A Little Encouragement + Lots of Conviction= A New Goal to Work On!

      For those of you who may not already know, I work at Scranton Counseling Center in the Intellectual Disabilities Department. In short, my job is to set up services (ie. respite, employment, group home placement, etc) for individuals who are diagnosed with an Intellectual Disability or are Dual Diagnosed. In addition, I monitor my clients to ensure that their needs are being met & I monitor the services to make sure that they are being utilized appropriately.
     
      I apologize ahead of time for being vague, but for confidentiality sake this individual will remain nameless & the details vague.  This past Thursday, I was unexpectedly encouraged and convicted following my meeting with one of my clients. Due to the circumstances in his life, I expected my client to come to the meeting with a heavy heart, and an attitude of not wanting to put the effort into the meeting. For all I know, he has every right to be depressed and discouraged. Surprisingly....I was soooo wrong! If I had to guess, I'd say he spent at least 80% of the meeting laughing and telling his boss and myself all about his job and how happy he is. I was completely blown away by the joy he had!


     As I was driving back to work, I felt so convicted and could not get my mind to stop thinking about how happy he was. How could he be so happy despite all of the painful things that have happened to him in the past and the things he is going through right now? Here I am with an AMAZING God who has given me salvation and provides for all of my needs, a loving husband who puts up with all of my downfalls, a job for both my husband and myself, family that love and care about me, and friends to spend time with. The list could go on..... Yet how much of my day do I spend complaining about how stressful my job is, how miserable the winters are here in Clarks Summit, PA, how much I miss family at home & in Michigan, or the awful hours my husband has to work? The reality of it all is, I have absolutely no reason to complain or lack contentment! 


     This morning in my devotions, I read and was really encouraged by Psalm 34. I would really like to make it my goal that others will be able to see the love of God in me.  When people look at me, I pray that they will see joy in my life, not someone that never stops complaining. At work, I am not able to share the Gospel with my clients or tell them that I am praying for them but I really hope that they will see a difference in me and be encouraged. I know that God can work through me!  I hope that you are encouraged & maybe even a little convicted by this...no worries we can work on this together :)


                              Psalm 34:1,8
                                                             "I will extol the LORD at all times;
                                                          his praise will always be on my lips."
                                                       "Taste and see that the LORD is good;
                                                     blessed is the one who takes refuge in him."

New Years Resolution 2012

    Until last year, I was never really big on making New Years Resolutions. I never really saw the purpose of setting goals that I knew I probably would never keep past a month. Last year Jacob and I made a goal to have all of my college loans payed off by January 1, 2012. Although I was very skeptical, I was very excited at the thought of not having any debt. Thankfully with God's provision we were able to accomplish this goal!
    This year I have decided to make three New Years Resolutions. One of my three goals is to start this blog. As Jacob and I are from two completely different states, we have come to the realization that no matter where God leads us, we will always have family and friends that will be miles apart. We hope that this blog will be successful in keeping everyone updated on what is going on in our lives both individually and as a couple.
    We hope and pray that our followers will be encouraged by this blog. We hope to share what God is teaching us, our prayer requests on a weekly basis, things we are thankful for, and the fun times that will come our way. Please feel free to post comments or words of encouragement! Enjoy :)