Martina McBride: "CO-Star" to one of my friends! ;)

Just a real quick post (since I am not on FB) to share with y'all a cherished video. Martina McBride (whose voice I absolutely love) is releasing a new video. My good friend, Taira Baughman is in the video, along with her precious family. She is one of the cancer survivors posted in the video. She's the one who was diagnosed on "April 15th / Tax Day".

I love you, beautiful lady! So proud of you and what God is going to do in your life! :)

My new space...

Good morning, friends! I pray this finds you all doing very well this Tuesday morning! :)

Well, I worked from home last Thursday, Friday and yesterday (Monday). I was waiting for my work computer to come in. I got the call yesterday that it had arrived. And I came in today to find my two beautiful monitors perched on my desk, and a box full of supplies from Staples. I had my own bag full of goodies to contribute to the area. As a reminder, here is my desk last week...

I got here at 6am because Dustin is finishing his work schedule on the phones before he starts his new (promoted!) position in 2 weeks. Until then, we come in at 6. There's something wrong about leaving the house when it's still dark. ;) But I will say it was nice having such quiet the first couple hours of the day. :) I had Joyce playing while I set up everything. And I even got prayer time in as I set up. I prayed over my desk and area.

So... here is my new space.Check out the dual monitors. They are identical to my fancy one at home! But they are TWINS! :D I always dreamed of having two monitors!!

And to my LEFT... PHOTOS! :) I have frames: The black one was $2 at Staples. I found the other 2 in a 3-pack in our office last week. (the third is for "Baby" - no room for it here yet! ;)). It took me a minute to realize where they came from. My birth mom gave them to me 2 Christmases ago. I had put it behind something and forgot it. How cool God is to gift me with that now. So special. AND the photos on the "wall" - I used a variety of Relish papers and put photos on them - add some color! :) I have photos of my love, my sweet "kids" and even one of some of the best friends and women I know! :)

To the RIGHT... well, not a lot. Although there will be a large dry erase calendar hanging in that empty wall space once someone hangs it. :)

But I really wanted a colorful frame for my desk. I actually wanted aqua or purple. I walked into Joann's the other night and this frame jumped out at me! It was on sale for $8.99 (from $17). Still... kind of more than I normally spend, but it was just what I was looking for! I got a big surprise at the register - it was marked down to just $3.49!!! :) WOOT! I also raided our supplies closet here (it's amazing - you get to go shopping as much and as often as you like and it's FREE!!!) - I found a desk organizer in the closet identical to the one I have at home (which I love). There was only one and I scooped it up. It may sound silly, but it's things like that which make me feel like God is smiling down on me, you know?! The "little" things that God says "I'll even provide you with the wonderful details!"

It took me so long to learn how to trust God for even the little. If you are reading this and thinking "I can't even pay my bills right now, no less buy a $3.50 frame" - I HAVE BEEN THERE!!! It has been a LONG road to get us moving in the right direction. I was talking to a good friend yesterday who said he is trying not to "hate the wait". I told him I understand that all too well. God has been good to us. Our church and good ministry has taught us well. But, more than anything - the past 7 years have taught us how to live on AND APPRECIATE the little. AND how to be patient to get where you are going. The thing about creative brains is you can so quickly paint the whole picture in your mind. That is a good thing - to have vision. But we often paint it and then WANT IT! RIGHT NOW! And well... if it always worked like that - it would be a disaster! I know that may not seem right, but it's true. 

Joyce Meyer always talks about how if she had not learned how to believe for $5, she wouldn't know how to now believe for the millions it takes for her ministry to run. Think about it - the bigger your dream, the more "on the job training" you will need. I told my friend yesterday about how a couple years ago I tried to pressure the Relish board members in to voting for a software development that would have put the company in more debt. I thought it was the thing that would change it all. I really believed "This is it! If we do this, IT will be our breakthrough. It will be the thing that changes it all!" I thought that several times over the past few years - when a big client promised big things... "This is going to be IT!" Finally (and I do mean FINALLY - after many years) God showed me clearly... HE is the big thing that is going to change it all! HE IS! The point from my Relish story - Praise God for an amazing board - they voted against me. It broke my heart at the time because we couldn't pay our bills and I wanted something to happen. Since then, I have found many flaws in Relish's foundation - from our stock, our pricing to our production. It has been with GRADUAL growth we have been able to learn these lessons. If we would have taken in 20 orders in a week, we would have fallen hard because of all the flaws. NOW - we are sealing and re-shaping and forming an amazing foundation for a house that will built on solid ground - instead of a mansion thrown up in a day. :) 

