Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Cor. 15:58

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Tuesday, July 10, 2012

But the Lord Determines Our Steps

Hi all!!!!! My name is Kathy and I am Kelly’s oldest sister. I made the mistake of saying I might help her out on her encourage365 blog and got drafted for the 2nd Tuesday of each month. Forgive the ramble (it runs in the family lol), I’m not the writer in the family, she is. But I do love the Lord and am starting in the ministry.

Editor's (ie little sister's) note: I do not ramble... I run in circles sometimes to get to a point I don't remember... but I don't ramble ;) And she didn't make a mistake: I LOVE having her guest post. I think you'll love it too...

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Proverbs 16:9 We can make our plans but the Lord determines our steps. NLT Version




Plans.... how many of us “plan” out our lives? Everybody does. You decide what kind of career or job you want. Whether or not to go to college. Whether or not to marry.

All these plans are good . But those plans don’t always work out.

Take my life for example. I married very, very young. Had two sons. Lived on a small farm. Husband had good job and I worked too.

Life was sweet. Went to church on Sunday and was very active in our church. Went to family dinners and worked on the farm raising gardens and cattle. Lived the American dream. I thought that my life was set. It had been that way for over thirty years, so why wouldn’t it stay that way? My “plan” was to be married, live on that farm, have family dinners at my house, and sit on the porch in a rocking chair with my love next to me, looking out over the farm until the day I died.

Then came November 4, 2004. The day of the note left on the dining room table. The day my life turned upside down. The day that I thought I would die. The day I will never forget.

That day was the start of a long five year rollercoaster ride. The days of “I’m leaving” to “I want to come back home” to moving out, to moving in, and eventually selling house and farm and building another house on a small lot.

Life wasn’t sweet anymore. It had become a battlefield where hurtful words were common, tears were always present, and broken promises were made.
It also became a time for me to lean solely on the Lord. My trust had been shattered by the one I trusted to always be there for me. The only hope, the only peace, the only trust I could find was through the Lord.

It was also during this period that the Lord was really dealing with me to go into the ministry.

For years I would go to my small church, to play the piano while no one was there. But I always wound up behind the pulpit…. Preaching.

But I couldn’t preach!!!! I was a “woman” and “women “ weren’t supposed to preach!!!!!!!! Or so I thought.. or so I was taught and told my whole life.
After the divorce as I was praying one day the Lord spoke and said “ go to lay speaking class” Well I’m one of the quietest, shyest gals who you will ever meet. I didn’t want to get up in front of people I knew, much less some I didn’t. But I took the class. And loved it!

I went back the next year for the certified class. By this time I knew the Lord was dealing with me to preach. And guess what the name of the class was? “Go Preach”.

I had to write and deliver a sermon on the last day of the class. I was so nervous. But with the Lord’s help and guidance I did it and it was the most “Awesome” feeling in the world!!!!!

After that I talked to my pastor, we talked to some higher ups in the ministry, I got a mentor, I took tests, I did everything they asked of me……..And I got my first church appointment this month. I am now preaching the first Sunday of every month in a small country church!!!!!!!!

So you see I made my plans. I had mapped out my life. Going to church was in my plans. Serving God by “just” playing piano was my plan. But God had other plans for me. And what a wonderful plan it is.

So don’t listen to other people. If God is dealing with you to do something, do it! No one but you knows what God has in store for you. If it’s wrong, it will never work out. But if it’s right, oh my, what a ride!!!!!!

God Bless,
Kathy

Kathy used to have a blog, but now she's busy preaching (and reading my (Kelly's) books/stories/frazzled text messages). She has a facebook page called Prayers and Praise. Please 'like' it. She'd love to have you leave any prayer requests you have or praise reports you like to leave.




Linked with: On My Heart Tuesday

4 comments:

  1. Hi Kathy~There are no words at this moment to describe how much your post has touched me!! I too had plans and my course changed in the middle as well. This post is very encouraging for me!! Thank you so much for sharing!!!

    God bless you,
    Stacey

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  2. Great to meet you, Kathy! Loved this open-hearted post. It's great to hear how God leads others. It helps us recognize the voice of God in our own lives. I look forward to reading your future posts. Blessings~Jan

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  3. Hi Kathy,

    Thank you for sharing your story, and of how God has led you to use your preaching gifts. So encouraging! Blessings :)

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