Wives in Waiting Journal Challenge
The end of the year is quickly approaching and it’s
important to finish strong even if you didn’t start out that great. Wives in
Waiting started 2013 on a financial fast to get our finances in order. God’s
word tells us to owe no man and I wanted to be sure that we applied that
principles to our money. But as we got
closer to the end of year, God kept repeating those words to me: OWE NO MAN!
The Lord placed Romans 13:8 in my spirit before He revealed
the journal challenge to me. The New Living Translation explains it the best: Owe
nothing to anyone--except for your obligation to love one another. If you love
your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God's law.
The only God we anyone, including ourselves, is real, true,
authentic love. The month of October has been dedicated to identifying and
removing the counterfeit in our lives. What keeps us in bondage is our
inability to live and crave what’s authentic. What we build on has to be
something permanent and authentic; otherwise it is bound to fall apart. We have
given our hearts, souls, minds, and bodies to people who don’t deserve them and
it has left us in a deficit. We owe them a price we cannot pay. But what we
miss out on is that Jesus already paid our debts.
Before I knew how to really speak to God, I would write to
Him. Sometimes it was love letters and other times it would be classified as
hate mail but I needed to be close to Him and putting my pen to the paper was
one of the greatest forms to do that. God revealed Wives in Waiting to me
through my journaling. When I went back and read the words I wrote, I realized
how much He had healed me and why He healed me. Things I never had the courage
to speak were written in the journal and I would go back there to remember
where God brought from.
The process of journaling also reminded me of who God was
and how much He really loved me. God
loved me too much to leave me the way He found me. My journal was a reminder of
who I was and who God was. As we prepare to embark on the last 61 days of the
year, let’s reflect on ALL that God has done for us. Beginning November 1st,
we will journal at least once per day about what we have to be thankful for,
our love for God, His love for us, where He has brought us from, where He is
taking us, and anything and everything else God places on your heart. As you
speak to God, He will speak to you.
We are going to develop intimacy with God during these 61
days that can only come from drawing closer to Him. James 4:8 says Draw near to
God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify
your hearts, you double-minded.
It is the drawing closer to Him that prompts Him to draw
closer to His. We draw near to Him through His word, prayer, fasting,
thanksgiving, and transparency.
We will still be fasting with Kia Granberry of holdFAST for
the first 3 days of November and December and this will take your journaling to
another level. You will be emptying yourself of what you don’t need, pouring
out in your journaling, and God will fill you with what you do need: HIM!
As we get closer to November 1, God is revealing to me even
more how much we all NEED this intimate time with Him. So many women have
reached out to me about how they want to feel closer to God and truly
experience an encounter with Him. I believe in my heart that if you come
expecting to go deeper in your relationship with God, He will take you there.
One of the biggest benefits of starting on 11/1 is that we get to start of our
journaling with a fast. If you have not already signed up to receive your
holdFAST packet from Kia Granberry please email holdfast@livelovekia.com
If you know a woman who needs to be a part of this, please
feel free to share it with her. You don't have to be a member of Wives in Waiting to join in. We are going higher in a relationship with God.
This will not be your typical journal challenge. We are
going to develop intimacy with God and uncover God’s real love by studying His
word and searching ourselves. We will cover a chapter of the Bible each day and
by the end of the challenge we will have covered 3 books of the bible. I don’t
want to dictate when you do your reading/journaling so I will let you choose
when the best time of day is for you. For me, I connect with God the best at night
when I don’t have a schedule to meet. But if you want to spend time with God
early in the morning, pouring your heart out to God you are welcome to do
so. If you want to listen to worship
music while you journal, feel free. This is your personal time with God that
you are sharing with the rest of us for accountability. There is no limit on
how much you have to write or a minimum to get started. This is from your heart
to His. My prayer is that you better your relationship with God, not stick to a
tradition. The focus of this challenge is to build time in your day to honor
the commitment you’ve made to God. Just as you want to spend quality with your
husband to make your marriage better, the same holds true for your relationship
to God.
Each day we will read a chapter from the Bible, meditate on
it and how it applies to our lives, and write down anything we want to share
with God and whatever He shares with us.
Use any translation of the Bible that you are most comfortable with.
Some days you will see me use KJV, other days I may use another. This journal
is yours just like your Bible is. Some days you may have a lot to say and some
days not so much. Maybe you write questions about what you read or answers to
questions you had. Make this personal because you and God are the ones who know
what you share. Remember, this is about intimacy with God and being free from
owing people. If you find yourself struggling with what to write, remind
yourself of what you would share with someone who loved you in spite of
yourself and what you’ve done. What you create during this time is
irreplaceable, enjoy it.
Our Bible Study schedule to go along with our journaling is
as follows:
11/1-11/14: Book of Hosea
11/15-11/30: Book of Romans
12/1-12/31: Book of 1 Samuel
I will be sharing my daily progress via social media to
encourage and empower you. Feel free to join me and hold one another
accountable by using the hashtags #WivesinWaiting #JournalChallenge #OweNoMan
so we can find each other through all of our social networks. We get started
next Friday and you should be receiving the journals you ordered soon, however
if your journal is not in your possession on 11/1 don’t let that stop you from
getting started. Don’t let a day pass when you don’t spend this time with God.
Just as we use holdFAST to sound the alarm, we are going to
use this challenge to do the same. We are using social media and word of mouth
to encourage, empower, and elevate other women in their relationship with God.
Don’t let anything hold you back from going deeper in God; it’s the foundation
for success in any other relationship.
With All My Love,
Mrs. Truscott
This is a good foundation you set in motion here for the last few days of the year. I talk best with God through journaling. I can say a brief thank you but my prayers don't go beyond that. However I can write to God for days and that's what I do.May God fill you up during this journal challenge.
ReplyDeleteMaleeka,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your feedback. I think a lot of people don't realize that God gives us so many avenues to communicate with Him. Journaling is one of the most intimate experiences you can have with God and adds to your prayer life. I am grateful to be embarking on this journey for the rest of the year. I pray that you will join us.