Showing Jesus, Storm, Parents Visiting

Yesterday was quite a day. It all began when I woke up early. As I was waking, I was like, God, do you want me to get up now? It's a little early, isn't it!? LOL I read through yesterday's devotional and was very confused. I read it a second time and began journaling. But then my journal notes didn't make any sense to me either. I decided to set that all aside and prepare for my morning prayer walk. As I was going about my prayer walk, confusion set in even more. I began to ponder if perhaps I wasn't ready to know what God was trying to tell me through yesterday's devotional. Would this be something future me would need to revisit someday?

Throughout the remainder of the main portion of the day, I reread the devotional an additional five or so times. Each time, praying for discernment and understanding. About 13 hours after I first read it, I finally understood what God might have been trying to tell me through it. Funny thing, though, my journal notes do not fully reflect what I think I learned throughout the day...LOL Sometimes, I write that journal at a very high level of what I understand. Part of that could be that I'm handwriting it. When I type out a journal, like I do here, I don't typically limit myself. With handwritten journaling, I tend to limit myself for various reasons. I suppose that might be due to how difficult writing by hand can get over time and how paper is a finite resource. Typing doesn't cause my hands to cramp up and the digital space my documents take up is quite minimal...hehehe

I've decided not to fully journal what all I learned yesterday. Some things are best kept on the tablet of my heart. Some of what I get from the Spirit is meant just for me and not to be shared with others. I think that is the way it is for everyone who follows Christ. Not everything He shared with the likes of Peter, James, John, and the other disciples were shared with all of the others. Some things were simply meant for the individual. I even imagine there were things He told each of them that were never written down to be included in the Bible. For the three years of His ministry, the Gospels are pretty short...LOL

The work portion of my day was pretty normal. I had a few meetings. So, nothing out of the ordinary with work. I'm glad for that. It hasn't been stressful. And I do like my work. Not everyone can say that. Happiness may be a choice. But it also helps to be doing things that make that an easy choice...LOL I haven't always had this in my jobs. I'm grateful for the opportunities God has in front of me with this job right now. This has been a good season with my job. I say this in spite of all the uncertainties there have been with work this year.

With my walks and a jog yesterday, I did just shy of a 10k for the day. I did six miles total of exercise. Combine that with my normal activity of walking around my apartment, I went 7.62 miles at 14,676 steps for the entire day...LOL I also burned nearly 3k calories. It feels great to be so active. I still remember the days when I could barely walk from my apartment to the car without feeling fatigue. For my evening walk and jog, I actually jogged 5k of it this time. That is 3.1 miles as opposed to just the one mile I had jogged each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. I did a final one mile walk to cool down. But even with that cool down mile, I ended it with sprinting back and forth along the fence row of the Bark Park with Lavender...LOL That's right! I sprinted several paces after I had already run a 5k! I say again with emphasis...I sprinted several paces back and forth along a fence row with a dog after I had already run a full 5k!!! And that 5k was one of my fastest to date...LOL

After all the sprinting...hehehe...I asked Autumn if I could sit with her for a bit. After all, I had just run a 5k and sprinted several paces...LOL Ooh! Did I mention that already...LOL j/k She was glad for me to join her for a chat. As we began talking I had told her about how my health was in January last year. I told her God had carried me through this amazing health journey since. A few topics later, she asked me about how I mentioned God. As it turns out, she too is a Christian. So we talked about that for a bit. She told me that she was wondering if I was a Christ follower ever since I first started interacting with her dog because she could see Jesus in how I treated others here in our community. She and others had observed how I try to talk to everyone I come across as I walk. Apparently, Jesus has been shining through me and I didn't realize it.

I humbly bring this up. It isn't a point of pride as a Christian. It is the realization of a hope I have had. I want Jesus to show through in my actions and in the way I speak to people. That's kind of the point of following Jesus, right!? So that others can Glorify God as I do. My desire has been to be Jesus to the world. Could it be that I'm finally on the right path for that? Perhaps I always have been and just didn't know. I'm not the point of this story...hehehe He is always the point. I want less of me so that there can be more of Him. It was such an encouragement and Blessing to hear what Autumn had to tell me last night ❤️

I was reminiscing about my friendship with Cherie yesterday. I reread some of our earliest conversations and traced back the very first replies we had on Twitter in early 2022. It's amazing that our friendship has been two and half years strong so far. One thing that jumped out at me was how she mentioned being inspired by my sharing of my life's story. The struggles and how God delivered me through it all was very much a part of our early friendship. She too inspired me in those early times just as much as she does today. But what I'm getting at in writing about it now is that I realized I stopped telling my story. I still continue to post Vitamin G from time to time. But when I review my posts this year, very little of it talks about what I've been through.

