I Failed the test!

I am going to take this opportunity to be transparent and reveal a little bit more about my personal life.
One thing I have learned over the last year is that, if I try to do things on my own my way, I fail! Over and over again I Fail! 

My family faced a few struggles this year, it all seemed to unravel when my husband began having some unexplained pain that he is still dealing with today. I am happy to report he is improving, and that we are grateful for who we serve.

As my husband dealt with this pain, he began to isolate himself. We stopped communicating as much, I sat at times helpless as I watched him in excruciating pain. It seemed no matter how I tried to help him I would somehow cause more pain. The simple act of touching his arm sent pain through his body. Our marriage felt a strain that it has never felt before. Not to mention the kids seeing there strong dad broken down… it took a toll in our home. Needless to say I was frustrated, lost and overall a mess! 

I remember one night I was so frustrated I cried and my husband in the mist of his pain gently reminded me that our God is no respecter of persons, and that if he had to deal with this pain for the rest of his life he would do so knowing that through this, somehow our God was being glorified. 

I sat back in awe of my husband. How dare I complain when he was the one in pain. At the time I was having such a hard time even praying that I called a dear friend and asked her to pray on our behalf. As she prayed over the phone a thousand miles away. She spoke of visions and dreams that God had given to my husband and I years ago, and how in them my husband was healthy and whole. I wept… How could I forget His promises.  That night my prayer changed. I began to declare his promises, and his healing. Whether it was for my husbands body or my thoughts. Yes, I am a sinner… Covered by His grace. I repented, asked for forgiveness for taking my eyes off of Him. At that moment I felt the shift throughout our home. I had tried for so long to fix it myself and I failed, But leaning on Him once again and trusting in our heavily Father has brought my husband and I closer than we have ever been. 

One thing we have noticed is that we try so hard to get to a point in our life when we are normal…. When everything goes according to our plan… But I have said this before on this blog and God has definitely reminded me of this… life happens, and we should never be surprised when it does. It is just Gods way of testing us and revealing to us where we are. Do we trust Him? Do we run to Him first? (I admit I sure didn't!)  I got scared and ran in the other direction. I say all this to remind you that we are human, we will make mistakes, trials will come, so how are we going to react? I failed over and over again. God just kept giving me the same test until I passed it! So now I just need to be prepared for the next. Are you prepared for the test? 

Stella

Walk for Life 2014

Thank you for taking a moment to read this post! 

"True Life Choice" also known as "TLC" is an incredible clinic located in the heart of Orlando FL. They provide free pregnancy test, counseling, a sexual integrity program, a help line, abortion recovery bible study, and all while presenting the Gospel when led by the Holy Spirit. To learn more about them please visit truelifechoice.com

On March 8th TLC will be hosting a Walk for Life in Orlando at three diffrent locations simultaneously! 

1. Lake Eola (which is where I will be)

2. First Baptist Church of central FL

3. University Carillon UMC

If you are interested please let us know! Or if you want to get your Church involved we can help. And YES you can participate even if you are not local and can not attend the walk. 

All you have to do is register at 

        truelifechoice.com 

OR if you would like to sponser me you can visit 

http://www.fundeasy.com/m/1656266/

I actually recieved a check in the mail today and we have reached my family's goal but please don't let that deter you from giving.. Instead let it glorify God that you have helped us go above and beyond!

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me! 

And if you want to know more about why I have a heart for this please take a moment to read my very first blog post... What would have been if I had a place like TLC I could have turned to?! 

God Bless You! 

Stella

Perfectly imperfect!

Hello 2014!

Yes it has been over a year! However I have new and exciting news! I have chosen to blog again.. and to do it regardless of what I have going on in my life! 

2013 was defiantly a year of change.. I believe I was very unprepared for it as well. But now in 2014.. I have rebounded to more of a "bring it on" attitude!! 

I am still working as a preschool teacher

My kiddos are now 13, 9, and 7!! 

My husband and I are both now full time students.. 

And I am this years 2014 "Walk for Life" Coordinator! Which I am blessed to have such an awesome team for, because with my work and school schedule.. They are there to pick up the slack and they are working hard!!! But more on that later!! 

I have kept myself from blogging partially because I was afraid that only blogging a moment here and there was not enough.. How ironic seeing as the other option was not blogging at all! Either way I'm back and excited to share with you some amazing things! Later tonight I will post about this years Walk For Life in Orlando FL, and tell you more about the nonprofit organization it is supporting! 

So I'll be back later tonight! 

Stella

P.S. The picture of my family getting ready for pictures... pretty much sums up my family! 

My hubby Rich making sure we are all squared away

Zia mostly in his own 13 year old world..

Alyssa observing and planning, and

Landon being goofy!! 

I'm so blessed! 

Happy New Year!!

