November and a year later

So its been a bit since I haven't written which is funny since I haven't been working and have more time on my hands then ever before. Some how though my thoughts have escaped me when sitting before the computer. But alas here I am and here we go.....

So Ryan and I have been reflecting back on the last year. It is so crazy just a year ago I was living in Nashville TN with my best friend and working as a Independent Support Coordinator. I cannot believe it, here I am now living in a completely different state, doing a completely different job and best of all I am MARRIED!!!
Wow. So here goes life in a year in just a few words

Moved to Nash
Lived with my bff
met the man of my dreams
ISC
Gluten Intolerance
Holistic Nutrition
BBQ
Late night shows
car accidents
new states
future in laws
Florida twice in one month
Parasailing
Engagement
Wedding of a lifetime
Married
Honeymoon with the hottest man ever
Moved into an unbelievable loft
Started a business
Cut my hair off
new friends
new dreams and a new life.


So here we go and I am on my way to a new great life. I will update more. Now that we have internet in the house it should be easier.
Blessings. Happy Thanksgiving.

Embracing Accusations

Today marks one month in VA and no work. This is has been an interesting month as I have had a great time living each day with my husband, coming and going to the coffee shop, reading, praying, running and resting. I felt the Lord said to me that August would be for him. That I would not have a job and that I should embrace the time I had with him and those he put before me. So I have.
And wouldn't you know it, as it often goes, today I am in that place where I am feeling a waste. I know full well that the Lord has a plan, he ALWAYS does. I know that he has provided and I have no reason to fear. But what a blow to my pride and what I am finding that I can often find my worth in. It is hard to know that I am a valuable worker. I have experience in life and work that most do not. Nevertheless, I do not have a masters so I am automatically in a lower pay scale. Top that off with a degree in Behavioral Sciences and I am at a loss for any real financial wealth to come through my doors.
So today I am battling the thoughts of the enemy, thoughts of failure and lack or worth and remembering the work the Lord has already done in and through me. That there is more to what I can see and even what I can see is so much more. I am bathing myself in the word and listening to Shane and Shane's album PAGES. This is an encouraging album. This can speak my heart and lead me into a time of worship and fear of the Lord. Nothing more and nothing less. Thank you Lord.

Groundhogs and moments of clarity

This afternoon I was waiting on Ryan outside of one of the places he works. I was reading a book on the grass hill and enjoying the sun beating on my back. There I was enjoying life and as I looked down to the bottom of the hill I see this some what odd looking creature poking its head from a hole in the ground. Now I realize this is a groundhog but for someone who grew up next the ocean this is not an animal we see on a frequent basis. I was watching this animal just peering out of its hole to see if it was acceptable to come out and show itself. It was such an interesting thing to observe. I mean once it felt safe enough it came out of the hole, looked around and then walked towards a patch of grass. This was no easy task for the groundhog that I have now affectionately decided is called Gary. Gary the groundhog is just outside of his hole and looking up at me. I don't move. He doesn't move. I still don't move. He takes a step and pauses again. I imagine if he could express himself to me he would say, "is this safe? are you going to make a move or can I go over there and eat some grass?" Now I recognize though he is looking out for himself in a matter of survival, he is not having deep thoughts as to whether or not my presence will interfere with his daily schedule. I think if I could respond in a way that would make sense I may say to him something along the lines of "of course, do your thing, you need not be so afraid. Just come out and enjoy yourself in the beautiful grass and sun."
This is ridiculous now I understand, I am not trying to say that I actually want to communicate with a groundhog, if I did I would tell the one outside my house to stop getting into our trash. Rather it all got me thinking.
I thought about how this is often how I have responded to the world, family, friends, strangers or most of all the Lord. I think over the years I have found my freedom outside of the hole. I can embrace the sun and trust that those that may just be onlookers will not hurt me. The Lord will not hurt me. So I can come out. In this I can rejoice. I truly can. For many of you my high school and early college days were not part of the journey we have shared. However this was a time of hiding for me. I would take a step and pause, look around and try to decipher if you were out for my demise. OH....how far I have come. PRAISE THE LORD! I am not in this place any more but sometimes I need to tell myself this again. Replay the thousands of holes I have emerged from and thank the Lord and those who also were, if you will, sitting on the hill just observing and inviting me to enjoy the sun!

I had to post and share this. After watching it on a friends blog it was worth copying and sharing with you all.



