A story: The journals and the jail

by Karmen |

“What are you going to do about sharing your journals with the women in jail?”

“Great question. I’ve been praying about that very thing. The number of women varies from week to week. I don’t want to leave anybody out, but to be honest, right now I don’t know if I can afford to give that many away. I’m trusting God to work it out.”

praybig

Fast-forward four hours and thirty-four minutes later.

We dropped the boys at church and headed home to get the house and bathrooms presentable before hosting small group. #keepinitreal

I received a text:

“Hello! Are you still ministering at the jail?”

“Yes, I am. I go a couple of times a month.”

“How many ladies do you see? Do they allow books? Like reading books?”

“Yes, books are allowed if bound with no staples and no spiral. This past week there were between 30-40 but usually 20ish.”

Still clueless. I couldn’t even see what God was about to do.

“If I bought them all your journal would that be something you could distribute and use them or give to them?”

I sent her this text because I couldn’t call her for all-the-squalling!!!!

textjail

I still didn’t believe what was happening.

Awestruck, I laid my phone down and walked to the kitchen & started wiping counters because that’s what I do when I don’t know what else to do, and there is an absence of chocolate. After a nice conversation with myself, and the skepticism beginning to recede, I returned to the living room to check my phone. I wanted to be SURELY, sure what I had read was clear.

Upon checking my phone I discovered my mystery friend (who is actually not a mystery but has requested to remain nameless) had sent me a heartfelt explanation of how she had been relieved of her duties from her place of employment as of 2:30 THAT-VERY-DAY, was given her final paycheck and in short said, “This money belongs to The Lord..”

She went on to say that she had been sharing with her husband about the work I do at the jail and the release of my prayer journal. She said she believed God was blessing the ministry and would love to bless the ladies in the jail with a gift. Her husband said, “Great.” And with that, he had to take a phone call as she scurried out the door to pick up their son from school. From the car line she messaged me AND #forthelove if that’s not enough wind for your sail…. while in line waiting for her son, after messaging me and blessing my socks off, THEN she receives a call about a job interview!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ALL ON THE SAME DAY!!!!

Y’all tracking with me?!?!

Her words, “The Lord has smacked me upside the head, and I have seen his glory today. You just tell me where to order the books or where to send a check!”

So I did, and then she and I shouted a little more glory back and forth at each other and then I asked her, ” Whom shall I say sent them?”

“Tell the girls The Lord sent them. I don’t want any credit.”

And so, I have the journals ready to take to the jail. Humbled at the privilege to bless the socks off of the girls whom Jesus loves.

Isn’t God the best? He is always at work. Working His grand plans even through our doubt. So thankful His plans prevail above our unbelief.

Oh how He loves us and lest we forget, I thought it best to document a few truths about this incident:

God is sovereign.
God is The God of details.
God hears. He bends down and listens because
God cares. He cares that my friend lost her job. He cares about the girls in the jail who don’t believe they matter. He cares about the prayers we barely know how to pray.
God is bigger than our doubt and is ready to bless the socks off of those who are willing to live sold out and surrendered for His honor and glory!
God blesses obedience.
God answers prayers.
Sometimes He says no, sometimes He says wait but glory-be!!! sometimes He says YES!! and sends it RUSH ORDER!!! because He is God and He can!

So what?

I pray this story about the journal and the jail encourages you to #PrayBig prayers, my friends. I know many of you are hard-pressed on every side… Ready to throw in the towel. KEEP PRAYING! If you’re exhausted from the fight-PRAY ON to The God, who hears. If you are experiencing intimacy with God in ways, you never have before PRAISE HIM and encourage someone in need! We weren’t created to do this life alone!

#PrayBig dearest friends, because

When You #PrayBig Things Happen!

