Today's challenge is to make sure we are not just praying big prayers, but that we are believing for BIG THINGS! God desires to hear us Pray Big! Do we have BIG beliefs that God wants to do BIG things in our lives? Not only in our lives, but God desires us to pray for others.

Today's journal mission is that we PRAY BIG for others as well as PRAY BIG for ourselves. Write things down as you PRAY BIG!

This is the road we should walk....walk with me!

Tracy

Day 3: Unplug it!

For some of you this may just be a reminder. For some it may be new! Some may already know this and do this. Some like me, need to learn that it's a must to take a day off!

Do you take the time to unplug? I questioned the Lord what He wanted me to write about, and He said to tell you what I did yesterday.

I woke up early and made coffee. With the house quiet and everyone still sleeping, I immediately started working on my writing co-op paper work, my volunteer forms, and a business letter. By 10:00 my brain was mush, but I realized I just accomplished a great deal of paper work in just a few hours. Yay Me!

I set about the house doing small chores and then it hit me! IT WAS SATURDAY! WHAT WAS I DOING?

I usually am relaxing on Saturdays, sleeping in, or planning something to do with the family. But on this Saturday, I woke up with the feeling of, " I gotta do this,.... I gotta do that.....what am I to do about this?" All of these "to do" things, felt heavy. I distinctly heard the Lord tell me to UNPLUG IT! Unplug what? Unplug myself!  I sat on the couch wrestling with the idea.

When my youngest son woke up, he asked if we could watch an episode of our favorite tv show together. I agreed, grabbed a blanket, and we watched an episode..... all the while chewing on my lip. Feeling pressure.... TO DO! (SOMETHING)

How often do we keep going and going and going. Never unplugging, never relaxing the mind! I found myself guilty. So I'm sharing the advice the Lord gave me yesterday! On the road to our dreams, we have to have regular and weekly UNPLUGGING! Life is full of BUSY, but we are to be full of Christ! The more we stay busy, the less light we put out for JESUS!

The bible directs us to unplug at least once a week! As we do this, we will be able to accomplish MORE and SHINE BRIGHTER than we did before.

Make sure you take time for yourself....and UNPLUG IT! I'm adding this to my schedule! I'm so guilty of my calendar being full, that I need to make this a priority. UNPLUG IT DAYS! Do you have them? If not.... make room for them! We'll get to our dreams faster and healthier by just taking a day regularly to UNPLUG!

This is the road I should walk! Walk with me!

Hope your enjoying my blog!
Tracy

Day 2: My Spirit of Excellence.....Began with Camels

Today my journey began with a story which involved camels.

One very important key life principle keeps sneaking up on me and slapping me in the face. Honestly, I've never been so convicted by all the "little" stuff before. I really believe teaching in the classroom for the past six years, has had my brain so wrapped up! I am now free and oh my goodness, there is a lot about me to change!

So I'm finding myself in this new season and it feels like an awakening of sorts.... to the LITTLE things I've always JUST done before.

My heart keeps hearing from the Lord, "Have a spirit of excellence!" I definitely feel guilty when it comes to excellence. '

Now that I'm not in the classroom, I'm seeing all the SMALL stuff, that I've ignored. The little things I've never put my absolute BEST into. I rush through this and that, not fully living for excellence. God has directed me to STOP and LISTEN!  He has been pointing out to me the areas of my life that I have not maintained with excellence. Want some examples..... ok, a little embarrassing yes, but honesty has transformational power. Maybe you have always been excellent in the LITTLE areas of life. I'm first to admit, I am weak in a lot of areas!

Today's examples during my day.... where I heard the Lord whisper, "SPIRIT OF EXCELLENCE"

Putting the cart back into the cart return area at the grocery store, although my car was closer.---NOTE TO SELF... next time I will intentionally park next to or closer to the cart return rack! I have been guilty too many times of propping my buggy on the curve. Today I repented.

