...Encouraged...

It's been a while since I've written, but things have been busy around the Harvell house. We've settled back into "home life" after being out of town last week, and things are slowly getting back into a routine again. Norah is getting back to herself, after a week away from home. She is such a sweet pup and is growing, in many ways, by leaps and bounds. I have been working everyday this week, waking up before anyone is up and getting home with only a few minutes to spare before I see Jake out the door and off to work. By the time he gets home, I am generally exhausted and ready to close my eyes. So needless to say, our quality time has been in the late hours of the evening when I am drifting off to sleep lying next to my incredible husband. He says he doesn't mind, stating he has become particularly fond of watching me sleep...haha. Even though I'd love to spend more minutes and hours with him, I have enjoyed the relaxing comfort of that sweet time.
As of late, I have become quite fond of my daily talks with the Lord. It seems like our relationship has grown stronger in these past few weeks. Oddly enough, according to the guidelines I set for myself during this time of prayer and fasting with our church, I have been falling somewhat short of my personal expectations. As time has gone on though, I have begun to realize that it truly doesn't matter whether or not you meet every expectation, but that you are constantly trying to reach those goals. I do know that my simple acts of denying my strong urge to consume sweets at every opportunity, and my very strong fleshly desire to have my daily cup of coffee, or caffeine for that matter, has done wonders for my spiritual life, in general. I have found that without even realizing it, I have grown closer to my heavenly father. As I had written before, Jake and I have been reading "The Shack" by William Paul Young, and in the book, one of the characters refers to God as "Papa." At times, I have to admit, that it is hard to grasp the intimacy involved in that name. In the past few days though, I have really had a renewed sense of what our relationship can be...I have found myself feeling this compassion for people that goes beyond the surface. I found myself praying for anyone that came to mind over the course of my day, and I even prayed for people I didn't even know that sat in the car traveling beside me. And it was almost as if I could hear the Lord telling me, "this is what I want for us..." I really believe that He wants to hear from us. Even if it's only for a moment, He wants to know what is on our mind. "The Shack" gives such a beautiful depiction of our prayer relationship with Him. The book depicts that prayer relationship this way...The main character (you and me) sits at the table eating dinner with God, Jesus, and the holy spirit. They all begin to ask him (us) about his life, his children, their interests, his wife and her latest endeavors, etc. The main character begins answering all their questions one by one, feeling like he is able to share things that he hasn't been able to in quite some time. Then it dawns on him...and he asks, "Now here I am telling you about my kids and my friends and about [my wife], but you already know everything I am telling you, don't you? You're acting like it's the first time you've heard it." This might be how some of us feel...why would we spend the time to tell God things he already knows...In the book, the response they give opened my eyes to a new way to look at my relationship with the Lord and my daily talks with him. They likened the way that God listens to our prayers as an adult playing with a child. "You don't play a game or color a picture with a child to show your superiority. Rather, you choose to limit yourself so as to facilitate and honor that relationship." In the same way, God listens to our prayers with new ears. It's as if He wants us to share our heart with him so He can hear and understand how we feel...from our perspective. He wants to hear about all our trials and triumphs straight from the heart and mouth of His children. For me, that brought a whole new perspective and desire to speak with my heavenly father. Not only does He want us to sing His praises and exalt His name, but he wants us to share every part of our lives with Him...like a best friend. It might sound silly, but I truly believe that my prayer life has been changed forever, and the ability to view this all-knowing, all-loving, and all-powerful God we serve as my "Papa" has gotten a little easier. I hope my heart's ramblings make sense, and they encourage someone, touch their heart, and help them to truly see our awesome God as our incredible heavenly "Father"...Our "Papa."
I pray that you feel encouraged by the love we have in our Him...
Many, Many Blessings...
J & K