Life Happens And It's Beautiful!

So, I haven't written on this blog literally since August 2014!! That's terrible! :p I'm so sorry to my readers! A LOT has changed since then and it's been great! In fact, life couldn't be better and I am a pretty happy woman! I'm 22 now and will be 23 on January 12th, 2016! I've been dating the wonderful man shown above for almost 17 months (it'll be 17 months on December 1). He is a wonderful man! Out of ALL of the men I've met, I've never met a man like him! He's so special to me and I wanted to tell ya about him and some of the recent stuff going on. He is a farmer, he is great with kids, he supports me whole heartedly and he's caring and loving and just absolutely amazing! He has seen me through so much good and so much bad. He's been there through difficult time and wonderful times. I really believe I've found the man my heart longs for. No, I don't have a ring on my finger yet, but all in all he's wonderful!! Just like EVERYONE else on the planet he has his weak points and his areas that he struggles in, but so do I! Oh, so do I! I love him so much though! <3

Also, I've started a cleaning business called Shine On A Dime! I have currently 18 customers and counting! I'm really doing well!! I go to a church with my beau's family and I love it! I love life! :) My sister had a baby named Atlas and my brother (who's not adopted) had a baby named Leland (pictured below)

Leland (pictured above)

Atlas (pictured below)

Life just happens and it's beautiful! <3

This is just a short update with a few pics! 

-Traci 

Mornings With Jesus!

God speaks to us in many ways. Just this last night I had a choice to spend time with God, or do other things that I thought were more important, like homework or reading a novel or a book about going organic and what that really means. Yes, I was tempted to do these things and other things too, but God showed me that I desperately needed to spend time with Him. He showed me that I have not made Him first priority in my life recently. Instead I have made my schedule and the things that I feel are important at the time my priority. That is wrong and I have known and felt terrible about for a very long time, but I haven't taken any action to make my spirit come in control over my flesh and the things I want to do. My spirit and the things of God need to rule any decision I make, no matter if they aren't necessarily "bad" things, but things that need to come last in terms of my order of priorities. God MUST be number one and without that set in stone, I can't go and move in the direction God has called me! God has never let me down or you down. He has been faithful and loving and patient with us and what do we do in return? We ignore Him, push Him away and don't listen. We think we know more than He does and we rule our own lives, when God really just wants us to submit to His plan and walk in obedience to Him. Things won't always be easy, but God is always there and He's there waiting for us to turn to Him. We all have a choice to follow the ways of the Spirit of God or the ways of this world and the fleshly desires. We all have a choice as to who we allow to influence us and the choices we make every day define who we are as a person! I encourage you to use the times and the things God does to change you from the inside out! I want Him to be number one, so I am making a conscious decision to do just that! I hope you will as well! If that means waking up early in the morning and spending time with Jesus-just Him and I, then that's what I'll do and what I did last night! That was the choice I made! I hope you are encouraged and continue doing good! Continuing in the things of God and in His word! He loves YOU! Remember that! You are becoming a reflection of Him! :) Keep it up!

God's Changing Me-Journey

 (Here is an updated photo of me, btw)

Recently I have made a decision to do something that can be difficult and actually a couple of things are difficult in what I'm doing. I am just believing that through this decision that I will be what God wants me to be. I believe that God is asking me to do several things in my life, for my benefit, but for His ultimate glory! Those things are:
1) NO Facebook for at least a month, and then I will see what God desires and wants of me from there.
2) Read my Bible and Pray and spend time with God daily and make it a habit. He is my everything. He should and I always want Him to be number 1 in my life.
3) Think and say only positive things over me and my life as well as other people's lives. I am a child of God, an Heir to the throne of God, I am HIS!
4) Eat healthy. I want and think it's good to make my physical self line up with what I am doing spiritually. I don't eat TERRIBLE, but I don't eat the best way that I could be eating. My body is the temple of Jesus. He made me and I want to take care of the life He has given me and not fill it with things that are not of Him.

Now I want to explain in more detail each of these things I am doing and why. Through this what I call "Journey" I will be journaling every day to show and express my thoughts and how I am learning and growing in Him and to help me keep on track and see where I have come and express my feelings, thoughts and what I am learning more on paper!