I had a wonderful time over our christmas break! Had a chance to visit our family and a few friends in Ohio for a week. It snowed almost the entire time were there and the kids got their fill of snow until next time! However as soon as we where back in the sunshine state I got sick, thankfully I am better now. My wonderful husband and I also celebrated our 10 year anniversary on the 28th of December! So needless to say I have had some time to do a lot of thinking about my goals for this new year. So I thought I would share some to help keep me accountable lol!
1. EAT HEALTHIER!!! We still have good habits, but we want to take to it to the next level.. In the past we have
Quit drinking soda and juice (although we have been slacking and drinking ice tea, which has always been a weakness for me). So milk and water it has been for our family for almost 2 or 3 years now.. No complains from the kids.. They like to splurge with chocolate milk once in a while! And my daughter does like sprite when the opportunity arises at a party or restaurant. And it has worked wonders for our grocery budget too! A Brita is a great investment!! Oh and we do treat ourselves to orange juice occasionally.
We even order water when we go out to eat 90% of the time.. Not to mentions it helps the budget!!
Never fry foods.. It helps I never really learned how to!
Reduced our eating of red meats to once in a while.. Which has been hard to do because that really only leaves us with chicken since we are not really seafood of fish eaters... So the solution we are branching out and are willing to try some fish! (If you know any good recipes please let me know I'm desperate!)

So less eating out and more cooking for me it is this year. Which leads me to my next goal...
BETTER TIME MANAGEMENT!! As a full time teacher, wife and mom, not to mention ministry and Institue classes and projects.. This one is high on my list! Which ties in with my first goal.. Better health = more energy!!

My next goal is to photograph a wedding this year... I should be doing one this June, we just need to confirm a date seeing as how it is in a different state.

Next... Blog more!!!

Well these are just 4 of my goals...
It's only January and already we have a lot planned for 2013! So I have some work to do! So if you have any good tips or pointers feel free to share them please! And if you would like to share your goals I invite you too!! We can keep each other accountable!!

Have a wonderful day God bless you!

So what's new?!

So What's New?!

As you can see I have been away for quit some time. I know that our lives have drastically changed so I thought I'd share with you what's been going on! 

My status went from stay at home mom to full time K3 teacher!! Yes that's right.. And it literally happened overnight! My husband and I started talking about me going back to work and less than a week later I was blessed with a job at my children's school! In fact my youngest son's classroom in right next to my classroom! I love it!! The job allows me to work while my children are at school I am close to them and they even get to come stay with me after they are done with school, start their homework in my classroom while my day winds down! And it helps to have my daughter who is a mini me help out with my students when she's done with her homework! I'm home when my kiddos are home, Mon- Fri and all holidays off.. I have been truly blessed! 

I have 9 very different students! I have my awesome days, as well as my tough days but they are so special! I love to see how they grow and learn. Everyday has been a learning experience for me! 

So other than teaching, my husband and I have begun to serve as leaders in a youth/ young adult discipleship program called Full Armor... It's a group of youth that want to seek Christ on a deeper level and are dedicating themselves to this program for 9 months. We started in September... We have a group of 13 ranging from the ages of 11 to 25!! We meet 3 to 4 times a week. It an intense group that are learning to pursue God getting to know Him in order to present Him without compromise!! It has been awesome being there watching these life's transformed.. And let me tell these people do not have easy lives!!! I thought I went through stuff at their age but wow!!! These are not all kids who are attending because their parents are there or they are forced to.. Most of these young people are the only ones in their family who even know God! They don't care if they have to walk there.. Catch a ride... Or if they are working jobs, going to school, or being faced with many issues. They made a covenant agreement to be there and they have been. They want more of God and they are willing to make the sacrifice to be there... It's awesome to have the privilege of being used by God for this purpose. 

So with work and Full Armor, my schedule is pretty packed. So learning time management especially with my own husband and children has been a priority. I'm still working on improving it. So bare with me... I have so much I have learned and experienced that I need to share with you. But I did want to explain why I have been MIA...  But tonight, I had to just stop myself from thinking about writing something and I had to just do it. So here it is.. 

I know my life has not been the only one with change... In fact it would be nice to hear some other stories about all the change taking place in your life. Maybe we should open it up to share some time management tips!!  If you have any good ones please share!
Have an blessed day!!! 

Stella

The Football Game!

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his

 commands and do what pleases him.

1 John 3:21-22

Of course I use the "Shoe"... Go Bucks!

A few years ago my son Zia was struggling with time management at school. His teacher, my husband and I were doing everything we could to help him.. from charts, rewards, groundings, punishments, to dropping him off at school an hour early so he could catch up on work! We just couldn't figure out how to help him understand the importance of time management! He has always moved at a slower pace than my husband and myself. He could be the first one awake in the mornings and still be the last one ready! 