It's hard to see those lessons until you are past them. But I PROMISE YOU - God has great things - GREAT things in store for YOU! HE is the one thing that is going to change it all for you!!! In the meantime, don't quit!!! Speak those scriptures every day. Get up, get dressed, act sharp - BE the picture of success that God has called you to be! Paint the part of the picture you have control over. But allow God to invoke wisdom that we do not yet have. Allow him to impart on us our job training. Allow Him to prep us for the dreams we have. Allow HIM to BE THE CHANGE!!!

LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

First day of school... :)

I've seen so many people posting photos of their kiddos on their first day of school. My hubby (resembling that of a proud parent) had to take a photo of me yesterday on my first day in corporate America. His confidence in me propelled me out of the house and in to that first big day.

As you might know, I have decided to take a 30 day hiatus from Facebook so that I can focus on this transition period. So... this is my way of catching you up! :)

1. I got dressed up! Thanks to everyone who has given me gift cards over the past year! I was saving them for losing weight, but I'm glad I hadn't lost it yet, because they sure did come in handy this past weekend! :)
2. I met a lot of people. I need a flow chart... seriously. Because a lot of people don't work in the Nashville (franklin) office. And so it was confusing what Sherry in New Jersey does versus Diane who sits across from me. A majority of the marketing team is out of office, because my company is just transitioning it's headquarters to here from New Jersey.
3. I did a lot of walking... in less-than-comfortable high heels. My boss's office is on the other end of the floor (while the CEO is just a yell from me... yikes! ;)) So I walked back and forth to my boss's (Tom) office a lot. And walked the building touring it. And walked to lunch... Lots of walking. My feet hurt last night. :)
4. I heard lots of language I do not understand. It's the medical world and I am not familiar. Praise God so many people I'm so close to ARE familiar with this world. Makes me feel better knowing that it just takes time to understand it all. So many acronyms were thrown out. It's like people are speaking a secret language. Seriously, yesterday I really thought it sounded like an NFL quarterback reading plays to his team. If you have never heard this, you should check it out. (perhaps on an episode of John Gruden's QB camp) Anywho, hopefully I'll learn the language quickly! :)
5. I had a great lunch with a very handsome man! :) My hubby! :) It was so fun spending more time with him yesterday. It's like when we worked together without the stress of working together. ;) We get the fun drivetime together. He is a morning person and I am not. So his sweet, cheeriness helps me choose joy. And I saw him on lunch and one break. I got to see his cubicle and he got to see mine. It was sweet. I know it seems strange that we don't get sick of each other.... but we don't. And we won't (in Jesus' Name haha) We aren't perfect, but we have learned how to adjust to each other by now. (we ran our business out of our home together for 18 months, so this is better...

So now that you know what I did DO, here is what I did NOT DO... graphic design. :) haha My computer systems have not arrived so I am working on my home laptop (netbook) just to have email access (not powerful enough to run graphics programs). I am pleased to say that they ordered everything on my "wish list"! Without question. Pretty exciting! It is all expected to be here Wednesday and hopefully put in by Thursday! I also have high hopes for decorating my little space. But, in the meantime, my desk is a little bare...

I also talked to several people who had been with the company during the acquisition (they were with the former company that my company bought). They have given our new CEO much praise and said it's a great environment with exciting things on the horizon. They said I'm coming in at a wonderful time. So - I am excited at what God has in store! Just need a computer! :)

SIDE NOTES: When I got home last night, I worked on both my businesses and then proceeded with one very important task on my to-do list: I finally purchased our cruise tickets!!! WOO-HOO!!! In 4 weeks, I'll be on a beach in Mexico!! Hot guy by my side, sand in my toes!!! WOOT! :) 

All of this (and my whole blog) is a HUGE praise to God for all His faithfulness! If you knew where we've been the past several years, you can truly appreciate the things that are happening for us now. 

I'll be in touch again soon with more personal encouragement on your financial journey!! Thank you all so much for your love, support and prayers during this time of transition! Love you all so much!!!

Financial Scriptures: Words to stand on!

