Category Archives: Bible

A New Season

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We are deep into the fall season, although in Texas it still feels a little too much like summer. But the leaves are beginning to change and in the morning there is a coolness in the air. To really tell how late in the season it is, I have to look at the calendar. Sure enough, soon it will be Halloween then Thanksgiving and next… Okay, I won’t say what’s after that. We all know. And in case it might freak you out, I won’t make you spill your coffee in your panic to get shopping.

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I love this time of year, the colors of the leaves, the spices, everything flavored with pumpkin, and most especially cooler temperatures. I’m one of those weird people that actually likes change. I get bored easily, so change even when it’s not so positive is often eventually a good thing in my estimation. A couple of years ago, I was looking ahead, as my son was about to graduate from high school with his sister following right behind, and I knew I would soon have an empty nest.

My chicks were about to fly. Even though I knew they were ready, I wasn’t. Since I had placed my writing on hold to help them with college apps and essays and touring colleges and traveling for interviews and auditions, I knew this was not going to be a good change unless I figured out a way to fill up my calendar and days when they were enjoying the college life. And by the way, juniors and seniors often need us as much as if not more than toddlers. It’s a stressful time. So I began to pray about what God wanted me to do. Did He want me to write again? Did He have something else in mind?

The first thing I felt Him press on my heart was a prayer group for moms. Prayer has been a passion of mine for a long time, so it was fairly easy to say, “Yes, God!” But then, I thought I had to invite moms to my house. Of course, that meant I had to have a clean house. God gave me the idea to have a private community of moms on Facebook, where we could pray for our children and ask for prayer when it was needed. “You mean, God, I don’t have to clean my house first?” “Nope,” He said (and sometimes in my head He has a Texas accent), “you don’t.” I was thrilled and immediately started the group. And I haven’t looked back since.

It’s been a learning curve, and I’m still learning and growing and well…praying. My kids are now pursuing their dreams at their respective colleges. I can’t say this change has been easy on this momma’s heart, but I know God has a plan. I love praying for my friends’ families as well as my own. And I’m slowly getting back into the groove of writing. The full scope of God’s plan is a mystery, but I can rest in these changes because I know He is not taken by surprise. He saw the change of seasons, and He has a plan.

Are you approaching a season of life change? What is God telling you?

For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Lord, Your word tells us that for everything there is a season. Some seasons of our lives are joyful, some sorrowful, some full of laughter, some full of tears. Lord, we give this time to You now, whatever season of life it is. We thank You for this season, and we know You have a plan for how we are to walk through it, for what we are to accomplish, for the divine appointments that You have set up in advance. Father, we ask for Your guidance as we take the hesitant steps into this new season, that You will guide us, give us strength and wisdom, and that our footsteps will grow bolder and more confident in Your light. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

From my heart to yours,

Leanna

Don’t you love it when this happens?

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We often call it coincidence or sometimes serendipity, but I like to call it a God moment. Recently, I had been really wanting, no yearning to read the Bible through again. The usual Bible that I read, which has 4 translations in it, seemed too crowded with all my markings and writings in the margin, so I bought a parallel Bible with the NIV and The Message side by side. About a week ago, I began reading, with my aim to read the Bible through in a year. To do so, I like to read a chapter in the Old Testament, a Psalm, and a chapter in the New Testament. Usually I begin in Matthew but this time I felt led to begin in Romans. Also, for the past couple of weeks, I’d felt really weighted with the need to memorize scripture. But where to start? It’s been a few years since I seriously memorized and I felt it was lacking in my spiritual growth. So while I contemplated this and prayed about what to memorize, I began my read through of the Bible. When I reached Romans 8, I knew it was what I was supposed to memorize. I felt it deep in my spirit. Happiness! Yet, when you haven’t memorized lately it can feel a bit daunting. Now back track, just a couple of days, and I had once again come into contact with a book that I keep seeing and hearing about and had finally purchased and begun reading– One Thousand Gifts. I am so impressed with Ann Voskamp’s weighty writing but also her heart, which shines through in the prose. So of course, I visited her website. I liked it. The day I read Romans 8 and new that was what I needed to memorize, I ventured back to Ann’s website–A Holy Experience–and discovered the coolest project she has going–The Romans Project. It’s folks memorizing Romans 1, 8, and 12. Wham-bam, I knew I had to do it. Yes, it’s crazy scary to even admit it here and commit to it because my memory is so bad and I don’t even know if I can memorize one verse much less 3 chapters, but I am so excited and I know God brought me to this place and to Ann’s website at just the right moment. Now, she and the folks there are 2 months ahead of me but that’s okay. She has a printout of the NIV version of the scriptures and helpful hints. Don’t you love it when God answers your prayers and brings you to a place you have no doubt He arranged? I do! So if you’ve been contemplating something similar, come on and join in!