Joyful Journey

 

God is awesome! This past Sunday evening, in preparation for chapel time at Simonka Place, I studied the chosen scripture passage (James 1:2-8) and began pulling out poems to share. Reading and rereading those Bible verses about joy in trials, persevering and seeking God’s wisdom, my own journey came into focus and I thought, “I sure have a lot of practice with that!” After a quick prayer, I was inspired with a new praise-filled poem, finishing it just in time to leave for the shelter. Barely half an hour later, after sharing a bit of my story, I read the new poem aloud. Here it is:

“Joyful Journey”

It’s been a tough, but joyful journey
from the moment I said “okay”.
I’m “all in”, in full surrender –
peace flows as I humbly pray.
Lord, You’ve stayed with me through this trial,
Giving me strength to persevere;
Holy wisdom each time I ask,
and faith to follow without fear.
Blessing upon blessing have come,
for You give as I give my all:
With support from my family and friends,
Your love has broken down every wall.
My pack is filled with Your promises,
expecting that one of these tomorrows
they will be fulfilled in Your timing –
leaving mere memories of past sorrows.
But today, I continue trusting –
no doubt of Your plans for me;
Walking daily with You, Jesus,
I’m thankful, loved, and free!

1-28-18
©Ladeena Ashley

One way I’ve had joy in my trials is by sharing my struggles and faith with others. In particular, to be a witness of God’s faithfulness to the women at Simonka Place, most of whom are way out of their comfort zone, hurting and in desperate need of hope. Having been in a similar situation myself, I can speak from a place of experience and a depth of compassion, with greater empathy for each soul I encounter. God is in the business of transforming lives and using bad circumstances for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). My mess, placed in God’s loving hands, becomes a powerful conduit for His message.

And it never ceases to amaze me how He does it! The inspiration to write about my journey is already an incredible blessing, but then I get to read it aloud and have people respond with hugs and teary eyes, saying God spoke to them through my humble offering! As His servant, my prayer is always that folks see and hear Him, not me. I’m just along for the ride, but what a joyful ride it is!

I’m humbled and thankful to be used to encourage others, even as I continue trusting and waiting for His plan to come to fruition in my own life. For sure, the trials of life are not easy, but by God’s grace, I am persevering, one day at a time!

James 1:2-8:
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.”

We can have joy today and hope for tomorrow, as we daily surrender our ways for His by seeking His wisdom above our own, and relying on His strength to persevere and grow.

Is your journey joyful, or are you simply trudging along the trail?

How can you help brighten the path for others along their journey?

Blessings to you, this day and always!

©Ladeena Ashley
2018 All Rights Reserved (Blog content and photos)

Positively Thankful!

 

Today is a milestone: a year ago I followed God’s lead and created this blog. I set out on this electronic journey not knowing exactly what I would write, how many photos I’d take (hint: a LOT), or how long this trail would go. This endeavor has been both a challenge and a joy so far, writing and sharing what God’s been up to in my life.

This day I’m pausing to give special thanks to God for who He is and all He has done. I thank Him for my incredibly supportive friends and family, and I thank Him for all the blessings great and small that He has seen fit to grant me each and every day.

To those of you who follow my humble little blog, whether you’ve recently begun following, or you’ve been reading from the beginning, thank you so much. I have appreciated every “like”, comment and share, and look forward to hearing more.

I don’t know what the next year has in store, but I’m sure it will be good! It makes me smile to think that God is using me to inspire and uplift so many. Unlike some other websites, I’m not selling anything, but I am sold out for Christ! Liberally promoting positivity and kindness with every post, my hope is that my readers will pay it forward!

Looking through my poems, this one seemed to fit my thankful and reflective mood:

“Winding Trail”

Giddy expectation of heavenly reward.
Love follows love – and all from the Lord.
Grateful exultation of Christ my King,
Who alone understands me and gives me everything.
So very thankful, beyond what words express.
I’m loving more deeply, and happier with less.
Trusting God completely – no cause for doubt or fear.
For His promises are true; His mercy draws me near.
Grace propels me onward, great joy lights up my way.
Ever glowing in this valley, with faith as bright as day.
From blessing to blessing, each hour, wisdom grows.
As I walk in hope and peace, I conquer all my foes!
No matter what others say, my strength comes from inside:
For by His Spirit, I am free! Set apart, sanctified!
Traveling with Jesus along this winding trail,
I smile and sing His praises, knowing His love will prevail!