Hey friends! Well, it's been a whirlwind of a week preparing for the new job. I have received several messages from many of you requesting the financial scriptures. I plan on going through my favorites and what they mean to me and how I stood on them and how they have come to reality in our lives (not just thru this new job, but in many areas!)

I also want to talk to you about FEAR, as I believe that fear is the greatest defeater any of us will ever know. If you stand on these scriptures, you have to make sure it's in faith and not in fear. Don't feel condemned by that (that can lead to a downhill spiral). When I started standing on these for finances and on the healing scriptures for my health - it was often in fear. Most of my life was controlled by fear. It's truly the Devil's greatest weapon - and it's all smoke & mirrors. Here is a great story Joyce Meyer shares (in my own words)

There was a village where children played freely. There was a mountain nearby and the children told ghost stories of the monster on top of the mountain. Some children attempted to climb the mountain, but as they climbed, they would hear this roar coming from above. One by one, they would turn around and come back down as quick as they could. Then one day, a boy looked up and said "I will get to the top!" He and his friends started out. As they climbed higher, the roars got louder. One by one, every boy turned around except for the one. He trembled as he took each step, nearing the top. When he finally reached the top, he saw a small animal about a foot off the ground, about 5 lbs, cute & furry. The boy was shocked "Are YOU what was making all that noise?!" The animal opened it's mouth and only a squeak came out. That's what fear is! It's an idea, a roar from a defeated enemy! It's his last hope to keep us from our destiny!!! Climb that mountain and no matter what happens, KEEP CLIMBING! You may tremble, but keep going - knowing it is never as bad as your mind tells you. KEEP CLIMBING!! You have an over comer inside of you!!! And if you feel fear, it's okay - DO IT AFRAID!!! And then the fear will fade! I will talk more about this in future posts, but for now...

Here are the financial scriptures you can start standing on TODAY! I encourage you to quote them and MEDITATE on them. Quote them several times, close your eyes and say them, absorbing each word. Eventually, you will memorize them - not just in your mind, but in your heart! And THAT is when things will begin to change! I also encourage you to do this EVERY day!!! Challenge yourself, make it a priority!!! If it's a priority to have a breakthrough, work on it! Be sure to quote the passage as well - that is what gives us power - quoting where the promises are in the Bible.

***ALSO, KEY*** Replace generic "your", "their" words with "My" Make the promise FOR YOU. For example, in #10, I say "And my God shall supply all MY need..." This makes it personal promises just for YOU! Of course, all the verses ARE for you, but it helps build the faith in your heart. :)

I will be back soon to blog about specific scriptures! Love you guys! I pray the last one (#22) over you!!! ENDURE!!!

1. Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. - 3 John 2
2. I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread. - Psalm 37:25
3. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing. - Psalm 34:10
4. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. - Psalm 23:1
5. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God:
   ³ “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
   ⁴ “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.
   ⁵ “Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
   ⁶ “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
   ⁷ “The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.
   ⁸ “The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you..- Deuteronomy 28:2-8 
6. And the LORD will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. ¹² The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. ¹³ And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. - Deuteronomy 28:11-13
7. Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. - Luke 6:38
8. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the LORD of hosts, “ If I will not open for you the windows of heaven, And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. ¹¹ “ And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” Says the LORD of hosts; ¹² And all nations will call you blessed, For you will be a delightful land,” Says the LORD of hosts. - Malachi 3:10-12
9. “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. - Matthew 6:31-33
10. And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus - Philippians 4:19
11. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. - Joshua 1:8
12. Thus saith the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD your God which teaches you to profit, and leads you by the way you should go. - Isaiah 48:17
13. And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. - Deuteronomy 8:18
14. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones. Honor the LORD with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase; So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine. - Proverbs 3:5-10
15. Then you will prosper, if you take care to fulfill the statutes and judgments with which the LORD charged Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not fear nor be dismayed. - 1 Chronicles 22:13
16. ¹ Blessed is the man
             Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
             Nor stands in the path of sinners,
             Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
     ² But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
             And in His law he meditates day and night.
     ³ He shall be like a tree
             Planted by the rivers of water,
             That brings forth its fruit in its season,
             Whose leaf also shall not wither;
             And whatever he does shall prosper. - Psalm 1:1-3
17. Commit your works to the LORD, And your thoughts will be established. - Proverbs 16:3
18. Through wisdom a house is built, And by understanding it is established;
    ⁴ By knowledge the rooms are filled With all precious and pleasant riches. - Proverbs 24:3-4
19. If they obey and serve Him, They shall spend their days in prosperity,
    And their years in pleasures. - Job 36:11
20. Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven. - Colossians 4:1
21. not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; - Romans 12:11
22. ³⁵ Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. ³⁶ For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: - Hebrews 10:35-36

Digging, Dunging, Promoting...

