#KingdomWoman... A Woman of Hope

For a kingdom woman to experience spiritual victory or relief from whatever may keep her head or heart down, she has to go to Jesus. ~Dr Tony Evans

THIS chapter really hit home for me. Never in my life did I expect to be divorced and single raising 4 kids on my own at the age of 28. I never anticipated having to go to an Outreach center to get my bills paid and to put food on the table. After all, I had a college degree and years of work experience that could have landed me an at least $80K/year job... At least that's what labor statistics showed me. So why was I struggling?

I was trying to be a good mom and I was trying to live a good life. However, what was missing was what I needed most to help me make it through each day... King Jesus! I thought about giving up sometimes but I didn't lose hope that things would get better. I did lose my connection though. My relationship with Christ was few and far between. But God! He has a way of reeling you back to Himself; gently and sweetly, beckoning you to Himself... When you're still, you can hear Him calling to you!

When I moved to Dallas, I didn't attend church regularly. Even though my grandma always told me 'wherever you go, make sure you have a church home', I hadn't found that place yet and my faith was slowly dwindling. I started allowing my situation to beat me down and I tried to 'fix' everything in my own strength. But God!

If you are looking for your solutions in the physical realm when there is a spiritual cause, you are looking in the wrong location. ~Dr Tony Evans

One day, when things got really bad, after church hopping, I decided to visit my aunt's church... again. You see, I come from a small Baptist church background, and when I visited Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship for the first time, I KNEW I would never fit in because it was soooo big so I hopped around from church to church looking for that "church home". I was really struggling to manage my finances, my kids, my job, the bills... I felt so overwhelmed! So on this one particular Sunday, in August 2000, I decided to give OCBF another shot. I liked the Pastor and how he delivered the word so, why not?

That day changed my life. Dr. Martin Hawkins spoke that Sunday. As the choir sang, I thought about my current job and how it was affecting my ability to raise my kids. The pay was good but I was always exhausted and overworked. I looked in the church bulletin and saw a job opening for a ministry secretary... No sooner than I started to laugh at the possibility of working at a church, Pastor Hawkins began to speak about fear and specifically, fear about taking on a new job opportunity. I kid you not!

I froze in my seat and felt chills up and down my arms. Could this be something I needed to pursue? Pastor Hawkins' words were like immediate confirmation that this was something I needed to do without hesitation so I didn't flinch. I got my resume together and faxed it in that afternoon and within a day or so, I interviewed and got the job!  I was told that it would pay significantly less than what I was used to making but, I believed God would bless my obedience to move on this career move and what I got in return was so much more valuable. I developed a more solid relationship and connection to Jesus and so did my kids. I built authentic relationships with my coworkers and members, so much so that I was blessed with a home for me and my kids to live in and furniture to boot! My sons had godly men as role models and I was literally a walking testimony! Had I given up hope, got distracted by all of the reasons I shouldn't take that job, I know my life would be so much different. But God had a plan. I even met my husband there!

As a kingdom woman, you have a right to fully experience your destiny.~Dr Tony Evans

I say all that to say, be encouraged. Don't get distracted or discouraged when things look bleak and definitely don't lose hope, especially as a Kingdom Woman. Like the old folks used to say, just call on Jesus and tell Him what you want... He may not come when YOU want Him to but He's always right on time and He wants the best for you.

I'm really enjoying taking the time to read this book. I'm praying to consistently take the time to read and go even deeper in my relationship with the Lord... I hope you're enjoying the blog and have gotten your copy!