Much love and lots more and EXCITING THINGS I MUST TELL YOU~SOON!

begonias & harlots-NO ONE IS EXEMPT

by Karmen |

It was smaller than the others

The plant guy gave us credit or a “no charge”- chalking it up as a loss based on size and the lack of probability to sell

The chickens pecked holes in what few, tiny leaves it did have

Our boys whacked the rest of the leaves with sticks until they were gone

I forgot to water it more days than not

The wind blew it over and busted the pot it called home

Another plant fell on it and smashed the center out of it

Doomed before it ever had a chance to bloom.

But instead of throwing it out

I brought it home

Repotted it

Watered it

Sat it in a cozy little spot on the porch

And watched it

the discarded, battered begonia as it began to bloom where it was planted.

When the county fair rolled around a couple months later

I thought, why not?

The begonia, destined for doom- instead brought home a blue ribbon, a Flower Show Award and is still going strong today…

Maybe today you feel a bit like my pathetic little begonia did: defeated, discarded, battered, or broken.

Maybe you’re thirsty, desperate for attention, aching to matter to someone, anyone.

This is for you.

NO ONE IS EXEMPT

The more I look for women looking for purpose the more women I find looking for purpose.

This weekend I was given the honor & privilege to encourage a talented, gracious, creative group of women at Chelsea Village Baptist Church. I left them with a challenge to trust and obey God as never before. Believing He has a plan a purpose for each one of them.

Do you believe God has a plan and a purpose for you?

When was the last time you noticed God using the most unsuspecting of people to accomplish His purposes?

Harlots included.

Meet Rahab:

2 Joshua son of Nun secretly sent out from Shittim two men as spies: “Go. Look over the land. Check out Jericho.” They left and arrived at the house of a harlot named Rahab and stayed there.

²The king of Jericho was told, “We’ve just learned that men arrived tonight to spy out the land. They’re from the People of Israel.”

³The king of Jericho sent word to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you to stay the night in your house. They’re spies; they’ve come to spy out the whole country.”

^4-7The woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, two men did come to me, but I didn’t know where they’d come from. At dark, when the gate was about to be shut, the men left. But I have no idea where they went. Hurry up! Chase them—you can still catch them!” (She had actually taken them up on the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax that were spread out for her on the roof.) So the men set chase down the Jordan road toward the fords. As soon as they were gone, the gate was shut.

^8-11Before the spies were down for the night, the woman came up to them on the roof and said, “I know that God has given you the land. We’re all afraid. Everyone in the country feels hopeless. We heard how God dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you left Egypt, and what he did to the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you put under a holy curse and destroyed. We heard it and our hearts sank. We all had the wind knocked out of us. And all because of you, you and God, your God, God of the heavens above and God of the earth below.

^12-13“Now promise me by God. I showed you mercy; now show my family mercy. And give me some tangible proof, a guarantee of life for my father and mother, my brothers and sisters—everyone connected with my family. Save our souls from death!”

¹⁴“Our lives for yours!” said the men. “But don’t tell anyone our business. When God turns this land over to us, we’ll do right by you in loyal mercy.” -Joshua 2 The Message (MSG)

How many times have we said, “There’s no way God could use me after all that I have done?”

How many times have I thought in my puffed up self-righteousness, there’s no way God can use that one.

Y’all, I’m rank without His grace. Seriously. If not for Jesus, what a disaster I’d still be..

And yet, NO ONE IS EXEMPT.

God has a PLAN & A PURPOSE for each and every one of us.

Just yesterday while at the jail, sitting across from a woman, with beautiful dark hair, deep-sad, brown eyes with not a tooth in her head, she said to me,

“I want to do better. Be better- because I know better. My momma raised me right. I know and have accepted Christ as Savior. I’ve just walked away and have been doing life my way. Pain pills lead to other things and other things led me here.”

“..the messiest waste of our lives becomes the most fertile soil.” –Jennie Allen

YES! and,

²⁰But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good…..

Genesis 50:20 New King James Version (NKJV)

Be encouraged my friends. We’re in this together. Our pain is not in vain. God is working all things together for our good.