Well, by now you guys have probably seen some of my Facebook posts from the past couple weeks alluding to news going on in our lives (or as even my last blog hinted). So, before I give the news, I need to give a little history...

8 years ago, Dustin worked at Dell & I worked at a printing company. Our incomes were pretty good (for our age), but we were young, not married yet and that helped. Then, February of 2004 Dustin lost his job at Dell. After that came a long string of small jobs that didn't pan out mingled with bouts of unemployment [and lots of video game playing, as he'll tell you :)] And so begin the journey of living month to month...

5 years ago, my steady income went away when the company I worked for was going under and my hours got cut in half. I decided to start my own freelance company. I wanted so desperately to be creative and work on fun projects and working in printing did not allow me that opportunity. Thus, out of what was deemed necessity... Kismet Creative was born. Dustin was a manager at the local movie theater. Don't let manager mislead you... it was low pay... I know store clerks who get paid more. But we made it. (I also taught college for a few years part-time to help supplement pay)

3.5 years ago, I founded a new company Relish, Inc. - a wedding stationery company with a very cool, unique software twist! (check it out if you haven't before) When it launched, Kismet was growing and Dustin quit the job he hated to work with me to try to build the businesses...

3 years ago (August, 2008) we got the Kismet client that promised to change everything. Then a month later, after hours of work (and turning down other business) - we discovered the company was a scam. They literally were a scam internet company that launched, sold a lot of customers products they never shipped and shut up shop and fled! We were left with a huge hole in our income. HUGE. We borrowed money and the spiral began that got us into debt. Dustin began to look for work.

2 years ago Dustin got his first real job in IT. YAY!!! A real job!! And steady income!! WOO-HOO! Again, it was small pay, but hey - it was in the field he wanted! And he didn't even go to school! :)

1.5 years ago, Dustin left that to get a job with more opportunities. But shortly thereafter, that company had issues and he got a call... We thought he was getting a call to be hired on at a better level (he was just contract) but instead it was to cut his hours in half!! Then... Kismet started going through a rough patch. More debt accrued... :(

1 year ago... Last Summer things began to turn around... :)
Dustin got a job at an amazing company with REAL PAY!!! Best pay he'd had since working at Dell!!! THEN - I got my first regular client for Kismet - a monthly gig with a large company in California. AND Relish got it's first celebrity client and exploded! Because of those two things, both of my companies had best years to date!!!

This year... Dustin has been working his tale off.
Kismet... has been fledgling. Hard for me to say it, but it's true. I had clients go nutso on me. I was sued (I won, but still...) I had lots of clients push off projects because their businesses were hurting. The economy had not hurt me until this year. But some of my clients went out of business, etc. It's been hard to see that. But mostly... the pain of thinking you are about to have a big job and then they cancel on you... that hurts. And having to stay after people to pay you. Yeah, not really in my DNA. I tried hiring someone to help me as an account manager so I wouldn't have to deal with all the managing of the clients, but that didn't work out. Then, my regular monthly client... they put their account "on hold" a few weeks ago. ugh...
Relish: Going great! Still growing. With such a huge concept, we have been a growth stage since Day 1. But, I will say as an example of where we are going... We have been visited by 117 countries in just he past 4 weeks. We send sample orders (and real orders) to places all across the country each week. However, it's not enough to pay me a salary... yet.
So all in all, we are paying our bills and digging our way out of debt. But it's like we have a garden shovel, trying to dig ourselves out of a massive sink hole.

So... all of this to lead up to this past month.

In June, Dustin was approached by a manager in another department at his company. (his name is Jim) Jim asked Dustin if he'd be interested in a position in their department. After a few weeks and 7 interviews (wow!) Dustin got a HUGE promotion. He went from a Level 1 phone tech to a Level 3 Systems Analyst. This is something you don't get without working in the field for many years or without a degree. But Dustin has impressed so many people there - THEY approached him and he got it!!!! :) And it's a raise! Not as much as we'd originally been told, but it's a raise! :) But more importantly, it is an AMAZING resume builder!!! (did I mention he didn't even go to school to do this?!)