Putting groceries into the freezer. Ha! As I'm shuffling aside half used bags of frozen veggies, frozen French fries, and other freezer items, I discover junk on the bottom of my freezer, little sticky stuff, mostly random ice chips, crumbs of some sort... I don't know what it was. I usually just quickly fill the freezer with the food I purchased and move on. NOT TODAY! I felt it deep in my gut. "SPIRIT OF EXCELLENCE!" Ughhhh! So there I am scrubbing away, on the bottom of the freezer before neatly organizing the groceries in the freezer. Never have I cared so much!

I'm faced with examining.... Do I have, a real "Spirit of Excellence" or a "Spirit of Excuses"?

I said in the beginning, that my day began with a story that involved camels. In my morning time with the Lord, he pointed me to the story of Issac and Rebekah. Rebekah offered a drink to stranger, then volunteered to water his camels as well. Did you know that camels need about 30 gallons of water after a long journey? Rebekah willingly, without the servant even asking...she volunteered.....and set out to draw water for his camels. It was a caravan ya'll!!! 10 camels would equal around 300 draws of water. OH MY GOSH! I was shocked! On her own Rebekah went above and beyond and watered the camels.

What Rebekah didn't know, was that the very woman who showed hospitality to Abraham's main servant, and also showed loving-kindness with a hard working care for the camels....would be the woman chosen to become Abraham's very own daughter-in-law! She would be the one chosen to marry Issac, the promised child!  Because of her self giving nature, and spirit of excellence, she became a bride in the wealthiest family of all!

Would you have volunteered to water the camels? Would I have watered the camels? What about our schedule? What about our to do lists? How are we really living? Are we displaying before God our spirit of excellence?

I haven't in a long time, had the time to walk slow, think deep, and really concentrate on cultivating "ME" and focusing on having a spirit of excellence. I have a list of excuses I need to weed out of my life.

Today journal about an area you need to give to the Lord. Repent for not having a spirit of excellence in that area. Strategize ways to improve yourself in that area! Write about it in your DREAM JOURNAL!

We're one day closer to living our DREAM! This is the road we should walk! Walk with me!

Don't do what normal people do! Do what God's "Spirit of Excellence" people do!THEIR BEST!!!!  Amen!

New Season: New Blog

I'm beginning a blog to share my new season, and to let all who are interested have a peek into my journey on Life's Road! My family has had major life changes in the past two years. Between finding and restoring an 1800's locomotive, to me losing a baby, to quitting my job teaching in a classroom to build a dream alongside my husband...I would say our lives have taken course down a track I would of never dreamed of. I titled my blog, "THE ROAD I SHOULD WALK" because we should take daily steps to reach our dreams. We should aim high, dream big, and set accomplishments to strive for daily. We should walk in our daily lives knowing that if we have a character of excellence, sincere humility and live to honor the most high....our dreams shall come to pass, if it's His will!  Don't ever think the dream in your heart is too big! If you can dream it.....you can create it....and God can use it!

And that's it! Dream, pray over that dream, expect and believe for things to begin leading you there. Prepare yourself to live that dream!

God plows the ground, lays the rock, pours the blessings needed....and POOF! Your living your dream. It really is that simple, but it takes hard work, faith work, and self improvement every moment along the way. There's no greater way to add meaning to your life, than to begin working together with those you love, heading towards a dream God has placed in your hearts! Dreamers never quit dreaming, and as soon as you reach a goal, God wants you to reach for another one! Not to glorify ourselves of course, but to give him everlasting evidence  and glory as he works in our lives! Know that not all dreams will come to pass, however Godly appointed and destined ones WILL! Our mission is to learn on the road walking towards it!

Daryl and I dreamed of a farm that would birth inspiration for others to dream, and dream big! In a recession, God called us to step out and build our dream! To us it has been equivalent to building the ARK! It began, really over a dinner date. We were dreaming of things we could do to better our lives, improve our community, and let the light of Lord shine! Then Daryl found a train in the woods!