Fix your eyes on Jesus may we remember to “run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize which is God’s call through Christ Jesus to the life above.” Philippians 3:14 TEV

Turn from the doom that so easily ensnares us and turn to Christ where you are sure to bloom.

Love y’all and this community of encouragers so very, very much

PS-Will you please remember my new friend when you pray?

begonias & harlots-NO ONE IS EXEMPT

by Karmen |

It was smaller than the others

The plant guy gave us credit or a “no charge”- chalking it up as a loss based on size and the lack of probability to sell

The chickens pecked holes in what few, tiny leaves it did have

Our boys whacked the rest of the leaves with sticks until they were gone

I forgot to water it more days than not

The wind blew it over and busted the pot it called home

Another plant fell on it and smashed the center out of it

Doomed before it ever had a chance to bloom.

But instead of throwing it out

I brought it home

Repotted it

Watered it

Sat it in a cozy little spot on the porch

And watched it

the discarded, battered begonia as it began to bloom where it was planted.

When the county fair rolled around a couple months later

I thought, why not?

The begonia, destined for doom- instead brought home a blue ribbon, a Flower Show Award and is still going strong today…

Maybe today you feel a bit like my pathetic little begonia did: defeated, discarded, battered, or broken.

Maybe you’re thirsty, desperate for attention, aching to matter to someone, anyone.

This is for you.

NO ONE IS EXEMPT

The more I look for women looking for purpose the more women I find looking for purpose.

Do you believe God has a plan and a purpose for you?

When was the last time you noticed God using the most unsuspecting of people to accomplish His purposes?

Harlots included.

Meet Rahab:

2 Joshua son of Nun secretly sent out from Shittim two men as spies: “Go. Look over the land. Check out Jericho.” They left and arrived at the house of a harlot named Rahab and stayed there.

²The king of Jericho was told, “We’ve just learned that men arrived tonight to spy out the land. They’re from the People of Israel.”

³The king of Jericho sent word to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you to stay the night in your house. They’re spies; they’ve come to spy out the whole country.”

¹⁴“Our lives for yours!” said the men. “But don’t tell anyone our business. When God turns this land over to us, we’ll do right by you in loyal mercy.” -Joshua 2 The Message (MSG)

How many times have we said, “There’s no way God could use me after all that I have done?”

How many times have I thought in my puffed up self-righteousness, there’s no way God can use that one.

Y’all, I’m rank without His grace. Seriously. If not for Jesus, what a disaster I’d still be..

And yet, NO ONE IS EXEMPT.

God has a PLAN & A PURPOSE for each and every one of us.

Just yesterday while at the jail, sitting across from a woman, with beautiful dark hair, deep-sad, brown eyes with not a tooth in her head, she said to me,

“..the messiest waste of our lives becomes the most fertile soil.” –Jennie Allen

YES! and,

²⁰But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good…..

Genesis 50:20 New King James Version (NKJV)

Be encouraged my friends. We’re in this together. Our pain is not in vain. God is working all things together for our good.

Fix your eyes on Jesus may we remember to “run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize which is God’s call through Christ Jesus to the life above.” Philippians 3:14 TEV

Turn from the doom that so easily ensnares us and turn to Christ where you are sure to bloom.

Love y’all and this community of encouragers so very, very much

PS-Will you please remember my new friend when you pray?

Why I love going to JAIL

by Karmen |

“I don’t want to come back to jail.” Was her response to, “What’s your plan for 2015?”

“Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” Proverbs 29:18

Yesterday was my third visit to the county jail.

I’m yet to find the words to express how much I L-O-V-E visiting the women in jail. If you could only be a fly in my car each time when I leave and drive home crying, talking out loud to myself like a snotty slobbering loon. Yea, it’s something like that.

Visiting the jail keeps me humble. The hunger for Christ from some of the women in there is so refreshing.