Simultaneously, I received an email from CareerBuilder with a job match. I've been on their list for years and years. Same as with our realtor. I get the emails, I surf the list and that's it - for years now. But this one position caught my eye. It sounded... well, perfect and to me I thought... that means I should not get my hopes up. But hey, what can it hurt to apply? 4 weeks later, after hearing nothing, I'd forgotten about it and moved on. Seriously. Dustin asked if I had looked into jobs and applied for anything else. I was like "I don't WANT a diff job. I just applied to that ONE because it sounded perfect." So... last week they called. And yesterday, I had an interview...

Out of hundreds of applicants, it was narrowed to four. And 24 hours after my interview... they called and hired me. Ready for all the kickers? The things that seem like 'seriously... if you don't believe in my God - you gotta read on...'

• It allows me to do a variety of graphic design projects for marketing pushes. This was the first thing that attracted me to it... the description of what I'd be doing was all the things I LOVE about what I do with Kismet.
• It does not compete with any of my Kismet clients in any way so I can keep doing work for my current Kismet clients without conflict! Second thing I was looking for!
• THE REST ARE PERKS I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT UNTIL THE PAST FEW DAYS:
• The company is located in the same building as my husband's company! Being a one-car family (yes, most people don't know this. Though I do have a car on loan, it's not mine so...) This is an amazing perk! Plus it's all the way in Franklin, so yeah... I thought it'd be cool to both work in Franklin with Dustin, not knowing it was the same exact building!!! He's as excited as me that we are going to be carpool buddies!!! I mean - What are the chances?!!!
• This is a new position in a revamped / new Marketing department. They were previously doing all their advertising out-of-house, but they are redoing their whole image and so they started fresh. My new boss has only been there since April. Everyone is new. I am the first (and only - for now) designer. As it grows, it will be my department and everyone new will be under me. So it was important to him for the person they hired to be a leader.
• I have a $20,000 budget to tell them what all equipment and software I will need. (I know - WHAT?!)
• I get to set my own hours. (reasonably speaking - I can hear you smarty-pants right now)
• I get to work from home sometimes. And as I get more acquainted, I can do it more often. 
• I will be on my own most of the time - no micro-managing. I'll have a partner with the copywriter. And that's about it for now! LOTS of projects to do and just me to churn out the designs. :)
• Oh, what else?! Oh yeah... best pay I've ever had in my life. BY FAR. :)
  The Reschs will have literally QUAD-DRUPLED their income from just a little over a year ago!!! (doesn't even count Relish's profits - because we are re-investing that back into the growing company!)

So... questions and notes...

