Hi! My name is Anna. It's great to meet you as we begin this journey together! I'm a young adult searching and praying for God's will for my own life. I recently finished graduate school and soon hope to have a job teaching English as a second language (ESL) to adults from all different backgrounds. I love God, family, friends, learning Spanish, meeting new people, seeing new places, baking, music, sunshine, strawberries and cream frappuccinos, and as you may have guessed...writing.
Writing is something I've always loved, but it wasn't until a couple years ago that I became interested in writing for a more meaningful purpose. One Sunday the jail ministry leader at my church invited me to join the jail ministry team to encourage, support, and share God's love with women at the county jail. At first I found the idea very intimidating and asked myself: "Why me?? I don't like to be in the spotlight; I'm not a good speaker; and I really don't know the first thing about the problems some of these women have had to deal with in their lives." I soon found out, though, that God can use anyone that is willing regardless of our background or experience. I soon fell in love with this ministry opportunity and now immensely enjoy writing short devotionals to share with the women. I always go to the jail hoping to be a blessing to others, but I am the one who always leaves with the blessing. You see, each and every devotional I write for them is something that I need to be reminded of myself. Even though I grew up in a Christian home, attended Christian schools, and have had godly parents and friends by my side, I struggle with things every day just like everyone else does. Visiting the jail simply reminds me that I am just an ordinary girl and a sinner in need of God's mercy and grace just like everyone else. So every blog post I put on here is something that God has spoken to me about in my OWN life too.
I'm not an extraordinary author by any means...I'm simply an ordinary girl that loves to write and wants to use my passion to help others on their journey called life! Because let's all be honest with each other...the journey of life often isn't an easy one! But one thing is certain, God is with us each step of our journey. We simply have to believe! One of my favorite portions of Scripture comes from Psalm 37:1-7 (Hint: Take a moment to read!). Several of these verses begin with verbs written as commands that the Lord gives to us. These "command verbs" tell us exactly the advice we need for our journey of life:
- Fret not...
- Trust in the Lord...
- Delight thyself also in the Lord...
- Commit thy way unto the Lord...
- Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him...
If we will follow this plan that God has prescribed for us, I think we will be well on our way to a journey of joy! Note I did not say easy, but I did say JOY! Life definitely has its shares of ups and downs, but God gives us joy in the journey if we trust Him each step of the way. You see, happiness comes and goes depending on our circumstances, but real joy in Christ is lasting.
I chose "The Ecclesiastes 3 Life" as the title for my blog because I believe this passage from Scripture sums up what life really is all about. The beginning verses list experiences and feelings that probably all of us have experienced at one point in life. There is a "time to weep," but there also is a "time to laugh." There is a "time to get," but there also is a "time to lose." There is a "time to keep silence," but there also is a "time to speak." God has a "season" and a "purpose" for everything he allows into our lives. Our circumstances may not always be what we want or hope for, but His plan is perfect. And we must never forget that "He hath made everything beautiful in His time..." We may not be exactly the type of person that God wants us to be yet and our lives may not be just the way we want them to be, but God certainly hasn't forgotten us and He is constantly molding us and using circumstances in our lives to prepare us for HIS purpose in HIS time - not our own. My desire is to share things in my posts that reflect the fears, challenges, joys, and triumphs that we all face in ordinary life on a daily basis and to remind you of simple truths from God's Word that we all should cling to. No matter where you are on life's journey, I hope you'll join me in this adventure!
By His Grace,
~ Anna ~
Writing is something I've always loved, but it wasn't until a couple years ago that I became interested in writing for a more meaningful purpose. One Sunday the jail ministry leader at my church invited me to join the jail ministry team to encourage, support, and share God's love with women at the county jail. At first I found the idea very intimidating and asked myself: "Why me?? I don't like to be in the spotlight; I'm not a good speaker; and I really don't know the first thing about the problems some of these women have had to deal with in their lives." I soon found out, though, that God can use anyone that is willing regardless of our background or experience. I soon fell in love with this ministry opportunity and now immensely enjoy writing short devotionals to share with the women. I always go to the jail hoping to be a blessing to others, but I am the one who always leaves with the blessing. You see, each and every devotional I write for them is something that I need to be reminded of myself. Even though I grew up in a Christian home, attended Christian schools, and have had godly parents and friends by my side, I struggle with things every day just like everyone else does. Visiting the jail simply reminds me that I am just an ordinary girl and a sinner in need of God's mercy and grace just like everyone else. So every blog post I put on here is something that God has spoken to me about in my OWN life too.
I'm not an extraordinary author by any means...I'm simply an ordinary girl that loves to write and wants to use my passion to help others on their journey called life! Because let's all be honest with each other...the journey of life often isn't an easy one! But one thing is certain, God is with us each step of our journey. We simply have to believe! One of my favorite portions of Scripture comes from Psalm 37:1-7 (Hint: Take a moment to read!). Several of these verses begin with verbs written as commands that the Lord gives to us. These "command verbs" tell us exactly the advice we need for our journey of life:
- Fret not...
- Trust in the Lord...
- Delight thyself also in the Lord...
- Commit thy way unto the Lord...
- Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him...
If we will follow this plan that God has prescribed for us, I think we will be well on our way to a journey of joy! Note I did not say easy, but I did say JOY! Life definitely has its shares of ups and downs, but God gives us joy in the journey if we trust Him each step of the way. You see, happiness comes and goes depending on our circumstances, but real joy in Christ is lasting.
I chose "The Ecclesiastes 3 Life" as the title for my blog because I believe this passage from Scripture sums up what life really is all about. The beginning verses list experiences and feelings that probably all of us have experienced at one point in life. There is a "time to weep," but there also is a "time to laugh." There is a "time to get," but there also is a "time to lose." There is a "time to keep silence," but there also is a "time to speak." God has a "season" and a "purpose" for everything he allows into our lives. Our circumstances may not always be what we want or hope for, but His plan is perfect. And we must never forget that "He hath made everything beautiful in His time..." We may not be exactly the type of person that God wants us to be yet and our lives may not be just the way we want them to be, but God certainly hasn't forgotten us and He is constantly molding us and using circumstances in our lives to prepare us for HIS purpose in HIS time - not our own. My desire is to share things in my posts that reflect the fears, challenges, joys, and triumphs that we all face in ordinary life on a daily basis and to remind you of simple truths from God's Word that we all should cling to. No matter where you are on life's journey, I hope you'll join me in this adventure!
By His Grace,
~ Anna ~