Rest in His provision

"You will never find me lacking when you come to me. As you learn to depend on me more and more, and as you discover over and over again that I can be enough for you, you will begin to rest in my provision. You'll have less fear about whether or not I will show up tomorrow with what you need. You'll discover how blessed it is to hunger and thirst for me, and find me fully satisfying" (Abundant Life daily devotional by Guthrie, May 16th).

When I started reading this devotion this morning what struck me was this has been my prayer over the past few months "to find Jesus fully satisfying". There has never been such a time as this when I have been faced with that one thought. Does Jesus satisfy me daily? Now the obvious answer to that question is yes of course! He is our great provider after all, but there are times in life when we have to did deep and hold onto His promise.

This life transition has been very challenging for me. When I moved to/near Chico (I actually live in Oroville, but most people don't know where it is), I not only left friends and family and a great community behind, but I had to face leaving some dreams behind, and discover a whole new culture and pace of life.

Most people living in San Diego would consider where I am living as the wilderness. You see, it takes me 15 minutes up the canyon to drive into the closest town. When I say town, I literally mean its a small town. The biggest and only store you would be familiar with in Paradise is K-mart. They do not have a Starbucks, Walmart, or even a gym you would recognize. They do have a gold nugget museum thou, ha ha. I say all this to paint a picture for you of my life here.

So moving here forced me to really slow down because other than family, I had no friends and not many familiar places to go hang out. I was faced with the constant question in my soul, "Do I trust His provision and does He satisfy me". In the first couple months I was just so overwhelmed that it was even hard for me to try and address that question. In this past month, this has been my desire.....I want to see Jesus satisfy my soul daily.

I added the picture above because bridges remind me of the roads we travel and the bridges we must cross to reach our destination. This picture was taken here on a hike I went on about a month ago. It is so beautiful here, God's creation is just stunning! On this hike I wouldn't have been able to reach my destination if I didn't cross the bridge and I wouldn't make it home unless I crossed that bridge again. This reminds me that sometimes we have to cross the same bridge in life more than once, but that in the end we will make it home into the arms of our satisfying and loving God. This journey of life can seem lonely at times, but on the other side of our difficulty Jesus is waiting with open arms to take us in and is all that we need.

Recklessly Running

Last thursday night was filled with different emotions as I went to visit a "College/Young Professionals" church group in the area for the first time. I walked in not knowing a soul! It was so strange to walk in as the new person. I went straight to the drink table and served myself some hot tea so that I wouldn't look/feel out of place. It was at the beverage station that I met my first person in the group. Her name was Jessica. She was helping set up drinks. She asked if I was new and then asked if my friends were sitting down. I told her that I didn't know anyone and she invited me to sit with her. I was so relieved to meet someone.

Jessica and I had a lot in common, so much that it was almost scary! It was the Lord's devine intervention for sure! Let me explain more. As we started chatting we found out that we both applied to Chico State to get our Masters in Social Work. What are the odds of that!?!? Then as we talked more we found out that my uncle and aunt lived on the same road as she did, and we both had worked almost the same years at Starbucks. I wonder what else we will have in common? That same night she introduced me to another girl named Lindsay and she was waiting to hear back from Biola University to see if she got accepted. That was crazy considering that was the very school I got my BS in Organizational Leadership!

As if all these happenings were not enough to see the work of God, I also experienced God's presence in a deep way during worship and the sermon. The sermon was about Peter and how he betrayed God three times. The pastor shared about our betrayel/sin to God and typical ways we respond after we have sinned. The pastor encouraged us to be like Peter in John 21:7 after we have failed and recklessly run to Jesus instead of running from Him or trying to hide. This was such a blessing to hear and take to heart knowing my failures and things I wish I could have done differently. It was also encouraging knowing that I can run to Jesus with my concerns and fears in this new life transition.

At the end of the night I exchanged numbers with my new friends and signed up for thier winter retreat this upcoming weekend. I am looking forward to all that God has in store. He is going before me and carving His path. I have no need to fret. I am recklessly running to Him!

Welcome home party!

My New Home!