1. What does this mean for Kismet? 
   I will still be handling current clients because I can manage regular clients stuff. I will not be taking on any new clients (because that entails branding and too much work). I will not be doing any more websites - which I am THRILLED about! :) But I feel SO blessed that I get to keep Kismet and the few clients whom I adore! With the removal of meetings with new/potential clients, eliminating meetings with "clients" who never want to pay me real money (#timewasters), eliminating those clients all together... I should be able to manage the business at it's most basic form very easily. :)
2. What does this mean for Relish?
   Well, I am going to do my best to manage it for now. But as we are ramping into a new season... I understand the reality that we will be needing to hire part-time help. As soon as I get my duckies in a row, I will be hiring someone trustworthy to help me with our baby! :)
   I will still be working on the catalog and the exciting things that are in the works for 2012!!! (just wait!!! It's going to be fantastic!!!)
   AND with this money, we can also invest into the company like we want to. We still feel that Relish is our future, our retirement project if you will. We have investors, a board of directors, a growing list of dealers across the country and several brides from across the world who reinforce the belief in this dream!!! So - taking this position will only help it!!!
3. NOTE: I love Kismet. I love my baby. It was never meant to be forever. I had no idea what it would become. I adore the majority of my clients and I thank them all from the bottom of my heart. My new boss (wow - I now have a boss that's not me!!!) said that it was my wide-range of experience, great portfolio and expertise that got me the job. Do you know what made all of that possible?! KISMET AND RELISH!!! Since I was paying myself - I allowed myself the time it took to learn new things. I taught myself HTML, Blog coding, SEO, etc...  I learned new design tricks! I really refined my gifting. And I could never have done that without owning my own business!
4. Should other entrepreneurs give up and get a corporate gig? 
   I have been blessed to encourage so many of my friends to start their own business!!! So, I want to say clearly... NO!!! Every business is different. My business (Kismet) depends on other small businesses. And while I can claim good things for my company, I could not always get my clients to keep the faith. Thus, the rocking economy has hurt them and in turn - me. Also, in my line of work - I had to constantly try collecting on jobs. SO NOT FUN! :( I have friends that do big bulks of work and that is great for them - easy payment process and steady work. Not so for me. 
5. What really lead to this?
   A year ago, I realize how much I was making hourly with Kismet: Less than minimum wage and it was deflating. :( I talked to our awesome pastors at church about going into a season of "digging & dunging"  - a parable in the bible about not cutting down the tree yet - to dig & dung it and then if you come back and it still isn't producing fruit - then you do something about it. Then, I started praying seriously about what to do next back in December / January. I felt like I was supposed to be doing something different. My back had went out (again) and I was going through physical therapy. Yes, it was from my position but also from STRESS. Then, I had to have surgery for endometriosis. The money it costs... ugh - more debt. Then my birth mother died a month later. And I have a younger brother (I can explain that in a whole other novel - literally) who now has basically no immediate family left but me. I want to be able to be there for him in the future should he need me like I needed people in my life. Dustin & I both want to have more so we can GIVE MORE!!! We want to be a blessing!!! :)
   All this left me to ... WANT MORE. I want to be valued for what I do. I want to live an easier, less stress life (I could write a book on the stress I've been through with Kismet... the lawsuits, etc). I wanted MORE and I feel like God wanted to PROMOTE ME. But how? Now, I know. THIS IS MY PROMOTION! :) 

How amazing it is that my awesome hubby and I are both getting promotions at the exact same time!!! I am so thrilled!!! This will help us get out of debt and into our house so much quicker!!! (our belief date is September, 2012 - believe with us!!!)

All credit to my Lord and Savior for everything He has always done for us. We have NEVER went without. We have had a good home, food and clothes. We have BARELY scraped by many, many months but He has always pulled us through!!! Thank you to those of you who have sown into our lives!!! You are part of this testimony with us! This is just the beginning. There are great things coming!!! Not just for us, but for you too!!! 

The real turnaround began when we began praying financial scriptures EVERY SINGLE DAY. We meditated on them like they were lifelines. We prayed them and soaked them in. We also filled our ears with teaching on finances and breakthroughs, from the likes of our Pastor Jim (Joy Church), Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, the Copelands and the BRILLIANT Dave Ramsey! Instead of seeing where we were, we saw where we wanted to be. I told God through this whole process... God, I'm not sure why I'm applying to a job. I thought this was my destiny. Finally, last week he revealed to me "everything is not as it seems". The final destination is still the same, but the journey is not always for us to decide! In the end, I now see I was on the right path the whole time. And if something should change again - I know it's because HE is leading me somewhere better. 

If you are struggling with debt, finances or any other challenge... I encourage you to claim the good news the Bible says! There are REAL promises in there that God gives to His children. Seriously - it's not just a book of rules. :) And you can stand on those promises!!! Just like our Pastor says - it probably won't happen overnight, but keep it up and just you wait.. :) I started this new routine over 2 years ago and slowly things began to turn!!! OH - and I tithe. ;) I know that's a sensitive subject - it was for me. Then, I finally trusted God with $10, then with $20 and then with 10%!!! You may think I'm crazy that God talks to me. But here's the deal... if you talk to Him long enough, you will start to hear back! ;) It's not in audible terms. It's creative ideas and unctions He puts in your heart. It's the best relationship you could ever have. I am not going to use this post to talk about how "down" my life could have been this year. But you can probably get it by knowing that within 2 months... I went through therapy for a slipped disc, I was told I may not ever have kids, I had to have invasive surgery, I was sued (went to court), my birth mother died suddenly in a car wreck & my business turned down. Yeah... fun stuff in the natural. But I kept ever closer to God so I could hear HIM, so I could know HIS promises!!! I will post a blog on praying over finances very soon! :)

Okay, enough already with this book. Love you guys. Pray for me on this new adventure! I feel like I'm going back to school! :) haha 

PS: I am also writing my first novel! A few chapters in now! :) But... that's big news for another day. 

Things are not as they seem...

