Almighty Chicks: Blog & Devotional

Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Mid Life Crisis or is God talking to me?

The last few weeks I have experienced some overwhelming feelings.  I’ve told my husband “I feel like I’m on the verge of a revelation”.  My eyes are so open and I’m seeing thing clearing.  I’m appreciating life more than I ever have before.  I feel like God is working in me and on me.  Some of you can relate to that feeling at one time or another.  The last few days it has just been overwhelming.  I know God is working on me. 

How is God using me for his good?  A little history quickly:  Came from family that got by but we had no extra money, Parents divorced when I was 7,  starting going to church on my own as a bus child,  Mom started in Church with me when I was 11, stayed very active while I was youth and has taught Sunday school.  I fell away from God in my late teens,  met my husband at 20 (which comes from a strong Christian family), married at 23, started back to church, well sort of, off and on,  started first of my 4 businesses at age 26.  Definitely not afraid of hard work, had son at 30, started my spiritual journey at 36, followed God and opened  my realty company 1.5 years ago, followed again and started Almighty Chicks the first of this year and overwhelmed at how it has grown.

I stated all of the above to get to my revelation.  My business is quite demanding,  Real Estate is a 24/7 job.  I give 110% to all of my clients but that really doesn’t matter in the long run, yes I have established an excellent name for myself and my business.  I have a great bunch of agents that work with me but we have realized too that our hard work goes unappreciated and really we are not different than that agent that doesn’t put much into it, the property will still sell if it is price right no matter how has it.  And then you have some agents that aren’t very forthright either.  So it’s hard to be in a dog eat dog industry J. (I’m not saying anything bad about anyone that is just how it goes).  So I have been praying about this.  My health is a mess because of the stress and constant worry, oh yeah, real estate,  you watch the news, you know how that market is,  ours has been well and as a company we have done great but it’s still very volatile.  Lots of highs and lows in income so you really have to be a good budgeter and not get discourage when don’t have money coming in on a regular basis. Then you have all the problems with getting a house to the closing table, appraisals, and foreclosures, tighten loan approvals. UGH!!  To get to the point, I’ve been praying about my business, that if this is where God wants me that he will take some of burden away that is on me.  I can’t ever give my full attention to my family, my time with God or even when I’m trying to do a devotion for my Almighty Chicks.  So that is where it has started.

I do have a peace to me regarding it all; this story isn’t about my business though.  It’s about my revelation.  The last two days I’ve just been dealing with God’s presences in my life.  I’ve talking to others and soul searching.  In fact a sweet friend of mine came by the office to cheer me up and she left telling me that she got more from me and I’m going to help be here spiritual friend.  One of my agents, I ended up counseling her about God.  WHAT, I thought I was the one that was mess.   But God works through us at times of need.

Had a great lunch with Gordon and we talked about God in our lives and how God makes opportunities for us to do his will and it’s hard to get out of our comfort zone to follow and obey.  Fast forward to 10 p.m. last night.  Gordon and I start talking again.  We have been praying for a year on something with him and it has gotten much easier.  I’ve seen such a change in my husband during this time and he has found much happiness and a desire to serve God more.  Our son, he has such a yearning to learn more about Jesus.  We are so blessed.  But this talk Gordon and I had was so overwhelming to me.  He has always been so supportive of anything I wanted to do.  I’m an overachiever, always striving for the best and for something Grand.  I always thought my gift from God was my business ability.  I can be a success at anything I do.  So we got talking about my first business I started and about how I had prayed for months for God to show me  what I could do to get me out of a bad work environment and where I could be a witness to others.  And he did, and I followed for 6 months.  After that I slacked off, became more consumed by money and what I could have,  bought all the toys, built the big house but had no happiness.  And if it wasn’t for our surprise little boy, Gordon and I probably would have ended up unhappy and divorced and after coming so close to losing everything we sold it all, and make a simpler life for ourselves.  Due to some unforeseen circumstances I had to sell another business and get a job.  It was job I was happy to have but felt I was wasting my talents and was not appreciated.  It was a very humbling and humiliating experience for me.  But, it’s all part of who I am and it was a learning experience and I treasure it.  Fast Forward to the present.  All of this has made me the person who I am today.  But what I discovered is that God put me on this journey 13 years ago and I have fought him all the way. And yes one of my gifts from God is my business ability but my stronger one is my leadership ability to help other.  OUCH.  I’m a leader, where he leads I will follow?

Have you ever felt like God was speaking to you?  When I get that feeling it’s unreal.  It’s like goose bumps all over and a strong thought will pop in my head and I feel it in my heart.  A couple of weeks ago I had a very strong one it was “If you will follow me, I will show you more than you could ever imagine”.  That is what has started me on this revelation journey.  That is what I’m doing.  I am following him wholeheartly.  If God can work through me in my business to help others then I am following.  If this is not where he wants me, I will follow.  I really feel he has something large in store for Almighty Chicks and my New Year dream is to bring a regional women’s conference to Poplar Bluff sometime in the future.  Almighty Chicks are for all women, from all walks of life, that we all can come together and follow the Lord, it doesn’t matter where or if you go to Church.  It’s all about God. 

So is this revelation I have had a mid life crisis or is God telling me there is so much more out there for all of us if we are willing to follow?  This is our time to follow and brighten this dark world.  This change starts in YOU, and me.  Please pray for me while I’m on this soul searching journey and if you are on one too, I’ll pray for you and be there for you too.  Keep your head up, faith strong and make every minute count.  Amy!