So today we are now building a 173 acre farm for us to share our blessings with children of all ages. Whether teaching about peanuts, agriculture, farming, soil, pollination,  Florida's railroad history, or celebrating family on the farm, there's something incredible about standing in a place that was completely created through FAITH! It's obvious Daryl and I couldn't of built our dream alone! We've had many God sightings along the way, that proves to us just as David did in the bible. Our faith has been renovated, restored, and reconstructed through this whole adventure.

How we've come so far so fast, is an amazing journey that only God himself could of orchestrated. Every step and every thing we've done to get this far, hasn't been easy one bit. We've learned that everything we do for God, we can just accept that it's not going to be easy. The enemy knows the good from what we want to do. He knows the good we want to become. So he has to find a way to snare us, get us distracted and keep us from reaching our potential.

Each and every day we are given the gift of breath, we should strive to show Satan where our HOPE is. Let it be a daily ritual that we talk to and acknowledge the one who gives us hope. Even when we feel unsure of the outcome of situations, we can still rely on God's grace to cover us.

I'm going to journal my daily walk. So you can be inspired, encouraged and know that it's really what we do daily that leads us from just dreaming....to living our dreams in reality!

What does my new season look like?

• Currently planning our LOST RAILROAD EVENT opening this fall: Oct. 4th Every Friday and Saturday night. Daryl and I wrote a fictional tale that we're having so much fun with!
• Homeschooling my 8th Grade Son, Garrett and tutoring a friend's daughter, Savannah
• Preparing my home for MOVING: Big Move Date is Sept. 23rd. We are moving to the farm. Yay!  
• Lindsee began first year of college
• AJ's playing JV football
• Garrett's marching in the High School Marching Band
• I'm trying to eat healthier and lose baby weight I gained after losing a baby last Nov. I was 4 months when I lost Baby Bryant, and I still have the baby pooch :(
• Serving my Meadowbrook Church Family.....leading children's worship every Wed. & Sun., and beginning to prepare a Jr. Youth Choir for Christmas Live Performance in December.

I'd love for you to come along and travel with me as we dream big and learn along the way. I'd love to know what your season looks like, and share your thoughts on how we can better our lives together. You pray for me, I'll pray for you!

 The road we should all walk is in the path that leads to our destiny. Our God Given Purpose! What's your destiny look like? What dreams do you have in your heart that seem overwhelmingly impossible! That's where you should walk. Let's take daily steps, giving God glory along the way, and celebrating together freedom to live our dreams!

Tonight's homework: Get alone with the Lord.........Begin a Life Journal/Notebook: Titled :LIVE MY DREAM!

On the last page of the notebook or journal create a list of goals for yourself or dreams you have that you'd like to work towards.  Dream of at least 10 goals for yourself! If not 10, then 5! Maybe you feel motivated to dream more! GO FOR IT! No matter how big they are or how hard they seem, write them down! Circle the top 3 goals that mean the most to you!

Go back to the front of the journal and write today's date! Let this be a scrapbook of successes and failures. There is no such thing as failure when your walking towards your dream. There may be disappointments or setbacks.....however, you are God's Chosen, and never a failure! Learn from mistakes, mishaps, and curves along the way. Most importantly have a spirit of determination. You'll have to be creative to fight off the enemy every step of the way .....so get ready! He doesn't want you to believe you can win the race! But you can!!!

Journal about everything! Track your progress! Make it personal! Make it fun! Update your dream list as you go! Some dreams and goals you make may be short term, while others may take years! Some easier than others. As long as you are somewhere in the process, then you are on track!

Brainstorm things you can do daily to begin walking towards those goals!

Discover and use what motivates you, what inspires you, what encourages you!

Maybe this blog can be a part of that!

Let's DREAM Ya'll!!!! This is the road we should walk!
Tracy