8-11-2015
©Ladeena Ashley

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136:1

Extra Credit
Colossians 3:12-17

Blessings to you, this day and always!

©Ladeena Ashley
2017 All Rights Reserved (blog content and photos)

Word Games and Wisdom

I recently began playing a new word game on my phone. It’s like a word find and Tetris® combined. As each string of letter tiles is selected, forming one of the mystery words below, those tiles disappear and the others drop down. One level of the game was especially frustrating. I had easily found the first couple of words, and thought for sure that the last word must be “ocean”. Yet no matter how hard I tried, after selecting the other words in several different ways, I couldn’t get the remaining tiles to drop in the right places and spell that word. It drove me nuts wondering what else it could be. Finally, in desperation, I begrudgingly used a hint and discovered the first letter wasn’t even “O”! I adjusted my strategy and solved the puzzle. The word was canoe.

I’ve learned that sometimes life is like that. We get ahead of God, thinking we know what the next step is, but don’t consult Him first. Or we hastily pray, yet move forward with what we believe or what we want to be the next step. Sometimes it’s out of comfort, but often we pridefully think we know what’s right. Sooner or later, we notice that things just aren’t falling into place the way we thought they would. No matter what we do, it doesn’t quite match up. We realize we’ve missed something somewhere and only succeeded in stressing ourselves out, or worse, hurt others in the process.

Great News!
We all stray occasionally, and to one degree or another. The great news is: regardless of how long the rabbit trail goes, while we are still on this earth, it’s never too late to redirect when we’ve veered off track. God is quick to forgive and His wisdom is always available to all who ask (James 1:5).

Muscle Memory
Decisions and struggles are all opportunities to trust God and to build our relationship with the Creator of the stars and universe. We can either choose to let our experiences strengthen our faith or to break us down. Trusting God develops the muscle memory of our faith. Each time we seek His will, then see Him work in and through us, it becomes easier and more natural to trust His wisdom instead of ours the next time. And the next time. That’s one reason why God’s Word tells us to pray continually and in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Many of my decisions for the past several years have actually sprung out of a survival instinct and limited thinking, not pride. However, now that things have improved on that front, it could be tempting to “rest on my laurels”, assuming that I can coast along on my own, or that “I’m good” now. Wrong! They are HIS laurels! I’ve made it this far only by holding on to Him, surrendering myself and seeking His will in all things, not just in the midst of problems. I’ve worked my faith muscles so well that I’m actually afraid of what might happen if I took matters in my own hands!

One of my favorite scripture verses sums up what our daily faith walk should look like: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6

It’s Not About Me
Overall, personally I have to keep reminding myself that life really isn’t about me. Once I decided to follow Jesus, every aspect of my life is to be under His lordship. If I let my own selfish wants and desires take control, I’m ignoring His power in my life and won’t get the full blessings that are available. And I really want those blessings! That’s not to say we can’t enjoy good things in life, and not every decision is that crucial; it’s simply that nothing else and no one but God should have ultimate sway in our lives. It’s about the condition of our heart and our overall focus.

Here’s a poem I wrote that expresses the child-like faith and softness of heart that God delights in:

“Trust”

You fill my soul with healing,
You commence my heart to sing;
All to You I am revealing,
though You already know everything.
I give You, this day, my heart of clay
Each hour, my life to mold;
For when You have complete control
the most glorious things unfold.
So I lay down my all at Your feet,
not knowing on my own what is best;
But as I pull my hands free, I’m reassured
that with You, I’ll always be blessed.

6-10-94
©Ladeena Ashley

Let’s pursue God’s best for our lives by staying in His Word and praying before making decisions, especially important ones. Learn to recognize when we foolishly start getting ahead of His will, then get out of His way and let Him lead. Only then can the great things He has planned out for us be brought to fruition.