The last Month just flew by! I felt so blessed as I was leaving the place I called my home for the past 18 years. I was surrounded by loved ones and sent off into my new adventure. I will miss so many of you, but I look forward to what the Lord has in store here in Chico. I made my venture out to Chico this past Saturday morning. I rode off with dear family friends waving with a car packed high. I was on the road at about 8:30am. I only stopped two times on the way up. Once to fill up my tank and use the resturoom and another to eat lunch and get some Ice to Ice my back while driving. My back was still a little sore from the two car accidents I was in, so the ice helped a lot. While in my car driving I was able to listen to music and spend time with the Lord. This was a huge blessing and helped me to process this huge life transition. While I was spending time with the Lord, He was confirming, "He was with me where ever I go, and I must go tell about Him all over the hills and everywhere." I know that life may bring me through different seasons, but He is with me in each one. My car made it into Chico at around 6:00pm. When I arrived home my mom had some family over to welcome me home. It was a great surprise and if i wasn't driving for 9 and a half hours I would have been more pumped. It was great seeing family and knowing that they were happy to have me around. I am still settling in and will post again once I have more to share. Thank you for your prayers and joining me in this new chapter.

Packing, Preperation, and Planning!!!

There are many things to do before a move. It was an amazing blessing a couple of weeks ago when my uncle took a huge load of my stuff with him to Chico. He was in town and packed up his explorer with more than half of my belongings. Then just this past weekend, I was able to pack up the rest of my things (except for what I will be using for the rest of this month). I was pleasently surprised that it did not take long to finish. Those of you who really know me, are probably surprised that I am already finished and ready. There are a few reasons why I wanted to get finished with packing last weekend. This month is going to be busy! This weekend I house sit, then the following weekend I will be at winter camp with the Jr Highers at North Coast Church, and the last weekend of the month is DCPI's Global Vision Banquet! I knew that the procrastination side of me could not win this time!!! I also wanted to have as much time available to spend time with others before I leave. Some of you may be wondering about my plans once I get there. Well as you have heard, I am continuing with DCPI! This is a joy to continue my calling while working remotely. I am also looking forward to talking with my uncle and family there about planting a Church together up North. I hope to get another flexible job to work towards paying off school loans. I also applied to get my masters in Social Work at Chico State University. It is a very competitive program, and I will not know if I am accepted until March or April. I trust that God will open or close any doors as He wills. In addition to all this, my sister asked me if I wanted to play softball with her, and I am looking forward to it. We have never had the opportunity to play a sport together. It will be wonderful to spend more time with both of my siblings and my new nephew. I will also be learning about exercise and wellness in hopes to supporting my mom with her health and develop a healthy lifestyle for myself now. It will be good for both of us to have eachother to support and encourage a healthy lifestyle. As I do not yet know which doors will be opened or closed, I do know that God will make all things beautiful in His time. I will be excited to continue to share this journey with you. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers as I am preparing for this transition. May each season of my life be with Jesus!

My mom, sister and I

My sister and I

My Family

Moving to Chico!

You must be thinking i am crazy to leave the beautiful San Diego! Well maybe i am a little! It is going to be a big life change and i have so many great memories of San Diego. But this post really Inst focused on San Diego, it is more to share about why i am moving to Chico and what is waiting there for me. If you know me well enough, you know that i value my family greatly. I have spent the past 8 years in San Diego and my family has lived in Chico during that time. I have thought about moving up North quite a few times because i miss them so much. I also love the river and mountains up there. I am an outdoorsy girl and connect with God in nature. I have missed out on a lot in the past eight years with my family and have felt that now is the time to make a change and catch up with them. I know there are seasons in life, and i don't want to miss out on this opportunity while i have it. Life is to short to dream about what you will do one day when you have the chance. I know i will not regret this move, but i will regret it if i don't go and wish i did. I am excited to see all that the Lord will do. Though i am moving, i am planning to sharing the journey with you. I will be posting quite often about my adventures and what i am learning. I can't wait to look back and see what we all learn together. Thanks for reading, posting, and following me on this journey!

Starting to use Blog again!

Hi there! Just wanted to send out a word to say that I will be blogging more often on a regular basis! Be looking for my future updates! :)