Blessings of the Beloved

The last few weeks have been filled with wonderful surprises! I am blessed beyond belief! There have been things that could have made upset with God, that could have made me pull away from Him, but there have also been incredible blessings! I have decided to give to God what is already His – because He bore it all on the cross for me. Who am I do carry burdens when they have already been graciously lifted from me? He has turned my mourning into dancing, and has restored to me the joy of His salvation, giving me a spirit that is willing to obey him (Ps. 51:11).
I have been first of all blessed with a wonderful job at Family Christian Stores, and am really enjoying working there. It is a great atmosphere where I can put to use the 20+ years of biblical/Christian influence, in addition to the experience and knowledge I have as one of 13 children. I am so blessed! I also found out a few days ago that I have officially been offered the seasonal “front end assistant” position at Costco, and I have orientation this week! I am thrilled to be working there as well. Not only do they pay very well, but my wonderful boyfriend, Tyler, also works there. ☺
Though this month has been a continuation of the refining that God has been doing in my life since the beginning of summer, it has been an incredible month – full of ups and downs, decision and choices, joy and tears. But there is One who remains through it all, and He is worthy of all that I am. His mercies are NEW every single morning, and His greatness is displayed in all of creation.
Yesterday I woke up with a very sore arm, and throughout the entire day there was pain surging from my shoulder blade down into my hand. I took ibuprofen, but it only masked the pain temporarily. Tyler has the gift of healing and I asked him to pray for me, so he did - actually several times throughout the day, but the pain persistent into the night. While we were talking on the phone before going to bed, he told me he had a really bad headache and asked me to pray for it. When I finished the prayer, it occurred to me that my arm wasn't hurting anymore, and I told Tyler this. He said, "I know." I asked him how he could possibly know that my arm wasn't hurting anymore, and he said that while I had been praying for his headache to go away, God reassured him of the gift of healing that he was given, and He told Tyler that my arm was healed! It was incredible! Not too long after that, Tyler's headache went away too.
Oh how I love my Jesus, and how His love for me is so evident in my life. I truly am my Beloved’s and He is mine!

another poem

Better Days
a poem by Lindsey Diacogiannis
21.October.2009

Push your worry and fears aside,
Hold your head up high,
Keep your chin up,
Don’t ever let your dreams die

Look to brighter days,
Past the dreary gray,
The future is closer than you think,
The past is far away

When the doubts start to arise,
Just remember those are lies,
God’s got better things for you,
Than anything the devil tries

If your dreams are getting dull,
Dig yourself out of this hole,
Leave your dread and pain behind,
Let God heal and make you whole

Seek the truth despite the shame,
Remember God can mend the lame,
He’ll set you free from any sin,
And loose you from the chains

There is peace in place of disaster,
When your world begins to shatter,
Trust the Lord in troubled times,
There is beauty, there is laughter

For everything there is a season...

Sometimes I have a tendency to overspiritualize things and life situations. In my desire to be confident in what I'm doing, I sometimes say that it's the will of God for my life (rightly or wrongly so). But, I'm growing and learning, and seeing that whether it's the Lord, or just the circumstances of life, we are presented with various situations, opportunities, etc in which we have to make a decision. Sometimes we say, "it's a window of opportunity", at other times we refer to it saying, "God opened this door for me".
Well, in these terms, another door has closed. The finances have not come in for me to go to Montana. I do not regret pursuing this opportunity, and have seen how God used it to stretch my faith, and work on other areas of my life. I have peace about staying here, and will continue to be apart of the worship team at my church, (although I'll be moving to another campus).

God has provided a great living situation with a family, who has graciously agreed to let me stay with them rent free, in exchange for about 10 hrs/week helping with their two young sons, as well as some light housework. It is such a blessing, and although they aren't Jesus-lovers, I am excited to see how Him in me will touch their lives. The home is close to the public transit lines as well, so it won't be too difficult for me to get around (in my lack of a driver's license!).
I am hoping for a full-time job soon, and have a couple hopeful opportunities (still praying!).

I heard recently something that brought a lot of encouragement to me; the pastor said that there are times when he tries to fit the right "piece of the puzzle" into his life, but it just doesn't quite line up. He explained how God sees the whole picture, and though we might see bits and pieces, and we might know our giftings and "calling", we don't always see the "box cover". I found this encouraging in that, even though I know that God has placed a passion for music in me, and a heart for the nations, I don't see the big picture. I don't see the completed puzzle. God does. And, He will reveal each "piece" in the right time. It's amazing to see this already in my life.
Was I disappointed to not go to Montana? Yes. Was I depressed? No. Because I know God has a plan. And, I figure if it's better than going to a school of worship, well then, it's got to be pretty great indeed! :)

For everything there is a season; a time for everything under Heaven.

Fall is my favorite season. It's a season of change; a season of new things. It's a time for a shaking off of the old, and letting the new take its place. And I'm finding the same is true in this season of my life. I'm excited to see the beauty that comes from this season, and the new life that "spring" will behold.

Hoping, Trusting, Dreaming...

Lindsey

Family Photo!

We finally had all of our family together over this past weekend! And so... had to have family photos taken with all of us! Our friend, Mark, did a fantastic job!!

song of the week

The other day, I was sitting down to play guitar, and I began strumming a 'G' chord, and then moving to 'C', and back and forth between these two chords. There are lots of songs that have these chords in them, but I didn't really have a song in mind when I began strumming.
Suddenly, the words of a song I didn't know I knew how to play came spilling from my lips, the meaning so direct in relation to my life in the last week. I sang,

You're calling me to lay aside,
The worries of my day,
To quiet down my busy mind,
And find a hiding place

Worthy
You are Worthy

Of a Childlike faith,
And of my honest praise,
And of my unashamed love,
Of a holy life,
And of my sacrifice,
And of my unashamed love

Worthy
You are Worthy

As I sang the words of this song, I began realizing the meaning. In the busyness of life, God was calling me lay it all aside, to find a quiet place for fellowship with Him. Why? Because He is worthy. He is worthy of my childlike faith. He is worthy of my honest praise. He is worthy of a holy life. He is worthy of my sacrifice. He is worthy of my unashamed love. He is worthy.

I sat, strumming these chords and singing the word of this song, allowing the Holy Spirit to come and meet with me in the quiet place, in the stillness of mind that I had chosen despite the activities in my life. It's a humbling experience to have the Holy Spirit put the words in your mouth to a song, and then bring understanding to mind. This has been the prayer of my week - that I would continually quiet my spirit and wait in the Lord's presence. Why?
Because HE IS WORTHY!