I've been thinking a lot lately about how things are not always as they seem. I've been struggling to find mercy and understanding in situations that SEEM to be "unfair" in my eyes. Honestly, this is something I've been trying to understand the past couple years as we have went through some challenges. But just recently God spoke to my heart about this, simply making me understand that by now (with all I've been through) I should understand that life isn't that black and white. Things are often not as they seem.

Dustin and I have had financial challenges for the past... 7+ years. It's been a roller coaster of ups and downs but God has ALWAYS taken care of us and in the end, the pressure of it all was way worse than any actual consequences. Which should make me understand that I need NOT be pressured! Or worried! God has proven over and over again that despite what the situations look like, HE is our provider and He is very creative in taking care of us. We are doing much better now and on the cusp of something fairly big (for us). I will share more about that in the near future. :) In the meantime, I wanted to share some of my challenges and revelations in hopes that they can help others... It's not all about finances, no - we hit the "Big 3": finances, healthy & family. Here is a nutshell of things I THOUGHT were one way and turned out to be another.

A couple years ago, when I was praying to God to bring us our breakthrough, it felt like everyone around us was getting theirs. I had a couple friends who were doing extremely well (or so I thought). Then the wife called me one day crying because they were behind on all their bills and they were over $100,000 in debt. I ended up counseling her.
Things were not as they had seemed.

Around that same time, Kismet (my design company) got a new client who promised us the world. They loved our work and wanted us on their team as they built their new empire of a business. I was so excited! This was it - this was the breakthrough!! Because of my excitement, I broke my business policies in getting money upfront. And when they had banking issues and asked if I could wait for what was due me and keep working, I agreed. In the end, they were a scam company that got set up, ripped off a bunch of customers AND vendors and then shut down and vanished. $6000.00 I was owed - GONE! It took us a year and a half to FIND the guy and get him into court. We won & finally got paid. But I learned a valuable lesson from that as well. [NOTE: At that same time, another new client was going to take us to Hawaii so we could help them with some of their resorts there. They were just working out dates. Yep, scam as well.]
Things were not as they had seemed.

On the other side of that... Relish (my stationery company) had been getting lots of calls last Summer about invitations, but nothing had come through. Then I had a message one day from someone that was representing Loretta Lynn and they wanted us to do invitations for her event. WHAT? Then, I found out it was going to be a relatively "small job" most likely. Therefore, I did not get too excited. But, it was real. And the job just kept growing! I mean... HUGE BUDGET! The one order ended up bringing in as much money as our whole company had brought in the year before! I had no idea that phone message would end up being so big!
Things were not as they seemed.

More recently....

I had been feeling increasingly worse for the past couple years when it came to one week out of the month. Then, in January things got extremely bad, not just for that one week, but there was severe pain by my bladder. I saw my family doctor in March, who referred me to my gyno. I just knew it was Pelvic Inflammatory Disease or a Cyst because I'd been diagnosed with those at 18 and the pain was very similar. The gyno made me get ultrasounds to get a confirmed diagnosis. I got a phone call that shocked me. They said I had a wall in my uterus and scar tissue that they thought was indicative of Endometriosis. Both of these things were not on my radar at all. They told me I needed surgery immediately and also told me risks of not getting pregnant. But I just knew all I had needed was a shot! Turns out, the doctor thinks I had Endo all along, probably at 18. When I went on birth control for the cyst, it probably put the Endo in remission. I went off birth control (for other health reasons) two years ago, and so...
Things were not as they seemed.

When I went in for surgery at the end of April - there was lots of Endometriosis, but NO WALL! My doctor called so excited about the news. They thought they saw something on the ultrasound, but...
Things were not as they seemed (my God is an awesome Healing God!!!)

When my birth mother passed away on Memorial Day this year, I experienced emotions I had not expected. She had left me (multiple times) when I was a child and then ultimately given me up for adoption to my grandparents. Though I had sincerely forgiven her, I didn't think I had deep feelings for her, since I felt like I barely knew her. But...
Things were not as they seemed. I had a deep love for her I cannot explain, and a new compassion that has sprung forth out of me because of it!

During all I've been through, I have had many friends reach out to me, sometimes friends I did not expect. And I have cried many tears of JOY! SO MANY in fact! People are quick to assume the tears are of sadness, but...
Things are not as they seem.

