about it. I think it is a God thing, and I actually think it will be a win-win situation for all of us. She is in a similar position in terms of trusting God for financial provision, but she is also an artist/musician/writer. She is attending the school of supernatural ministry here at our church, and she loves our children. She wants to be a help with the kids and the house, to help me free up more time to spend working and homeschooling. Her parents are missionaries, so she grew up living with other families and adapting to different climates. I am confident it will be a good fit.

I've also heard clearly from the Lord that I am supposed to keep my hand to the plow and not keep looking back wondering if I should be spending my energy doing something different to make money. He spoke to me clearly last Thursday night and told me He had already opened doors for me to make money with my writing, but I had been avoiding them thinking they weren't sufficient or thinking I needed more. I am so settled in the issue, though I am still nervous about the fact that these opportunities will still take time to build in terms of a monthly income. I covet your prayers to stick with this and put my faith completely in His willingness and faithfulness to bless the work of my hands. Even now as I write this, He is confirming in my spirit that this is really my only course of action. To continually spin my wheels every day trying to find new work is a waste of my energy and a depletion of my creative resources for the work He has actually already given me.

Well, I hope soon to be able to get back to our study. Eric and I have been making some real good changes in the way we spend our days, and I think it will translate to a more regular schedule for me to be on the computer. After Thanksgiving, I may at least be able to do some Bible study a couple times a week again.

I continue to pray for you all. Is Echo going to move to Anacortes still? Or has that changed? You mentioned classes beginning in January. Where will she be attending?

Love you,
Angela

Love you

Angela,
So glad that you checked in, I am been looking for a word from you everyday. I am so glad that you had time to catch me up on what is going on with you.  Sorry for this difficult season in your life, you have to keep in mind that you are just in a season of your growth and in time in will produce much fruit. I will continue to lift up your worries to the Lord.

As for Echo, she is here at the house all day everyday till classes start in January so give her a call. She is working through a lot of things in her mind and soul right now. I talked to her about how she was feeling two days ago, she had questions related to the verse about women. I basically told her that if God has given her these desires to serve him and be a missionary then she should let nothing get in her way. She questioned how God could create women to be only helpers, only mothers. I had to contain my laughter. I told her it was perfectly ok for her to have no desire to be a mother right now, she is 17, a virgin and never been kissed. That maybe now it is time for her to do what God has told her to do. She asked about marriage and how could God make Man be the ruler of the women. At this point I did laugh and told her that in the trinity there are the Father, Son, and Spirit not one is more important than another. They work as one because they are one. In marriage there is the man, the woman and the Lord, they all work as one no one is more important than other. The two become one and work to serve the Lord. I also told her that she needs to accept that the Lord loves her, that her own self esteem is preventing her from believing the God loves her and wants the best for her. I told her about the Blessing the Spirit book, I hope she reads it.
Check out this link to see some of what Echo is working through, it is some tough stuff: http://mygeex.blogspot.com/


I love you my friend and I miss your words. I pray that things slow down and you are able to sleep soon.
Love, Tina

Checking In

I just read your last post. Thank you for catching me up. I have been praying for Echo. She has been e-mailing me with some questions that I have had a hard time answering by e-mail. I have asked if she would be willing to talk with me on the phone, but she just doesn't respond for a long time after that. I think of her and pray for her almost daily, and I will e-mail her again in a day or two to see if she wants to schedule a phone call for next week.

I'm so sorry that study has had to take a back seat for the time being. I have company coming this week and start my writer's group this week, also. I have been so busy, and I'm trying to find a balance again. I don't like being as busy as I've been lately, but this season is just full. Eric is still looking for work, and I am looking for steady clients. I am hopeful that my brother will need me to start writing regularly for him starting in January, but he has not gotten back to me about it. In the meantime, I'm spending a lot of time trying to get articles out there on different sites and checking websites for possible work.

We still need a breakthrough. The money we received is still a stop-gap. On the other hand, I am so excited about how God provided and that it was just in time. I am trusting it will continue to be that way until He shows us what is next.

I have had an awesome week, despite the busy schedule. A friend had breakthrough in forgiveness on Sunday, and I had a breakthrough with my dad. He and I have started e-mailing for the first time in over five years without there being hurt feelings and offense on one side or the other. I have been thinking a lot about it today, and I am still nervous about some aspects of the whole thing, but I am grateful for the breakthrough in communication. God has truly bridged the gap between us, and I thought it was completely impossible!

Part of the problem with my crazy schedule has been that I haven't been able to sleep at night very well. I have been suffering from a series of colds, one after the other; likely a combination of allergies and not getting enough sleep. I keep having to sleep in very late to make up for restless nights. I got some different types of chamomile tea yesterday, and that seemed to help me fall asleep. Phew! However, I still woke up several times. And now I have a really awful sinus headache, which makes it difficult to function.

I know if I can just start sleeping well at night, I will be able to get up early and get a lot done. I don't have trouble with my energy levels at all during the day as long as I get at least 8 hours of sleep, but I'm running out of time at the end of each night because I'm not getting up early enough.

Even though I'm not able to do the study, I will continue to check back here as often as I can and stay posted on your news and keep you posted on mine. I think of you often throughout the week, and I pray for both you and Echo often.

Love you,
Angela

Even Better Today...

Angela,

 So glad there has been a break in your situation. That is awesome news!! Not much going on here, working, school, and family. Echo has been suffering a lot lately, we think she is having a reaction from some medication so the doctor recommended we back down a little on it. It will take a few days to figure out if that is really what is wrong with her. In the meantime she has been having big headaches and nausea. Not fun at all... Doing really good other than that beside normal teenage angst which all of my girls seem to have. Patience is something I am in need of. I started back on Cymbalta which has made a big difference in my pain and aches as well as my energy, it is a good thing. Freaking out about Christmas, have to talk to the kids about having a "little" Christmas rather than a grand one, they are use to an overabundance and well it isn't going to happen this year. We are finally digging ourselves out of recent debt occurred in summer when Mark was not working. We were a month behind in rent and had a energy bill of $1200!! I have almost caught the electric bill up, I have one more payment in the middle of November and then we will be up to date on all basic necessities. Maybe then we will start to feel a little breathing room. I will continue to pray for your needs and your family. In the meantime relish your time with Lord and know that he loves you so much, he doesn't want to see you suffer, his blessings far outstretch our momentary struggles.

Love you,

Tina

...but still no time for study! I'm so sorry, my friend. I will keep checking in with you daily and praying for you and asking you for prayer, but I think I'm going to just have to let the study go this week. I have some amazing news, and I will share it tomorrow. Right now I need to give my children some attention.

I do want to say this: GOD IS SO GOOD!!!

We have some money to work with, and I have been accepted into an amazing program through our church. Also, I actually have paid work sitting on my desk, though there are some things to work through with my new employer. I also get several job possibilities in my e-mail inbox daily, and Eric is going to start sorting through them and working with me on writing/editing, at least for now. (Really, I hope he will love it and want to keep doing it, but for now I'm letting it be a trial while he looks for other work.)

God is really coming through, and I'm so sorry I don't have more time to give you more details. I will write more as soon as I have a few minutes, probably some time tomorrow.

Please let me know how I can be praying for you, too!!

Love you,
Angela