When I look into their eyes I see how very similar we are and am reminded -the journey for each of the souls there, began with one step.

The title of the yesterday’s message for the inmates led by my brave friend,

“What’s you plan for 2015?”

Fitting for the last Sunday of the year.

Many of the women echoed the answer of the first brave soul who said she didn’t want to end up back in jail when her time was up.

I applauded her response and encouraged her with, “BRAVO my friend! You have a start. You have set your plan in motion with one decision.”

The women were still gathering around the cold, steel picnic tables when I noticed one of the women studying me. She politely interrupted the conversation of introductions with a question for me, “Hey where are you from?”

As she spoke my mind raced backed twenty years.

“No way.”

Her laugh is infectious with a personality the size of Texas, this woman; I hadn’t recognized was a dear, dear friend of mine twenty years ago.

She tried to hide her face from me as I grabbed her. We smiled, hugged, laughed and then she began to cry.

I couldn’t believe it. It was all so surreal. I’ve heard my parents speak of their friends who had taken to wrong path, made poor choices and ended up in jail or worse, dead. But this woman, I didn’t even recognize was my age. We had hung out together, spent many hours laughing and enjoying life together. She attended my wedding. I held her firstborn. She has a family that loves her and a personality that could take her to the moon and yet she is in bondage while I am free.

Apologetic for interrupting the message we settled back down when I said, “Girl, we’ve got to talk!”

Many of the women were very eager to engage and participate with the message in planning for the New Year.

When I recognized the slumber of one in particular. I saw myself in her bitter expression so I asked , “What’s got a hold of you? Why are you so down?”

At first, I didn’t think she was going to answer. So I asked her again and then we waited.

“Grief. Grief’s what’s got me.”

She hesitated as she began to spill her sorrows. She shared her losses. There were many.

And then I shared, “I know grief. He’s terrible. He chokes you some days to the point you can not breathe, right?”

She nodded through her tears.

“Have you told God how you feel?”

“Why should I? I don’t trust Him.”

How would you have answered her?

I answered as humbly as I knew how, “He is trustworthy. He is the only one who is trustworthy.”

Our exchange continued.

“How do you know? How did you do it? How did you trust Him after he let you hurt so bad?”

“One moment at a time. One hour at a time. Reading and praying His Word back to Him, one- at- a -time.”

Through faith, by His grace I was able to believe and now testify to you, God truly is good.

“I prayed these verses out loud. On days the ache kept me from speaking, I journaled them. My dear new friend, a precious sister in Christ recently shared with me,

“God is GREATER THAN..”

and just so you know, there is absolutely NOTHING, N-O-T-H-I-N-G you can do or have done that will separate you from His love. Try these, you will see, He is good.”

“Call upon me in the day of trouble and I will rescue you and you will give me glory.” Psalm 50:15

“The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away…blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Job 1:21

“All things work together for good for those who love The Lord and are called according to His purposes.” Rom 8:28

“The Lord is close to the broken-hearted..” Ps 34:18

“Pray through.

One day at a time.

One verse at a time.

And then be ready because one day, the pain will be a tiny bit less painful and you will be able to breathe again.”

There was more and I could talk about God and His goodness all day but my challenge to the ladies and for you is one I am challenging myself with …

“ONE”

Is my word for 2015

“Do for ONE what you would do for a thousand.” –Lysa TerKeurst

Offer one kind word a day.

Make one generous gesture.

Dream ONE crazy wild dream.

Complete one-act of service.

Offer one apology.

Lead one person to Christ.

Surrender one bad habit.

Start one healthy habit.

Pray one BIG prayer.

Visit one person at a time.

Do one BRAVE thing a day.

You get the idea?

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. -Lao Tzu

If one+one+one+ one+one+one+one+ine+one=endless ripple effect

Have you made yours?

What’s your grand plan for 2015 my friend?

Share yours with us in the comment section.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Love y’all,