So where is all of this coming from Stephanie? Well, recently Dustin & I have had some new opportunities present themselves. But in this journey, I have kept saying to God "But I never saw this part in the plan. You never showed this to me. This must not be from you." And He recently, quietly put on my heart "Things are not as they seem". In other words, just because I thought the Big Plan and vision He's put on our lives includes A, B & C... That doesn't mean it doesn't also include D, E, F & G. AND just because things look a little different than I had envisioned, that doesn't mean the ultimate plan / vision He's given me isn't the same. It is! The destination is the same, even if the journey looks different than you'd planned!

Just because you FEEL a certain way about how things look around you, whether in your own life or in others... don't be so quick to judge and to try to figure it all out yourself. God KNOWS the whole truth and the journey from beginning to end. If you look back, I'm sure you'll discover many of your own moments of "Wow, that was not what it seemed!" AND you will probably discover you are still on a path to greatness and a big vision He's given you. So, don't get all wrapped up in the way the package looks. TRUST GOD that A) He is your provider (financial, health & family!!!) and B) It doesn't matter!!! :) If He has a plan for you, and you trust HIM - it doesn't matter what the journey looks like as long as you are following Him!!!


"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Not Pictured...

So... I've been under some "stress" lately. :) And with that stress has come many opportunities to worry, get frustrated, worry, get angry, worry, get depressed and... did I mention worry?

Today, I was browsing my email and saw one from our realtor friend (We are still at the daydreaming stage to getting a house, but it's fun to daydream!). I opened it to take a look at some of our options. There was one listing that sounded AMAZING! It was a large house, with a large master, a jacuzzi bath, open kitchen, fenced-in backyard... lots of perks! And the description sounded great! Notice I say "sounded"? The photo of it was...



That's a bad sign to me. In fact, I usually don't even read the listing because of the lack of photos. In my experience, no photographic evidence is a bad sign. OR when the photos consist of just one of the back deck... not a good sign either. I only took the time to read this one because I was thinking about the revelation behind it.

As Christians, we can talk ourselves up all day long. Actually, we can even do the things we say. We can pray 3 hours a day, study the Word 2 hours a day, etc. But if our photo does not represent a Christian, people will look right over us to the next thing.

Too often, "Christians" try to preach to others, which is actually in reality a way for us to judge others, to feel better about ourselves, to feel smarter, etc. But if our everyday walk, our everyday attitude and our everyday fruit does not show the life of a Christian, then no one is going to pay attention to us!

I too am guilty of this in an area of life. I am so good at trusting God in so many areas of my life and so I easily preach to others about trust. But when it comes to finances, I am easily dissuaded. When something unexpected comes up in this area, I get frustrated, sometimes angry. Recently, I "lost money". I donated to something that didn't pan out and I personally lost a couple hundred dollars as well as several hours of time. I was the only person out money. I then found out that my best client was pulling out of some work they had promised me. Then the medical bills just keep coming. I was stressed, fatigued and honestly... I got angry.

It was unsettling in my spirit how I dealt with everything. When I looked in the mirror, I didn't feel like I was pictured! I know in my heart who I am. I know the teaching I have and the peace I have deep down at my foundation. I know that I am built on good ground. I know that I have rooms full of love and compassion. I know that I am a good person. But in all honesty, it was not being pictured!

When someone does something we think they should not, when we get hurt, when things go unexpectedly awry... I understand that it's so easy to get upset. I know it's easy to judge others. I know it's easy to spout your opinions on Facebook "No one should do this. If you do, you're in the wrong!" I know that. But, listen to me... As Christians, we must be PICTURED as Christians first. Allow people to see our photo as a nice person, a kind person. Let them first SEE US as a beautiful house that is built on God, with rooms full of love and compassion.

Pictures truly are worth 1000 words! And sadly, your "listing" can sounding amazing, but without the photos to back it up, you will be passed over. For me, it has meant forgiveness, trust and learning to live with joy no matter what (yes, that's right - no matter what). It means trusting God to be my provider - with finances, love, health, everything! Trust Him and move forward with that foundation. Do not worry (Matthew 6:34) but continue with peace that this moment will pass and find the joy within (from God). I don't want people to see me as a whiner, a complainer, an angry person, a person who always seems to have things going wrong in their life, a person who likes to cause division, etc. I want people to see a life of peace, built on love - God's love. That's the picture I want shown! What about you?

JOHN 13:34-35 says...
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."