"Conversations like this are rarely captured on video. Basically a couple Mormons roll up on what they probably thought were some "thugish" looking black guys and get ready school them up on Mormonism. Little did they know that the guy had some views of his own. The video identifies him as a Black Hebrew Israelite but after watching the video a couple of times I'm fairly certain that he's from some denomenation of Christianity." Eric Cross

A message of encouragement

I was sent this today. It encouraged me so I thought I would post for you to read.

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

Trust is the antidote to anxiety; it's the resolution of worry and the destruction of fear. Trust is the act of my will to give my burdens to God. It's like a muscle--as you exercise it, trust gets stronger.

Trust is walking forward moment by moment, having rolled your burden onto God. You've no doubt said, "I gave it to God once, but here it is again in my grip." When you sense that you've taken it back again, get back on your knees, get the burden back on God, get on your feet again, and continue to trust.

When you off-load your burden on God, you can pick up a promise from His Word. Second Peter 1:4 tells us that "he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world." There are literally hundreds of promises that apply to your specific burden. God's Word is filled with treasure.

I'm claiming Isaiah 41:10 right now for a burden I leaving at God's feet. "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." There it is! God is doing this whole thing with one hand tied behind His back. He's not stressed or strained. He's not worried about what to do. He has absolutely no capacity limits!

Isaiah continues, "Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you'" (vv. 11-13).

Take a moment to read that awesome promise again. Trust means you anchor your heart in the reality of God's awareness of your situation. He sees more than you can ever see. God, who loves you and is committed to you, will not disappoint you now or in the future if you put your weight fully on Him.

LVN NBFE

LVN NBFE. Ha this was the license on the car in front of me this morning on my way back from my daily trip to Smoothie King. I sat in my car and laughed for what had to be a good ten minutes. I just sat there alone thinking about how my bff would love that license plate and how so many times that statement has been the exact representation of my life and where I choose to reside.
Now granted Lynchburg is not exactly B.F.E but at moments of loneliness and boredom it matters little where I rest my head because this is exactly what it can feel like.
Hear me now when I say I am in no ways trying to come across as though I am unhappy or lonely. I am actually quite the opposite right now. I love my new home, we have been blessed so greatly in this area. I love being with my husband, he is a light in my life and just waking up next to him is reason enough to keep going. I love the new place I get to explore and see just how God put it all together. It truly is breathtaking here.

I do miss my girls, my bff and ms. D most of all.

This is okay though. You know I really have got to the point where I am seeing that these things that enrich my life are always, at some point, far from me. Likewise with the Lord I can often find myself missing him, wishing I were closer to him than I am at any given moment. That would be a more accurate description of this moment. I do long for him. To be enveloped in His word. Giving praise with breath. This is my heart.....

So back to the grind. One more day of looking for jobs. Seeking out what the Lord is doing. Learning more about patience and trusting. What a day to begin breathing.

So this is married life

www.kimberleewest.com/slideshow/Nicci&Ryan

This is my life. This is my husband. This is my new road. It has been a long walk since my last post and it is a beautiful place I find myself now standing.
Lets talk about this. I have found the man I will spend my life with. He is beautiful. He is my beloved. He wraps me up in his arms and I am in love. How do I explain to those who may not know what this love feels like. This place of such utter bliss that you can do nothing but smile from within and hope that this can display all that you are feeling.
I found this man, he found me, and we are found by the One who created us.

May I stop and pause and thank Him for this.

You know the day of our wedding. I felt so completely me. I felt as though the Lord had shown me all that I had waited for so long and it was good.
As I walked down the aisle and faced my soon to be husband, I felt like the culmination of all my favorite things came to be at that moment. We exchanged our vows and it was like that perfect song, the one beat that makes you move, feel free within it and just sway to its beautiful sound. It radiated within me. I felt the spirit of the Lord come upon us. It was immediate. My heart changed in that moment. This sounds like some silly story that a girl would tell but it is the truth of my experience. When we exchanged those vows before friends, family, and God I felt the intensity of my commitment. I loved him and was happy to be charged with this task before me. I am happy to be a wife. To be a daughter. To be a Woman.

I must also express how my wedding was, without blemish. Were there hardships, yes. But our day was a day of utter peace and perfection. From the start the Lord was over, in and completely through our wedding. There was no day without Him and the provision given us through our sisters brothers and strangers all the same. I sit back in awe at how it all came together. From a free cake, reception site, photos, linens.....so much I truly can't name it all. He said he would not leave us forsaken and in need and he showed us that so magnificently throughout our entire journey of starting this life together. Thank you.

Thank you to those who partook in our day. To those who prayed for us and continue to do so. Praises and blessings upon you.

Love
Nicci Neace