My God is real and present, and one of the best ways for me to remind myself of His presence and involvement in our lives is to look back and notice His faithfulness. Join me as I look back on some of my Bullet Journal notes from January 2023 and rejoice in His faithfulness.
1/16 – Thank-you for the wonderful deal of a new diaper bag backpack from Facebook Marketplace. You wouldn’t have had to lower the price by $10 for me or kept others from snatching it up, but I am soooo very grateful!
1/17 – The work that the Hinkletown Youth group did over the weekend at the school was not only a God-send but also a very motivating step toward getting the school projects rolling. Now, I can’t wait until the Martindale Youth group helps out in March and we should be well on our way in starting to look like an actual school.
1/18 – You sent us a kindergarten teacher for Arrows who not only has had experience teaching in an outreach setting but also contacted US looking for a job rather than us needing to contact her. Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you.
1/19 – I was absentmindedly driving home from Sister’s Day at mom’s house while listening to my three-year-old talk. And I suddenly realized that while the traffic lights were covered with canvas directly in front of me, there were traffic lights to the side that were showing “red”. I hit the brakes while realizing that if my eyes wouldn’t have gone to the sides at the last minute, we would have been run into by the intersecting traffic. Thank-you, guardian angels, for sparing us that tragedy.
1/20 – Yesterday, I thought of our small Shiloh Ladies accountability group, and I yearned to catch up with them again. And yet, I figured that they were probably all transitioned into other rich, full friendships and may not have the time or energy to want to meet up again. So I let it go. But this morning, I had a text message from another lady in the group who was echoing my exact thoughts in wanting to meet up again for a time of reconnection. It then occurred to me that perhaps it was God’s voice I heard talking to me yesterday; and while I dismissed it, she had listened and reached out.
1/22 – Miss M and I finally ran into each other today; and I followed the Lord’s prompting in inviting her over for dinner. We are looking forward to being with her Tuesday evening. Thank-you, Jesus, for Marlene and please guide our conversations on Tuesday.
1/23 – We had a a letter in our mailbox yesterday from our new-ish neighbor (of about 3 months) asking to talk with Kevin about God. He is a returned soldier and quite broken and traumatized by his events. Although he had a strong Christian foundation, he knows that he not only needs to repent, make things right with God, but also forgive himself. What an incredible answer to prayer in this year’s goal of being able to listen to God’s Spirit at work among our neighbors. Thank-you, Jesus, and I beg you to move on his behalf in granting him the peace of mind, forgiveness, and peace he so desperately longs for.
1/24 – The pain in my right hand last night was so intense. I woke up around midnight and nearly cried due to the sharp level of pain. But after rubbing my hand for quite some time, I was able to fall back asleep. Only to wake up an hour later with even more intense pain. This time I did cry. How am I supposed to make it through the night much less get any rest? And the pain was so sharp. Kevin woke and rubbed my hand for a while and tried to brainstorm with me on what I could do to relieve it. But honestly, the only true relief is to simply have the baby. An hour later, after much rubbing and massage, I drifted off to sleep again. And thank-you Jesus, the pain did not return to the extent that it woke me. But this morning I wondered, why hadn’t I prayed over my hands? All I could seem to think of in the moment was my misery and intensity of pain. But I never prayed.
1/25 – Thank-you Jesus for nurses today who validated our delayed-vaccine decisions so far. With all of the contrasting views, it felt like such a gift to hear that medical professionals think we are making wise choices for our boys.
1/26 – We were in a traffic jam when contractions started. Help, please not now, I whisper. And they ease up within a few minutes. A little while later, we were on back roads and I am not sure where I am going besides, I can hardly focus because the pain of back contractions is so bad. Help, please not now, I whisper again. And once again, the pain eases up and we continue with no further drama.
1/30 – I am trying to see God’s plan and goodness in this long, painful situation of fluid-buildup. I keep thinking that it should level out, or at least that the baby would come and the fluid could start to go down. But no, the swelling gets worse and worse with constantly tingly hands that quite often leads to pain where I need to stop and massage. The times of searing pain in the middle of the night are definitely the worst but even my day to day movements now are not just affected by tingles but outright pain. Please, deliver me, soon Lord!
1/31 – How much longer, Lord? What do I need to do in order to get this baby to come and have blood circulation in my hands again?
Winston Jude Martin was born several hours later in the afternoon of 1/31/2023. The swelling of my hands slowly dissipated over the next couple months. Thank-you, Jesus, for the gift of pain-free movement again.
God is working. Have you noticed Him today?
Jot down one “noticing” a day and tell one person a day of the work He is doing in your day-to-day.