A few posts back, I shared how good I was starting to feel both physically and mentally after spending several months feeling miserable and depleted. I’m happy to say that I am still feeling good, and still maintaining the routines and practices in which I share in this post and this post.
Today I want to talk about my spiritual journey. I am a born again Christian who believes in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins. I go to church every Sunday and I even serve full-time in ministry. I work as a Meeting Planner for my church and have done so for 15 years.
I love the Lord. I love my Church and I enjoy my job…but here comes the but. But recently I found myself in a dry place. I was going through all of the motions, but my heart was not in the right place. I was doing all these things FOR the Lord, but I wasn’t spending any time WITH Him. That was until recently.
The thing that helped to pull me together physically and mentally was being able to reestablish my relationship with the Lord. I knew I had to spend more time with Him so that I could have the strength and zeal to do more things for him! As I’ve shared in this post, one of the things I do on a daily basis is to have my quiet time each and every morning.
I spend time every morning reading my daily devotions from my favorite devotional book, Experiencing God Day by Day, written by Henry T. Blackaby & Richard Blackaby. After reading the devotion for the day, I sit quietly and think about how I can apply it to my life. Then I calm my heart and I go before the Lord in prayer. Each morning I have sweet, sweet communion with Him and it helps to prepare me for the day ahead. This one discipline has transformed my life!
Many times as I pray I end up crying out to the Lord. More often than not my tears are tears of sheer gratitude and thanksgiving. This time that I spend cultivating my relationship with Him is absolutely my most favorite time of day. My second favorite is falling into bed each night, knowing I have done my best and that my sleep is well earned.
I share all of this because I hope that it encourages someone to slow down and to cultivate the most important relationship you’ll ever have. I also share this because I am excited about taking my time with the Lord to a new level. If you had a chance to read my post about one of my favorite goal setting tools, PowerSheets, then you know I love Lara Casey at LaraCasey.com.
Well, today I happened to catch a Facebook Live video where she was talking about her journal collection “Write The Word Bible Journals”. These are 5 beautiful journals, which can be purchased separately or as a collection and each has its own theme if you will:
- Cultivate Faith
- Cultivate Joy
- Cultivate Gratitude
- Cultivate Hope
- Cultivate Renewal
To describe the purpose of the journals, allow me to share Lara’s own words: “The Write the Word journal is unique. Each day, you’ll get a selection of key verses to write out, along with space to write your thoughts, prayers, or anything else God places on your heart. These journals were created with the big picture of God’s story in mind, helping to point you to places in the Bible that will help you to know His heart in direct and deeper ways.”
I didn’t have to think twice about ordering my copies. And I am salivating in anticipation of receiving them and more importantly being able to write God’s Word each morning so that it can get deeper into my heart. I will also be purchasing another set so that I can pay it forward and give them as gifts. Looking forward to blessings others as I have been blessed.
Your Turn To Share
How do you cultivate your relationship with the Lord? Do you find that when you spend more time with him, you’re strengthened and better equipped to take on your day? Please share your testimony in the comments below.