Before anyone calls Joel Osteen, hang tight.
Last year I chose “believe” as my word of the year.
Funny enough I was believing in things but had no idea what it meant. Even as I wrote the words, I didn’t have any specifics in mind- but it felt right.
I believe that 2021 is going to be a powerful year.
I believe God is going to show up in remarkable ways.
I believe provision will come with faith, perseverance, and consistency.
I believe our marriage will grow stronger.
I believe my children will continue to grow healthy and mighty.
I believe the promises of the Lord will be fulfilled.
I had no idea how quickly that my word-of-the-year would be tested.
In January we began to attend Victory Church at the Greenfield campus. After a year of couch church, hoping our church would reopen and resume children’s programs, we made the decision knowing that not only did we need fed, but we had to get Athena into a program with her own tiny humans. Victory Church has been an incredible blessing and Athena truly asks to go every. single. day. I was also accepted onto worship teams, something I did’t realize my own heart needed as much as it did.
At the end of February, Ethan lost his job of 4 years.
Within 2 weeks he had a new one. But he didn’t start for about a month. We had a wonderful month together as a family, that never could have happened otherwise. He’s now working from home full time, and is getting to be a part of the girls’ lives so much more than if he had still been at his other job.
In late Spring I was offered a job teaching again. You can read about that process on my post “True North.” It meant stepping back, and stepping away from my work with Greenlight Operation- the non profit I had poured my heart and time into the last 3 years. Verbalizing that I would have to make this change brought me complete peace, and not panic. I knew it was the next right thing. We’re wrapping up our first semester, and if you follow me on social media, you’ve likely seen in my stories that I am teaching and creating 3 new classes for next year and I am beyond excited.
This year my homeschool consults, evaluations, and curriculums have really taken off. Before Athena was even born I had looked into being an evaluator but was so overwhelmed and afraid of even trying. I had looked again after she was born, but again, was too intimidated to try. Once I had been in the homeschool world a bit more, I felt way more confident and gave it a good college try last year. This year I already have most of May & June scheduled for evaluations. I’ll be able to provide PA High School Diplomas with PHAA. With a percentage of my curriculum sales, I have been able to send donations for 4 incredible non-profits- which is really a big reason why I even sell my curriculum, to be able to pour into ministries beyond our tithes & offerings.
Though we did have a bout of whooping cough come through the house, the girls are happy, healthy, squawking, and growing. Nora turned 1 in July and Athena will be 4 in just a few short days. On Easter this year, Athena accepted Jesus into her heart. I could probably write an entire post just on parenting this year, but suffice it to say that yes, they have continued to grow healthy and mighty.
Our family grew by 4 paws with Samwise, the goofy, very large hole, we didn’t know we needed. He has settled in well these last few months, even though he has no idea how large he has become.
These are all just tip of the iceberg really. As this is already a longer post, believe me when I tell you that the Lord has been faithful to us every step of the way. I’ve realized that at the end of the day, believing is faith. This year, our faith was tested, it was bolstered, and it was spread wide. More than believing, we had to rely on our faith in the Lord to help guide us and at times, provide for us in ways we never could have imagined.
We have big dreams for next year. In some ways, we’re not sure how we’re going to get there, but we are doing our best to keep our heads level, and work towards them day by day. I don’t have my 2022 word picked yet, but I’m sure it will hit me, just like they have in years prior.
The Nurtured Bee 