Zia is however one of the most laid back kids I have ever known! He is a go with the flow type of kid, and very mild tempered. I can count on one hand the number of times I have ever seen him upset. He is very careful with his emotions. Which can be a great thing... but can be a hard thing for a parent because its hard to measure his feelings on certain things, and the time management set back was one of those things. We just couldn't tell if he was really trying or not. 


Needless to say I was frustrated.. I remember one day I was sitting with him while he did his homework. He had 2 weeks to go before school ended, and a lot of work to catch up on. I sat there praying when God gave me a picture.. A football game! Yes thats right a football game! I scooted over and sat right next time him, asked him to put his pencil down and shared with him the picture God had shared with me. 


Zia was the quarter back!  His teacher, my husband and myself where everywhere.. we were in the stands screaming for Zia to throw the ball, we were the cheerleaders cheering him on, the coaches instructing him, we were his teammates blocking the other team from getting to him, the wind was perfect, the lights were bright, everything was in place for the perfect throw, but he had to throw the ball! Thats what we had been doing.. trying to get his attention, telling him the best ways to manage his time, but it all came down to him! In other words he had to care and believe in himself. Something about that story clicked with him because with in 2 days he was caught up and has never struggled with time again. He may still be slow in the morning but I have learned to live with that. 

There are certain things in life that requires we do something.. acts of obedience that God expects from us. It could be praying for someone, calling someone, reading His word a little bit longer so He can show us the answer we have been seeking. Not to mention living according to His guidelines and not the worlds. I sometime picture myself as the quarter back and I imagine how many times God has been everywhere putting all the pieces in the right place and making sure the wind is in my favor. How many times did He wait on me to get it, they way I waited for my son? 


Can you think of a time when you were the quarterback?  Where the only thing left was for you to take the step of faith in order for something amazing to happen and take place?


I don't think the AHAAA moment comes from us knowing the outcome of the throw, but understanding that God does and having the faith in God that He has already equipped us with the ability to win the game, because He has already won the Super Bowl!  


Beloved, our Father is our coach, our cheerleader, our water boy, our teammate, our trainer, our chiropractor, our play maker, and our biggest fan. He is everything.. But in order for His will to be done he requires us to be bold and take the step of faith and throw the ball! 


Stella

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

Matthew 21:21  

For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord.

Acts 11:24 

And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love

2 John 6


 Click here to follow our Facebook page!!

Do You Love Me?

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18 

I heard this read on the radio once back in Ohio and I hate to admit that I had to pull over to cry.. ok ok.. uncontrollable sobbing is more like it. (You had to be there!). I can't remember what was going on in my life that this hit me so hard but it did.. and I told everybody I saw about it for weeks.. I don't think any further introduction is needed... 

The Pearl Necklace

Author unknown

The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, 

she saw them: a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box. 

"Oh please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please!"

Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face.

"A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday's only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma."

As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs. McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents.

On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.

Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere--Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night when he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?"

"Oh yes, Daddy. You know that I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh, Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess--the white horse from my collection. The one with the pink tail. Remember, Daddy? The one you gave me. She's my favorite."

"That's okay, Honey. Daddy loves you. Good night." And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.

About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again, "Do you love me?"

"Daddy, you know I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my babydoll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is so beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."

"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you." And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian-style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.

"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?"

Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver,she finally said, "Here, Daddy. It's for you."

With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's kind daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny. 

He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her genuine treasure.

What are you hanging on to?

Wow those words "what are you hanging on to?" turned my life upside down that day! It made me really think, and ask God to search me, and help me release the things that I was holding on to. things that where hindering God from being able to bless me with the genuine treasure. 

As a mother I only want what is best for my children, because I love them so much! My heart aches when I watch them settle for less. So I can only imagine how my Heavenly Father longs to bless us with the best.. but we continue to hold on the the dime store stuff.. what are we holding on to...

Our will... over His?

Our dream... over the dreams and desires He has designed us for?

A relationship we know we should not be in... over the real love He has in store for us?

A friendship we should let go off that may be holding us back... Over His plans?

A job that we hate.. when he has a better one in store?

Material things we think make us happy... over the true joy He has for us?

LET IT GO AND LET GOD!!! Whatever it is that we are holding on to let it go!! He wants nothing more than for us to say "Lord it is yours and whatever you have in store for me I want it.. I accept it, over what I feel I should have!".  

But even through all this, this is what God is really asking is: 

Do you Love ME? 

Do you trust me?

Do you not have faith?

Do you believe in me?

DO YOU LOVE ME?

Do you love Him enough to let go! If you haven't let go yet He is waiting. just like the father in the story He still loves her and sweetly kisses her goodnight.. all while secretly holding on to that box in his pocket waiting for the moment when she said YES I LOVE YOU ENOUGH TO LET IT GO! 

Wow! I pray this moves you to evaluate yourself. And I am praying that if you find something... that you will be able to let it go. God Bless you..

please comment, and share this post! God bless you! 

Stella