Extra Credit
Proverbs 16:3-9
Commit your way to the Lord, whatever you do, and your plans will succeed (v. 3).

©Ladeena Ashley
2016 All Rights Reserved (content & blog photos)

Poems, Pictures and Providence

I’m taking a minute to tell you more about why I’m doing this blog, and how it came to be.

Like many others, sometimes I have a problem seeing “the forest for the trees”, but with this blog, I also didn’t fully notice some of the trees! Oddly enough, it wasn’t until a couple of months ago that I fully realized how it all came together so perfectly, and I identified all the “saplings” that the Lord planted to form the “blog forest” I am now enjoying!

Poems

It continually amazes me just how many poems and other writings He’s given to me over the years. I’ve written on how the truths of God’s Word play out in my life, pouring both good and unpleasant life experiences out on paper, and giving voice to various periods of struggles and growth that have brought me here. Every time I’ve searched for something on a particular topic, I’ve rediscovered long-forgotten poems that will be great for future posts. I am thankful and humbled to have so much material from which to draw!

Timing

Though I’ve shared many older poems, I’ve also composed new, more extemporaneous works. This is exciting for me, as writing had largely taken a back seat to personal and financial challenges for the past several years. I see more clearly that this was always a part of God’s larger plan. Just over two years ago I began a journey of transformation, through which He has guided me back to my creative roots. Later, after much prayer, I felt it was the right time to share more fully with others. Blogging seemed a natural choice, as I also wanted to combat the growing negativity and unrest in the world by sharing His light and hope on a broader scale. God has affirmed that decision and is enriching my faith walk through this experience. It has been at once cathartic and invigorating, especially hearing how God has spoken through my humble offerings!

Pictures

Perhaps you’ve noticed that a photo accompanies every post. They are not stock photos, but all original snapshots taken by myself in various places; many while out walking by myself or hiking with family and friends. I enjoy taking pictures, but had often pondered what to do with all of them, as there are no children for me to pass things like that down to. Some images I’ve posted on Facebook, but I always wished to share on a grander scale, if not actually becoming a professional photographer (the thought has crossed my mind, but it is not my calling). The Lord has given me an artistic eye for color and composition, and with this blog, He’s also provided a way to share all those shots!

His Blog

Though I did not plainly state it at first, in my first blog post, this blog is HIS. Now that the “trees” and “forest” are in better focus, I feel even more strongly about that assertion. When beginning this blog journey, I wasn’t sure what He would do with it, but I remain confident that His purposes will be worked out as long as I keep my mind transformed by His Word (Romans 12:2), my heart trusting in His plan (Psalm 28:7) and my hands devoted to writing whatever it is He wants to say through me. Not that I will always say everything perfectly, but that He will use this imperfect vessel to inspire and encourage others according to His will (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Here’s a poem I wrote to reaffirm my dedication of this blog to His service:

“His Blog”

Your words, Lord, are what I seek.
Your will first in what I speak.
Your message, through text great and small.
Your gentle whispers shared with all.
This blog is Yours; it’s not my own.
Lord, set the rhythm, course and tone.
To further Your kingdom, for Your glory;
To uplift and inspire with my story.
For my story is You, and what you’ve done;
I rest in Your grace as each post is begun.
With expectant joy, I listen and pray
Holy Spirit, keep guiding all that I say.

10-1-16
©Ladeena Ashley

Pass It On!

I’ve been doing a LOT of writing lately, and am thankful for every word I’ve been inspired to write. For those who have been following, and those who are new followers: thank you for coming along on this journey. I pray you are blessed by what you read, but more than that, I pray that you too will pass along that encouragement to those around you. We are all blessed to be a blessing (2 Corinthians 1:4)! We are His light in the darkness, our words and lives shining the light of His love everywhere we go.

I have several favorite songs named “Shine”, but the one I’ll choose for this post is by Salvador. It is truly one of the songs of my heart.
Shine – Salvador (Note: link opens in new window)

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” Matthew 5:16

©Ladeena Ashley
2016 All Rights Reserved (content & blog photo)