I have some idea of why I stopped telling my story. But now I realize I should still be telling it. My reasons for ending that have taken my focus off of what God has called me to do in the telling of the testimony of His amazing work in my life. Just like Cherie and others were inspired back then, so many would be inspired today. Telling my story isn't about me at all. It's about all of those people God wants to hear the story. Had I not shared my journey back then, her and I wouldn't likely be friends today. And the same goes for all that she has shared with me. I use our friendship as an inspiration to empower me to keep being who God created me to be. Who else out there needs to know my story...or rather, HisStory through my journey?

This all is coming on the cusp of a new season of my life. Now that I'm just past half way through my 47th year, I'm looking toward what is to come and decisions I must make. I'm also staring down the 19th anniversary of my suicide attempt. I believe this new season is a great time to begin sharing my story again. Those who are just now getting to know me have no idea that I've been living 19 years on borrowed time...LOL Not everyone needs or even wants to know about such things. But there are some who actually do need to know. They need to know they aren't alone. They need to know there is hope. God has given me the gift of being able to be for others what I didn't have 19 years ago. It is one of the many reasons He brought me through it.

There's a hurricane brewing in the Gulf of Mexico. As of now, it is Tropical Storm Helene. It will likely be upgraded to a hurricane tomorrow. It's suppose to be at least a category three by the time it makes landfall. It appears it will be hitting the big bend of Florida this time. This will be their third hurricane in a year. About this time last year, they were hit. And they were hit a few months ago as well. My heart goes out to the area. I'm unsure of the impact it will have on my area. But there is a risk of storm surge, wind damage, lots of rain, and possibly tornadoes.

I have a lot of work to get done this week because of my parents' visit next week. So, I'm actually leaving home and going to stay at Disney World during this storm. I wanted a place where I could have power and Internet to keep working. I decided Disney was a good choice since I was going to be staying in a hotel anyway. If the weather allows it, I'll visit the parks in the evenings. It also puts my parents' minds at ease knowing I'll not be in danger. I live close enough to the Gulf that the storm surge risk is a concern. They definitely feel better when I bug out...hehehe I think my zone already has an evacuation order. I stopped paying attention to those notifications since I already have a plan to leave...LOL

I actually have a good feeling about this one, as far as its impact to my area. If it weren't for my work, I'd prefer to stay home, actually. If power goes out, I can't work...LOL If my parents weren't coming next week, I might have stayed home during this storm. I think most of my neighbors plan to ignore the evacuation order.

Speaking of my parents coming...that schedule has evolved quite a bit...LOL I'm glad I spoke up on Sunday. That got them and my sister to finally talk about the schedule. As of now, I'll be working Monday, taking Tuesday and Wednesday off, and working half days Thursday and Friday. On Monday night, my parents and I will be heading to Disney World and stay at Wilderness Lodge. I'm not sure what my sister and her husband will do that night. They may just join us on Tuesday morning. Tuesday and Wednesday will be Disney days. My sister and her husband will only be with us on Tuesday for that. I get my parents all to myself on Wednesday...LOL Tuesday night, we will go to my dad's favorite restaurant, California Grill. Wednesday evening, we are going to my mom's favorite restaurant, Hoop Dee Do Musical Revue. My heart is so happy they both get to do their favorites for this trip ❤️

They were originally going to start driving down Thursday and stay part way down in a hotel. They would have finished the drive on Friday. Due to the storm, they moved their travel day to Saturday and will now just drive straight down. Well, maybe. That's the plan as of today. The storm could adjust that again...LOL They'll be staying until the morning of October 5th. Now that the schedule is pretty much set, I'm feeling better about the week. I no longer feel like I'm entertaining them. I think I wrote about that before. I don't feel like that anymore. Talking to them about the schedule has helped...hehehe

I have a phone call with their pastor tomorrow. I'll be talking with him about how I feel about church. I've been dealing with this for at least eight years. Considering how it is still impacting me now, I felt it was time to speak with a pastor. We shall see where the conversation takes me...LOL I've been praying about my thoughts and feelings. I feel this is the next step in finding wisdom and discernment. And I feel good about this.

I realized this week I've had my car for a year as of this coming Monday. My old car died last September. I bought the new one September 30th...hehehe It's a nice car and I really like it. I'm glad it won't be at home for the coming storm...LOL If flooding happens, I would hate for my car to drown...LOL It will be safe and sound with me at Disney...hehehe

Tomorrow, I need to remember to pack for my short staycation for the storm. I also need to remember to make sure important things are off the floor and on the counters or my bed. That way, if it floods, the only damage will be to the unimportant...LOL