The reason I chose to go without Facebook is not because I believe it's an "evil" thing or anything like that, but because I believe that for myself I have spent too much time on Facebook and am wanting to focus my attention on God. Also, I think that many people, including myself have consciously or unconsciously taken Facebook to a level it should have never been at. It has become people's relationships, instead of real life, person-to-person relationships. I think in my own life I unconsciously did it and didn't even realize it. Therefore I will be going without Facebook for a month. Facebook is a good tool, but can very easily be used in a wrong way.

The reason I want to read and study and spend time with God in His Word is because I have been lacking in that area. I haven't been reading it near enough and studying it as much as I should and desire to be. I have seen about 5 of my very dear friends fall away from God in the past 2-3 years. It really hurts and is hard for me to see. It actually makes me so sad to the point that I have become fearful of my own faith. I start asking questions like "am I rooted and grounded in God's Word enough? I hope I don't fall away from God...I wonder if I will be next..." I have been thinking those thoughts and it has scared me, so taking this "Journey" with God this month, I hope to cultivate a more deeper and personal relationship with God. I don't want to ever come away or pull away from Jesus. I ask God to create in me a pure heart and help me to always stay steadfast in Him and His Words! I never want to be away from Him or His presence. I always want to grow in Him and never leave Him or His plan for my life!

The reason I think I need to say and think positive thoughts is for several reasons. The first is that God has been showing me that I haven't been speaking positive things over my life. I say things that I know I shouldn't say about myself and it's because I've been believing the lies of Satan for so long and now I want to break myself from believing those lies. I often say "I'm not beautiful" or "No one will ever want to marry me...what am I? I am nothing..." BUT God has been recently showing me that even in these lies and other lies that I have believed for a long time that life and death is in the power of the tongue. I can speak right and positive things over my life or I can speak death and unhealthy things in my life. BUT whatever I speak and believe, it very well could and eventually will happen in my life. I know in my head the truth's, but I need to believe them in my heart. I desire to believe them and want to, therefore I am taking the steps I know how to start believing the truth's of God's Word. I am an Heir of Christ! I am His Princess, I am HIS forever and I love Him forever and unconditionally! I want my life to always show and be a reflection of Him, therefore I must believe God's truth's because God does not lie and His words are true and lovely!

The next thing I am doing on this Journey is eating healthier. I don't eat as healthy as I should and since my body is the body God gave me for this earth, I want to treat it well. I have to live with it my whole life and I am His child and am a reflection of Him, therefore my health and heart and spirit need to line up with each other. Everything needs to be where it should be in my body and if I don't treat my body right, I won't be able to honor God with my body. My body needs to reflect Him, just as much as my spirit and my attitude and heart! Everything needs and should come in alignment with God's Words in this. If I treat my body poorly and then say "God, why am I ugly, etc..?" It's not God's fault, it's MY fault. I want to make it a habit to eat right and think positively and not treat my body or mind or any part of me with disrespect for Jesus. I am HIS CHILD and HE MADE ME JUST THE WAY I AM! I need and should treat it well! :)

That is pretty much the idea of what I am doing this month! You are welcome to pray for me as I take this Journey in my walk with Jesus! Thanks!

Making An Author Of Me!

I have been wanting and trying to write a book for a very long time! Just recently I started and I'm not that far in my book, but I am getting somewhere. It's a lot of work that's for sure. The hard part will be editing it a million times, but right now the hard part is putting the correct information in the correct chapter. I am just on my rough draft and now I am on my second chapter of writing. I don't know if you have ever tried writing a book, but it can take a lot out of your day, that's for sure! I am hoping and my goal is to get it into the publishing process by the end of the summer. I know I have a lot of work ahead, but in the summer I probably will have more time. I will still have to work at my job obviously, but I won't have school over the summer so I am pretty excited about that! I have one more year left of college and then I am off! I hope to become a well published author, not because I want to be famous, but because I want to help others and the more people that buy my book, I know will be reading a story that I hope impacts their life. My book is about my life and the "before and after" of my adoption and before and after I came to really know Jesus. So many people have told me that they were impacted by my story and so many people have told me that I should write a book. Well, that's what I am doing and the reason I want it done by the end of the summer is because I do have one more year of school, so I won't have much time to write again, so I just want to get it done and into the publishing process and out in the world's hands!

Please pray for me as I am embarking on this adventure and if you have any pointers or have published or are working on a book yourself, please feel free to say something that has helped you and what you do and what you have learned about writing and publishing a book! Thanks for you help and please comment! Thanks!

Sincerely,
Your Future Author (I hope)